Page:California Inter Pocula.djvu/252

 pledged

themselves to  stand  by  liim  and  support  the  courts. During these  excitements  hundreds  of  armed  men appeared ranged  on  either  side,  but  none  were  killed or wounded. Here ended  the  matter.

The miners  loved  to  regulate  their  own  affairs,  par- ticularly mining matters,  and  hanging. At a  meeting held Sunday  evening,  the  20th  of  April,  1851,  at Horseshoe  bar,  the  following  pertinent  if  not  logical resolutions were  adopted :

Tliat we  are  in  favor  of  law  and  order,  and  are  willing  to  obey  all  man- dates of our  courts,  and  all  authority  coming  in  a  proper  and  legitimate  way; but that  we  do  not  recognize  the  right  of  jurisdiction  of  our  courts  in  cases of trespass  on  mineral  claims,  and  thab  we  believe  all  difficulties  of  the  miners in respect  to  their  claims  can  be  settled  far  more  speedily,  with  greater  jiis- tice, and  with  far  less  cost  and  trouble,  by  the  miners  themselves  than  by any  court  now  existing  in  the  state.

Resolved, that  we  are  not  in  favor  of  throwing  our  cases  into  courts  which have not  been  found  able  to  exercise  their  authority  in  such  a  way  as  to  give to the  people  a  feeling  of  satisfaction;  and  that  while  we  charge  none  with corruption or  dishonesty,  we  believe  it  to  be  the  rottenness  of  our  courts  that has brought  them  into  disrepute. We think  too  many  of  our  public  officers are more  familiar  with  monte  than  they  are  with  mining,  and  believe  they have a  better  knowledge  of  twenty-one  than  they  have  of  trespass  on  min- eral claims.

Resolved, that  we  will  not  carry  the  differences  which  arise  among  us  in regard  to  leads  and  claims  before  any  court  imtil  a  proper  one  be  established by the  general  government;  that  we  will  discountenance  all  such  appeals, and that  as  for  ourselves,  we  will  resist  as  best  we  can  all  attempts  of  our courts to  exercise  jurisdiction  of  this  kind.

In criminal  affairs,  the  miners  were  governed  simply by their  ideas  of  right,  formulated  to  some  extent  by tradition,  but  always  in  the  ends  of  justice. In civil cases, all  depended  upon  agreement,  and  if  there  was no agreement,  then  upon  custom  and  equity. The miners of  every  locality  met  and  made  their  own  laws regulating right  of  occupation ;  for  the  rest,  there  was little to  question  or  dispute  about. These laws  were much alike  in  the  different  districts,  and  yet  they  varied a little. There were  hundreds  of  them,  enough  to  fill a volume,     I  give  a  few  as  samples.

Following are  the  regulations  adopted  by  the  min- ers of the  Kock  Creek  Ditch  and  Mining  District  at a  meeting  held  the  1st  of  December,  1853.

I. This  district  shall  be  bounded  by  the  Fordyce  and  Booth  Rock  Creek Districts on  two  sides,  the  Spoilt  Spring  ravine  on  the  lower  sides,  and  the south braiach  of  Rock  Creek  ou  the  other.