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Chapter 77 - Polk - The Finding of Gold
In return for the great tract of land ceded to the United States
Mexico received 15 million dollars. But the Mexicans little knew
what a golden land they were parting with, and what a bad bargain
they were making. Nine days before the treaty was signed gold was
found in California. But news traveled slowly in those days, and
the treaty was signed before the Mexicans knew of the great discovery.
Some time before this a Swiss named Sutter had settled in the Sacramento
Valley. He had prospered greatly, and had become a regular little
potentate, ruling the whole district round.
He had thousands of horses and cattle, and hundreds of men worked
for him, both white men and Indians. Now he wanted to build a saw
mill and a man named Marshall, a settler from the East, undertook
to build it for him.
Marshall was a moody, queer tempered man. But he was a good workman.
So about fifty miles from Sutter's fort the saw mill was begun. Now
one day while Marshall was walking beside the mill stream inspecting
the work he saw something yellow and shining among the loose earth
and gravel which was being carried down by the stream. At first
he thought little about it, but as again and again he saw these
shining grains he at length thought that they might be gold and
picked some up.
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