CHAPTER VIII.

THE FATE OF THE DISCOVERERS.

Although occupying the western portion of Utah Territory, the laws under which the people of the Comstock range were at this time living were of their own making. At a meeting held by the miners of Gold Hill, June 11, 1859, the following preamble and “rules and regulations” were unanimously adopted:

At the present day all manner of gambling games are allowed by the State laws and are licensed by the towns and cities. In the original document, preserved in the old Gold Hill book of records, there are given several additional sections, but as they relate to matters not of interest to the general reader I have omitted them. One of these provides that “No Chinaman shall hold a claim in this district.”

_Whereas_, The isolated position we occupy far from all legal tribunals, and cut off from those fountains of justice which every American citizen should enjoy—renders it necessary that we organize in body politic for our mutual protection against the lawless and for meting out justice between man and man, therefore we, citizens of Gold Hill, do hereby agree to adopt the following rules and laws for our government—

RULES AND REGULATIONS.

SEC. 1. Any person who shall wilfully and with malice aforethought take the life of any person, shall, upon being duly convicted thereof, suffer the penalty of death by hanging.

SEC. 2. Any person who shall wilfully wound another, shall upon conviction thereof, suffer such penalty as the jury may determine.

SEC. 3. Any person found guilty of robbery or theft, shall, upon conviction, be punished with stripes or banishment, as the jury may determine.

SEC. 4. Any person found guilty of assault and battery, or exhibiting deadly weapons, shall, upon conviction, be fined or banished, as the jury may determine.

SEC. 5. No banking games, under any consideration, shall be allowed in this district, under the penalty of final banishment from the district.

At the present day all manner of gambling games are allowed by the State laws and are licensed by the towns and cities. In the original documents, preserved in the old Gold Hill book of records, there are given several additional sections, but as they relate to matters not of general interest to the reader I have omitted them. One of these provides that “No Chinaman shall hold a claim in this district.”

As may be seen, the laws of the first settlers were few and to the point; they were for use, not for ornament or the puzzling of the common understanding. In each settlement were in force some such “rules and regulations” as these. The man who broke one of the “rules” was sure to suffer a strict enforcement of the “regulations.”

In August, 1859, two thieves who gave the names of George Ruspas and David Reise, stole a yoke of cattle at Chinatown (now Dayton), and driving them to Washoe Valley, offered them for sale at a price so low that they were at once suspected of having stolen the animals. They were arrested, and it having been proved that the cattle had been stolen from the ranche of a Mr. Campbell, near Dayton, the sentence of the jury was that they have their left ears cut off, and that they be banished the country.

The trial was held under a big pine-tree, near the western shore of Washoe Lake, at the base of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Jim Sturtevant, an old resident of Washoe Valley, was appointed executioner. He drew out a big knife, ran his thumb along the blade, and not finding its edge just to his mind, gave it a few rakes across a rock. He then walked up to Reise and taking a firm hold on the upper part of the organ designated by the jury, shaved it off, close up, at a single slash.

As he approached Ruspas, the face of that gentleman was observed to wear a cunning smile. He seemed very much amused about something. The executioner, however, meant business, and tossing Reise’s ear over to the jury, who sat at the root of the pine, he went after that of Ruspas, whose eyes were following every motion made and whose face wore the expression of that of a man about to say or do a good thing.

Sturtevant pulled aside the fellow’s hair, which he wore hanging down about his shoulders, and lo! there was no left ear, it having been parted with on some previous and similar occasion.

Here was a fix for the executioner! His instructions were to cut off the fellow’s left ear, but there was no left ear on which to operate.

The prisoner now looked him in the face and laughed aloud. The joke was so good that he could no longer restrain himself.

Sturtevant appealed to the jury for instructions. The jury were enjoying the scene not a little, and being, in a good humor, said that they would reconsider their sentence; that rather than anyone should be disappointed the executioner might take off the prisoner’s right ear, if he had one.

The smile faded out of the countenance of Ruspas as he felt Sturtevant’s fingers securing a firm hold on the top of his right ear. An instant after, Sturtevant gave a vigorous slash, and then tossed Ruspas’ ear over to the jury, saying as he did so, that they now had a pair of ears that were “rights and lefts” and therefore properly mated.

This little ceremony over, the pair of thieves were directed to take the road leading over the Sierras to the beautiful “Golden State.” They went, not as Adam and Eve left paradise, “dropping some natural tears,” but as a pair of twin lambs are seen to depart when in the spring-time the farmer has whacked off their too luxuriant tails—went dropping blood.

