The Cave of Gold / A Tale of California in '49

by Everett McNeil

"On that morning, as usual, after having shut off the water, I started to walk along the race, keeping my eyes pretty close to the ground, so as to make a note of where the ditch needed more digging. There was still about a foot of water running in the race. Suddenly my eyes caught a glimpse of something shining through the water, just a bright little gleam of yellow lying on the bottom of the ditch; but the first sight of it made my heart jump, for I thought it might be gold; and I reached my hand down quick through the water and picked it up and examined it eagerly. The piece was about half the size, and of the shape of a pea; and felt and looked like gold, only it did not seem to me to be exactly the right color: all the gold coin I had seen was of a reddish tinge; this looked more like brass. I looked again in the water and saw another piece and picked that up. Then I sat down on the bank, with the little pieces of shining metal on the palm of my hand, and began to think right hard. Was it gold? I recalled to mind all the metals I had ever seen or heard of, but I couldn't seem to think of any that looked like this, that is, that looked enough like it to make me certain of what it was. Suddenly the thought came to me that this was probably nothing but iron pyrites, or fool's gold, that I had heard and read of, but had never seen. I trembled at the thought; for by now I had become considerably excited over the possibility of its being gold. But iron pyrites would break when pounded! I jumped to my feet, getting more excited every minute; and quickly found a couple of hard river stones, and, putting the pieces on one, I pounded them with the other. It was soft, and didn't break! It must be gold; but was probably largely mixed with some other metal, possibly silver, for I thought that pure gold certainly would have a brighter color.

"I don't know just how long I sat there, looking at them two little bits of yellow metal in my hand and thinking hard of all that it might mean to me and the men with me, if it should really prove to be gold, for I sure was some excited; but, when I got back to our cabin, the men had finished their breakfast and were beginning to wonder a little what had become of me. I showed them the two pieces, and told them where I had found them, and that I thought they were gold. This excited the men a good deal; and I had some trouble to keep them from dropping everything and going to gold hunting, leaving me finish my job alone. However, I told them that as soon as we had the mill finished we would give a week or two to gold hunting and see what we could make out of it, and this satisfied them for the time, none of them then dreaming there was enough gold there to amount to much.

"After this, while at work in the race, we all kept a sharp lookout, and in the course of three or four days we had picked up about three ounces, our work going on the same as usual; for none of us at that time imagined that the whole country was sown with gold. If we had—that mill sure would never have been completed," and Marshall smiled a little bitterly.

"Four or five days after I picked up those two little pieces of yellow metal I had to go to Sutter's Fort; and, wishing to get all the information I could respecting the real value of the metal, I took all that we had collected with me, and showed it to Captain Sutter. He at once declared that it was gold; but, like me, thought it was largely mixed with some other metal. We now tried to hit upon some means of telling the exact quantity of gold found in the alloy; but couldn't figure out how to do it, until we stumbled upon an old American cyclopedia, that gave the specific gravity of all the metals and rules to find the quantity of each in a given bulk. We now wanted some silver, with which to compare our metal; and, after hunting over the whole fort and borrowing from some of the men, we managed to get three dollars and a half in silver. Captain Sutter had a small pair of scales; and, with the aid of these and the cyclopedia, we soon ciphered it out that there was neither silver nor copper in the gold, but that it was entirely pure.

"This proof that the metal was real gold excited both of us considerable; but, when we had cooled down a little and talked it over, we concluded it would be our best policy to keep it as quiet as possible until the mill was completed. Now, at this time, there was a great number of disbanded Mormon soldiers in and about the fort, and, somehow, they came to hear of it; and then the golden cat was out of the bag, for the news that gold had been discovered just spread over the whole country like wild-fire. Indeed, I had hardly got back to the mill, before men with picks and pans and shovels and hoes and all sorts of tools began coming in, all anxious to fall to work and dig up our mill by the roots; but this, of course, we would not allow, although I sometimes had the greatest trouble to get rid of them. I sent them all off in different directions, telling them of such and such places where I felt certain they would find gold, if they would only take the trouble to dig for it. Not that I really thought they would find any gold, for at that time I never imagined the gold was so abundant; but they would dig nowhere but in such places as I pointed out and I had to get rid of them someway. I believe if I had told them to dig on top of a mountain, that, so great was their confidence in me, they would have climbed to the top of the mountain and began picking away at the rocks," and something, almost a twinkle, came into Marshall's eyes, brightening their somber lights.

"And did the parties you scattered through the country find any gold?" inquired Thure eagerly.

"Yes, many of them did, to my surprise," answered Marshall; "but the second real discovery of gold was in a gulch on the road to Sacramento. The third gold discovery was made on a bar of the South Fork of the American River a little above the junction of the Middle and South forks. The diggings over there where Hangtown is," and he flung up one of his arms in the direction of Hangtown, "was discovered by myself; for we all went gold hunting, as soon as the mill was finished. Some Indians found the diggings down at Kelsey's; and thus in a short time we discovered that the whole country hereabouts is sown with gold, thick in spots but thin and scattering almost all over. Now that is the true story of the gold discovery in California, right from the lips of the man who picked up the first piece of gold, and who has had more cheating and robbing than thanks from the men the discovery has helped most," and the somber light deepened in the eyes of the disappointed and soured man, who always laid the blame of the misfortunes that seemed to follow him after the great discovery on the ingratitude of his fellow men, rather than on his own inability to use the opportunities that a kindly fate had thrust in his way.

"Well, it sure does seem hard," sympathized Bud, "that you, who discovered the gold, should be able to get so little of it. But," and his face brightened, "your luck may change to-morrow, and you may yet live to see yourself one of the richest men in California."

Here the huge form of Hammer Jones broke in on the three.

"How d'dew, Jim," and Ham reached down a big hand and gripped the hand of Marshall. "Ben tellin' th' yunks all 'bout th' Great Discovery, I reckon?" and he grinned. "Wal, if you'll jest sot down an' make y'urself easy for 'bout three hours, 'til we puts the finishin' touches on this here dam, I shouldn't be none s'prised if we was able tew show you somethin' of a discovery ourselves," and Ham pointed to the now nearly completed dam.