GOLDMINING IN CALIFORNIA

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XXV, Issue 212, 7 September 1891, Page 4

GOLDMINING IN CALIFORNIA

r ' j 6JfE WAY OF SALTING A CLAIM. To " salt a claim " is to sprinkle gold dust about it ia order ta deceive those who may be seeking investment. In' this way in the early days of California worthless claims were made to appear rioh, and were often Bbld for large sums of money In the course ■ 3' time this practice besame co common Hhai purchasers were always on their guard, and it was necessary to exercise much inffenuitv ia order to deceive them. I know S one instance where solid earth was removed to the depth of 8« feet and, after coarse gold had been mixed with it, was replace! and covered with rubbish m such a wiy as to look firm and natural. Soon •■after a party came along who wished to buy "and, judging from appearances, they .".elected doffg wy well. The Americans having ennMtd a willingness to sell, one day three SiSmen went to look at the claim. They Mked it over omong them«elves »»d final y aßked the owners at what pnoa they would cell Ot course the Amenoanß made it out rich, .nd^ut » high figure on it, thongh in toot they were reßolved to sellout at an, price being sure that the ground w«» worthtees. It was decided that the Chinamen «.oildbriDg their picks and pans the inert, day to profpeot and if they were satufied fft^nt^afaKS: MIS toSi. fntfng Ua gw» ■»»»• had brought back lor supper, be Bhook out the snake and explained his idea thus ;— "'Now, boye, when the Chinamen oome .. S o-raoSw,theywon;c allow wj ro Iwlobe too near, because they're afraid oi salt. Well. Jim, you walk along on top of the bank and have that dead snake ia your pocket, lilland me will stay talking to the/°hnß • I'll have my &un over my Bhoolfler as ill was going for a rabbit, only you see , I'l put sal into my gun instead of shot. We'll find out where they're going to pan oat next, and you be looking on. innooent like, with the snake ready to drop where I tell you. When them fellers start to walk there just elide him down the bank, and when we all get there 111 •Holler 'floia on, boys!' and before they know what's np, I'll fire the ' salt all round there and make believe I killed the snake. How'llthatdo?" _. Next morning four Chinamen oame prepared for work. They tried a few places, but of course did not get the "colour. The Americans kept at a diatanoe, bo tnat there could bs no complaint. •' Well, John," said the schemer, where you try next, over in that oorner ? ' The Chinamen were auspicious in a moment. Ibey were familiar with salted olaims, and were well on their guard. "No likee aw oorn . him nudder oorn'," pointing to the opposite one. , L <*Jim, "with hia hands ia hia pookets, was fcove on the bank, many feet away, watch when he saw them point in that direction, hie partner gave a nod, and he pitohed the Bnake on the ground near the place, lne leader exoloimed, '-Hold on, boys 1 " and fired . before they could tell whioh way to look. Going up to the snake, he pushed the gun under it and oar.ied it away hanging over the barrel. Jim walked off, and Bill sat on a wheelbarrow on the opposite Bide from where they were at wprk. The Chinamen had no Bnepioiofl. They oarried away several pacs of dirt to wash in a stream neat by, and when they returned Bill felt pretty sure they had struck some cf the " salt," but the Chinamen said nobbing except, " Claim no good, Melikin man talkee too muohee." The Americans, knowing the game, refused to take less than the specified price, .whioh the Chinaman finally paid, and in two days the sellers were off to new diggings. The strangest part of the story is that the claim turned out to be one of the rioheab ii the district. The Chinamen made a great deal of money, sold out, and went home.

"■HOLD ON, BOYS, TILL I MAKE THIS SHOT." In 1851 Mokelumme Hill was one of the worat camps ia California. "Who was shot last week?" was the first question asked by the miners whoa they oauie in from, the river or surrounding diggings on Saturday nights or Sunday to gamble or gee supplies. It waa very seldom that the an« ■Bwer was " No one." Men. made desperate by drink or losses at the gaming table would race up down N the thoroughfares, in single file, as boys play the game of " follow my leader," each imitating the actions of the foremost. Seleoting some particular letter in a sign, they would fire in turn, regardless of everything but the acouracy of the aim. Then they would quarrel over it as though they were bays, while every Bhot was likely to kill or wound some unfortunate person. The gambling tents were large, and oontained not only gaming tables but billiard t.ibles. At one of these I was once playing billiards with a man named H . A few feet from us, raised upon a platform, made for the purpose, were seated three Mexican musicians, playing guitars ; for these places were always well supplied with instrumental music. The evening seldom -passed witaout disputes, and pißtols were quickly drawn, to settle quarrels, Upon a,ny outbreak men would rush from all -. parts of the room, struggling to get as near as possible to the scene of aotion, and often •■♦ they paid the penalty for their curic:ity by being accidentally shot. While H and I were engaged "in our game, we could hear the monotonous appeal of the dealers, ° make your game, gentlemen, make your game, lied wins and black loses." Suddenly bang, bang, bang, went the pistols .in a distant part of the tent, The usual rush followed, Bang, bang, again, and this time- the guitar dropped from the ' hands of oce of the unoffending musicians, who fell forward to the ground with a bullet through hia neok. His friends promptly undertook to oarry him past us to the open air. Our table was so near the eide of the tent that only one person at a stirne could go between it and the canvas. H- was standiog ia the way, just in the act of striking the ball with bia cue, when one of the persons carrying the wounded man touched him, with the request that he move to one side. He turned and saw the .'. Mexican being supported by the legs, and * arms, the blood flowing from his neck ; then •- ■ with tb,e coolest indifference he said, " Hold -' *■ on, hold on, boye, till I make this shot," ' then, resuming his former position, he de- ■ liberately finished his shot. These event 9 occurred so constantly that residents of the place became callous, acd • although, at the sound of the pistol crowds rushed forward, it was with no deeper feeling than curiosity. * Sometimes in the newer communities properly as well as life was in danger. I remember that one night in West Point, Gala* Veras County, a party of roughs " cleaned oat " the leading saloon because the proprietor would not famish them free A little later law and order bagan to abbs, t their claims on the oommunity, Several families from the Eaet oame in, and a protest , was made against the sway of the gamblers. Tbe result waa that the card business did nrt pay bo well ; miners grew more careful of tiieir m« Tiey, and the professional " sports " left the place in great numbers. One of them , t-fls he paoked op his ohipa remarked, ' They're }- getting too pariiokler. II a feller pulls his -ikpißtol in Bell defence, and happens to blow ' 'the top of a miner'a head off, they haul him •«iop: before the jury. The good old times -"• are about over here, and the country's played "n ''out l w — Hubert Bargese, in the Century.