SIX MONTHS
IN THE GOLD MINES:
FROM A JOURNAL OF
Three Years’ Residence
IN
UPPER AND LOWER CALIFORNIA.
1847-8-9.
BY E. GOULD BUFFUM,
LIEUTENANT FIRST REGIMENT NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
PHILADELPHIA:
LEA AND BLANCHARD.
1850.
Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1850,
BY LEA AND BLANCHARD,
In the Clerk’s Office of the District Court for the Eastern District of
Pennsylvania.
PHILADELPHIA:
C. SHERMAN, PRINTER.
TO
JOHN CHARLES FRÉMONT,
THE UNITED STATES SENATOR
FIRST CHOSEN TO REPRESENT THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA:
THE HISTORY
OF WHOSE INVALUABLE PIONEER LABOURS
WILL ENDURE AS LONG AS THE MOUNTAINS, VALLEYS, AND PLAINS
WHICH HIS COURAGE AND INDOMITABLE ENTERPRISE EXPLORED,
AND HIS GENIUS HAS ILLUSTRATED,
This Memorial of Adventure,
BY PERMISSION,
IS MOST RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBED,
BY
THE AUTHOR.
PUBLISHERS’ NOTICE.
The pages of this work, in consequence of the public interest in all
that appertains to California, have been hurried through the press,
without the revision expected by the author; there may be, therefore,
some slight errors detected through the pages. The writer of the work,
formerly connected intimately with the New York press, has been a
resident and explorer of California for more than three years, and still
remains there. The proof sheets could not, therefore, well be submitted
to his revision.
Philadelphia, May, 1850.
CONTENTS.
INTRODUCTION, 13
CHAPTER I.
Departure for the Mines--The Victims--Adventures of a Night on
San Francisco Bay--Voyage in a Launch--My Companion Higgins--Resolutions
of the Passengers--The Bay of San Pablo--The
Straits of Carquinez--Benicia--The Bay of Suisun--The Sacramento--Beautiful
Scenery--Montezuma--Monte Diablo--Camp on Shore--Hala-chum-muck--Firing
the Woods--Schwartz’s Rancho--A “manifest
destiny” Man--Involuntary Baptism--Sacramento City--The
Embarcadero, 25
CHAPTER II.
Arrival of our Party--The Mountaineer--A “prospecting” Expedition--The
Start--California Skies in November--A Drenching--Go-ahead
Higgins--“Camp Beautiful”--John the Irishman--The Indian’s
Grave--A “rock” Speech--The Return--Herd of Antelope--Johnson’s
Rancho--Acorn Gathering--Indian Squaws--Novel Costume--The
Rancheria--Pule-u-le--A Bear Fight, 35
CHAPTER III.
Yuba River--A Clean Shirt an Expensive Luxury--Yankee Pedler--The
Upper and Lower Diggings--Foster’s Bar--The Gold-Rocker--Gold-Digging
and Gold-Washing--Return to the Embarcadero--Captain
John A. Sutter--Curious Currency--Sutter’s Fort--Sam Brannan
and Co.--Washing Clothes--Salmon Shooting--Green Springs--Weaver’s
Creek--A Teamster’s Bill, 49
CHAPTER IV.
Our Log Cabin--Pi-pita-tua--Increase of our Party--The Dry Diggings
of Weaver’s Creek--The “Pockets” and “Nests”--Theory of the Gold
Region--My First Day’s Labour in the _Placers_--Extravagant Reports
from the Middle Fork--Start for Culoma--Approach of the Rainy
Season--The “Devil’s Punch-Bowl,” 59
CHAPTER V.
Sutter’s Mill--Discovery of the Placers--Marshall and Bennett--Great
Excitement--Desertion of the _Pueblos_, and general Rush for the
Mines--Gold-Mine Prices--Descent into a _Cañon_--Banks of the Middle
Fork--Pan Washing--Good Luck--Our Camp--Terrific Rain
Storm--Sudden Rise of the River, 67
CHAPTER VI.
Mormon Exploration of the Middle Fork--Headquarters of the
Gold-hunters--The North Fork--Smith’s Bar--Damming--Great Luck of a
Frenchman and his Son--Kelsey’s Bar--Rise and Fall of the Rivers--Return
to Weaver’s Creek--Agricultural Prospects--Culoma Sawmill--An
Extensive and Expensive Breakfast--“Prospecting” on the
South Fork--Winter Quarters--Snow-storm--A Robbery--Summary
Justice--Garcia, Bissi, and Manuel--Lynch Law--Trial for attempt
to Murder--Execution of the Accused--Fine Weather--How the Gold
became distributed--Volcanic Craters, 77
CHAPTER VII.
