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Volume 3 (1858-1859) (592 pages)
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Page: of 592
REMINISCENCES OF MENDOCINO. 153
the mountains ; as to myself it offered a
welcbme opportunity, through recommendation of Tobin, to obtain one of his
Indians as guide; and furthermore, it
was Ben’s fertility of invention that provided bearers for our dogs—the poor animals being by this time so thoroughly
exhausted, that they must have been left
behind, had we not been able to find people to carry them. ,
While Ben and his people were extremely reserved in demonstrations of
enthusiasm, they were by no means backward in availing themselves of the good
success of our hunters, leaving nothing
but skin and bone of all the venison they
found on hand.
Ii was in this night’s camp, for the
first time since starting from San Francisco, that the true spirit of conviviality
broke forth, which, during the first few
days’ marches find a drawback from the
fatigue of some members of the company.
By this time every one seemed to have
awoke to the true independence and freedom of the mountains. A couple of violins and a flute were started from their
cases, and soon all was set into electric
movement; and with music and dancing,
choruses and burlesque speeches, a couple of hours passed pleasantly before any
one bethought himself of retiring; then
a few at a time, grouped by predilection
or the promptings of the moment, retired
to the quiet of their lairs in that abandon
of conversation which is never to be found
in towns, and which inadvertantly gleans,
even from the most reserved, occasional
retrospective glimpses, such as afford
the most racy reminiscences of these bivouacs.
The life of men like Jack Hays and
Caperton, who have gone through the
most daring tasks as well in guerilla war
as in difficult reconnoissances, proving
their valor on the field of battle as well
as in the most desperate conflicts of the
wilderness, but whose modesty and unpretending manner is the very stamp of
true merit—is a living book, that, however, only opens under congenial circumstances.
Besides, there was abundance of topic
for interesting discussion, an inexhaustible source of material, which, under the
clever polemic and acumen of our legal
stars could not fail to create enthusiasm ;
albeit, their discussions never suffered by
pedantic display, and the material for
such rhetoric generally obtained healthy
nourishment from the immediate accompaniments of scenery, groupings, etc.
For me this was the greatest attraction
of those evenings under the starry canopy of heaven; and often, after having for
a while enjoyed the conversation of my
friends, on retiring to my couch, a world
of reminiscences of the past rose up to
commingle with the rich impressions of
the day’s journey.
On that evening there was certainly
enough in the natural excitement of the
scene to keep my thoughts riveted to our
entourage. The effect of the camp-fire—
which, to enliven the banquet, was fed
with huge logs—was splendid. Obscured
for a while, whenever a fresh supply of
trees and branches subdued the glare
and circumscribed it to the immediate
group of our bivouac, the flames broke
forth again with redoubled force, and illumined the lofty dome of branches over
us, enabling us to trace out each branch
and cluster of foliage; and sending its
lightening flashes far into the labyrinth
of reddened colonades, whose magic effect filled our minds with the interminable extent of the virgin forest,
At length quiet prevailed, and the
crackling of the charred trunks and rustling of the wind in the lofty crowns of
trees were the only sounds which disturbed that majestic solitude.
From Sherwood Valley, the scene of
Mr. Edouart’s spirited tableau, we gained the first view of Bald Mountain, tow-