The Western Echo / A Description of the Western State and Territories of the United States. As Gathered in a Tour by Wagon

by George W. Romspert

The road being so level and straight, the train flew swiftly along; and we soon saw the spires and steeples of the capital city glittering in the distance. Coming into Sacramento the train stopped for refreshments; and before the wheels stopped rolling the cars were boarded by swarms of hotel-runners, who almost tried to force the passengers to go with them to their different hotels. Some of our comrades went along; but we had heard of the great numbers and extreme insolence of the runners of Sacramento and San Francisco, and from the looks of them they were but a gang of thieves, so we concluded to hunt our own hotels and tend to our own business.

Sacramento is a lovely place, with pretty, wide streets, many of which are made cool and delightful by large willows standing along either side, and whose green, limber branches meet above and droop over the way. The capitol is a large building, and in shape and color resembles the White House.

From here we again renewed our journey, and at last entered the city of Oakland, on the shore of the briny bay. The dry deserts and rugged mountains had been crossed, and we were finally looking upon the home of the tide, where the sea-gull sports upon the waves.

Frisco (San Francisco) lies across the bay—a distance of about eight miles—from Oakland, and there are large steam-ferries continually passing back and forth. We went aboard the ferry; and the trip was so pleasant that we thought we would like to cross the ocean. Several runners came over to Oakland to talk with the passengers as they crossed the bay; but on reaching the Frisco shore, I swear I never saw the like, and it would be impossible to describe the scene. There must have been seventy-five runners there from the different hotels, all anxious to take you to a good house. There were sometimes several from one house, and their busses were all backed up in a row. As soon as the ferry touched the wharf these fellows rushed wildly on board, crying out the name of their hotels and grabbing the luggage from the hands of the passengers, and endeavoring to drag them to their hacks. Sometimes a couple get hold of the person, and a couple get hold of his luggage, each wanting to take him and his property in different directions; and then there is a time. His clothes are sometimes torn almost off him, his satchel is torn to pieces, and he finds himself perfectly helpless in the hands of the mob; for if he lets go and goes to strike, some one will run off with his property. There is always a great crowd of people; and in the surging and crowding, and high excitement, many pockets are picked, and much luggage is lost by the owner not following the snatcher as he runs off for the hack. The boys run down each others hotels, one saying, “They don’t have anything but rotten fish to eat at that house;” another saying, “They have lousy beds at that house;” and another warning all persons not to go to either for they are robbers, and they will charge five dollars per day when they have you fast. Now, to see several of these fellows all pleading earnestly with a plain old conscientious farmer who takes everything for the truth is entirely too funny. He first looks at one and then at the other, not knowing which one to trust. We were well fixed; for some of us could carry the luggage while the others knocked down the runners. The better way is to get the name of some good hotel before you get there, and then look for the ’bus and make for it. In any case, persons should securely fasten their luggage to them with ropes.

The surface is level for a couple of hundred yards back from the bay, and it then ascends sharply to the top of a high ridge running parallel with the bay. The surface is barren, and the sand is deep and soft. On this level strip and against this steep, sandy hill stands the great city of San Francisco. The house-foundations are all laid deeply, to get below the sand; and the streets are all paved with several layers of round rocks, with nothing to smooth the surface. There is nearly always a pretty strong wind stirring, and the streets have to be kept perfectly clean. For this purpose large street-sweepers are drawn over the road by horses every day, and sprinkling is done besides. The riding and driving over these rocks is very disagreeable; and the horses do not usually last very long. To see them drawing their great loads up the steep hill-side, slipping, sliding, and straining every nerve, and sometimes falling upon their knees on the stones, is an ugly sight indeed. The large wholesale houses all have heavy trucks; and many of the finest teams I ever saw were hauling these trucks.

There is an immense quantity of the very largest and finest fruits raised in California every year. I believe I have seen as many grapes, pears, peaches, and melons in the streets of San Francisco in one day as there are raised in the State of Ohio in a whole year. I have seen several millions of fine melons lying in a single heap. There are several mammoth fruit-stores here, and hundreds of bushels, during the season, are daily loaded upon the ships for other countries. I might also add that, though California fruits are large and beautiful, much of it lacks the flavor of eastern fruits,—perhaps from the fact that during its growth it gets no rain but depends solely on the heavy dew for its nourishment.

There are street-cars on almost every street; and they are run up and down the incline by engines stationed at the top of the hill. It is very pleasant riding up and down here, and the cars are full on almost every trip.

Though there are some very large, fine buildings, the city is very ordinary on this score, there being also many little old shanties stuck here and there all through the place. The Palace Hotel is the finest building in the city, and is said to be the largest hotel in the world. It is built of beautiful polished stone, is seven stories high, contains seven hundred and twenty-five rooms, and takes up a whole square, fronting upon every side. In the center of the building there is a round space of about twenty yards in diameter running from the bottom to the top; and there are walks all around this from each story. Persons are let up and down here by elevators. There is a large, beautiful rockery all decorated with lovely flowers in the center of this space; and the clear, cool water from a pretty fountain is thrown high in the air and descends softly and refreshingly upon the tender roses and mossy rocks. There is a grand archway leading into this area from one of the streets, and carriages are driven through this and around the beautiful rockery where the air is fragrant with the sweet breath of the flowers. Guests are thus lifted into and out of their carriages always in the dry. The house is in all respects a perfect structure, and is furnished with the finest and most costly furniture. The rates are from five to ten dollars per day; though good boarding can be had in the city for from four to six dollars per week. Here is where General Grant and party put up when they reached San Francisco in their trip round the world. The other principal houses are the Baldwin, Franklin, Central Pacific, and Hotel Rhein.

There are great numbers of saloons, gambling-houses, and variety-shows, and whole gangs of the very lowest prostitutes in the city. A large proportion of the inhabitants are the rakings of many nations; and I feel very sure that there is not another city sitting upon the shores of the Pacific Ocean of more notorious lewdness and low vices than this place.

We heard much about the Chinese, and had seen a few; but here were thousands of them, of every shape and size. The business-houses on each side of one of the streets for a half mile through the city are almost exclusively occupied by them. Their business ranges from the theater down to the poultry-pen. This street is called China Street.