Monotonous Life at Weaver’s Creek--Dry Diggings Uncertain--Discovery
of a Rich Ravine--Great Results of One Day’s Labour--Invasion
of my Ravine--Weber and Dalor--The Indian Mode of Trading--A
Mystery--Settlement of Weaverville--Price of Gold-dust in the
Winter of 1848--Gambling--Cost of Provisions--Opening of the
Spring--Big Bar--Attack of the Land Scurvy--Symptoms and Treatment--Lucky
Discovery--Progress of Culoma--Arrival of the First
Steamer--Broadway Dandies wielding Pick and Shovel--Indian
Outrages--Capture and Execution of Redskins, 89
CHAPTER VIII.
Extent and Richness of the Gold Region of Upper California--Are the
“Gold-washings” inexhaustible?--A Home for the Starving Millions
of Europe and the Labouring Men of America--Suicidal Policy of our
Military Governors--Union of Capital, Labour, and Skill--A Word to
Capitalists--Joint-stock Companies--The Gold-bearing Quartz of the
Sierra--Experience of Hon. G. W. Wright--Extraordinary Results of
pulverizing Quartz Rock--The Gold Mines of Georgia--Steam Engines
and Stamping Machines--Growth of Sacramento and San Francisco, 103
CHAPTER IX.
The Mexican System of Government--Establishment of the Legislative
Assembly of San Francisco--Seizure of the Town Records--Address
of the Assembly recommending the Formation of a State
Government--Interference of Brevet Brigadier-General Riley--Public
Meeting--Organization of the State Convention--The Constitution--The
Elections, 113
CHAPTER X.
Growth of San Francisco--Number of Houses erected--Prices of Real
Estate--Rents--Wages of Mechanics and Labourers--Gambling--Prices
Current--Climate--Churches--Steamboats--Statistics of Shipping,
&c., &c., &c., 121
CHAPTER XI.
Weber--Sullivan--Stockton--Hudson--Georgetown--Sam Riper--The
Slate Range--The “Biggest Lump” yet found in California, 125
CHAPTER XII.
Recapitulation--Population of the Mining Region--Average Amount of
Gold Dug--Requirements of a Gold-Digger--The Best Season--In
what kind of Soil is Gold Found?--Washing Machines--California
a Habitable Country--The Learned Professions, 131
CHAPTER XIII.
The Old Towns of California, 139
CHAPTER XIV.
The New Towns of California, 149
CHAPTER XV.
Lower California, 159
INTRODUCTION.
On the 26th day of September, 1846, the 7th Regiment of New York State
Volunteers, commanded by Colonel J. D. Stevenson, sailed from the
harbour of New York under orders from the Secretary of War, to proceed
to Upper California. The objects and operations of the expedition, the
fitting out of which created some sensation at the time, are now too
well understood and appreciated to require explanation. This regiment,
in which I had the honour of holding a lieutenant’s commission,
numbered, rank and file, about seven hundred and twenty men, and sailed
from New York in the ships Loo Choo, Susan Drew, and Thomas H. Perkins.
After a fine passage of little more than five months, during which we
spent several days pleasantly in Rio Janeiro, the Thomas H. Perkins
entered the harbour of San Francisco and anchored off the site of the
town, then called Yerba Buena, on the 6th day of March, 1847. The
remaining ships arrived soon afterwards.
Alta California we found in quiet possession of the American land and
naval forces--the “stars and stripes” floating over the old Mexican
_presidios_. There being no immediate service to perform, our regiment
was posted in small detachments through the various towns.
The now famous city of San Francisco, situated near the extreme end of a
long and barren peninsular tract of land, which separates the bay of San
Francisco from the ocean, when first I landed, on its beach was almost a
solitude, there being not more than twelve or fifteen rough houses, and
a few temporary buildings for hides, to relieve the view. Where now
stands the great commercial metropolis of the Pacific, with its thirty
thousand inhabitants, its busy streets alive with the hum of trade, were
_corrals_ for cattle and unoccupied sandy hills.
With the discovery of the gold mines, a new era in the history of
California commences. This event has already changed a comparative
wilderness into a flourishing State, and is destined to affect the
commercial and political relations of the world. Between California as
she was at the period of the cession to the United States and as she is
at this time, there is no similitude. In two short years her mineral
resources have been developed, and she has at once emerged from
obscurity into a cynosure upon which nations are gazing with wondering
eyes. Her mountains and valleys, but recently the hunting grounds of
naked savages, are now peopled with a hundred thousand civilized men;
her magnificent harbours crowded with ships from far distant ports; her
rivers and bays navigated by steamboats; her warehouses filled with the
products of almost every clime, and her population energetic, hopeful,
and prosperous.
