C. W. Haskins

“ But why does time pass so rapidly with those who are engaged in mining? Is it in the climate? No, but in the industry which we follow. We read in Pope that man never is, but always to be, blessed, and this applies to the business of mining with full force; for the miner never has yet, but always is just going to strike it. It is always just a little ahead, and so it continues to the miner, for but a small proportion of them ever reach it. ”

“ The captain who was in the cabin, heard the cry of shark, and having been a short time before sailing engaged in whale-fishing, was prepared for such an emergency. Seizing his favorite weapon, which was a harpoon all ready for use, and to which was attached a long wooden pole, suspended from ropes over head in a convenient place, he jumped upon the rail, and as the shark’s head with open mouth projected above the water with a true aim darted the harpoon into its body. ”

“ The sound of it could be heard for many miles around, reverberating among the ravines and cañons, telling to the miners far and near, in the plainest tones and in unmistakable language, that the holy Sabbath day had not only found its way across the barren desert and the mountain ranges, but had come to stay, and they must not forget it.
All persons are, perhaps, aware that the peculiar tone of a bell which we have often been accustomed to hear, and are therefore familiar with, can very easily be distinguished from the tones of another, even after the lapse of many years. ”

“ And just let the present generation hand it down to their children, and to their children’s children, as well as to all future generations who will make their dwelling places throughout the old mining regions, that those phantoms that are occasionally seen wandering about among the ravines and cañons in the dead hours of night, carrying upon their backs rolls of blankets, as well as an old tin pan, pick and shovel, are only the restless spirits of a few old miners who are, from force of habit, hunting for some spot{339} ”

“ But the old miner might ask if this is not true of all other kinds{344} of business, or of human affairs in general, as well as the business of mining? No, only to a limited extent, although, ’tis true enough, as observation and experience shows us, that the continual expectation of the satisfaction of our desires is the fundamental base of all human action; the one great incentive to exertion. ”

“ This desire for a change is a disease, the remedy for which is well known, for many who have returned to their Eastern homes to be cured have again wended their way to California, perfectly convalescent after spending one short year away, satisfied and content and willing to endure the tedious monotony of eight long months beneath the cloudless skies here, rather than to risk an unequal contest with the blizzards and cyclones of an Eastern winter. ”

“ It was for this purpose, no doubt, that the knowledge of the existence of gold upon the western portion of our continent was reserved for the Anglo-Saxon race, who understood its real value and knew how to use it as an incentive for the proper adjustment of unbalanced conditions; and we have come as the pioneers of an advancing civilization, intending to grow up with the country and to use our best endeavors (by all legitimate means) to restore the equilibrium by an increase in population. ”

“ Now it is plain to any reasonable, sensible man that mining being the chief industry of the country, and the original industry, too—for ’tis just what brought us all here and nothing else—we have the first right to mine or to get the gold from the hills in any manner we see fit; and these ranchers have no right to settle upon, or to undertake to cultivate the ground in the valley and on the flats below where our tailings will lodge. If they do, in my opinion they should be the ones to suffer the consequence and not the miners. Why, just see the effect of stopping all of this hydraulic mining. ”

“ I do not include, however, in this class those who were too lazy to make an effort to find a paying mine, for the country was full of this class of men, and they could be seen tramping about among the numerous hills and gulches with their tools, hunting for some pleasant spot to work, and they would generally find it under the shade of a tree. It was this class of men who depended upon their more industrious friends for a living, and who were always ready to maintain that mining in early days was a mere question of luck. ”

“ That a water-spout should be able to move at all in any direction, during a dead calm upon the ocean, when at the same time our ship was as it were, stationary is not only a mystery, but also very aggravating to those who are from necessity compelled to remain on board of her and suffer the intense heat, and at the same time be at the mercy of these wandering, revolving tramps that are liable at any time to make you a visit without any special invitation, and without any power whatever on your part to avoid them. ”

“ After the commencement of the rainy season, in the fall of ’51, the river miners flocked into the placer mining districts. Other arrivals from across the waters, soon swelled the population in all of the various mining camps. Gambling in all of its various forms became again the principal amusement. Barrooms and gambling-houses vied with each other in furnishing their patrons with the finest and loudest music, and bands could be heard playing in all of them during the greater portion of the evening, and until the wee sma’ hours of the morning. ”

“ It is this incentive that gives energy to the old forty-niner, that gives strength and elasticity to his limbs, and which enables him to wander forth through deep and rocky cañons; to climb the steep and rugged cliffs of the mountain ranges, in many cases where younger prospectors are unable to follow, to discover if possible, some location where he can get several colors to pan, and find the bed rock pitching. But the old-timer, however, desires something more than this; for it is not altogether the discovery of a fair prospect, and with the bed rock pitching, that he wants. ”

