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The autumn  of  1850  saw  quite  a  city-like  settlement round Yerba  Buena  cove. Prices of  most  necessities and some  luxuries  had  come  down  within  the  reach  of the  masses,  but  were  still  high  enough. Several new journals  were  started,  such  as  the  Pacific  News and Commercial  Bulletin. The El  Dorado  gambling- house, from  a  canvas  tent,  had  become  a  fine  three- story brick  building. The bay  was  noisy  with  steamers, many of  which  were  transformed  sailing  boats,  with old boilers  which  burst  with  the  slightest  provocation.

The fire  of  1850  put  an  end  to  many  irregularities. People then  began  to  build  in  a  more  substantial manner. The fire  of  1851,  however,  made  a  clean sweep of  all  that  had  been  done,  and  the  city  began to assume  a  more  regular  appearance. Brick houses and planked  streets  took  the  place  of  the  huddled  huts and tents  of  the  previous  years. The bay  was  alive with shipping  ;  by  midsummer  over  a  hundred  steam- ers had entered  and  departed.

tive man, by  old  things  referring  to  things  two  years old. The hills  were  being  cut  dow^n  and  the  hollows filled up. Montgomery street,  which  was  the  original high-water mark,  was  now  in  the  heart  of  the  city, and Sansome  street,  which  had  been  filled  up  between Jackson and  California  streets,  was  the  new  water line. The water  lots  between  Montgomery  and  San- some were first  piled,  and  then  filled  in. South of California,  the  steam  excavator  was  busy  scooping  up the  sand-hills,  and  dropping  them  into  the  low  places alono; the  border  of  the  cove. A rail-track  was  laid on Battery  street,  along  which  cars  were  seen  flying back and  forth  all  day,  dumping  their  loads  into  the water, the  conductor,  mounted  on  the  foremost  truck, lustily blowing  his  horn  to  give  warning  of  approach.
 * ' Old  things  are  passing  away,"  sighed  the  medita-

The space  bounded  by  Montgomery,  Pacific,  Jack- son, and Kearny  streets  was,  in  the  spring  of  1851,  a hollow  filled  with  little  wooden  huts  planted  promis- cuously, with numberless  recesses  and  fastnesses  filled