There have been numerous stories told in regard to the amount of money received by Comstock for his interest in the Ophir mine and other mining property on the Comstock lode at Virginia City, some of which are far from the truth. The sale made by Comstock to Judge Walsh is recorded in the books of Virginia mining district and is dated at the “mining village or settlement known as Ophir,” August 12, 1859. I make the following extract in regard to the amount to be paid—and what was eventually paid:

“For and in consideration of $10 to me in hand paid, and for the further consideration of ten thousand nine hundred and ninety dollars to be paid by James Walsh, according to the provisions and terms of an obligation executed by him to me this day, I have bargained and sold,” etc.

The description of the property sold is as follows:

“One undivided one-sixth part of 1400 feet, said 1400 feet being now worked by myself, Penrod, Osborne, M^cLaughlin, Riley, and other owners, and known as Comstock & Co.’s claims, and owned jointly by myself, James Cary and others our associates; also, one undivided half of 200 feet of mining ground being worked by the California Company at the present time under an agreement made with me; also, all my right, title, and interest in and to certain mining claims at Six-mile Cañon diggings, being the claims known as the Caldwell claims; also, one-half the water-right known as the Caldwell Springs, situated on the hill above the said village of Ophir, and being the springs supplying the workings on the first-mentioned 1,400 feet—the present owners in said 1,400 feet being only entitled to the use of said water so long as they continue to be owners; also my recorded title, to a ranche on which the aforesaid village of Ophir is located, together with the springs on the lower part of said ranche. Also, the surface-diggings on the first-mentioned 1,400 feet and one-sixth of all improvements, animals, arastras, and all other property belonging to the company working the first-mentioned 1,400 feet.”

If Comstock had a ranche recorded which covered the site of Virginia City, the page containing such record must have been one in the old book of records of Gold Hill district. At first all claims located in Virginia district were recorded at Gold Hill.

September 23, 1859, Pat M^cLaughlin, one of the discoverers of the silver, sold his interest, one-sixth, in the Ophir mine for $3,500. Peter O’Riley, the other original discoverer, held on to his interest in the mine longer than any of the original locators, and received for it about $40,000, with back dividends amounting to four or five thousand dollars. Osborne received $7,000 for his ground.

V. A. Houseworth, the recorder at Gold Hill, who had trade for one-fourth of one-sixth interest in the mine, sold that interest to Judge Walsh, in September, 1859, for $3,000. All of these men supposed at the time that they were obtaining a big price for their interests in the mine. They knew nothing about silver-mines and feared that the deposit discovered might suddenly “peter” out.

November 30, 1859, E. Penrod sold to Gabriel Maldarnardo, a Mexican miner, his interest in the 100 feet of ground segregated to himself and Comstock, at the time the Ophir mine was located. The deed given on this occasion is quite a curiosity. It shows that the legal genius who drew it up was determined to corral all that was in sight in the way of “tenements, hereditaments” and “appurtenances.” It reads:

“For and in consideration of $3,000, to him in hand paid, this day, E. Penrod has remised, released, and quit-claimed, and by these presents do remise, release and quitclaim unto said party of the second part and his heirs and assigns forever, all his right, title, and interest in and to the undivided one-half of one hundred feet of a certain Quartz Lead known as the reserved claim of Comstock, Penrod, & Co., on the original location of the said company at Virginia City, near the head of Six-mile Cañon, in Virginia Mining District, said Territory of Utah, said claim known as the Spanish claim, together with all and singular the tenements, hereditaments and appurtenances thereunto belonging, or in anywise appertaining, and the reversion and reversions, remainder and remainders, rents, dues, and profits thereof. And, also, all the estate, right, title, interest, property, possession, claim, and demand whatsoever, as well in law as in equity, of said party of the first part, of, in, or to the above-described premises, and every part and parcel thereof, with the appurtences, to have and to hold, all and singular the above-mentioned and described premises, together with the appurtenances, unto the said party of the second part, to his heirs and assigns forever.”

This tremendous document held the property, and Maldarnardo soon after coming into possession of it, erected two small smelting-furnaces and began working the ore of the mine after the Mexican fashion.

The furnaces would hold but about fifty pounds of ore each, yet he managed to melt out a considerable amount of bullion—gold and silver mingled. The bullion, as it came from the furnace, was worth about $2.25 per ounce. The blast for the furnace was furnished by means of a common blacksmith’s bellows. It was a slow process, and was soon abandoned, though quite a number of cakes of bullion of considerable value were shipped to San Francisco during the time the furnaces were in operation.

[Illustration]

[Illustration: COMSTOCK’S AFFINITY.]

[Illustration: RETURN OF COMSTOCK’S WIFE.]