Etc. [pp. 327-333]

Etc.
permanent foundation that insures continuous growth
and future greatness. The experience of the last
decade amply julstifies the generalization by its many
instances of townss of bygone wealth and population,
which now show every mnarkl of ruin and d(lecay, with
a prol)batle future of utter obliteration.
True, these towns have their periodic "boom,"
which give a temporary and superficial prosperity
but in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred they bring
no othey profit than the bleeding of the tendlerfoot
bigal-ade.' "Boom " is a high-sounding word, which
its v-ictilis would define as the process resorted to to
takle gold out of human pockets instead of mother
earth's. The season of a boom infuses life and vigor
into a tos n, but when it subsides, which is generally
the period when the tenderfoot departs, the precincts
resume their usual don't care style.
The period of'49 and'50 was the season of that
whirlwind of excitement that gave birth to the mining towns of the Sierra foothills, and during its
brief duration there "ere constructed in the auriferOiis belt of foothill country from Shasta Coiunty to
MAlaripoa a iiarvelous number of towns, endowed
with phenomenal life from their advent till the
exhaustion of the placers. Their decline was equally
rapid. When the placers showed signs of exhaustion
a most wsonderful dispersion of people ensued, and
the foothill towns were ruined This dispersion
markls an epoch in the mining history of the State as
interesting and romantic as the period of the great
rush to the gold fields. It is safe to assert that had
ot circumstances compelled a certain proportion of
the popdulation to remain. total depopulation of the
miany miniing towns would have resulted. Total
dlepopulation swas indeed the fate of some, especially
those built upon the narrow placer belt where the
foothill mIerged into the plain. Their sites have
resumIedI the spirit of their original loneliness, and to
learn definitely of the rise and fall of this class of
,nafortunate towns, and even the exact spot whereon
their brief but lively career was run, one must resort
to the ()ld timier, who is most prolific in such reminiscence-.
The townss us located in the middle and upper foothill
belt, wh bere quartz sveins honey-combed the hills,
resorted to quartz and drift mining when the placers
became exhausted, and thus prolonged their lease of
life.
WAhen the placers "petered out," flush times were
also endecl, and they bequeathed to the present the
antiquated mining tosnsi.
The modern town is not stimulated by sudden for tune making, hanging bees, murders, and gambling.
Queer excavations and moldering remains of shan ties disfigure the once fair landscape, relics of its
bygone prosperity. These towns live on hope: the
coming of the periodic "boom" is looked forward
to with great anxiety; it is the medium that brings
enthusiasts and their coin into the town, who as a
result of its persuasive power sink five dollars in the
[Mar.
place to one taklen out, and gain a bit of experience
generally remembered for its high price.
The most notable feature of the town is the old
miner, a generous, vhole-souled fellow who lives on
the sunny side of hope, and is noted for ability to spin
yarns and drink. There are two classes of old timers: those who confine their operations to the immediate vicinity of the towvn, and whose life is part and
parcel of the local history, and those who are constantly on the wing, a class of "surface skippers"
that seldom wvait to fathom the merit of a find, but
are always the advance guard of a'" boom." The
former class are the mainstays of the town, and are
usually better off than those whose aim in life seems
to drift into a fortune without the expense of much
exertion. Once get into the graces of an old timer,
which is most readily accomplished by that modern
process called treating, and he will spin to you yarns
of bygone life it abundance; and if you are generous
and keep on treating, you will soon perceive that
he adds more enthusiasm to his tales at each successive treat, and instead of "pumping him dry" of
local yarns, by your questions and cross-questions,
you will find that his fund of information on local history is inexhaustible. He readily volunteers to show
you the places of interest in the townI There is the
Main Street with its abrupt declines and ascents, with
its good, bad, and indifferent buildings scattered indiscriminately along its sides.
With a twinkle in his eye he shows you the old
saloon and dance house where he assures you " men
indulged in the old time racket of passing in their
chips with their boots on, when it was no unusual
thing to have a man for breakfast every morning," and
although you shudder at the remark with an expression of doubt as to its truth, he at once assures you
that " it's stubborn fact, sir."
He w ill keep your curiosity at fever pitch, so rich
is he in local reminiscences. With a flourish of enthusiasm he points out the grass-grown excavation
from which a fortune was extracted in the palmy
days, and by way of contrast he solemnly points to a
similar hole where a fortune was sunk in a vain
attempt after the magic color; and then by way of
adding the tragic to his unb)roken discourse he points
out the spot where refractory characters figured in
that unceremonious affair, a "hanging b)ee."
The circuit of the town embraces an amount of
exciting historic matter marvelous for so small an area
and so brief a period. When the round has been made
the old timer, with an expression of thirst, sadly
announces that "times aint like they used to be."
lie solemnly proclaims that "there aint any spice to
the times, inow."
The dull monotony of the mining town day is chiefly
enlivened by the arrival of the stage; the usual con tingent of starers looms up in all directions. It is a
strikingly cosmopolitan crowd; representatives from
all classes greet you with the usual stare, from the
shrewd mine owner looking for a "sucker," to the
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