Page:California Inter Pocula.djvu/329

 greatest

of all  is  the  bonanza  king  who  gives  his  best  friend points that  direct  him  the  shortest  road  to  ruin.

Then spawned  speculation,  all  kinds  of  gambling- being in  vogue  in  saintly  circles  and  rabble  congrega- tions— all except  the  honest  old-time  games,  such  as faro,  monte,  and  poker. And there  were  established among the  sand-hills  society  shops,  where  the  undying reign of  fashion  set  in;  and  politician  shops,  where fat offices  were  sold ;  and  peculation  shops,  where office-holders might  turn  an  honest  penny,  and  pay the purchase-money  for  their  place.

There were  some  good  fellows  among  the  latter-day rich men,  but  not  many. They were  generally  of  the Gripus order ;  some  hard  drinkers  among  them,  who when in  their  cups  did  not  always  treat  with  distin- guished courtesy their  guests  ;  who  were  well  enough satisfied to  let  Lucullus  sup  with  Lucullus. Avarice gnawed at  their  vitals  like  the  parasite  in  the  stomach of a  shark. Banks sprang  up  whose  caterpillar  was  a steamboat  or  a  grog-shop,  and  dignified  dames  sat  in stately  parlors  whose  grub  was  the  laundry. These later overwhelmingly  rich  ones  were  quite  different from the  free-hearted  and  free-handed  of  the  flusli times, who,  like  Ali  Baba,  wt)uld  not  take  the  time to  count  their  gold,  but  measured  it.  The  enormous wealth  of  the  former  seemed  rather  to  create  a  hunger for  more  money,  with  a  gnawing  appetite  ever  in- creased by  what  it  fed  on.  Then  perhaps  they  would grow  covetous  of  fame  and  higher  social  standing,  and so  Hit  about,  hither  and  thither,  restless,  and  perhaps reckless,  in  search  of  something  which,  when  found, only  added  to  their  unappeased  desires.

Along the  pathway  of  nations,  savage  and  civilized, we see  every  community  with  its  moral  ideal  which acts as  an  individual  cohesive  force  holding  society  to- gether. It seems  of  less  importance  what  the  ideal  is than  that  there  should  be  one. Theft was  the  moral standard round  which  revolved  all  virtue  in  the  mind