and vegetables and grain, were shipped from distant
ports.
The captain of a vessel landing from a small boat, threw his valise upon the shore, and calling out to a ship's porter, "Carry that valise up to the hotel, my boy," pitched him a half dollar. Drawing back from the coin, which he had permitted to fall upon the ground, with an air of magnificent disgust, Jack drew from his pocket two half dollars, and throwing them over toward the captain, exclaimed as he turned upon his heel, "carry it up yourself"
Some long-headed, leathery-brained Boston Yankee sent out shot. He had more shot than he could sell at home, and he had been told that there was consid- erable shooting among the miners; so he threw into a shipment a large consignment of shot. "Who wants shot in California ! " exclaimed the consignee.
"Nobody," replied a broker.
" What'll ye give for 'em? "
" Don't want 'em."
"Didn't ask if you wanted them. I asked what you would give for them."
" Oh ! ten or twenty cents a bag."
" They are yours at twenty cents."
The buyer then rubbed up his wits, and presently sold them at $4, to be run into revolver bullets. Then he bought a lot of tacks at ten cents a paper; for "what do people want of tacks who have no carpets?" he had asked. But when they began to tack up can- vass houses, all those tacks went off lively at $2 a paper.
Of the firm of Priest, Lee and Company, at Sutter's Fort, was Christopher Taylor, who went from Oregon to San Francisco in 1848, on the brig Henry, which carried down produce, lumber, provisions, and passen- gers. In company with several Oregonians he pro- ceeded up the Sacramento in the little vessel of Sutter and Hastings, arriving at Sutter's fort in Se
