USA > California > A picture of pioneer times in California, illustrated with anecdotes and stores taken from real life > Part 8
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As I before said, it is not my wish to paint those eventful three years with one virtue not fairly belonging to them, nor shall I attempt to shade over or keep from view the social excesses into which many dashed with shameless bravado, nor shall I attempt to hide from scorn the political sneak thieves of those days. No; my intention, and my wish, is not to exaggerate either the vices or virtues of the times, but to hold up to view a correct and true picture of them.
When the news of the gold discovery reached New York, I soon made up my mind to join the emigration to the Golden State. I wrote to my parents, who lived in the interior, to get their con- sent and blessing. Yes; I could go, and they were ready to give me their blessing when I should come for it. Over the railroad I sped to my dear, old home, knelt for the blessing, and then parted with father, mother, brothers and sisters, and the beau- tiful spot that was so connected with all the joys and sorrows of my childhood and boyhood, never again to set eyes on it, or on most of the dearly loved ones. I left them, that cold Winter's morning, at the railroad depot, but the wild California fever was in my blood, and carried me through a scene that, at another time, would have crushed me to the earth. Was I to go over- land across the isthmus of Panama, or around Cape Horn ? This was the question I had now to consider. I examined ships ad- vertised for California; I went to the meetings of clubs formed for the overland trip. I heard all the agent of the Panama line of steamers had to say. First I decided on an overland trip, but was disgusted at a meeting of our club. Then I concluded I would go by Panama, but, on inquiry, found such crowds rush- ing that way that I feared great detention on the Isthmus, so I gave that idea up and finally settled on a sea trip via Cape Horn. I recollect that Caleb T. Fay was fitting out a ship for the trip,
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and I at first thought of joining his party, but, ascertaining that the ship was old and a poor sailer, I, in the end, declined to do so. I at length found a ship-the South Carolina-that suited my ideas perfectly. She was almost new, had a commodious cabin, a fine flush deck, affording a good chance for a promenade in fine weather, and, above all, she had an intelligent, gentle- manly commander, Captain Hamilton. I paid my $350, and se- cured a berth. I shipped some goods on her I wished to take to California as a venture, and was all ready for the day of sailing. That day soon came-a cold, gloomy one in Jan- uary, 1849. For the last three hours the ship was at the wharf she was crowded with fathers, mothers, sisters and friends of the passengers, taking a last farewell. I remember we were sur- prised when it became known that we were to have one lady passenger, and it was amusing to see the lady visitors crowding around her (Mrs. White). ' In surprise and amazement, they ex- claimed : " Oh, so young, and going to such a place as Califor- nia! Are you not afraid ?" "Afraid of what; there is my hus- band," the lady answered, pointing to a man who looked as though there was not much risk in trusting to his protection. Then I remember a bright young girl saying to her brother, who was to be one of our passengers: "Tom, I wish I could go with you. I could go just as well as this lady." This was followed by several other ladies saying: " So do I," " So do I." Then the captain, hearing them, exclaimed : "Yes ; that is what you ought to have done, ladies ; but it is now too late. You will have to wait until I come back for you." And so, in fact, Cap- tain Hamilton did come back, and in a little over one year from that time he again left New York for 'California, this time in the beautiful clipper ship Adelaide, with a whole bevy of lady pas- sengers.
