California

California, by J. Tyrwhitt Brooks

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Title: California
Author: J. Tyrwhitt Brooks
Release Date: July 23, 2004 [eBook #13001]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
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CALIFORNIA***
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CALIFORNIA
Four Months among the Gold-Finders, Being the Diary of an
Expedition from San Francisco to the Gold Districts

By
J. TYRWHITT BROOKS, M.D.

[Illustration: THE GOLD DISTRICTS OF ALTA CALIFORNIA. Lith
de Thierry Frères à Paris]

PREFACE.
The accompanying diary--some interesting circumstances connected
with which will be found in a letter given at the end of the present
volume--was sent home by the Author merely for the entertainment of
the members of his own family and a few private friends. It has been
submitted to the public in the hope that, as an authentic record of a
variety of interesting particulars connected with the original discovery
and present condition of the Gold Districts of California, it will not fail
to prove acceptable.
London, 1849.
CHAPTER I.
Clearing the Faranolles Making the entrance to the Bay of San
Francisco The passage through the Strait Appearance of the Bay Town
of San Francisco The anchor is let go The Author goes on shore His
bad luck Sweeting's Hotel The Author and Mr. Malcolm propose
visiting the American settlements They become acquainted with
Captain Fulsom and Mr. Bradley Object of the Author's visit to
California Mr. McPhail leaves for Sonoma The Houses of San
Francisco, and their inhabitants Native California Senoritas and
cigarettos.
... I felt heartily glad to hear that we were then clearing the Faranolles,
and soon hurried up on deck, but we continued beating about for
several hours before we made the entrance to the Bay of San Francisco.

At length, however, we worked our way in between the two high bluffs,
and along a strait a couple of miles wide and nearly five miles long,
flanked on either side with bold broken hills--passing on our right hand
the ricketty-looking fortifications erected by the Spaniards for the
defence of the passage, but over which the Yankee stars and stripes
were now floating. On leaving the strait we found ourselves on a broad
sheet of rippling water looking like a great inland lake, hemmed in on
all sides by lofty hills on which innumerable herds of cattle and horses
were grazing, with green islands and clusters of rock rising up here and
there, and a little fleet of ships riding at anchor. On our right was the
town of San Francisco.
I had suffered so much from the voyage, that when the anchor was let
go I felt no inclination to hurry on shore. McPhail and Malcolm,
however, went off, but promised to return to the ship that night. I soon
after turned into my hammock, and, thanks to the stillness of the water
in which we rode, slept soundly till morning.
April 29th.--This morning we all rose early, and went on shore. The
little baggage we had we took in the boat. Malcolm told me that he had
heard the war was over between the United States and Mexico, and I
bitterly congratulated myself on experiencing my usual run of bad luck.
We made our way to Sweeting's hotel, which Malcolm and McPhail
had visited yesterday, and stated to be the best of the three hotels which
have sprung up here since the Americans became masters of the place.
Malcolm intends making an excursion to the interior. He proposes to
visit the American settlements, and to satisfy himself as to the reputed
advantages which California presents as an agricultural country. I have
agreed to accompany him. We have fallen in with two very pleasant
American gentlemen at our hotel to-day--one, a Captain Fulsom,
holding some appointment under Government here; the other, a young
friend of his named Bradley. We had some conversation together on the
subject of the Mexican war, in the course of which I learnt that Mr.
Bradley has been a resident in California for the last eight years, and
that he was one of the officers of the volunteer corps attached to the
army of the United States, while military operations were going on in

this country. I told him of my desire to enter as a surgeon in the service
of the States, and he promised to speak to Captain Fulsom on the
subject, and obtain from him a letter to Colonel Mason, the new
governor; but he is