History of the State of California. Frost John

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СКАЧАТЬ Owing to the large number of cattle slaughtered here for the use of the inhabitants, the odor from this place was insufferable, and I quickened my pace until my olfactory organs became sensible of a purer atmosphere.

      "I turned into the principal street, and soon came up to the market itself, which is a wooden house, about thirty feet square, kept by an American. To my right, as I advanced, were some stores and hotels, and a confectioner's shop of remarkably neat and clean appearance: these were all one story, wooden buildings. One of the hotels was appropriately designated as 'The Colonnade.' It was kept by a volunteer named Huxley, and differed from every similar establishment in the town, inasmuch as the proprietor allowed neither gambling nor drunkenness on his premises. To this the 'Gotham Saloon,' a little further on, offered a perfect contrast, for here there were several monté rooms and a large bowling-alley, where persons who had a taste for the latter amusement might indulge in their favorite pastime for a dollar a game. This saloon was likewise kept by two volunteers, as was also the confectioner's by a fourth; so that three of the most noted houses in the town were rented by men, who, a few months before, scarcely possessed any thing save their enterprise and their industry, but who were now on the high road to opulence. The more credit was due to them, and others of their brethren whom fortune had similarly favored, because, at first, they had deep-rooted prejudices to encounter, which prudence and perseverance only could have enabled them to overcome.

      "I came next to the Square, or 'Plaza,' on one side of which, and fronting it, stood the 'Miner's Bank,' established by a Mr. Wright, a keen speculator, who had secured possession of a large extent of landed property, which he was turning to the very best account. On the left of the Plaza, I noticed a spacious-looking wooden building, two stories high, called the 'Parker House;' but the handsome piazza in front caused me to hesitate on the threshold; for I apprehended – and not without reason – that, even in California, appearances must be paid for; as, therefore, my purse was not overstocked, I prudently sought a more modest establishment.

      "I passed another hotel, similar to this one, but not quite so large, and came presently to a low wooden house, of most unattractive and unprepossessing exterior, which was dignified by the name of the 'Café Français.' As this seemed likely to suit my present convenience, and to promise a scale of prices on a par with its external appearance, I entered boldly, and seated myself at the dining-table. I noticed, as I went in, that, notwithstanding the poverty without, there was abundance within; the counter being literally overcharged with French pastry, a variety of ingenious culinary preparations, and some foreign liquors.

      "After I had finished my repast, consisting of a beef-steak, two eggs, and a couple of cups of coffee, I prepared to depart. I specify the items of which my repast was made up, because of the price I paid for them – namely, two dollars and a half. I was informed, on hazarding an observation respecting the amount, that the charges were excessively moderate, any thing in the shape of a dinner being usually charged one dollar and fifty cents; half a dollar each for the eggs, which were extras, was only a reasonable price for such luxuries, as they frequently sold for double. I considered the information thus obtained to be cheap, of its kind, and went away with a mental reservation not to eat any more eggs in California, unless they were of another description than the golden ones.

      "As I repassed the 'Parker House,' the hotel, par excellence, of San Francisco, I went in, knowing that, like all similar establishments, there were the usual amusements going on within.

      "This is not only the largest, but the handsomest building in San Francisco; and, having been constructed at enormous expense, and entirely on speculation, a concurrence of fortunate circumstances alone, such as had followed upon the discovery of the gold mines, could have insured its prosperity. It was now one of the most frequented, fashionable, and firmly established hotels in the country; and, in so far as it presented a model to the builders and settlers in the town, was a signal illustration of the shrewdness and enterprise of the Yankee character, and a standing credit to the projectors and proprietors.

      "It is built entirely of wood, and contains two very spacious principal rooms; the one a dining-room, the other set apart for billiards. Besides these, there are three saloons of lesser dimensions, especially devoted to gambling, and two well supplied bars – one below, to the right of the entry, the other in the billiard-room. The portion of the hotel that is not set apart for the usual offices and conveniences is divided off into innumerable chambers, which are occupied by the superior classes of emigrants – lawyers, doctors, money-brokers, cum multis aliis.

      "The saloon contains two very handsome billiard-tables, which are constantly occupied by players, chiefly Americans, some of them of first-rate excellence. The charge was a dollar per game of a hundred, and they were no sooner vacated by one party than another came in.

      "The establishment contained nine gambling-tables, which were crowded day and night, by the citizens and the miners; many of the latter staking very large sums upon the turn of a card. The stakes, however, varied from twenty-five cents to five thousand dollars; and the excitement of some of the losers was frequently fearful to contemplate. Some who gained largely prudently withdrew; and I was informed that, a few days previously to my arrival, a new-comer from the States, who was bound for the mines, having come into the saloon, and tried his fortune at the monte tables, luckily made twenty thousand dollars, with which he returned home, by the steamer, two days afterwards.

      "The 'Golden Eagle,' (l'Aguila d'Oro) is another gambling establishment, situated in one of the streets leading into the Plaza. It is a canvas house, about fifty feet square, fitted up with the requisites for play, and let out by the proprietor at the rate of fifteen hundred dollars a month. Every available spot around the tables was crowded to inconvenience by persons who were engaged deeply in the game, the majority standing up and watching the chances with countenances betokening the greatest excitement.

      "I now proceeded to the City Hotel, a large but somewhat antiquated building, constructed of adobé, after the Spanish fashion, but hybridized by American improvements. The interior was even more insufferable than the El Dorado, in respect of the boisterousness of its frequenters. In the first room that I entered were five gambling-tables, doing a 'smashing business' – a term employed, somewhat in contradiction to its import, to denote prosperity. The majority of the players were Americans and other foreigners, intermixed with a goodly number of Spaniards of the lowest order. There was the same excitement, the same recklessness, and the same trickery here, as at the other gambling saloons, only infinitely more noise and smoke, and swearing and inebriety.

      "Here I met with another of the volunteers, who proposing a walk, we went out together, and proceeded to the Plaza. I found a good many old acquaintances set up in business at this spot; one, who had been a captain, had recently turned money-broker, and now kept an office for the exchange of coin and gold-dust, having entered into partnership with a highly respectable and agreeable individual, of active business habits, who promised to prove a great acquisition to the concern.

      "We soon reached a low, long, adobé building, situated at the upper side of the square, and which my companion told me was the Custom House. To the right of the Plaza stood the Saint Charles's Hotel, a wooden edifice covered in with canvas, and the Peytona House, an establishment of a similar description, in both of which we did not fail to find the usual games carried on.

      "The streets leading down to the water-side contain comparatively few hotels or eating-houses, they being chiefly wood and canvas trading-stores. I observed amongst them several newly opened auction and commission-rooms, where goods were being put up, recommended and knocked down in true Yankee style. An immense number of wooden frame-houses in course of erection met our view in every direction; and upon remarking that many of them appeared to have been purposely left incomplete, I ascertained that this arose from the extreme difficulty of procuring lumber, which, on account of its scarcity, occasionally fetched an incredibly high price. A good deal of it is brought from Oregon, and some from South America. Many of the larger houses, but far inferior, notwithstanding, to such of the same kind as could easily be procured in New York at a rental СКАЧАТЬ