Page:California Inter Pocula.djvu/77



covery of  gold  in  Australia  as  well  as  in  California. The story  goes  that  an  Englishman,  named  Har- graves, came  one  day  to  the  Coloma  mill  for  lumber. He seemed  specially  in  a  bad  humor,  for  he  was  curs- ing California, and  the  people,  and  lauding  to  'eaven hevery thing,  Haustralian  and  Henglish. Marshall let him  go  on  for  a  while  without  saying  a  word. Finally he  broke  out:

"See here,  my  friend  1"  if  you  don't  like  this  coun- try, why do  you  come  here  ? Nobody invites  you. Nobody will  cry  if  you  take  yourself  off. Go home and dig  gold. I warrant  you  I  could  find  the  stuff  in Australia."  The  spea,ker,  beginning  sharply,  had gradually,  almost  unconsciously  dropped  into  a  medi- tative strain.

The man  took  it  up  in  earnest. Marshall was  a great  character  thereabout;  he  had  found  gold  in California,  and  surely  he  must  know  if  it  was  in  Aus- tralia.

"Do you  really  think  so?" asked Hargraves.

"I ani  sure  of  it,"  said  Marshall.

"If I  thought  so  I  would  go." And he  went. And for the  millions  of  pounds  sterling  turned  by  this means into  the  British  treasury,  he  received  from  the British government  £5,000,  and  from  the  Australian government £10,000,  while  Marshall  from  his  un- grateful country received  nothing.

Everybody was  busy  and  cheerful  at  the  Coloma mill on  the  afternoon  of  the  24th  of  January  1848,  for the heavy  rains  which  had  threatened  to  destroy  the dam during  the  first  half  of  the  month  had  ceased, and the  danger  was  past. There were  several  of  the Battalion boys  here  at  work  in  various  ways'. They had come  hither,  last  from  the  half-completed  flour- ing-mill at  Brighton ;  and  such  had  been  their  suffer- ings during their  terrible  march  from  Council  Bluff and Santa  Fe,  as  to  make  the  double  pine-log-and- clapboarded cabin  seem  exceedingly  comforta