thronged, and appeared to be doing all the business of the town.
_Monte-banks_ were even opened under tents, the patrons standing up to
their knees in mud. The Round Tent contained eight tables, each letting
for eight dollars per day. These, together with the profits of the bar,
paid Mr. Weeks, the proprietor, at least $100 per day--a fair income for
a tent, particularly one in which a man needs an umbrella and a pair of
India rubber boots. The rain did not dampen the ardor of the operators,
but caused them to treat more frequently, which gave them more ready
access to their victims.
Here were gray-haired men commingling with boys in the game--profanity
and dissipation--some of them having passed, perhaps, within the last
twenty-four hours, from a competence to penury. A gloom seemed to
pervade the countenance, revealing the reckless despondence that reigned
within.
How truthfully were their feelings portrayed in the gloom of the
surrounding elements. Here were young men, who, a few months previous,
had left their friends and homes with vigorous constitutions, and
characters unblemished, to seek their fortunes in this land of gold. A
few short months had sufficed to accomplish the work of ruin. In an
unguarded moment they were tempted from the path of rectitude; they
visited the gaming-tables and halls of dissipation; and when the brief
dream was over, they awoke and found ruin, like a demon, staring them in
the face. They had neither means nor character, and their constitutions
had been laid waste by the blighting hand of dissipation. Who can
calculate the hours of anguish, or tears of blood that have been wrung
from the hearts of bereaved parents and friends by that blighting curse.
Sacramento had become a large city (see Plate), and, next to San
Francisco, the most important town in the State. It numbered at this
time from twelve to fifteen thousand inhabitants. The town is regularly
laid out, the streets running at right angles, many of which are closely
built upon for the distance of a mile. The margin of the river is bold,
and vessels of the largest class are moored to its banks. Some of them
are used as stores, others as dwelling or boarding places. The steamer
Senator runs up to the bank and puts out a gang-plank, which is all
that is necessary for the accommodation of passengers. The town at the
time was submerged in mud, the streets almost impassable. Flour, pork,
bread, &c., were piled up along the sides of the streets without
protection. There were many surmises as to the probability of the city
being flooded in case of freshet. It was said by the “oldest inhabitant”
that the surrounding country, including the site of the town, had been
flooded, so that canoes had been navigated as far as Sutter’s Fort.
Indications went to confirm his statement. There are gullies running
through the town that have undoubtedly been caused by floods, and in the
sequel, proved channels too small to relieve the city from inundation.
Many kinds of goods had become extremely scarce, and were selling at
exorbitant prices. This was the case with woollen clothing, boots, and
provisions. Common flannel shirts were selling at from $5 to $8 each;
blankets at from $12 to $20 per pair; and ordinary boots from $20 to
$32. Long boots of grained leather were held at, and selling for 6 ozs.
($96.) The interior, or mining regions, were entirely destitute, and
merchants were in town from every point, trying to contract for the
transportation of goods. Teamsters knew the country to be impassable,
and although as high as $50, and even $100 per 100 lbs. was offered for
a distance of fifty miles, no one would make the attempt. The
consequence was, that miners were driven into town in many cases, to
prevent starvation. Trade, during the latter part of the summer, and for
the first one or two weeks of the rainy season, had been remarkably
brisk in Sacramento City. The advance in prices of all the staple
articles had enabled merchants to reap immense profits, and many, within
a few weeks, had made fortunes.
The impetus to trade had come upon them, unawares; some had leased their
stores for short terms; others merely kept possession from day to day;
but when this season of prosperity burst upon them, all were anxious to
secure leases for the longest possible period. Thousands were eager to
embark in trade, offering unparalleled rents--in many cases as high as
$100 per day for a store. Long leases were granted at these exorbitant
rents, and in consequence of the scarcity of tenements, lots were
purchased--the prices predicated upon the above--buildings
[Illustration: G. V. COOPER DEL.
ON STONE BY J. CAMERON
LITH. OF G. W. LEWIS 111 NASSAU ST. N. Y.
S^T. LUCAS.