When we were a week at sea we all got pretty well over our sea- sickness, and now the passengers began to get acquainted with each other. The first officer, Mr. Wilson, and the second mate, Mr. O'Neil, we found to be perfect gentlemen, and in every way agreeable. There were fifty-six passengers in the first cabin and one hundred in the second. When about ten days at sea, the Captain made a proposition to the first cabin passengers that on the main deck, which, as I have said, was flush from stem to stern, there should be no distinction made as to privileges be- tween the first and second cabin passengers. To this there was
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not a dissenting voice in the first cabin. The result was very agreeable, as it molded us all, as it were, into one family in all the amusements we got up to kill time, or to make it pass agree- ably. The passengers proved to be mostly from the interior of the State of New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. South Carolina, too, was well represented, and there were a few from the States of Ohio and Kentucky. They were, almost without an exception, a fine looking and well educated body of young men. There were not over three scalawags in the crowd. The respectful and chivalrous bearing towards ladies, which is so characteristic of Americans, showed itself brightly in the defer- ence and polite attention every man on board the ship paid to our only lady passenger. The captain gave a general order to the officials of the ship that nothing she called for should be de- nied, if on board the ship. The influence of even one lady on board was found most salutary, and was often spoken of by the captain. It was certain that Mrs. White never had to complain of word or act of any of the passengers that ignored her pres- ence. She reigned queen throughout the passage, for her "right there was none to dispute." On our arrival at Rio Janeiro the United States sloop-of-war Perry was in the harbor, and as soon as the gallant commander heard that an American lady was on board our ship, he sent her, through Captain Hamilton, a beautiful bouquet of rare flowers and a basket of oranges fresh picked from the grove. These were accompanied by a polite note from the commander to say that one of the boats of the Perry was at Mrs. White's command while the South Carolina should remain in port. This enabled Mrs. White, her husband, his two partners, Mr. McGlynn and Mr. Oliver, with two or three other of their friends, to enjoy their ten days in Rio most agreeably. As to that, however, we all enjoyed our visit in Rio immensely. Three other American ships came into port while we were there, filled with passengers, on their way to Califor- nia. The emigrants on these ships were all much of the same stamp as ours, being almost all well educated and agreeable men. The passengers from all the ships rushed wildly over the city of Rio. There were in all about six hundred of us Ameri- cans there at the time. I think the citizens of the good city, however, imagined that there were at least six thousand, and were evidently afraid we would attempt to take the town. The police guards were doubled and trebled everywhere. But the
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fears were without cause, for not an incident of a riotous or dis- orderly character took place while we were in the city. Some of the most thoughtless young Americans maneuvered a French- man of the name of Faroux, who kept a very fine restaurant, out of a good many dinners. This restaurant was close to where nearly all the boats from the ships landed, for at that time there was no wharf accommodation in Rio. The restaurant had a fine large eating-room, and all you chose to call for was ele- gantly served up. A beautiful daughter of the old man's pre- sided at the counter, where the money was received. This, to us bachelors, was quite an attraction in itself. For the first two or three days all the meals were honorably paid for, but soon change began to grow scarce with some who were inclined to be a little fast, so they laid plans to get meals without paying for them. Some eight or ten young fellows would walk into the dining room, seat themselves around the table and call for the best dinner to be had, hesitating at no expense as to the dishes selected. When about through, one would rise from his seat, and go through a maneuver as if he were collecting money from each of his companions. Then he would walk slowly over to the young lady's counter, take his money purse from his pocket, and throw it carelessly near him on the counter. He would then light his cigar, and commence to talk soft nonsense to the young lady. While all this was going on, his companions at the table would rise from their seats, and one by one walk leisurely out into the street, and disappear in a moment. Now the young man at the counter would take up his purse and coolly hand the young lady at the counter one dollar, the price of his own din- ner. " Ten dollars, sir, if you please. There were ten of you at the table." "Ten dollars, my dear young lady ! What have I to do with those other fellows. I tried to get them to give me the money to bring to you, just to have the great pleasure of talking to you, but they told me to mind my own business, so I came to pay for my own dinner, as they should have done, if they were honest men." The young lady called for her father, but what could he do but pocket his loss? After two or three such tricks as this were played on old Faroux, his wits were sharpened, and he had a policeman stationed at the door of his restaurant, whose duty it was to see that no one left the restau- rant until his bill was paid. After we left the harbor at Rio, we had a very hard storm. While it was at its height, the ca" lain de-