Although a history of California as she was would convey an entirely
false idea of California as she is, it may not be amiss to look back a
few months and see whence has sprung the young giantess now claiming
admission on equal terms among the starry sisterhood of our Union.
Prior to the discovery of the _placers_ the country was thinly peopled,
the inhabitants being mostly native Californians, Mexicans, and
Indians. The better classes lived the indolent life of _rancheros_;
their wealth consisting in immense herds of cattle and horses running
wild upon the hills and plains. The Indians, with the exception of those
living in a wholly savage state, were little better than serfs, and
performed all the drudgery and labour. The great staples and principal
articles of trade were hides and tallow, for which goods at enormous
prices were taken in exchange. Money was the scarcest article on the
coast, many persons never seeing a dollar from one year’s end to
another, ox hides having acquired the name and answering the purpose of
“California bank notes.” The amusements of the country were gambling and
_fandangoes_, freely participated in by both sexes, and all classes of
the community. A few American, English, and French merchants resided at
San Francisco, Monterey, Santa Barbara, and Los Angelos, who conducted
the whole mercantile business of the country. The missions, once
flourishing establishments, stripped of their privileges by the Mexican
government, had fallen to decay. The native inhabitants, a kind,
hospitable, and light-hearted race, too indolent even to desire more
than an _adobe_ house for a dwelling, beef and _frijoles_ for food, and
spirited horses to bear them dashingly over the hills and prairies, were
either the victims of the tyranny of the central government, or of
_pronunciamentos_ and petty civil broils; and California, with her
delicious climate, her inexhaustible resources, and important
geographical position, might to this day have remained an almost unknown
region, visited occasionally by a trading vessel with an assorted cargo,
to be exchanged for hides, had not a mysterious Providence ordained the
discovery of the golden sands of the Rio Americano. This event at once
gave a tremendous impetus to commerce and emigration, and may be said
to mark an important era in the history of the world.
Upper California, as defined by the old maps, embraces the region of
country lying between the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra de los Mibres
on the east, and the Pacific Ocean on the west; and is bounded on the
north by the 42d degree of latitude, and on the south by _Baja_ or Lower
California and Sonora. Its extent from east to west is from six to seven
hundred miles, with an area of about four hundred thousand square miles.
The boundaries of the new “State of California” as fixed by the
Constitution are as follows, viz.: “Commencing at the point of
intersection of the 42d degree of north latitude with the 120th degree
of longitude west from Greenwich, and running south on the line of said
120th degree of west longitude until it intersects the 39th degree of
north latitude; thence running in a straight line in a south-easterly
direction to the river Colorado, at a point where it intersects the 35th
degree of north latitude; thence down the middle of the channel of said
river, to the boundary line between the United States and Mexico, as
established by the treaty of May 30, 1848; thence running west and along
said boundary line to the Pacific Ocean, and extending therein three
English miles; thence running in a northwesterly direction, and
following the Pacific coast to the 42d degree of north latitude; thence
on the line of said 42d degree of north latitude to the place of
beginning. Also all the islands, harbours, and bays, along and adjacent
to the Pacific coast.”
The new state, embracing the whole country between the Pacific and the
120th degree of west longitude, includes both the western and eastern
flanks of the Sierra, and must contain an area of at least one hundred
and fifty thousand square miles, being from one hundred to two hundred
and fifty miles wide. This has been called the Maritime Region of
California, and contains nearly all the territory susceptible of
cultivation and inhabitable by civilized man. While the Great Basin or
Desert lying east of the Sierra Nevada, between four and five thousand
feet above the level of the sea, hemmed in on all sides by lofty ranges
of snow-clad mountains, completely isolated and shut out from
communication with any other part of the world for at least half the
year, abounding in sterile plains and arid waters, with few fertile
spots, must for ever remain a sparsely peopled region; the country lying
west of the Sierra is smiling with plenty, and capable of sustaining a
population of several millions.