_LOWER CALIFORNIA. (Looking Northwest)_]
erected and immediately occupied. A season of prosperity had been
experienced without a parallel. Men were not confined in their
operations to their legitimate business, but would invest in anything
that presented itself, and everything had been turned to advantage. But
as soon as the rainy season cut off communication with the interior, a
depression was felt, and soon an entire stagnation in all departments of
business. This was not a time when the current of business could be
safely checked; people had been borne to their present positions by one
of the most buoyant seas; and should this pass from beneath them, the
other extreme must as inevitably follow as the ebb follows the flood.
This extreme was soon reached. Men found themselves with heavy stocks on
hand that would not command one-half their cost. City lots that had cost
them thousands, would not now command as many hundreds. Many found it
impossible to pay their enormous rents, even with their gross amount of
sales. A crash was inevitable, and it came; and all were buried beneath
the ruins of their own structures. The elements seemed destined to
complete the devastation, and on the 10th of December the city was
inundated, the deluge running riot through the streets, carrying houses
from their foundations, and causing the inhabitants to flee to the
shipping for safety.
Chapter Twenty-third.
SAIL FOR SAN FRANCISCO--A FLEET--MUD--PROSPERITY--SHIPS AND
STOREHOUSES--BUOYANT SEAS--SHOALS IN BUSINESS--REVULSION AND
FIRE--THEIR CONSEQUENCES--SAIL FOR SANTA BARBARA--THE
TOWN--DEXTEROUS FEAT BY A GRIZZLY BEAR--FASHIONS--SAIL FOR ST.
LUCAS--PORPOISES AND SEA FOWLS, THEIR SPORTS--APPROACH THE
TOWN--PECULIAR SKY--CAVERNS IN THE SEA--CACTUS--BEAUTIFUL SEA
SHELLS--SAIL FOR ACAPULCO--MAGNIFICENT SCENERY--VOLCANOS AND
CASCADES--VOLCANOS AT NIGHT--ETERNAL SNOW.
On the 22d November we procured tickets on the steamboat “Senator,” at
$30 each, and at 8 A.M., were under way for San Francisco. We passed
along down at North River speed, arriving at 5 P.M. As we passed through
the bay, we were struck with the vast amount of shipping, numbering no
less than five hundred sail--a fleet which, in tonnage and number of
sail, was never before equalled. (See Plate.) The city had also made
gigantic strides. The sand-hills had been leveled, and the city had, as
it were, in a day, taken the whole of the surrounding country under its
wings. Here, however, as in Sacramento City, the streets were most
bountifully supplied with mud, requiring, in some cases, most dexterous
movements to keep above ground.
Nothing had occurred, up to this time, to check the tide of prosperity,
which had borne the citizens on, to the very acme of their ambition.
Every one in trade had realized fortunes, and were still bountifully
supplied with goods, some having large invoices piled outside for want
of room within. Still all were ambitious to add to their stock, and were
hiring money at ten per cent. a month to invest in provisions, boots,
and winter clothing, all of which were commanding exorbitant prices.
Chilian flour, in two hundred pound sacks, was purchased by the quantity
at $40 per sack, in anticipation of a scarcity; other provisions at
prices predicated upon the above. Rents were extravagantly
[Illustration: G. V. COOPER DEL.
ON STONE BY J. CAMERON
LITH. OF G. W. LEWIS 111 NASSAU ST. N. Y.
COAST OF LOWER CALIFORNIA,
_Showing the peculiarity of the Sky._]
high, and real estate commanding unheard-of prices. Many magnificent
buildings had been erected for banking-houses, hotels, and gambling
saloons, all occupied--their tenants reaping daily fortunes; gamblers
seemed to be on the very top wave of prosperity, and they were about the
only class of citizens who confined themselves strictly to their
_legitimate_ business. Their saloons were swarming with people, who
seemed to patronize them for want of other amusement.
The scarcity of facilities for storing goods, had induced parties to
purchase ships, which after cutting away the spars, they would head in
shore, run aground, and scuttle; then connecting them to the shore by
piers, and building a story on the upper deck, they were ready for
occupation, being less exposed in case of fire, and more easy of access,
than buildings on shore. The Niantic and Apollo, ships well known in
this latitude, were thus converted, but have since, together with the
city, been converted into ashes. The water-lots belonging to the city
were sold at auction, and purchased by parties, who immediately
commenced extensive docks, and were soon in a condition to invite
vessels along side. Improvements were commenced, and matured as if by
magic and no cloud was discernible in the business horizon, to dampen
the ardor or cause the business man to look out for a cross sea. No one
was fearful of shoals, as none were laid down in their charts; all
forgetting, that, no matter how buoyant a sea, it always finds a shoal
upon which to break.