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clared that he believed it came upon us because we had some pas- sengers on board who had cheated old Faroux, and that if it did not soon cease blowing, the passengers must draw lots to find the Jonah; but the wind did calm down, so no lot was drawn. One or two of our young fellows looked guilty, and feared, I suppose, if the lot fell to them, no friendly whale would come to save them. The only three scalawags we had on board showed themselves while we were in Rio, and gave the captain much trouble. They were a butcher and his two sons, from Washing- ton Market, in New York city. The captain, however, subdued them, and put them in such awe of him that they gave no more annoyance. Their fate in California was soon decided ; none of the three ever saw the year 1850. One of the sons was killed in the mines in a row of his own getting up. The other son was hanged for robbery, while the father lay drunk in a tent close at hand, exclaiming : "Oh, they are hanging my favorite boy !" He soon afterwards died himself while drunk. The harbor of Rio was beautiful, and in many points resembled the harbor of San Francisco, but the mountains at the entrance and back of the city are immensely higher than any mountains in sight at San Francisco. This makes the scenery beyond imagination wild, picturesque and majestic. We all visited the Emperor's garden, for it is free to all visitors, and, upon paying a fee to a guide, you can ramble through it all with great pleasure. In it we found every variety of plant, shrub and tree that is known to man in any part of the world. We spent a whole day in it, and then did not see one-half. The currency of the country was a puzzle to us. They count by cents, mills and milreis. When we asked the price of an article, they would perhaps announce: " One thousand reis, sir." Of course, we made up our mind that we could not stand that price, and passed on, when in fact the price asked was very moderate. Four of us boarded with a Frenchman for five days. When we asked for our bill, we were frightened and amazed at the enormous demand. " Tell us how many dollars ; how many dollars !" we all exclaimed in excite- ment. "Don't talk of your milreis, we don't understand it." " All right ; I understand, gentlemen. Just fifty dollars for all four of you." Relieved and delighted, we paid the money, and had a good laugh at our fright, for, a moment before, we saw a Rio jail staring us in the face. The negro population and the condition of the race in Rio surprised us very much. The ne-
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groes that were slaves were nearly all natives of Africa, and many of them-both men and women-were of a fine physical development, tall in stature, and looked far more intelligent than the negro slaves of the South, in our own country. The free blacks were treated as perfect equals of the whites in all re- spects. They had a right to sit at the table with you at a hotel, and in the first seats in a theatre, among the whites. They had, in fact, the same rights exactly as the whites had. There were many black members in the Legislature, and nearly all the po- lice force were black. Notwithstanding all this, the slave trade was fostered, or winked at, by the Government of Brazil at that time, and slavery was there in its very worse and most degraded form. While we were in port a ship discharged a cargo of slaves a few miles above the city of Rio, just brought from the coast of Africa. I did not go to see these unfortunate beings, but many of our passengers did, and the description they gave us of the creatures was truly terrible. No slave in Brazil was permitted to wear shoes. This was a regulation to enable one to distin- guish the free blacks from the slaves, as you dare not refuse a free black equality in all things with yourself. It was said that free blacks were always found in favor of the most oppressive laws bearing on the slaves, and were the most cruel owners and masters. Another curious fact struck us connected with slavery in Brazil. We found that slave dealers, no matter how rich, or in what magnificence they lived, were universally despised and avoided, even by slave owners. There was an old slave dealer who lived on an island on the bay opposite the city of Rio. He was an American. I cannot recall his name. He had a perfect paradise for a residence. Everything that was beautiful sur- rounded him. He had retired from his horrid traffic immensely rich. On hearing of the arrival of so many of his countrymen, he came among us, and invited us cordially "to his island resi- dence. Many accepted his invitation, and on those he lavished every attention that was possible, including an elegant enter- tainment or lunch. Of course, we were all loud in his praises, but on hearing us talk thus the people of Rio said, in a low whis- per : " Yes ; he is a good sort of a man, but he made his money in the slave trade, so no one goes to see him." I suppose such a man, when he lies down at night to sleep, forever hears the groans and cries of the unfortunate men and women he dragged from freedom to slavery ; and then what enjoyment can he have
