In 1858 silver lodes were discovered in “Carson County,” and then the aspect of things changed. Californians began to flock in, and the American element was soon in the majority. Allegiance to Brigham Young and Utah was renounced7, and a temporary territorial8 government for “Washoe” was instituted by the citizens. Governor Roop was the first and only chief magistrate9 of it. In due course of time Congress passed a bill to organize “Nevada Territory,” and President Lincoln sent out Governor Nye to supplant10 Roop.
At this time the population of the Territory was about twelve or fifteen thousand, and rapidly increasing. Silver mines were being vigorously developed and silver mills erected11. Business of all kinds was active and prosperous and growing more so day by day.
The people were glad to have a legitimately12 constituted government, but did not particularly enjoy having strangers from distant States put in authority over them—a sentiment that was natural enough. They thought the officials should have been chosen from among themselves from among prominent citizens who had earned a right to such promotion13, and who would be in sympathy with the populace and likewise thoroughly14 acquainted with the needs of the Territory. They were right in viewing the matter thus, without doubt. The new officers were “emigrants,” and that was no title to anybody’s affection or admiration15 either.
The new government was received with considerable coolness. It was not only a foreign intruder, but a poor one. It was not even worth plucking—except by the smallest of small fry office-seekers and such. Everybody knew that Congress had appropriated only twenty thousand dollars a year in greenbacks for its support—about money enough to run a quartz16 mill a month. And everybody knew, also, that the first year’s money was still in Washington, and that the getting hold of it would be a tedious and difficult process. Carson City was too wary17 and too wise to open up a credit account with the imported bantling with anything like indecent haste.
There is something solemnly funny about the struggles of a new-born Territorial government to get a start in this world. Ours had a trying time of it. The Organic Act and the “instructions” from the State Department commanded that a legislature should be elected at such-and- such a time, and its sittings inaugurated at such-and-such a date. It was easy to get legislators, even at three dollars a day, although board was four dollars and fifty cents, for distinction has its charm in Nevada as well as elsewhere, and there were plenty of patriotic18 souls out of employment; but to get a legislative19 hall for them to meet in was another matter altogether. Carson blandly20 declined to give a room rent-free, or let one to the government on credit.
But when Curry21 heard of the difficulty, he came forward, solitary22 and alone, and shouldered the Ship of State over the bar and got her afloat again. I refer to “Curry—Old Curry—Old Abe Curry.” But for him the legislature would have been obliged to sit in the desert. He offered his large stone building just outside the capital limits, rent-free, and it was gladly accepted. Then he built a horse-railroad from town to the capitol, and carried the legislators gratis23.
He also furnished pine benches and chairs for the legislature, and covered the floors with clean saw-dust by way of carpet and spittoon combined. But for Curry the government would have died in its tender infancy24. A canvas partition to separate the Senate from the House of Representatives was put up by the Secretary, at a cost of three dollars and forty cents, but the United States declined to pay for it. Upon being reminded that the “instructions” permitted the payment of a liberal rent for a legislative hall, and that that money was saved to the country by Mr. Curry’s generosity25, the United States said that did not alter the matter, and the three dollars and forty cents would be subtracted from the Secretary’s eighteen hundred dollar salary—and it was!
The matter of printing was from the beginning an interesting feature of the new government’s difficulties. The Secretary was sworn to obey his volume of written “instructions,” and these commanded him to do two certain things without fail, viz.:
1. Get the House and Senate journals printed; and, 2. For this work, pay one dollar and fifty cents per “thousand” for composition, and one dollar and fifty cents per “token” for press-work, in greenbacks.
It was easy to swear to do these two things, but it was entirely26 impossible to do more than one of them. When greenbacks had gone down to forty cents on the dollar, the prices regularly charged everybody by printing establishments were one dollar and fifty cents per “thousand” and one dollar and fifty cents per “token,” in gold. The “instructions” commanded that the Secretary regard a paper dollar issued by the government as equal to any other dollar issued by the government. Hence the printing of the journals was discontinued. Then the United States sternly rebuked27 the Secretary for disregarding the “instructions,” and warned him to correct his ways. Wherefore he got some printing done, forwarded the bill to Washington with full exhibits of the high prices of things in the Territory, and called attention to a printed market report wherein it would be observed that even hay was two hundred and fifty dollars a ton. The United States responded by subtracting the printing- bill from the Secretary’s suffering salary—and moreover remarked with dense28 gravity that he would find nothing in his “instructions” requiring him to purchase hay!
Nothing in this world is palled29 in such impenetrable obscurity as a U.S. Treasury30 Comptroller’s understanding. The very fires of the hereafter could get up nothing more than a fitful glimmer31 in it. In the days I speak of he never could be made to comprehend why it was that twenty thousand dollars would not go as far in Nevada, where all commodities ranged at an enormous figure, as it would in the other Territories, where exceeding cheapness was the rule. He was an officer who looked out for the little expenses all the time. The Secretary of the Territory kept his office in his bedroom, as I before remarked; and he charged the United States no rent, although his “instructions” provided for that item and he could have justly taken advantage of it (a thing which I would have done with more than lightning promptness if I had been Secretary myself). But the United States never applauded this devotion. Indeed, I think my country was ashamed to have so improvident32 a person in its employ.
Those “instructions” (we used to read a chapter from them every morning, as intellectual gymnastics, and a couple of chapters in Sunday school every Sabbath, for they treated of all subjects under the sun and had much valuable religious matter in them along with the other statistics) those “instructions” commanded that pen-knives, envelopes, pens and writing-paper be furnished the members of the legislature. So the Secretary made the purchase and the distribution. The knives cost three dollars apiece. There was one too many, and the Secretary gave it to the Clerk of the House of Representatives. The United States said the Clerk of the House was not a “member” of the legislature, and took that three dollars out of the Secretary’s salary, as usual.
