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    eyes , and clouds of dust enveloped us , followed by hot winds so arid and suffocating that the very inside seemed to be dried up , and the pores of the skin closed , producing heat of blood and excessive thirst . " Most of the party had water kegs and bottles , which , as joint property , they carried alternately : the Muleteers had . skins of water for themselves and animals ; Mac and I luckily had each an Indianrubber bag , which contained a gallon of water , sparing us much suffering and no little peril ; we drank from them very moderately , however , being uncertain when they would be again replenished .

    " We came to no water that day , but were told that we should find some the next morning . At dusk we squatted down in the sand , covered with dust ; being without wood we could not light a fire . For the first time for months , I denied myself a pipe , lest it should increase my thirst ; taking a slight draught of water , being too exhausted to eat , I fell asleep , oppressed with fatigue ; but was continually awoke by the howling of wolves , which hovered around . I was aroused at break of day by Mac belabouring me ; and at first felt glad , but soon recoiled at the prospect of such another day ' s journey ; the day being as hot as the preceding one .

    " We hastened onward , but the water-hole on which we relied was dried up ; in vain the earth around was scooped out , it yielded nothing ^ : never shall I forget the consternation and dejection pictured on men ' s countenances as we gazed at one another . During the night , in expectation of speedy replenishment , the water vessels of some had been emptied . I thought of the parable of the foolish virgins , as I looked on the flushed faces and glazing eyes of the unfortunates . Their cape was truly pitiable : they at least expected commiseration , but the harsh summons of the muleteer cut short any considerations of humane sympathy . * Onwards , men ! onwards ! Forty miles off is the Stanislaus ! Each man for himself , I say . I ' ve darned little to spare . ' " Onwards we went . Fain would I have

    swallowed at a draught the small remainder of our supply of water ; my vitals seemed on fire ; but the Malay boy ' s life and my own depended on it . Overpowered with heat , exhausted by exertion , burnt up with thirst , those without water to moisten their parched lips and throat could with difficulty keep pace with us . By degrees they divested themselves of their burdens and their clothes , which they left strewed on the plain ; each mile they became more enfeebled ; in vain they beseeched us to halt ; our lives were at stake . Two of them actually licked the bodies of the mules for the sake of the animal

    exudations , to relieve their thirst ; but a thick coating of dust prevented their deriving any beneficial effects . One man in his desperation seized hold of the waterskin hanging to the mule . 'Avast there , stranger , ' tried the miilctecr , and a loaded pistol intimidated the sufferer . The poor mules with hanging ears and glazed eyes , snorted with agony and chopped continually from exhaustion ; a sharp thrust with the goad , however , roused the animal to stagger on . Young Mahomet behaved with uncommon fortitude ; hobbling between me and Mac , the poor

    boy feverishly lisped out for water , and piteously besought , us not to leave him to the wolves . One of the sufferers , evidently of a drinking propensity , possessed a flask of brandy , but hud poorly provided himself with water ; the brandy which he drank as a substitute , instead of alleviating his thirst had produced fi'verinhiiess ; in this extremity , with haggard looks , he came to each of us successively , offering his brandy for n gill of water ; when he saw his proffered flask rejected , he learned , perhaps for the first time in his life , the superiority of the necessaries over the luxuries of life .

    " In the afternoon , those without water , who had with diiliculty kept pace with us during the day , having become almost delirious from imbibing brandy , Hading that they could not proceed further , or excite our compassion , determined , if left behind , to keep together ; four of them did so . Never shall I forget their imploring looks of despair , and the imprecations following our departure . This desertion appears cruel , but our hearts were hardened : selfpreservation , that most imperative of nature ' s instincts , prevailed over all other feelings . Had we Htayed , we could have rendered them but temporary service , « in < l our own lives depended on our speco . The unfortunate men in all probability soon became insensible , and fell a prey to wolves or Indians ; both equally on the alert for helpless stragglers .