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when everyone avoids him as they would a retired pirate ? Our national vanity was flattered on finding regular Troy (New York) built coaches running in all directions out of Rio, and regular Troy built omnibuses, just similar to those we had left in Broad- way (New York), making regular trips from one end of the city to the other. This circumstance gave us a strange pleasure, and a friendly feeling toward the people of the city. The impression left on us of Rio and its inhabitants was most pleasing, and all Americans who visited it at the time agree in this. We found many Americans and Irish residing in Rio ; and, I believe, there is not a town in any part of South America where they are not to be found. Brazil is the only State in either North or South America that adheres to the monarchical form of government of its own free will. Canada is not a second exception, for that is held by the strong arms of England's military power. Mr. Parks, a State of Maine man, who was American Consul in Rio in 1849, was most kind and attentive to us all, and gave some of us an entertainment at his residence. After leaving Rio, when we all met once more on the deck of our ship, we felt as if we were old friends long known to each other. There was Isaac Friedlander, the future great grain king of California, as tall as he was at his death, but much more slender. He was a pleasant shipmate, and respected by everybody. He was the judge and umpire in all disputes in all sorts of games. He was our " Philador " on games; no one disputed his decisions. There were Conroy and O'Connor, both afterwards so long prominent as hardware and iron merchants in San Francisco. There was Halleck, afterwards so famous in the same trade in San Fran- cisco. He was a nice, agreeable young fellow, but universally called "Shylock " among the passengers, from the fact that he sold jewelry to some of the green ones among the passengers at a large price over its true value. There was John A. McGlynn, afterwards so widely known and esteemed in California, then the most popular man on board, the favorite of the captain, who called him his " third mate," and gave him many duties to per- form in that capacity. There was William J. Shaw, a young lawyer from Ithaca, New York, a very agreeable young man, afterwards well known as State Senator from San Francisco. He got rich out of a rough and tumble fight about land titles, and enjoys himself in spending his time in foreign travel. There was Denis J. Oliver, a fine, handsome; gentlemanly young fel-
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low, then a partner of White and McGlynn, who, by close at- tention to his mercantile pursuits became wealthy, retired from active business, traveled the world over twice, in company with his accomplished wife and lovely California raised children, now residing in San Francisco, esteemed and respected by all who know him, his beautiful home indicating not only his refined and cultivated taste, but assuring one that he is a Christian gen- tleman, proud of the faith he professes, entirely worthy of that personal friendship of the great Pontiff, Pius IX, he so emi- nently enjoyed.
There was Wm. F. White, the husband of our only lady pas- senger, who, having a treasure of priceless value to guard, seemed to make it a point to keep friends with every one. He went into the importing business with his partners, McGlynn and Oliver, in a tent at the corner of Montgomery and Sacra- mento streets, San Francisco, and then in a building on Califor- nia street; but for many years has resided with his brave pioneer wife in Santa Cruz, where they raised a large family. He represented that district of country in the late Constitutional Convention, and is now State Bank Commissioner. There was E. P. Reed, an agreeable young man from the interior of the State of New York, now a wealthy and prominent citizen of San Jose. One of the brightest and most promising young men on board was a young lawyer from Rochester, New York, whose name was Rochester. He was a favorite with us all. But, in two short months after he set foot on California soil, death found him and closed the dear boy's career. There was poor Paschal Anderson, a tall Kentuckian, who, in fair weather, played the violin for us to dance to. He was a good-natured, merry soul. He had strange names for his pieces, such as "Cherry Pie," "Pumpkin Pie," "The Stump Tail Dog ; " and he could make his old fiddle almost speak those names, to the amusement of us all. Poor Paschal! I know nothing of his fate, but whenever I think of the deck of the South Carolina, I see him playing his fiddle there yet. There was George Casserly, the driest and drollest being that ever got away from home; afterwards Police Captain in San Francisco, and later Justice of the Peace. What his fate has been I know not. There was Henry Pearsy, who got rich, I am told, by hard knocks and close attention to busi- ness in San Francisco. There was Mr. Rooney, an unobtrusive, gentlemanly little man, and his son John, who both, after an