There have never been greater mistakes made by writers than in
describing and estimating the climate and resources of California. The
most contradictory statements have been made, only to be reconciled on
the ground that the country was seen from different points, and at
different seasons of the year. It seems to have been forgotten that
Upper California embraces a region of country extending along the coast
of the Pacific a distance of more than six hundred miles, with a
difference of ten degrees of latitude, affording scope for a wide range
and vast difference of climate. The whole surface of the country is
broken up into mountains, valleys and plains, and is traversed from
north to south by the Sierra Nevada and the Coast Range, some of the
volcanic peaks of the former rising to the height of sixteen thousand
feet into the region of perpetual snow. The country directly bordering
the coast has a high mean temperature, while a few miles interior the
climate will be found of the mildest and most genial character--the
atmosphere being remarkable for its softness and purity. Taking a
general view, I doubt much if any country in the world can boast a more
equable and salubrious climate. South of Sutter’s Fort, snow or ice is
seldom or never seen, except in the dim distance on the crests of the
mountain ranges. Upon the coast strong winds and fog prevail the greater
part of the year, rendering it unpleasant, though by no means unhealthy.
The appearance of the native population bears evidence to the salubrity
of the climate. The men are tall, well formed, and robust, and when
visiting their mother country, Mexico, have been looked upon almost as
giants. The women are queenly, with dark, flashing eyes, and magnificent
busts, and are remarkable for their fruitfulness. Families boasting
twelve, fifteen, and even twenty-five children, have been frequently met
with. With the exception of the new country now occupied by the miners,
epidemics are unknown; and it is a singular fact, that that awful
scourge of mankind, the cholera, has never left its destroying
footprints in California. The great peculiarity of the climate is its
rainy season. From the month of April to November rain is almost
unknown, while during the winter months it falls in torrents. During the
present season the rains, however, have been light, and delightful
spring weather for a week or ten days successively has not been
unfrequent. During the “dry season,” heavy night dews almost supply the
place of rain, leaving the ground richly moistened in the morning.
The soil of California, like the face of the country, is extremely
diversified. The hills are usually barren, while throughout the whole
territory are well-watered valleys, whose soil is a rich black loam,
capable of producing many of the tropical fruits, and all the products
of the temperate zones. I cannot say I consider California, in its
present condition, an agricultural country. The rich and extensive
valleys which exist from north to south are indeed susceptible of the
highest cultivation, and will produce in the greatest luxuriance, but
the hills along the Coast Range are generally barren and sandy, and
almost devoid of shrubbery, while the plains, during eight months of the
year, are parched with the summer heat. There is this to be said,
however;--the experiment has never been fairly tried. When the mineral
region shall offer less temptation than at present, and American
industry and ingenuity have been brought to bear, the capacities of the
soil will be fairly tested. The extensive and fertile valleys of the
Sacramento and San Joaquin, which offer the greatest inducements to the
agriculturist, lie north of San Francisco. The lower Sacramento valley
is about one hundred and seventy miles long, and about sixty broad in
the widest part. The valley of the San Joaquin is nearly three hundred
miles long, and from fifty to sixty miles wide. Both of these valleys
are well wooded, and are watered by the two great rivers (from which
they take their name) and their tributaries, and abound with a great
variety of game. Herds of elk, black-tailed deer, and antelopes are seen
bounding over the hills and plains,--and grizzly bears, _coyotes_,
minxes, badgers, hares, foxes, and wild geese are abundant. Wheat grows
plentifully at many points, yielding from thirty to fifty bushels to the
acre. It is said that much of the land will give an average yield of
eighty bushels of wheat for every one sown.
The great difficulty in the way of extensive agricultural operations is
the lack of rain. But wherever the soil can be irrigated, everything
grows most luxuriantly; and it is astonishing to what an extent the wild
oats and rye, which cover the Coast Range and some of the foot hills of
the Sierra, grow even without it. In most places where the land can be
irrigated, a succession of crops may be raised throughout the year.
Water can always be found by digging for it, and the many small streams
afford the means of irrigation.
South of San Francisco lie the beautiful and fertile valleys of San Jose
and San Juan--the garden spot of California. In these valleys, and in
the whole southern country below Point Conception and the _Cuesta de
Santa Jues_, about latitude 35°, most of the tropical and all the fruits
of the temperate zone are produced in great profusion. Figs, grapes,
olives, bananas, pomegranates, peaches, apples, quinces, pears, melons,
and plums of the finest quality grow abundantly. The olive of California
is larger than the French, and declared by _gourmets_ to be far superior
in flavour,--while the wine pressed from the Californian grape needs
only to become better known to be appreciated. Among the fruits of
California growing wild throughout the whole country, is the _tuna_ or
prickly pear, one of the most delicious fruits I have eaten. Onions,
potatoes, parsnips, carrots, and other culinary vegetables, are produced
in the lower country in great size and abundance. Hemp grows wild in
many places, and sugar-cane, cotton, and rice may be grown upon the
plains with the aid of irrigation. There is no country in the world
better adapted for grazing; and the raising of stock, particularly
sheep, will yet prove one of the most profitable branches of industry.