White men charged three or four dollars a “load” for sawing up stove- wood. The Secretary was sagacious enough to know that the United States would never pay any such price as that; so he got an Indian to saw up a load of office wood at one dollar and a half. He made out the usual voucher33, but signed no name to it—simply appended a note explaining that an Indian had done the work, and had done it in a very capable and satisfactory way, but could not sign the voucher owing to lack of ability in the necessary direction. The Secretary had to pay that dollar and a half. He thought the United States would admire both his economy and his honesty in getting the work done at half price and not putting a pretended Indian’s signature to the voucher, but the United States did not see it in that light.
The United States was too much accustomed to employing dollar-and-a-half thieves in all manner of official capacities to regard his explanation of the voucher as having any foundation in fact.
But the next time the Indian sawed wood for us I taught him to make a cross at the bottom of the voucher—it looked like a cross that had been drunk a year—and then I “witnessed” it and it went through all right. The United States never said a word. I was sorry I had not made the voucher for a thousand loads of wood instead of one.
The government of my country snubs honest simplicity34 but fondles artistic35 villainy, and I think I might have developed into a very capable pickpocket36 if I had remained in the public service a year or two.
That was a fine collection of sovereigns, that first Nevada legislature. They levied37 taxes to the amount of thirty or forty thousand dollars and ordered expenditures38 to the extent of about a million. Yet they had their little periodical explosions of economy like all other bodies of the kind. A member proposed to save three dollars a day to the nation by dispensing39 with the Chaplain. And yet that short-sighted man needed the Chaplain more than any other member, perhaps, for he generally sat with his feet on his desk, eating raw turnips40, during the morning prayer.
The legislature sat sixty days, and passed private tollroad franchises41 all the time. When they adjourned42 it was estimated that every citizen owned about three franchises, and it was believed that unless Congress gave the Territory another degree of longitude43 there would not be room enough to accommodate the toll-roads. The ends of them were hanging over the boundary line everywhere like a fringe.
The fact is, the freighting business had grown to such important proportions that there was nearly as much excitement over suddenly acquired toll-road fortunes as over the wonderful silver mines.
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1
colonists
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| n.殖民地开拓者，移民，殖民地居民( colonist的名词复数 ) | |
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2
intercourse
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| n.性交；交流，交往，交际 | |
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3
peremptory
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| adj.紧急的，专横的，断然的 | |
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4
illustrates
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| 给…加插图( illustrate的第三人称单数 )； 说明； 表明； （用示例、图画等）说明 | |
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5
noted
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| adj.著名的，知名的 | |
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apron
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| n.围裙；工作裙 | |
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7
renounced
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| v.声明放弃( renounce的过去式和过去分词 )；宣布放弃；宣布与…决裂；宣布摒弃 | |
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territorial
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| adj.领土的，领地的 | |
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magistrate
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| n.地方行政官，地方法官，治安官 | |
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10
supplant
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| vt.排挤；取代 | |
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11
ERECTED
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| adj. 直立的，竖立的，笔直的 vt. 使 ... 直立，建立 | |
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12
legitimately
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| ad.合法地；正当地，合理地 | |
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13
promotion
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| n.提升，晋级；促销，宣传 | |
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14
thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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15
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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16
quartz
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| n.石英 | |
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17
wary
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| adj.谨慎的，机警的，小心的 | |
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patriotic
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| adj.爱国的，有爱国心的 | |
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legislative
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| n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的 | |
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blandly
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| adv.温和地，殷勤地 | |
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curry
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| n.咖哩粉，咖哩饭菜；v.用咖哩粉调味，用马栉梳，制革 | |
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22
solitary
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| adj.孤独的，独立的，荒凉的；n.隐士 | |
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23
gratis
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| adj.免费的 | |
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24
infancy
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| n.婴儿期；幼年期；初期 | |
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25
generosity
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| n.大度，慷慨，慷慨的行为 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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rebuked
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| 责难或指责( rebuke的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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29
palled
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| v.（因过多或过久而）生厌，感到乏味，厌烦( pall的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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30
treasury
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| n.宝库；国库，金库；文库 | |
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31
glimmer
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| v.发出闪烁的微光；n.微光，微弱的闪光 | |
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32
improvident
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| adj.不顾将来的，不节俭的，无远见的 | |
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33
voucher
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| n.收据；传票；凭单，凭证 | |
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34
simplicity
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| n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯 | |
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35
artistic
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| adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的 | |
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pickpocket
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| n.扒手；v.扒窃 | |
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37
levied
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| 征（兵）( levy的过去式和过去分词 )； 索取； 发动（战争）； 征税 | |
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38
expenditures
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| n.花费( expenditure的名词复数 )；使用；（尤指金钱的）支出额；（精力、时间、材料等的）耗费 | |
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39
dispensing
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| v.分配( dispense的现在分词 )；施与；配（药） | |
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40
turnips
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| 芜青( turnip的名词复数 )； 芜菁块根； 芜菁甘蓝块根； 怀表 | |
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41
franchises
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| n.（尤指选举议员的）选举权( franchise的名词复数 )；参政权；获特许权的商业机构（或服务）；（公司授予的）特许经销权v.给…以特许权，出售特许权( franchise的第三人称单数 ) | |
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42
adjourned
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| （使）休会， （使）休庭( adjourn的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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43
longitude
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| n.经线，经度 | |
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