HISTORY OF CALIFORNIA. 51 



" Gold is also believed to exist on the eastern slope 

 of the Sierra Nevada ; and when at the mines, I was 

 informed by an intelligent Mormon that it had been 

 found near the Great Salt Lake by some of his frater- 

 nity. Nearly all the Mormons are leaving California 

 to go to the Salt Lake, and this they surely would not 

 do unless they were sure of finding gold there in the 

 same abundance as they now do on the Sacramento. 



" The gold ' placer' near the mission of San Fer- 

 nando has long been known, but has been little wrought 

 for want of water. This is a spur which puts off from 

 the Sierra Nevada (see Fremont's map,) the same in 

 which the present mines occur. There is, therefore, 

 every reason to believe, that in the intervening spaces, 

 of five hundred miles (entirely unexplored) there must 

 be many hidden and rich deposits. The * placer' gold 

 is now substituted as the currency of this country ; in 

 trade it passes freely at $16 per ounce ; as an article 

 of commerce its value is not yet fixed. The only 

 purchase I made was of the specimen No. 7, which I 

 got of Mr. Neligh at §12 the ounce. That is about 

 the present cash value in the country, although it has 

 been sold for less. The great demand for goods and 

 provisions, made by this sudden development of wealth, 

 has increased the amount of commerce at San Fran- 

 cisco very much, and it will continue to increase." 



The Calif ornian, published at San Francisco on the 

 14th of August, furnishes the following interesting 

 account of the Gold Region : 



" It was our intention to present our readers with a 

 description of the extensive gold, silver, and iron mines, 

 recently discovered in the Sierra Nevada, together 

 with some other important items, for the good of the 

 people, but we are compelled to defer it for a future 



