CHAPTER LI.

THE “HEATHEN CHINEE.”

A Strange Mixture of Duties—Wicked Mongolian Tricks—’Melican and Chinaman Compared—A Ghostly Difference—Restless Spirits. 382

CHINESE OPIUM-DENS.

How they Smoke the Drug—Babel—Street-Scenes in Virginia City—Voices of the People—Hard Cash—The Grasshopper Man. 388

HOW FORTUNES ARE MADE AND LOST.

Bulls and Bears—Doings of the Brokers—On a Margin—“Pussy-Cat Wilde” and “Bobtaile”—Going Up!—Dealers and Dabblers. 397

CURIOUS SPECULATIONS IN STOCK.

Old Joe’s Disaster—A New Excitement—Sharp Doings—“The Greatest Buy on the Lead”—A Lady’s Speculation. 405

HOLIDAYS AND FUN.

Romantic Scenery—A Curious Freak of Nature—Lake Tahoe—Hank Monk—He Couldn’t tell a Lie—Practical Joking—The Summit. 413

TERRIBLE STORY OF THE DONNERS.

Donner Lake—Lost in the Snow—A Horrible Scene—What became of the Donners—The Sulphur Springs—The Golden State. 420