“ There is consolation in the thought that, under whatever circumstances we may be placed that are of an unpleasant nature, all things, states and conditions have an ending. In the operations of Nature’s forces, man, by his ingenuity, can direct them for his use, but cannot control. During a gale of wind, for instance, the ship, by means of the sails and rudder, can be changed or altered in her course, and at such a time how insignificant man appears in comparison with the force and power of the elements, which are far beyond his absolute control! ”

“ And although no doubt such a history would show us that but a small proportion of those old-timers who are now living have achieved success, or who are at least at present in the enjoyment of it, yet it cannot be doubted but that the desire or wish would be unanimous to live over again the scenes and incidents of the past, and to experience once more the exciting pleasures and expectations found only among the mountains of the mining region. ”

“ The wheel, also, which for several days had been neglected and alone, lazily swinging from one side to the other, nodding and blinking beneath the scorching rays of the sun, was now aroused from its slumbers by the strong arm of a sailor, and, responding to his efforts, the bows of the ship swing gracefully around upon our course for the entrance to the Golden Gate with a fair wind, which increased with such force in a few hours that it was evident we had not only received the benefit of a cat’s paw, but that the whole animal had crawled on board, tail and all. ”

“ It was customary, also, among many of the miners to play all kinds of practical jokes upon each other, and one amusement, in particular, was to place a flat stone, or board, upon the top of a chimney, and then to be near at hand in the morning when the victims were trying to cook their breakfast amidst the smoke, occasionally coming to the door with the tears streaming down their cheeks, swearing until all nature around looked blue. ”

“ A visit to some of the now deserted mining camps throughout the mining regions, will bring to light many of the old pioneers who are yet lingering around the spot where they first located upon their arrival, loath to break away from their first and earliest associations, and content to remain and live over again, in imagination, the early mining days, with their pleasing incidents and associations. ”

“ That such, however, is the case, and that we grow up amid the excitement of such conditions unconscious of the existence of time, all old miners can testify to. We find that before we are aware of it our hair is tinged with gray; our children grown up around us; they, in their turn are married, and lo, and behold, we, the old-timers, who have remained unconscious of the fact that time will not even wait for a Forty-niner, are to our astonishment informed that we have attained at last to that period of our existence when we can adopt the title of father with the grand in front of it. ”

“ You tell me that great changes have taken place in some portions of the mining regions. That in many places our old piles of tailings have been levelled down; the places where we mined filled up again and planted with fruit trees and grape vines, and also that pleasant homes can now be seen among the hills where formerly all was desolate and dreary, and where in the opinion of all of us at that early day no reasons were known why they should not so continue. ”

“ To an old-timer, the wonderful changes and transformations which have taken place within, apparently, so short a space of time are hard to realize; and one who has followed the business of mining, more particularly for many years, finds it difficult, even, to grasp the fact that so many long years have come and gone since he first landed upon the shores of the country. ”

“ Such old, puritanical notions about money are ridiculous. You and I haven’t too much and we could use a few millions to good advantage, if we had them. And if it should prove true that lots of gold can be found in California, you’ll live to see this country step to the front among nations in wealth, prosperity and enterprise. ”

“ But coming here and finding, alas, that even to dig gold direct from the soil required labor, patience and perseverance, as well as an indefinite space of time, and even then with uncertain results, was the cause of hundreds returning immediately to their Eastern homes, or, at any rate, of leaving the mining regions in disgust upon making the unpleasant discovery that gold was not to be scraped from the surface of the ground, but that it was away down out of sight, badly mixed up with the dirt, mud and water. ”

“ And, isn’t it easier to go to a country where you can scrape it up from the ground or pick it out from among the grass by the bucketful, than it is to toil and sweat and worry through a long life here? ”

“ To our inexperienced minds, an undertaking of this nature offered irresistible fascinations, for we were of a nation that knew no fear, and the national characteristic being to satisfy curiosity, let the consequences be what they may, why should we fear? Were we not armed with the latest discovery that the inventive genius of a Yankee could devise as a protection? ”

“ As we advance to the north we find that the gold deposits in the ravines and cañons are much deeper, and although gold upon the bed rock can be had in great quantities, being in some cases taken out by the pound, yet the net profits are very small, owing to the great expense in working. For instance, in Cœur d’Alene gold mining region the gravel upon some of the richest creek bottoms is from 20 to 30 feet in depth, while upon the bed rock there are rich deposits from which very coarse gold and nuggets have been taken by the pound. ”

“ WHO ARE THE SUCCESSFUL PROSPECTORS.
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but in very many instances fortune favored those who did the least work. In the ordinary affairs of life those only will prosper or succeed in the business in which they are engaged, who are well qualified, and who possess the qualities and habits necessary for its success—that is to say, possessing a reasonable amount of intelligence, economy, industry, and proper caution; but in mining, these qualities are, so far as the finding and extraction of the gold is concerned, of very little value, as was often illustrated in early mining days. ”