fornia was yet a Mexican province, simply held by us adobe house east of the fort, known as the "Hosas a conquest; that no laws of the United States yet pital." The fort, itself, was of adobe walls, about applied to it, much less the land laws, or the pre-emp-twenty feet high, rectangular in form, with two-story tion laws, which could only apply after a public block-houses at diagonal corners. The entrance was survey. Therefore it was impossible for the gov- by a large gate, open by day and closed by night, with erner to promise him a title to the land; yet as there two iron ship's guns near at hand. Inside there was were no settlements within 40 miles, he was not likely a large house, with a good shingle roof, used as a store to be disturbed by trespassers. Colonel Mason signed house, and all around the wall were ranged rooms, the the letter, handed it to one of the gentlemen, who had fort-wall being the outer-wall of the house. The innerbrought the sample of gold, and they departed. wall, also, was of adobe. These rooms were used by Captain Sutter himself, and by his people; he had a blacksmith's shop, a carpenter's shop, etc., and other rooms where the women made blankets. He had horses, cattle and sheep, and of those he gave liberally and without price to all in need. He caused to be driven into our camp a beef and some sheep, which were slaughtered for our use. "July 5th, 1848, we commenced our journey toward the mines, and reached, after a hot and dusty ride, Mormon Island. "When Colonel Mason and party reached Mormon Island, they found about three hundred Mormons there at work; most of them were discharged soldiers from the Mexican war. General Robert Allen raised a battalion of five companies of Mormons at Kanesville, Iowa, now Council Bluffs, early in 1846; Allen died on the way and was succeeded by Cooke; these were discharged at Los Angeles early in the summer of 1847, and most of them went to their people at Salt Lake, but some remained in California-and as soon as the fame of the discovery of gold spread, the Mormons naturally went to Mormon Island. Clark, of Clark's Point, one of the elders, was there also, and nearly all of the Mormons who had come out in the sailing vessel Brooklyn, which left New York in 1845, with Sam Brannan as leader. Sam Brannan was on hand as the high-priest, collecting the tithes. As soon as the news spread that the governor was there, persons came to see us, and volunteered all kinds of in "Toward the close of June, 1848, the gold fever being at its height, by Colonel Mason's orders, I made preparations for his trip to the newly discovered gold mines at Sutter's Fort. I selected four good soldiers, with Aaron, Colonel Mason's black servant, and a good outfit of horses and pack animals; we started by the usually traveled route for Yerba Buena (San Francisco). There Captain Folsom and two other citizens joined our party. The first difficulty was to cross the bay to Saucelito. Folsom, as quarter-master, had a sort of scow with a large sail, and by means of her and infinite labor we managed to get the load of horses, etc., safely crossed to Saucelito. We followed in a more comfortable schooner. Having safely landed our horses and mules we packed up and rode to San Rafael mission, stopping with Don Timateo Murphy. The next day's journey took us to Bodega, where a man by the name of Stephen Smith lived, who had the only steam saw-mill in California: We spent a day very pleasantly with him, and learned that he had come to the country some years before, at the personal advice of Daniel Webster, who had informed him, that sooner or later the United States would be in possession of California, and that in consequence it would become a great country. From Bodega we traveled to Sonɔma, and spent a day with General Vallejo. From Sonoma by the way of Napa, Suisun and Vaca's ranch, crossing the tules, we reached the Sacramento river opposite to Sutter's embarcadero. The only means of crossing over was by an Indian dugout canoe. After formation, illustrating it by samples of the gold, which all things and persons were safely crossed, the horses were driven into the water, one being guided ahead by a man in the canoe. Of course, the animals at first refused to take to the water, and it was nearly a day's work to get them across; and even then, the trouble was not over, some of the animals escaped in the woods and thick undergrowth that lined the river, but we secured enough to reach Fort Sutter, three miles back from the embarcadero; where we encamped at the slough or pond near the fort. On application, Captain Sutter sent some Indians back into the bushes, who recovered and brought back all our animals. “At that time there was not the sign of a habitation there or thereabouts, except the fort, and an old was of a uniform kind-scale gold, bright and beautiful. I remember that Mr. Clark was in camp talking to Colonel Mason about matters and things generally, when he inquired: 'Governor, what business has Sam Brannan to collect the tithes here?' Clark admitted that Brannan was the head of the Mormon church in California. Colonel Mason answered: Brannan has a perfect right to collect the tithes, if you Mormons are fools enough to pay the tax.' 'Then,' said Clark, I, for one, won't pay any longer.' And Colonel Mason added: "This is public land, and the gold is the property of the United States; all of you are trespassers, but as the government is benefitted by your getting out the gold I do not intend to interfere.' I understood afterward, that from that time the payment increased pay if the vessel would catch the October of the tithes ceased, but Brannan had already collected enough to hire Sutter's hospital and to open a store there, in which he made more money than any merchant in California during that summer and fall. steamer. Folsom chartered the bark La Lambayecana, owned and navigated by Henry D. Cooke, who has since been the governor of the District of Columbia. In due time this vessel reached Monterey, and Lieut. "The next day we continued our journey and Loeser, with his report and specimens of gold, emreached Coloma, the place where gold had been first barked and sailed. He reached the South American discovered, about noon. Only few miners were at continent at Payta, Peru, in time, took the English work there, by reason of Marshall and Sutter's claim steamer of October to Panama, and thence went on to to the site. There stood the saw-mill unfinished, the Kingston, Jamaica, where he found a sailing vessel dam and tail-race just as they were left when the Mor-bound for New Orleans. On reaching New Orleans, mons ceased work. Marshall and his family of wife he telegraphed to the War Department his arrival ; but and half a dozen tow-headed children were there, liv- so many delays had occurred, that he did not reach ing in a house made of clapboards. Washington in time to have the matter embraced in the President's regular message of 1848, as we had calculated. Still, the President made it the subject of a special message, and thus became official what had before reached the world only in a very indefinite shape. Then began that great development and the emigration to California, by land and by sea, of 1849 and 1850." 