    " The prospect , of speedy relief made us almost disregard our sufferings , and walking fast , we halted it dark about twenty miles from the river . No wood wan to be had , so we camped without a lire ; chewing obaeco for the moisture it excited was resorted to b y ; ome ; and the majority having finished their water t supper , the probability of an attack being made on hose wMo had any left , was hinted at by the inuloe < TH- We were too fatigued to watch , but to guard gainst an attack we slept together rolled up in our lankelH , with p istol in hand and the water bngn t fuelled tons . During the night vigils the wolves gain visited uh ; but tin ; imploring cries , irritated xelamatioiiH , and angry discontent of thoao without atcr , were far moro diatrefiBing than the howling of

    mid beasts . As we could find litue repose , some of us started before daybreak ; those who remained behind proposing to follow us at leisure . " Walking at a terrrific pace we soon sighted the woodland . Oh ! how refreshing to the eye is the sight of verdure after being nearly blinded by the glare and heat of glittering sand ! As we neared the Oasi 3 , even the very mules , though their eyes were bandaged , seemed conscious of its vicinity , and snuffed the breeze impatiently ; one of them , an old traveller on the road , pricking up his ears neighed loudly , with a sound like the flourish of a trumpet . Revivified by the sight of verdure , we pressed onward , and soon entered the cooling shade ; the river presently appeared in sight . The mules were

    disencumbered , and throwing down our burdens , we ran to the banks , and without doffing our clothes , eagerly rushed into the cooling stream , mules and men indiscriminately , up to the neck . Never in my life had I experienced anything more refreshing than this bath : the dust seemed to have penetrated our vitals—every pore of our skins was choked . The river was about a quarter of a mile in width , with a shelving bank , the utmost depth about eight feet ; the water was perfectly clear to the bottom , and salmon leaped about in every direction . The sun's rays struck fiercely down , but shady trees protected us from its heat , and shed their refreshing influence around . When we had sufficiently cooled ourselves , we took off our clothes , and laid them on the rocks , to be washed by the action of the current .

    " Having refreshed ourselves , it would have been humane to have hastened to the relief of our deserted companions ; but no such charitable feelings prevail amongst gold hunters : all pity and sympathy was deadened ; those who had remained behind were given up for lost , and onwards we went . "

    THE REVERSE SIDE OF THE MED At . " In the morning I took a stroll around the tents ; a most ominous silence prevailed : of the busy crowds not one was to be seen at work : all was as still as an hospital : we had not been the only sufferers ; sickness universally prevailed ; seeming as infectious as the plague . In every tent lay sufferers in various stages of disease ; out of two hundred at least twenty had died , and not more than sixty were able to move ; those convalescent would be seen gathered together in the stores .

    " One end of these tents is in general a refreshment-room , in which are gambling-tables ; idleness is the root of all evil , and the few fortunate diggers would there be seen staking their gold dust on cards ; gambling more deeply as they became excited , and invariably losing their all , if they continued playing . Others , seated on rough benches , might be seen breaking off the necks of champagne bottles ; for if they had been fortunate , they took care to show it by ordering the most expensive beverages . Sardines , turtle-soup , lobsters , fruits , and other luxuries , preserved in tins , were to be had in these stores ; but the consumers paid very dearly for such

    epicureanism . " I have frequently observed in Californians an absurd extravagance in their expenditure , as if the easy possession of gold tempted them to lavish it in luxuries ; their selection of choice viands and wines did not proceed from refinement of taste ( for I have heard tbese spendthrifts disparage the very delicacies they ordered ) , but from a proneness to parade their easily gotten wealth , imagining that it raised them in the estimation of others . Such ostentatious prodigality soon beggars them , and I believe that the majority wished themselves again in the backwoods , preferring beef broth and spruce beer there , to champagne and turtle in the diggings .

    * ' Those who were too ill to frequent scenes of dissipation , excited my compassion ; they lay huddled together in tents , moaning and cureing , many of them d y ing , with no one to attend to their spiritual or bodily wants : and I cannot but think that many died from sheer starvation , or mere want of attendance . The most prevalent complaints were dysentery , fever , and ague , terminating in many cases in delirium ; these unfortunate and dangerous lunatics would sometimes rush forth from the tents in a frantic state ; and one , as if to revenge himself for the doctor ' s neglect , clutched the little man by the throat , and almost suffocated him . "

    A 1 ' I . KAHANT NIGHT . " Camping that night on the verge of the plain , I luxuriated over the fire , not knowing when I uhould have another , and cooked the best supper my means would admit . About midni ght thehowling of wolveH awoke me ; never had they been ho clamorous before ; they seemed actually hounding on each other to an attack , as if thinking to inspire me with fear by their hideous serenade : from rock to rock their

    dismal howls were echoed , and responded to in the distance by the fiendish laugh of u jackall . Casting a look around , a huge ( muggy wolf stood within five yards , hitj eyes glaring at me liko burning coals ; ( matching up a fire-brand , I hurled it at him , which made him turn tail , and beat a rapid retreat - my pistols were dmnp , or I would have inudo uho of them ; but fire i * the wolfs detestation , and the brand did as well . Making up the fire , and priming

    my pistols afresh , I again fell asleep , overc ^^ I my day s exertion . " " - "e-vntti CAXEFORNIAN POLITICIANS . "The winter having set in , thousands were * turning sick and impoverished from the mines tvf " arrival of so many labourers soon affected the rate t wages , and the points were daily crowded -with nf unable to get work . . Inen " "As this influx of labour caused a great dimin tion of wages , the price of provisions remaining tyf " same , discontent and indignation prevailed amon t the lower orders , and nightly meetings took plae attended by crowds of the rabble ripe for nillsuL rioidui