The wild shrubbery is of an excellent character for sheep, and the
climate is peculiarly adapted to their growth.
In mineral resources California stands unrivalled. To say nothing at
present of her immense _placers_ of gold, she contains within her bosom
minerals of other kinds sufficient to enrich her. In the north, on the
Coast Range above Sonoma, saltpetre, copper, sulphur, and lead, have
been found in large quantities; the latter so pure, that I was told by
an old hunter two years ago, that he had frequently run his bullets from
the ore. Silver mines have been discovered on the south side of San
Francisco Bay, and near the _Pueblo de San Jose_ are the famous
quicksilver mines of New Almaden, said to be superior to those of Spain.
A species of coal, between the bituminous and the anthracite, has been
found in the vicinity of San Diego, San Luis Obispo, and Santa Cruz, and
iron exists throughout the country.
California occupies a geographical position of the first rank and
importance, and must eventually control the commerce of the vast
Pacific. With a coast extending more than six hundred miles from north
to south, indented with numerous bays and harbours, connected with her
golden interior almost to the base of the lofty Sierra by navigable
streams, blessed with a mild and salubrious climate, and capable of
sustaining a large population, she must one day become the _entrepôt_ of
the commerce of the East. With South America on the one side and Oregon
on the other--the vast empire of China, the rich isles of the Indies,
Polynesia, Japan, and the Sandwich Islands, lying close at hand--a steam
communication will connect her with the most distant of these points in
a few weeks. When with iron bands she is connected with the great valley
of the Mississippi, and thence with the shores of the Atlantic, the
commerce which now is borne around Cape Horn must inevitably pass
through her borders; and long ere that is accomplished, the completion
of the railroad across the Isthmus of Panama, or a ship canal across
that of Tehuantepec, will bind her with a closely woven chain to the
eastern shores of our Union.
The following pages have been written _currente calamo_, in moments
stolen from the cares of business, within sound of the click of hammers,
the grating of saws, and all the noise, bustle, excitement,
speculation, and confusion of San Francisco, and on the eve of my
departure for a further exploration of the great southern mines. Under
these circumstances, no particular regard has been paid to style. It is
not to be expected that a California gold-hunter can afford to bestow
hours on the mere polishing of sentences and rounding of periods like a
Parisian _litterateur_. They contain a narrative of my journey to, and
life and adventures in, the golden region of California, during the
autumn, winter, and spring of 1848-9, with a full and complete
description of the principal _placers_, the process of extracting gold
from the earth, and the necessary machines and implements; a theory of
the origin of the golden sands; an account of the gold-bearing quartz of
the Sierra Nevada; a history of the rise and progress of the principal
new towns and cities; the formation of the state government, and a six
months’ residence on the Gulf of Lower California. I have endeavoured to
give a truthful narrative, and statistics upon which reliance may be
placed, with a view to a better understanding of the subject than can be
gained from the garbled, and in some cases maliciously untrue
statements, which have flooded the eastern press, written in some cases
by men who have never been farther than the town of San Francisco or
Stockton, and who of course know nothing of the country or the
_placers_.
The statements of one attracted to California by other charms than those
of gold, a resident within her borders for nearly three years,
conversant with the language, manners, and customs of her inhabitants,
an observer of her wonderful growth, and a gold-digger for six months,
will undoubtedly be received with consideration; and if I succeed in
imparting to my readers (every one of whom has probably a brother or
some dear friend here), a correct idea of this interesting region, to
which the eyes of the whole world are now directed, I shall have
achieved my object.
At the time of the discovery of the _placers_, I was stationed at La
Paz, Lower California, but being ordered to Upper California, arrived at
Monterey in the middle of June, 1848, about six weeks after the
discovery had been made public. The most extravagant stories were then
in circulation, but they were mostly viewed as the vagaries of a heated
fancy by the good people of Monterey. I was ordered to the Pueblo de los
Angelos for duty, where I arrived on the fourth day of July, and
remained with the detachment with which I was connected until it was
disbanded, on the 18th day of September, 1848. The day of our
disbandment was hailed with joy such as a captive must feel on his
release from slavery. For three long months we had anxiously awaited the
event. The stories from the mines breathed the spirit of the Arabian
tales, and visions of “big lumps” floated before our eyes. In three days
_La Ciudad de los Angelos_ was deserted by its former occupants, and
wagons and horses laden with tin pans, crowbars, iron pots, shovels,
pork, and pickaxes, might have been seen on the road to the _placers_.