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honorable career in California, are now dead. An accomplished daughter of Mr. Rooney is now the wife of Senator James G. Fair, of the State of Nevada. There was Van Wyke, a fine young fellow, from the city of New York. He came of one of the first families, was just out of college, and full of fun and wit-a fa- vorite of the captain, for whom he would sing " Mary Blaine," in a fine, full, sweet voice. The captain had a daughter, Mary, whom he loved to almost worship, and he could listen to any song, with Mary for a heroine, for a week on the stretch without being tired. Van Wyke would get us laughing by building his air castles aloud for all. After singing us a few songs, with a good chorus from the crowd, he would exclaim: " Well, there is no use of talking, boys; I can tell you my future history now as well as I can in twenty years from now. In a few months after I get to California I will discover a mine of pure gold in the foothills near San Francisco. I will take from it all I want, just to get home comfortably, with a hundred thousand or so, to divide among my friends as a little present. I will then place the mine in charge of some trusty man, with directions to send me a quarter of a million or so every month. As soon as I get home I will not let it get out that I am so rich, for I will want to marry a most beautiful wife, who will take me, not for my money, but for myself. I will travel far and near, looking for just the girl I want. I will, at length, find her in the country, away from all the bad influences of city life. Her father will be a proud, rich man, guarding his beautiful child with perfect ferocity. I will offer to teach the mean little public school a mile distant from the rich man's residence. I will, of course, be accepted as teacher. I will then make an excuse to call at the rich man's house, on some business connected with the school -- for he takes an interest in the schools for the poor, you know. I will meet the lovely, angel girl in the garden, attending to her flowers. I will offer to help to trim a thorny rose bush for her, taking care to break into some poetical quotations while I am at work for her. This will delight her. I will then take from under my arm a beautiful volume of poetry, which I will have, as if by accident, and ask her to do me the favor to retain it, and read some passages I have marked in it. Before we get through our talk I will see that she is delighted to be in my company; I will then leave, but soon, on some other excuse, I will be there again and again, until I am satisfied that she is desperately in love
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with me. Then I will confess my love to her, and ask her con- sent to see her father. She gives her consent, but with tears expresses her fears that her father will never consent. I go to see the father. He flies into a rage, snatches his shot- gun, and runs me out of the house, with fearful imprecations. That night I meet my love at the foot of the garden. We talk through a hole in the fence, just large enough to let my head in. She agrees to marry me in secret. I am to leave for New York to prepare things, and be back in just one week with a clergy- man to tie the knot before she should leave her father's garden. I return on the appointed night; the knot is tied; we fly to New York, leaving a beautifully affectionate note for the old man, concluding by telling him that we were married, and that he can come and see us at our humble home in the outskirts of the city of New York. Of course, I do not let him know that I have just purchased a palatial residence, lately built by a now broken Wall Street operator. The old man comes foaming, shotgun in hand. This I expect, and have a colored waiter in livery to receive him, who presents a solid gold waiter to receive his card, saying that Mr. and Mrs. Van Wyke are surrounded by ladies and gentlemen who are making their wedding calls. The old man lays his shot- gun down in a confused sort of a way. Then the side door is thrown open, and my beautiful wife, covered with diamonds, falls fainting into her father's arms. All is happy, and we live a thousand years. There, boys, you have my future history." Poor Van Wyke! On reaching San Francisco, he went to the mines, and about four months afterwards I met him in San Francisco again. On inquiring as to his luck, he said: " Well, I am on my way home. My friends are all urging me to return, and I am going. They offered to send me money to pay my way back, but I was too proud for that, so I went to work, and have earned $800, besides $100 worth of specimens of gold and gold quartz." "How did you earn it, Van ?" " In the most unroman- tic way in the world; but honestly, however. I hired out to a merchant in Stockton, at $250 per month, to drive a mule team from that place to the mines." I never saw Van Wyke again, and do not know what became of him; but if good wishes could make him rich and happy, he is surely both, for he helped us to many an hour of pleasure on that voyage. There were many other agreeable and pleasant young men, whose names even, in many cases, I cannot now recall; and not one disagreeable one beyond the three I have already alluded to.
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