History of the State of California. Frost John

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СКАЧАТЬ covered with his broad-brimmed, low-crowned sombrero, and gracefully enveloped in his ample serapa, set off by a bright scarlet sash. He turns neither to the right nor to the left, nor heeds the crowd about him, but keeps on the even tenor of his way – though even he has occasionally to jump for it – presenting, in his demeanor and costume, a striking contrast to the more bustling activity of the Yankees, who are elbowing every one, in their anxiety to go a-head. A lot of shopboys, too – mere lads, as spruce and neatly attired as though they had just stepped out of some fashionable emporium, mingle with the rest, and, as they enter the town, strike up the popular parody —

      'Oh, California. That's the land for me!

      I'm bound for the Sacramento, with

      The wash-bowl on my knee.'

      And presently, their brother-adventurers, excited by hopes of the wildest kind, join vociferously in chorus, in the exuberance of their joy.

      "A group of Englishmen, muscular in form, and honest in feature, are chaffering with the keen-witted Yankee porters for the carriage of their luggage. There is an air of dogged resolution about them, that plainly indicates they will not submit to what they evidently consider an imposition. Such a sum for so slender a service! Well, then, they can carry their baggage themselves: so they will; and, quickly shouldering it, some depart in the track of the rest, whilst two or three remain behind, to watch what is left, until their friends return. They are manifestly well known to one another, and seem to be almost intimate; the voyage has made them friends.

      "Here come a number of Chilians and Peruvians, and a goodly number of natives from the Sandwich Islands. A couple of Irishmen, too! I know them by their vivacity, and by the odd trick they have of getting into every body's way; to say nothing of their broad, merry faces. Their property is in common, it seems; for they have only one small pack between them.

      "Here come ten or a dozen plainly but comfortably dressed mechanics; hard-working men they seem, and just the sort of persons to make their way in a country where the artisan occupies his proper position, and where honest toil – and dishonest, too, sometimes – is almost certain to reap a harvest. Far differently will you fare, and far preferable, too, will be your lot, in regions where privation is the rule, to that of many amongst your numerous fellow-travellers, unaccustomed as they are to laborious occupations – with frames uninured to fatigue, and constitutions unhabituated to scanty fare, to exposure to heat and cold, and wet and sudden changes! Whilst you are succeeding in your object, they will grow wearied, disappointed, and home-sick, and long to be back again on the theatre of their former struggles.

      "The human stream ceases not to flow from the vessels in the harbor; no sooner is one boat-load disposed of than another arrives, and so on, until the town is gorged with new-comers, who, after a few days' sojourn, to recruit their strength, after the fatigues of a long and irksome voyage, depart, and are seen no more for months; many, perhaps, never to return. Very few of this vast multitude deserve the epithet of poor. To get here at all requires money; and to maintain one's self after getting here, the emigrant must have some little means.

      "The majority of the emigrants are men occupying a respectable station in society; some are even distinguished in their calling; but the eager desire of making a fortune in a hurry has induced them to throw up good employments and comfortable homes; to leave friends, relatives, connexions, wife, children, and familiar associations, to embark their strength, intelligence, and activity, in this venture. All is bustle where they have landed: boats going to and fro; rafts slowly discharging their cumbrous loads; porters anxiously and interestedly civil; all excited; all bent on gain; ships innumerable in the bay; mountains around; a clear, blue sky above; and the bright waters dancing in the sun, until they touch the horizon in the distance, blending their brightness with his golden track.

      "I walked on until I came up to a group of men, who, like myself, were looking on the busy scene before us with no small degree of interest. I recognized amongst them two of the volunteers, with whom I forthwith claimed acquaintance. The whole party had come from the mines, as was easily to be seen from their appearance, which was something the worse for wear, their countenances being weather-beaten and bronzed by exposure; whilst their attire, consisting of buckskin coats, leather leggings, and broad-brimmed hats, denoted the sort of labor in which they had been recently engaged. I learned from them, in the course of a subsequent conversation, that they had all of them been successful at the 'diggings.' One of the number had made, or 'picked,' two thousand dollars, and the rest, from that to nine thousand dollars each, within the space of a few months. With this, however, they were far from satisfied, most of them being determined to realize a large fortune before they quitted the country; for not one of them seemed to have the remotest intention of settling.

      "The party had come down from the mines to make purchases, and to enjoy a little recreation. They were admirable specimens of their class – hardy in appearance and rough in demeanor; but shrewd, withal, and toil-enduring. For the moment, their conversation turned upon the prospects of the newly-landed emigrants – for I should have stated that there were one or two arrivals in the harbor – and they were unsparing of their remarks upon such of the new comers as by their dress, or any physical peculiarity, offered a fair target for their witticisms, which were not less pointed than coarse.

      "The discovery of the gold mines, has done at once for San Francisco what it was reasonable to anticipate time only could have effected; and its progress in importance has far outstripped the most sanguine expectations which could be based upon any hypothesis hazarded on the strength of its admirable position and facilities for trade. Nevertheless, its growth seems unnatural; and, looking at it as I saw it then, it left on my mind the impression of instability, so marvellous was it to gaze upon a city of tents, wood, and canvas, starting up thus suddenly, forming but a halting-place to the thousands who visited it; having for citizens a large majority of gamblers and speculators; and presenting of civilization but the rudest outline, and some of its worst vices. It was impossible, indeed, for an observer to contemplate San Francisco, at this particular period of its history, and not to feel that every thing about it savored of transition. A storm or a fire must have destroyed the whole in a few hours; for every house, shed, or tent, had manifestly been constructed merely to serve the end of the actual occupier; they were all adapted for trading, but not a convenience or a comfort appertained to them, to indicate a desire or an intention of settlement. Every day brought new-comers, and added to the number of ephemeral structures which crowded the hill-sides. Mechanics of every description of calling were at work, earnestly, busily, and cheerfully; and, whichever way I turned, there was bustle and activity; yet, withal, I felt that such a state of things was unsound, because resting on what was essentially speculative, and I doubted not but a great change must come before the city could be regarded as substantially advancing. Comprised at a glance, it presented no other appearance save that of a confused crowd of tenements, of every variety of construction; some high, some low, perched upon the steep hills, or buried in the deep valleys – but still tents and canvas every where and any where, their numbers defying calculation, their structure and position all analysis. There existed neither wells nor ponds within a very considerable distance; and what struck me as most singular, being aware that the Spaniards had a mission here, there was no sign of a church. I subsequently ascertained that the site of the Mission of Dolores, about five miles distant, had been preferred by the Spaniards, and that divine service was performed there still.

      "As I proceeded along the road leading into the principal street of the city, I was uncomfortably reminded that it would soon become necessary for me to select a place where I could procure refreshment; and in connexion with this necessity, arose another consideration no less important, namely, where I should lodge? There was no other mode of solving the difficulty, save by an exploration of the localities; accordingly, I kept these objects in view, whilst I also gratified my curiosity by continuing my perambulations.

      "In this same road, but nearer to the entrance of the main street than I should say was, under any circumstances, altogether pleasant, stood the correl of the Washington Market, being a spacious area of ground, inclosed with stakes, over which were stretched СКАЧАТЬ