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and respectfully attended. Many, per
haps most, occasionally read their Bibles
or tracts. There is a respect for religion,
as there is a respect for everything which
reminds one of home: but society must
be in a very different condition—it must
be settled, and have some elements of
permanence —before a decidedly religious
influence can be brought to bear upon it.
When 1 say that the sound of the pick,
spade, and rocker are seldom heard on
the Sabbath —that the Bible is often and
devoutly read —that often, from beneath
some cluster of trees, the cheering sound
of some hymn and the preacher’s voice
are heard, it is as much as can be said.”
The author tells us in another place,
that only on one occasion did any com
pany in which he was employed, work
upon the Sabbath. He frequently per
formed religious services in circumstances
at once picturesque and grotesque.
The narrative is in diary form—straight
forward and natural. The results of each
day's labour are mentioned, and it is
strange enough to mark the vicissitudes
of the miner’s fortunes—varying from
nothing to hundreds of dollars! True
indeed, melancholy true, is his reminder
to the reader. ‘The bright and glowing
pictures presented to the public in the
news from California, “$2,000,000 in gold
dust,” “rich discoveries,” “new diggings,”
&c., &c., must be filled up with a dark
back-ground of cloudy days, rainy weeks,
broken hopes, privations, sickness, many
a gloomy death scene, and many a lonely
grave.’ There are many graphic and in
teresting passages in this book—for a few’
of which we propose to make room. The
first describes the destruction, by a fresh
et, of the dam at Hart’s Bar, on the
Tuolumne River, a work of great extent
and cost.
“This morning—Sept. 24th—the water
was lising in its might. Notwithstand
ing our aqueduct and canal, the bed of
the river was nearly full. We hastened
to remove all of our mining implements.
Slowly, but surely, the freshet came, till
the destruction of all our works seemed
inevitable.
We thought not of hunger, though we
had been labouring hard much of the
night and all the morning. About ten
o’clock there was a pause of fearful sus
pense. The rising seemed arrested—
might it not be on the turn] For a
short time there was hope; the pendu
lum vibrated each moment between our
hopes and our fears. We hastened up
the hill side—after all had been done
which could be—to the spot commanding
a view ot the whole, to see our hopes oi
SOUTHERN LITERARY GAZETTE.
our fears realized. W T e perceived at once
that the existence of all our works de
pended upon the Paine's Bar dam above
us. Would that stand the torrent] —
Should that maintain its position, we
were safe; let that go, all would be
swept away ! As we kept our eyes fixed
upon this—it was a quarter of a mile
above us—the black line of wall was
suddenly broken, and the torrent poured
through a small opening forced in the
dam, and in a few seconds the river ran
foaming over the entire length of the
wall, which bowed and sunk before the
irresistible force. Then and there was
heard a sound new and strangely start
ling to me. It was caused by large stones
rushing and grinding underwater, borne
on by the tremendous power of the cur
rent. It might be imagined that the
thousand submerged chariots and cars of
Pharaoh’s host were driven impetuously
over that river channel. As soon as the
dam above us gave way, the water rose
with great rapidity—tw 7 0, three, four, six,
eight feet —till it poured over the top of
the aqueduct. Still it nobly stood, held
in its place by the immense weight of
the water which poured through it from
the canal above It was indeed surpri
sing to see a thing so light resisting that
mad and mighty force. It was but a mo
ment ! Gently and gracefully it yielded,
swayed forward, and moved away with
the ease and rapiditv of a thing of life.
Thus, in one moment, we saw the work
of one thousand and twenty-nine days
done by the company swept aw r ay and
rendered useless. Within five minutes
of the time when the aqueduct disap
peared around the bend of the river, a
meeting of the company was called, and
a resolution presented to proceed with
our work by means of wing-dams.”
Our author has some skill as an artist,
as will appear from the following portrait
of one of his associates in the Hart’s Bar
Mining Company.
“Direct your attention once again to the
interesting tableau in the river below us.
Among the group of Mexicans and
Americans—black, brown and white—is
one remarkable person. He is a tall,
stout man, having the appearance of one
accustomed to command, and some of
the severity of one who has commanded
those who never dared dispute his author
ity* lie had been a boatman upon the
Mississippi. He was our ( hies director ;
and, though he ruled with unquestioned
sway, he was light-hearted, jovial, and
free, fie was known among us by the
name of “Red,” from the fact that, when
ever there was any fighting to be done,
or when he was “going upon a spree,” he
put on a red flannel shirt. By our “Arti
cles of Agreement,” in the absence of
the president, the duty of presiding over
the meetings devolved upon him, as chief
director. At a meeting which was called
at the regular time of work, the presi
dent being absent, the chair was to be
taken—speaking figuratively, for such a
thing as a chair was unknown at the
mines—by this remarkable individual.
The thought that he was so far to sub
mit his own opinion to the decision of
others as to permit them an opportunity
of expressing dissent even by their votes
did not seem to enter into his calcula
tions. The meeting had been called to
decide whether or not we should work on
that Saturday afternoon. Under the cir
cumstances, most were in favour of ad
journing work till Monday morning.—
What was the dismay of those who had
anticipated no difficulty in carrying the
question in the affirmative, and who came
prepared to talk down or to talk out all
opposition, if they had to talk till night,
when Red entered with the air of one
who is for deeds, and not for words. He
was strongly opposed to the proposed
measure. “Boys,” he said, as he came
by, spade in hand, as if on his way to la
bour, impatient of any delay, and waving
all ceremony—“ Boys, I say, go to work.
All who are in favour say ‘Ay !’ ” One
emphatic “Ay /” by himself, was the on
ly response. “Those who are opposed,”
he continued, starting on his way, “say
nothing, and go to work !” In five min
utes every man was at his post, wonder
ing how it happened.”
Mr. Wood presents some vivid descrip
tions of the vices of California, chief
among which are gambling and intem
perance—the former surpassing in magni
tude the latter, but both going hand in
hand. We had marked some of these pas
sages, but our limits are already overpast,
and we can only add, that it is encoura
ging to hope with our author, that a
brighter and better state of things has
alreadyddarnedw r ned in the American Ophir.
The volume contains much valuable in
formation, and we regard it as a compre
hensive manual on the present state and
prospects of the gold operations in Cali
fornia.
RAIN IN THE GARRET.
[From Dream Life: a Fable of the Seasons. By Ik.Mar
vel. Chaxles Scribner.]
“ It is an old garret with big
rafters; and the boards between are stain
ed darkly with the rain-storms of fifty
years. And as the sportive April show ei
quickens its flood, it seems as it its tor
rents would come dashing through tie
shingles, upon you, and upon your pity-
But it will not; for you know that t e
old roof is strong ; and that it has kept
you, and all that love you, for long )’ ears
from the rain, and from the cold: ) 011
know that the hardest storms of winter
\Jan. 10,