On the 18th of October, I reached San Francisco, where a curious state
of things was presented. Gold dust and coin were as plentiful as the
sea-shore sands, and seemed to be thought about as valuable. The town
had but little improved since I first saw it, as upon the discovery of
the mines it had been nearly deserted by its inhabitants. Real estate
had been slowly depreciating for several months, and the idea of San
Francisco being a large city within two years had not yet been broached.
Merchandise of all descriptions was exceedingly high. Flour was selling
at $50 per barrel; dried beef 50 cents per pound; coffee 50 cents;
shovels $10 each; tin pans $5 do.; crow-bars $10 do.; red flannel shirts
$5 do.; common striped shirts $5 do.; common boots $16 per pair; and
everything else in proportion. I made a few purchases and held myself in
readiness to start for the _placers_.
San Francisco, January 1st, 1850.
SIX MONTHS IN THE GOLD MINES.
CHAPTER I.
Departure for the Mines--The Victims--Adventures of a Night on San
Francisco Bay--Voyage in a Launch--My Companion
Higgins--Resolutions of the Passengers--The Bay of San Pablo--The
Straits of Carquinez--Benicia--The Bay of Suisun--The
Sacramento--Beautiful Scenery--Montezuma--Monte Diablo--Camp on
Shore--Hala-chum-muck--Firing the Woods--Schwartz’s Rancho--A
“manifest destiny” Man--Involuntary Baptism--Sacramento City--The
Embarcadero.
Armed with a pickaxe, shovel, hoe, and rifle, and accoutred in a red
flannel shirt, corduroy pants, and heavy boots, and accompanied by two
friends, I found myself, on the afternoon of the 25th of October, 1848,
wending my way to the only wharf in San Francisco, to take passage for
the golden hills of the Sierra Nevada. The scenes that for days had met
my eyes, and even as I was stepping on board the launch, might have
damped the ardour of a more adventurous man. Whole launch-loads of
miserable victims of fever and ague were daily arriving from the mining
region--sallow, weak, emaciated and dispirited--but I had nerved myself
for the combat, and doubt not that I would have taken passage when I did
and as I did, had the arch-enemy of mankind himself stood helmsman on
the little craft that was to bear me to El Dorado. We had engaged and
paid our passage, and such was our eagerness to get a conveyance of
some kind, that we had not even looked at the frail bark in which we
were to entrust our now more than ever before valuable bodies.
The “Ann” was a little launch of about ten tons burden, a mere ship’s
boat, entirely open, and filled with barrels and merchandise of every
kind, and eight human beings, who, besides ourselves, had taken passage
in her. I looked at her,--there was not room upon her deckless hull to
stow a brandy bottle securely. We tried to reason the captain into an
idea of the danger of proceeding with so much freight, but the only
reply he gave us was, that “he received four dollars a hundred for it.”
There was no alternative, so in we jumped, and about dusk the boat was
under way, and scudding with a fair wind across the bay of San
Francisco.
There was, of course, no room to cook on board, and there was no galley
or furnace to cook in; and, indeed, there was nothing to cook, as in our
hurry we had neglected to make purchases of any necessary articles of
food, and expected to be furnished with our meals among the other
accommodations of our boat. The captain generously offered us some
cheese and crackers, and after regaling ourselves on these, we commenced
instituting a search for sleeping-places. It was by this time dark, and
black clouds were sweeping over the sky. The wind had changed, and we
were beating off and on Angel Island, while the spray was dashing over
our boat’s sides, which were nearly level with the water from her great
load. It augured anything but a pleasant night, and here were eleven of
us, with a prospect of rain and spray, forced to find some means of
sleeping on the pile of barrels or boxes that loaded the boat, or pass a
night of sleeplessness.
Sharper-sighted than my companions, I had spied out a box of goods
lying aft that rose above the mingled mass around it, and upon which, by
doubling myself into a most unnatural and ungentlemanly position, I
could repose the upper portion of my body, while my heels rested on the
chines of a pork-barrel, at an angle of about forty-five degrees above
my head. With a selfishness peculiar to the human race, I appropriated
the whole of this couch to myself, and was already in the land of
dreams, with bright visions of “big lumps” and bigger piles of gold
flitting before my spiritual eyes, when I felt myself roughly shaken,
and awaking, found Higgins, one of my companions, standing at my side,
who coolly informed me that “my time was up, and it was now his turn.”
