THE PACIFIC COAST SURVEY 259
Upon my return here I find San Francisco very much im- proved. The Bay is alive with steamers of every size and beautiful brick buildings adorn many of the streets. Busi- ness is quite lively and the El Dorado is flourishing rapidly."
On September 15 Me Arthur wrote from San Francisco: "For my own part I do not deem a geodetic survey required at present. A reconnaissance and the establishment of Latitudes and Longitudes of the principal points, headlands Bays, an- chorages, harbors, etc., with a selection of points for Light- houses and Buoys and general Sailing directions would in my opinion meet the present exigencies and would enable us to investigate the manner, the best manner, of operating for the future. I have already expressed myself in these terms to the Supdt. and I believe his opinion coincides with mine.
"Every day almost I meet some friend or acquaintance from the States. Dr. Rutter, and Dr. Willson, 10 a young brother of Holt, is also here as well as several others from Portsmouth. Washington is also represented and at the Columbia River I met two troupes of Artisans from Baltimore, all old acquaint- ances.
"Commodore Jones is in many respects the finest naval offi- cer I have ever met. In point of foresight and good judg- ment he surpasses any."
On October 13, 1850, he wrote: "Since my arrival from Oregon I have been very busily engaged in preparing our work and reports for the past season and will complete every- thing tomorrow and place all in the hands of Lieut. W. A. Bartlett, who is charged with the charts, etc., and takes them on to Washington." Lieut. Commanding McArthur, in this letter described briefly his visit to the Hawaiian Islands the year before and his entertainment at the hands of His Hawaiian Majesty Kamehameha III. McArthur mentions the fact that by this time wages in the vicinity of San Francisco were grad- ually resuming normal figures. On Ocober 31 he wrote of the gloom cast over the city by the bursting of the boilers of the
10 Dr. R. B. Wilson, for many years a prominent physician of Portland.