    ; mcKiiy wixnout leaaers . At these agita tionsl was sometimes present ; violent speeches werp made , secret leagues were formed in every quarter and had an O'Cormell arisen from amongst them ' order might have been subverted , and terms dictated by the mob to the storekeepers and householders as it was , these meetings ended in furious tirades , for . bidding foreigners to seek employment or people to hire them ; accusing the foreigners of being the cause of a fall in wages , and holding out a deadly threat to all who dared labour under the fixed rate of payment , ten dollars a day .

    " These nocturnal assemblies had in them something appalling , being composed of between three hundred to one thousand cut-throats , armed with bowie-knives and firearms , often intoxicated . The stump orators and leading demagogues were usually notorious characters , celebrated not for mental superiority , but for their extreme democratic principles and physical powers . Their rostrum was any elevation or moveable convertible to their purpose ; flaming brands usually lighted up the scene . The spokesman was generally able to enforce order , either

    by eloquence or prowess ; on one occasion an orator , being interrupted in his harangue by certain remarks derogatory to his person , leaped off his tub into the midst of the crowd and seized the offender ; fierce was the struggle , a ring was formed , when , throwing his antagonist down , the orator jumped on him with his heavy boots ! In vain were the victim ' s shrieks of agony , no one ventured to interpose ; the demagogue ' s rage being satiated , he remounted the tub and continued his oration . Such brutal atrocity as stamping upon a prostrate foe , would have drawn forth the execrations and interference of the lowest

    rabble in England . If such sanguinary treatment followed a personal affront , what would have been the fate of an unhappy dissentient from the doctrines propounded—especially had he been a stranger ? ' ' Charities . —To diffuse immediate happiness upon those near at hand , without reference to future and more permanent good , is the short-sighted object of the uncultivated feeling of benevolence . When cultivated , but with a wrong direction , its operation is still of the same kind , but more mischievous as it is exerted through a wider sphere . Many of the widespread charities of the present day furnish examples of this . They seek to remedy a present evil , to relieve a present suffering , by means which multiply

    for the future these pains and sufferings many-fold A late writer on the principles of charitable institutions remarks , that they are more numerous , that more exertions are made for the relief of the poor now than at any former period—yet poverty and c « mo are on the increase . What is the reason of this ? Ine writer alluded to goes on to prove that it is to ^ be found in the fact , that remedies are often app lied Without discriminating between the different causes which produce these evils , and therefore perpetuate and increase them , or at best only palliate them . - Hut the real cause of this want of discrimination and consequent failure is the fact that it is not real benevolence at work , but a something between the seeming of love of approbation and a bargain to get

    as cheaply as possible to heaven . People wish to Btanu well in , the opinion of their neig hbouis , and they have likewise heard that " he that giveth to the poor lendeth to the Lord , " and they approve of the security and invest a small sum , but never more than they can conveniently spare ; to do that would be imprudence . They do their charities , that is , givo annual guin eas , the press generally Wowing a trumpet before them ,, but they neither watch the upending of the " ^ " ^ j care much what becomes of it , — consequently ^^ ^ more remote the sphere of operati on—if to " , church at Jerusalem for converted Jews , or to tna

    Christians of Caribu—tho more liberal the donation . Children should be early taught to distinguiaii *»« - tween seeming and real benevolence—between ge rofiity that costs nothing , that is , involves no fi - sacrifice , or even self-denial , and that which pr octtu from love and duty . When the higher classes aro reaiiy in earnest about raising the condition of tl » o low - ^ when they ceaso to consider them as mere objee . perform their charities upon , aH convenient utopp festoncH to heaven , as ho much raw material ou whi 3 h they are to work their own salvation , uh i poor , " whom we are alwayH to have with uh , therefore aro to bo kept poor , or ftt least in i - present position , —then there will be foun d litue aw culty and certainly no natural barriers to their success . —Education of the Filing ; by Charles Bray .

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    900 ffifte % t& % tt * [ Satubbay ,

• Citation
  • Leader (1850-1860), Sept. 20, 1851, page 900, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1901/page/16/