It seems that, during my absence in the visionary world, a council had
been held by all hands, in which it was gravely decided and resolved,
_First_, “that there was no other feasible sleeping-place than the box
then occupied by me;” _Secondly_, “that it was contrary to the laws of
all human society, that one man should appropriate to his own private
and individual use _all_ of this world’s goods;” and _Thirdly_, “that,
for the next twenty-four hours, all hands should in rotation take a nap
upon the box.” When Higgins woke me, the rain-drops were pattering upon
my “_serape_,” and half asleep I jumped up, and going forward, found a
little place where I could half lie down; and in this manner, with the
rain-drops and surf dashing upon me, and every roll of the little boat
threatening to cast me upon the waters, I passed that night on the bay
of San Francisco,--a night which I shall never forget. My companions and
fellow-sufferers, when not occupying the box, were either catching an
occasional wink in a perpendicular position, or sitting upon the chines
of a barrel, wishing with all their hearts for daylight.
Morning at length came, as morning always will, even after the longest
night, and the warm sun soon was shining upon us, and drying our wet
clothing, and invigorating our dampened spirits. We had passed, during
the night, out of the bay of San Francisco into that of San Pablo. This
bay is about ten miles in diameter, its form being nearly circular. Its
entrance is about eight miles from the town of San Francisco, and is
marked by two rocky islands known as the “Two Brothers,” lying a few
yards from each other, and white with birdlime. The usual channel is on
the left of these rocks. From the bay of San Pablo we entered the
straits of Carquinez, thirty-five miles from San Francisco, and at about
noon we were abreast of the town of Benicia.
The straits of Carquinez are about one mile in width, and six in length,
and connect the bay of San Pablo with that of Suisun. Near the head of
the straits and the entrance to Suisun Bay, is placed the city of
Benicia. This town was the first laid out among the new towns of
California, and many months before the discovery of the mines gave a
tremendous impetus to town making. Benicia seems destined to become a
great city, and perhaps rival San Francisco in point of commercial
importance,--possessing, as it unquestionably does, many advantages over
it. The banks are bold and steep, and sufficient depth of water is found
here at all seasons for vessels to lie and discharge their cargoes
directly at the bank; while at San Francisco the tide only serves once
in twenty-four hours, and even then all cargoes are obliged to be
transported in launches and scows from the ships, which are forced to
lie at some distance from the shore, in consequence of the broad flat in
front of the town.
Leaving Benicia, we proceeded into the bay of Suisun, and passing the
delta of the San Joaquin, entered the magnificent Sacramento, the Hudson
of the western world. The lofty Palisades are not here; but to the
lover of the picturesque and beautiful, the tall oak groves, through
which the deer, the elk, and antelope are bounding, the golden hue of
the landscape, the snowy peaks of the distant Sierra, the lofty Mount
Diablo, and the calm, broad, and placid river, present a scene upon the
Sacramento as enchanting as that which broke upon the enraptured vision
of old Hendrick Hudson. At the entrance of the river the land is low and
somewhat marshy, being covered with a thick, rank growth of _tule_, a
species of rush, of which the Indians make baskets, chairs, and many
little articles. On the left bank of the entrance to the Sacramento was
the magnificent city of Montezuma, consisting of one unfinished house,
through which the autumn winds were rattling. This is one of the paper
towns laid out some three years since, and abandoned since the discovery
of the _placers_ has brought out more favourable points of location. The
Sacramento here is about a mile in width; and to the right, rising up
apparently from the end of the _tule_ prairie, is the rugged peak of
Monte Diablo (Devil’s Mountain), four thousand feet in height. The low,
alluvial bottom lands along the shore appear susceptible of the highest
cultivation; and I doubt not, when the gold mania shall have partially
ceased, the rich bottoms of the Sacramento will be clothed with
farm-houses, the abodes of happiness, peace, and plenty, and that the
music of lowing herds will resound over its spreading prairies.
At the mouth of the river there is very little timber; but in our
progress upward we found the oak and the sycamore growing most
luxuriantly; and, extending back on the left bank as far as the eye
could reach, a spreading prairie of wild oats and mustard, the latter
raising its yellow-flowered head to the height of many feet. We “tied
up” for the night about four miles from the entrance of the river, and
building a large fire on shore, and cooking some potatoes and pork, with
which the captain generously furnished us, determining to spend this
night stretched upon a level, went to sleep around the camp fire, and
made good ere morning for our previous night’s misery, and slept in
utter disregard of the wolves and grizzly bears which abound in that
region.
The next day, there being no wind, we were obliged to pull for it, and
about dusk reached Hala-chum-muck, or, as it is now called, “Suisun,” a
city under that cognomen having been laid out here. The “city” is on the
left bank of the river, and about fifteen miles from its mouth, on a
bold, high bank, and surrounded by a fine growth of oak timber.
Hala-chum-muck is an old stopping-place on the river; and finding the
remains of a house here, we “tied up,” and going on shore, and making a
fire from the remnants of some boards, which had been pulled from the
roof of the house, cooked another supper, and slept on the ground, with
a small piece of roof over our heads.