Business was transacted on a gigantic scale, and with an indomitable
energy, but with a recklessness unparalleled. It must have been apparent
to every one who looked upon these transactions with an eye of
experience, that the least check to ruling prices must cause a revulsion
that would prostrate the entire commercial interest of the country.
Being entirely dependent upon the Atlantic cities for supplies, the
market was liable to be overstocked at any moment; but business men did
not seem to take this into consideration, but operated as if an embargo
had been laid upon all shipments, and they were about to secure all the
supplies that were ever to reach the shores of California. This was the
foundation upon which business transactions were predicated, and, to
finish the structure, money was hired at from ten to twelve per cent. a
month, and invested. A revulsion was inevitable, and when it came it was
accompanied by a conflagration that devastated the entire city. Business
was paralyzed, and firms that had been thought to be worth millions,
were not only penniless, but with heavy debts hanging upon them from
which there was no prospect of relief. All found themselves overwhelmed
with liabilities, and with a very few exceptions, none could even make a
fractional dividend in favor of their creditors. One of the most
extensive firms in the city, a firm that within two short weeks had
considered themselves worth five millions, now found themselves indebted
to almost that amount, without a dollar in hand, and nothing in prospect
by which they could even expect to make a comfortable living. The
partner who established the firm, became a citizen before the gold
excitement. He was in the prime of life, universally beloved for his
courteous and gentlemanly bearing, and one of those chivalrous spirits
who never turn their backs upon a friend or foe. He was a terror to the
“hounds,” and other organizations of villainy, in San Francisco, and was
the most effectual instrument in organizing the self-constituted police;
this reverse of fortune, however, together with the loss of an
accomplished and beloved wife, so preyed upon his spirits that he made
an attempt upon his own life.
Miners were returning to town by scores, driven in by the scarcity of
provisions, owing to the impassable condition of the country, and
merchants of the interior were driven from their posts by the same
cause. All could not get employment in town, and but few were able to
remain in idleness; the consequence was that many sailed for the
Sandwich and other Pacific islands in search of labor, or in hopes of
finding a less expensive place to spend the winter. Others were
preparing to return home. These causes, together with the arrival of
large consignments of provisions, were soon most sensibly felt. Flour
was offering in the market at $25 per sack; many having heavy stocks on
hand for which they had paid $40, and with money for which they were
then paying ten per cent. a month. Every steamer from the interior, as
well as those clearing from the port, were crowded, and passage tickets
selling at a premium. Every house in town was full; comfortable
accommodations
[Illustration: G. V. COOPER DEL.
ON STONE BY J. CAMERON
LITH. OF G. W. LEWIS 111 NASSAU ST. N. Y.
SANTA BARBARA,
_UPPER CALIFORNIA._]
were out of the question. The lodging apartments were generally fitted
up, like state-rooms on a ship, with two berths, i. e. a little pen or
box with two shelves, for each of which shelf, with board, the charge
was $25 per week, occupant permitted to furnish his own bedding.
Dear reader, having a pressing business engagement at San Juan de
Nicaragua, I will presume upon your leisure so far as to ask you to
accompany me. I will give you a free passage, and return with you in
thirty days, claiming your indulgence for the want of interest in the
trip. You undoubtedly remember the excitement attending your advent on
board the steamer, your last trip to sea--mine was similar. At 12
o’clock, M., we had the “heave ahead!” clanking of the cable, firing of
cannon, and at half-past 12 passed through the “Golden Gate.” Now our
steamer makes her obeisance to Neptune, who steps aside to let her pass.
On leaving the outer bay, we put our wheel “hard down,” and stood away
to the south, the coast range, as well as the Sierra Nevada, seeming in
tears at our departure. We steam along, now raising a peak of the
mountain, and now sinking it below the horizon, until the second day,
when we stand in toward shore, and soon arrive in full view of Santa
Barbara, presenting a fertile plain near the coast, with mountains in
the background.
