Crusoe's island . y in the directionof Carson Valley. A counter-current opposed our prog-ress in the shape of saddle-trains without riders, longlines of pack-mules laden with silver ore, scattering par-ties of weather-beaten and foot-sore pedestrians, bearingtheir hard experience in their faces, arid solitary strag-glers, of all ages and degrees, mounted on skeletonhorses, or toiling wearily homeward on foot—some mer-ry, some sad, some eagerly intent on farther speculation,but all bearing the unmistakable impress of Washoe. Among the latter, a lank, leathery-looking fellow,doubtless from the l
Crusoe's island . y in the directionof Carson Valley. A counter-current opposed our prog-ress in the shape of saddle-trains without riders, longlines of pack-mules laden with silver ore, scattering par-ties of weather-beaten and foot-sore pedestrians, bearingtheir hard experience in their faces, arid solitary strag-glers, of all ages and degrees, mounted on skeletonhorses, or toiling wearily homeward on foot—some mer-ry, some sad, some eagerly intent on farther speculation,but all bearing the unmistakable impress of Washoe. Among the latter, a lank, leathery-looking fellow,doubtless from the land of wooden nutmegs, wTas sham-bling along through the mud, talking to himself appar- A PEEP AT WASHOE. 339 ently for want of more congenial fellowship. I wasabout to pass him, when he arrested my attention : Look here, stranger! I looked. Youre bound for Washoe, I reckon ? I was bound for Washoe. What line of businessbe you goin into there? Was not quite certain, but thought it would be theagency line. ->.. 3-10 A PEEP AT WASHOE. Ho! the agency liiie—stage-agent,maybe? Burchesline, I guess ? That was not it exactly; but no matter. Perhaps Icould do something for him in Washoe. Nothing, stranger, except to keep dark. Do youknow the price of grindstones in Placerville? I didnt know the price of grindstones in Placerville,but supposed they might be cheap, as there were plentythere. Thats my hand exactly! said my friend, with aninward chuckle of satisfaction. I expressed some curios-ity to know in what respect the matter of grindstonessuited his hand so well, when, looking cautiously around,he drew near, and informed me confidentially that hehad struck a good thing in Washoe. He had onlybeen there a month, and had made a considerable was a dreadful scarcity of grindstones there, and,seeing that miners, carpenters, and mechanics of all sortswere hard up for something to sharpen theirtools on, hehad secured the only grindstone that could be had, whi
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade, booksubjectminesandmineralresources