Hala-chum-muck derives its name from an Indian story connected with it.
Many years ago, a party of hunters were encamped here for the night, and
being attacked by Indians, after a brave resistance were all killed,
with the exception of one, who, as he was escaping, was followed with a
cry from the Indians of “Hala-chum-muck” (nothing to eat), probably, as
he had been forced to throw down his rifle, signifying thereby that they
would leave him to die of starvation. The spot has, ever since that
time, borne the name of “Hala-chum-muck.”
There were three families living here, with a stock of cattle, when the
_placers_ were discovered, and Hala-chum-muck was bidding fair to be a
town; but on the reception of the golden news, they deserted their
ranchos, and the crews of launches which stopped here soon killed off
the cattle and destroyed the dwellings. Lots in Suisun, however, are
now selling rapidly, and at high rates.
We continued our progress up the river, occasionally stopping and
amusing ourselves by firing the woods on either side, and watching the
broad flames as they spread and crackled through the underbrush. On the
night of the 30th, we hauled up at the rancho of Schwartz--an old
German, of whom Bryant speaks as a man who has forgotten his own
language, and never acquired any other. He is certainly the most curious
specimen of humanity it was ever my lot to witness. He emigrated to
California some ten years since, and obtained a grant of six leagues of
land, extending up and down the Sacramento River; and in the progress of
time he will probably be one of the richest land-holders of California.
He has built upon the bank of the river a little hut of _tule_,
resembling a miserable Indian wigwam; and there he lives, a “manifest
destiny” man, with “masterly inactivity” awaiting the march of
civilization, and anticipating at some future day the sale of his lands
for a princely fortune--a hope in which he will probably not be
disappointed. His language is a mixture of his old mother German,
English, Spanish, French, and Indian; and it would require an apter
linguist than it was ever my good fortune to meet with, to comprehend
his “lingua.”
I underwent an operation at Schwartz’s rancho, that sealed my full
connexion and communion with the region to which I was travelling. It
was no less than an impromptu baptism in the golden waters of the
Sacramento. We had built a fire on shore, and having purchased from
Schwartz a few pounds of beef at gold-digger’s price, _i.e._ one dollar
per pound, had eaten our supper, when I started for the launch, which
lay about ten yards from the shore, to get my blankets. The only
conveyance was an old log canoe of Schwartz’s; and seating myself in
it, in company with one of my companions and an Indian boy he had
brought with him, we pushed off. The Indian was seated in the canoe’s
bow, and was frightened by the oscillating motion given to it, when it
was first pushed off from the shore. To balance the roll upon one side,
he leaned to the other, and finding a corresponding motion in that
direction, he reversed his position, and leaning too far, upset the
canoe, and all three of us. I, with a heavy overcoat on, and my rifle in
hand, tumbled into about fifteen feet of water. I dropped the rifle as
though it were boiling lead, and made the best of my way to the shore.
We all arrived safely on _terra firma_, and going on board alone in the
canoe, I changed my clothing. Telling old Schwartz that I must encroach
upon his hospitality, and drinking about a pint of some coloured New
England rum, which he assured me was “de tres best clasa de brandy,” I
stretched my blankets on the mud floor of his wigwam, and awoke in the
morning in as good health and spirits as though nothing had happened. I
engaged the services of a Kanaka, who was on board, to dive for my
rifle; and after he had brought it up, we got under way, and after
sleeping another night on the banks of the Sacramento, reached the
“Embarcadero,” now Sacramento City, on the evening of November 2d. The
river here is about eight hundred feet wide.
The beautiful plain on which is now located the thriving and populous
city of Sacramento, was, when I first landed there, untenanted. There
was not a house upon it, the only place of business being an old
store-ship laid up upon its bank. Where now, after a lapse of only one
year, a flourishing city with a population of twelve thousand stands, I
pitched my tent on the edge of a broad prairie.
To complete the party with which we intended going to the mines, we were
obliged to wait at the Embarcadero for three of our disbanded soldiers,
who had left the Pueblo de los Angeles about the time we did, and were
coming by land through the Tularè valley, as we required their horses to
pack the provisions we had brought with us.
We pitched our tent, cooked our provisions, and anxiously waited the
arrival of the men, a prey to the greatest excitement,--continually
hearing as we did, the most extravagant stories from the mining region.
The intense heat of the summer solstice had given way to autumn’s
cooling breezes, and parties were daily arriving at and leaving the
Embarcadero; the former with their pockets well lined with gold dust,
and the latter with high hopes and beating hearts.