This is the point at which Col. Stevenson’s regiment was disbanded. It
is a small town hardly deserving the name, and has acquired its name and
importance from its mission, the mission-house being a building of great
capacity, containing a collection of valuable paintings. The front makes
some pretensions to architectural beauty, with two towers, each
containing two bells; between the towers; is a representation of the
sun, the disc being the dial of a clock. (See Plate.) There is a
fountain near the church, the water being brought from the mountain in a
trench, and thrown from the mouths of grizzly bears. Why the grizzly
bear was chosen by the worthy “Padre” to do the ornamental part, I was
unable to learn, perhaps owing to feats of dexterity performed by his
_bearship_ on certain occasions.
At the time of the arrival of the California regiment, one of the
_Bruin_ family had taken up his residence on a _rancho_, not far
distant. The natives, wishing to exhibit their dexterity, offered to go
and lasso Bruin, for their amusement. Now, said Bruin had been a quiet
neighbor, and had taken nothing excepting the appurtenances of said
_rancho_, and had a most religious aversion to any additional _ties_
between himself and neighbors. When said neighbors approached and
attempted to present the subject, Bruin, as dignified people will do,
stood up and looked them in the face. Six lassos were simultaneously
thrown. He caught three of them, and, hand over hand, hauled the horses
in, and with one stroke took off from one of them his entire haunch. The
rider’s cut their lassos, and, without bidding his bearship good-day,
took the longest kind of steps toward the mission-house. Bruin is now
supposed to be in his dotage, still he is said to relate this occurrence
to his family circle with the greatest satisfaction.
Those interested in the prevailing fashions, are referred to the
accompanying Plate. Ladies’ hats are dispensed with; a scarf or parasol
is used instead. Gentlemen wear white pants, over which is a pair of
black velvet, open at the sides of the leg, the edges trimmed with
bell-buttons. A short jacket of the same is also worn, trimmed with
bell-buttons over which is thrown a _serapa_ or _poncho_. A heavy
_sombrero_, with a black glazed covering, is worn on the head; this is
trimmed with brass ornaments, and a band with long ties serving as a
streamer. In passing down from Santa Barbara the scenery is fine; a belt
of fertile land stretching along the coast with mountains in the back
ground.
After taking on board several passengers, a few head of cattle, and a
small supply of vegetables, we again weigh anchor and stand out to sea;
the weather is delightful, the sea rolls sluggishly, and our steamer
speeds her way through the waters like a thing of life; now rushing
through a school of porpoises, and now a school of flying-fish are
driven from their element; now a whale throws a column of spray into the
air; the sea-gulls collect around but soon disperse and flit along
“gaily over the sea;” the albatrosses are floating about lazily; while
Mother Carey’s chickens display as much spirit as if the old lady had
just let them from the coop.
As we approached St. Lucas we noticed that peculiarity of the sky for
which the Pacific coast is celebrated. (See Plate.)
[Illustration: G. V. COOPER DEL.
ON STONE BY J. CAMERON
LITH. OF G. W. LEWIS, 111 NASSAU ST. N. Y.
MISSION HOUSE AT SANTA BARBARA.]
The sun throws a ray of light through, the mottled sky; the sea rolls
sluggishly; porpoises are sporting about, now throwing themselves into
the air, and now rushing into schools of flying-fish which are
frightened from their element and pursued by the albatross. As we
approach still nearer, immense rocks tower up from the margin of the
ocean, some rising to the height of one hundred feet, some being columns
of granite, presenting an appearance as uniform as if cut by the hand of
man. (See Plate.) Here are seen huge rocks with arches worn through at
the base by the action of the sea, sufficiently large to admit large row
boats. The billows come dashing and thundering into these caverns, then
recoil, chafing and foaming with the most terrific fury.
Here the sea rolls high, but with such uniformity that when breaking
upon the shore the air is caught underneath, which bursting through
throws up columns of spray. Three _coyotas_, members of the California
Harmonic Society, are seen on the beach; they appear to be at rehearsal.