66 Here, also, we were shown many specimens of gold, of a coarser grain than that found at Mormon Island. We crossed the American river to its north side, and visited many small camps of men in what were called the dry diggings.' Some of these diggings were extremely rich; sometimes a lucky fellow would hit on a 'pocket,' and collect several thousand dollars in a few days; and then again would be shifting about from place to place 'prospecting,' and spending all he had made. Little stores were being opened at every point, where flour, bacon, etc., were sold-everything being a dollar a pound, and a meal usually cost three dollars. Nobody paid for a bed, for he slept on the ground, without fear of cold or rain. "As soon as we had returned from our visit to the gold mines, to Monterey, it became important to send home positive knowledge of this valuable discovery. The means of communication with the United States were very precarious, and I suggested to Colonel Mason that a special courier ought to be sent; that Second-Lieutenant Loeser had been promoted to firstlieutenant, and was entitled to go home. He was accordingly detailed to carry the news. I prepared with great care the letter to the adjutant-general, of August 17th, 1848, which Colonel Mason modified in a few particulars; and, as it was important to send not only the specimens which had been presented to us along our route of travel, I advised the colonel to allow Captain Folsom to purchase and send to Washington a large sample of the commercial gold in general use, and to pay for the same out of the money in his hands, known as the 'Civil fund,' arising from the duties collected at the several ports in California. He consented to this, and Captain Folsom bought an oyster can full, at ten dollars an ounce, which was the rate of value at which it was then received at the custom-house. Folsom was further instructed to contract with some vessel to carry the messenger to South America, where he could take the English steamer as far east as Jamaica, with a conditional charter, giving Blake gives the following table of the gold-yield of north, under the 32d parallel, and nearly the same latithe world, for the year 1867: California... Nevada... Oregon and Washington Territory. Idaho... Montana. New Mexico.. Arizona.... Colorado.... Utah and Appalach.. Total for the United States.. British Columbia... Canada and Nova Scotia. Mexico.... Brazil... Chili.. Bolivia. Peru ..... Venezuela, Columbia, Cuba, St. Domingo New Zealand. Russia... Austria Spain. Italy.. France. Great Britain... Africa.... Borneo and East India... Great Total.. CHAPTER XV. tude with Savannah, Georgia; thence running south $25,000,000 eastward, diminishing in breadth and terminating in 6,000,000 two points, the one, Cape San Lucas, in nearly the same 3,000,000 latitude with Havanna, the other at Cape Palmo, sixty 5,000,000 miles northeast, at the entrance of the gulf. I 2,000,000 Continental California extends along the Pacific 500,000 from the 32d parallel, where it joins the peninsula, about 300,000 seven hundred miles, to the Oregon line, nearly in the 2,000,000 latitude of Boston. The Mexican government con2,700,000 sidered the 42d parallel as the northern line of California, according to a treaty with the United States in $56,500,000 1828. The Golden Gate, the entrance channel to San Francisco harbor, is located under the same lati$2,000,000 tude as the entrance of the Chesapeake Bay and the 560,000 Straits of Gibraltar. 1,000,000 California embraces an area of 188,981 square miles 1,000,000 or 120,947,840 acres. This gives her the second 500,000 place of all the States in the Union; so far as popula300,000 tion is concerned, with her 864,686 inhabitants, (ac500,000 cording to the census of 1880) she takes the twenty3,000,000 fourth place between the States. The magnitude 31,000,000 of the State will be more readily comprehended by 6,000,000 comparing her with Great Britain. California will be 15,000,000 found 78,235 square miles larger than the United 1,175,000 Kingdom. Of the total population of 864,686, there 8,000 are 518,271 males, 346,415 females; 572,006 are 95,000 native Americans, 292,680 foreigners; 767,266 are 80,000 white, and 97,420 colored. 12,000 Before the discovery of gold in California, as early as 900,000 March, 1847, Congress had proposed a mail route 5,000,000 from New York to Astoria via the Isthmus of Panama, 5,000,000 with semi-monthly trips on the Atlantic side and monthly trips on the Pacific side, with San Francisco $130,180,000 destined to be one of the way ports, California being then quite sure to become a part of the United States. An annual subsidy of $200,000 was offered to a responsible party who would take the contract, but capital seemed to be scarce, or kept back from the enterprise on account of the probably low profit, and a full year passed away before Messrs. Howland and Geographical Locations of Both Californias-California's Size Aspinwall, as the principal capitalists, in April, 1848, and Population-Pacific Mail and Steamship Company formed the Pacific Mail Steamship Company, taking the Different Ways and Routes to go to California-Forming government's contract. They immediately went on to Companies-Old Material to start a new Business with-construct three new steamers. The discovery of gold What Emigrants took along with Them-The First Steam- then was not yet known in the East, the plan for these boat on the Sacramento River-The Edward Everett Gold Mining Company--The Different Traveled Routes in Regard to the Difficulties-On the Overland Roads-On the Isthmus--John Conness on Board the Sylph Arrived in San Francisco by the way of Ecuador-Number that Arrived THE ROUTES OF IMIGRANTS TO CALIFORNIA AND at San Francisco. Peninsular or Lower California lying between the gulf and the ocean is about one hundred and thirty miles in breadth where joining the continent at the boats was drawn as for mail and freight transportation only, passengers not being provided for. They were finished as cheaply as possible, in just economy with the profits that possibly could be expected out of the speculation. These steamers were the California, the Oregon and the Panama, and they were to run on the Pacific side from the Isthmus to Oregon. Just in time the news of the great discovery in Cal |