Along the shore are huge cacti, growing to the height of thirty feet,
being sufficiently large, and frequently used for building timber.
St. Lucas, like Santa Barbara, is hardly deserving the name of a town,
containing but thirteen houses, which are constructed of adobes and
cactus. The only peculiarity is that the natives speak the English
Language. The surrounding country is extremely barren, producing but
just enough to sustain the inhabitants; vessels touch here for water,
which is superior, and beef, which is obtained back of the mountain.
This town is situated at the outer point of the entrance to the Gulf of
California. The time is probably not far distant when the river Gila
will be navigated by steam, and the fertile plains bordering on its
banks, and those of its tributaries, be brought into subjection to the
plow, when this vast empire must disgorge its unbounded resources
through the Gulf of California, and dispense its agricultural and
mineral wealth to all parts of the civilized world. I say the time is
probably not far distant; it is at hand; it is in the nature of things,
that the Gila country within ten years will be a _State in the Union_.
Then St. Lucas may become a city, and many others of great commercial
importance will spring up along the shore of the Gulf of California,
and at the mouth of the Gila will be one of the marts of the Pacific.
Our next point is Acapulco, distant about six hundred miles; this part
of the route presents some of the finest scenery on the Pacific coast,
and perhaps the most imposing in the world. It is a succession of
volcanos, including Popocatapetl, the most elevated volcano in Mexico;
this towers up through masses of clouds, appearing shrouded in gloom at
its base, but rears its head in majestic triumph, offering its light to
the stars.
Each of these volcanos presents some different features; from the
craters of some the smoke issues with as much regularity as from a
chimney; others are enveloped in smoke; some seem to have almost subdued
the internal fires; the emission of smoke being almost imperceptible.
The most striking phenomenon was exhibited by one of great elevation,
rearing its head above the surrounding mountains, at some distance from
the coast; it would belch forth a cloud of smoke, which for a moment
would seem a huge ball suspended over the crater; this would soon
commence to assume a different form, the lighter parts of the smoke
ascending and expanding, while the more weighty would settle--elongating
the cloud--giving it the appearance of a huge pine tree. This would
float away on the atmosphere, and after an interval of half an hour,
would be followed by its successor. The regularity of these
manifestations was most astonishing; the volcano seemed to have entered
into a contract with the atmosphere to furnish it with a cloud every
half hour.
The mountains, in the background tower up, one above another, until the
last loses itself in the blue of heaven. These seemed undergoing a
constant change; now a cloud throws a deep cavern-like shade here, and
now the sun chases it away, and shows us a vale watered by a mountain
stream and teeming with the choicest plants of nature; now we see in the
distant blue what appears a gigantic marble column; we look through a
glass and it proves a cascade breaking from the crest of a mountain; now
we see a mountain rearing its head into the very clouds, and shrouded in
eternal snow, this reflecting the rays of the sun, appears the dome of
some vast structure. Although volcanos are grand and impressive by day,
nothing
[Illustration: G. V. COOPER DEL.
ON STONE BY J. CAMERON
LITH. OF G. W. LEWIS, 111 NASSAU ST. N. Y.
S^T. LUCAS.]
will compare with their sublimity at night; their crests are surrounded
by a halo of light, the smoke, illumined, crawls sluggishly out, and now
are seen issuing balls and streams of liquid fire, accompanied by a most
terrific shock, as if the furies were at war within; now a dark cloud
floats sluggishly along, but now it is looking directly into the crater,
and is burnished by the internal fires.
Chapter Twenty-fourth.
ACAPULCO--THE TREE OF LOVE--BATHING AND FEMALES--A CALIFORNIAN IN A
TIGHT PLACE--EARTHQUAKES--SAIL FOR REALEJO--VOLCANO VIEJO--ITS
DEVASTATING ERUPTION--REALEJO AND HARBOR--A CART AND ITS
PASSENGERS--A WALL-STREET FINANCIER FLEECED--CHINANDEGA--ITS
BEAUTIFUL ARBORS--BATHING--PREPARING TORTILLOS--LEON--ITS
MAGNIFICENCE AND DESOLATION--DON PEDRO VACA AND FAMILY.