CALIFORNIA. [From the "Times," January 4.]

New Zealander, Volume 6, Issue 433, 8 June 1850, Page 2

CALIFORNIA. [From the " Times," January 4.]

A view of the new year would hardly he completed without a alimpse of California. At the commencement of 1849 the eyes of commercial and political •peculator* were directed towards the remote and mys. terious city of San Franrwio with greater interest than towwls any capital of Europe. Reasons had been .ihnwn foranticipiting that mo,' teiiou» and irresistible of all revolutions — a revolution in the value of the precious metals, and in the monetary and financial system ot the world. The diffeicuce between the Mxternth and fif'e»n'h ceuturiei-bcween the diys of Lord Bacon and the days «>f Warwick the Kingmaker —had undoubtedly resulted from discovers of the same Kind, and of no larger promise. So pioductiye vver* the mines of America, that Spanish viceroys did actually ntle over a pavement of s>olid silver upon mules shod with (he same precious nielal; and the pile' o. pJ«ite on the sideboards of Caslilnn Giandees weraliteially reached by sllvei ladders, in some cases < lurtren or fifteen feet high. These are not meie symbolical eXHS«eiation». but plain facts credibly recorded ; and yet even such facts were surpassed by the prospects opened in California. Goldwi> represented as discoverable in quantit es hithcito unknown even in the case of s.lver; and the entire surface of the country was (Msciibed »s equivalent to one of those bonanzas cr vei.isof native metfil, for which the miners of Potosi returned public thanksgivings. A whole yenr ha< now elapsed since thee marvel ou | ou-ce- o1 wedth have be»n in full operation, and we are in possebsum of good m teiials for revi-ing our judgmentThere is always a twofold direction given to the influence of such discoveries as these. In the present case the results concerned not only the supply of precious metals bin the colonisation ofannv and scarcely accessible region. A< regards the first of th»se points, th\> groundwork of truth bus proved really very considerable. Gold is actually found, and doubtless still exibts in large quantities but ceitain conditions, to which we very early alluded, have entirely confirmed our antic'pations respecting the practical effects upon the billion marke'sot Europe. No appreciable imporffttion hus yet taken place, and the value of the standard metal still remains at £3 17s. lO^d. per oz. Three causes have been alleged in explanation of this anomalous and jet unimpeachable fact — exaggeration in the reports of tho product, extensive self-sonsump-tion on the spot, and want of time to give full effect to the discovery. Considering the sudje t, the locality, nnd the natural predilections of the parties engaged, we do not think the amplifications of the tiuth have been hitheito very unpardonable. Almost as much g^ld hhs been found as Was faiily promised ; but it has certainly not roade its way to Europe, or, in any remunerative degree, to the United State*. The following are home of the most reasonable estimates which we have received upon this point. Setting ihe number of persons t-ngaged upon the diggings at eighty thousand, and calculating their average gain^ at five dol'ars a day, the result wou'd be a gros-i P'oduce of twelve million dollais, or abtuti?3,soo,o 0 bte-ling per month, which at the end of the year would represent a total of j£30,000,000 worth of g"ld—an enormous addition to the present supp its. When we come, however, to fact*, we find that up to the commencement of Wist Novemhe-the nc'uU npuf.i i n of sjoi* 'ut,. ftooi San Francisco had not averaged more then 500,000 dollais per month, or about £ Jlo ',000 sterling, which would give leib than a million and a qua ter sterling for ihe produce of the year. To reconcile these statements we must prenume either that five dollais per diem is too laige an average gain for BO,OGO diggtrs, or that the consumption on the spot, including private hoards, is so vast as to ahaorb upwards of nineteentwentieths of the whole produce. Both presumptions would probably be correct, though less weight, we think, is due to the latter than the former. We do not believe that a quantity of gold equivalent to 80.0UO •sovereigns, oi anything approaching to it, is daily extracted from the bowels of the earth throughout the year; and the disproof of such calculation is to be found in the non«appeaiance of any such produce. It it incredible that £28,000,000 should have been spent or hoarded in California during the lait twelve months, though no doubt gold duit has been amassed and concealed to a lurge amount by individual speculator. These hoards, however, must find their way inio circulation, and operate upon the currency ju»t as surely, though at less ceitam internl* than the regu'ar exports; and a 1 that cdn be said is, that though titne enough, considering the quick returns of this speculation, has elapsed for the exemplification of such practices, the contribution from this source have been even more scan y than from any other. Acording to the estimate*, at least ore-half of those who left England for the diggings last winter ought to have now returned with loi tunes. How many have done so ? Turning, however, to the other side of the story, we find far more positive and remarkable result!. The probability is that a sum at least equalling the largest ever anticipated jrom California has been despatched to it, and has been consumed in introducing this stiange province into the community of commercial States, liftkoning the costs of outfits, living, shipping, time, anil labour, it lias been computed that capital to the amount of ,£2o,' 00,0i)0 sterling has been exported during the last twelve months to San Francisco from ih" United Sues alone; and as only d£f),OOO,OUU ■ (-rlifg lino been received during the same period in 7h, i lian of {;oid dust, there remains a balance- against < aii'o na of £ 14,000,0 it) upon ibe yea>. But tins Aitilw'Ci*, whuiever it may be, has not been wholly ill6peU. A p(,werlul impulse has been given to the spirit ot ent'rpnte and to many branches of trade. In par ticuicir, ihediscovery bai O| eiateil wi'h such singular effect o> the hitherto impassive races of the Pacific Inland! and China, but it can hardly be unreasonable to anticipate a partial extension of the influence even to Japan. No natuies seem in.iccesssible to the charms of gold. Attain, the col nisntions of this extremity o, the \r jstcrn world nui-t necessarily indu< c the cul tivuiiou of iiuwh of the iuiei veiling territory ; nor can the v& i mtuiioi of California long remain unknown, lyui^, akit now does, between two su h cnpiul> as iitw Yoik and San Francisco. What form maybe tilti-attiiy taken by the State ol California seems raiher duubtful, for ihe population is heterogeneous: the political coniht ons rtsemble those ol no other State, and the Mormon element is very s'long. Yet till these ihings considered, the new community has certainly compoiled itself wull. It lias p ainly pronounml ;'x'" I!>t »l<*viiy~a ciicunißtancc which precedents u-ntier not a little remarkable. L Josbibly some renders may De suipr Bed at leurniug that the invention of slavery, that ia to say, of seizing and sporting '.the na4ues.p' Africa for the purposes ol fmced labour, originated* iv the ducovertts of the ptmous mines of AmcridaJ was projected with motives of the purest benevolence. Observing how grievously the nutive Indian* were tasked by their Spanish ma»t«rs in the

production of gold "and silver, the estimable and phi* lanthropic L s Casas suggested the employment in such labour of the less susceptible population of the African coast, were best fitted, in his opinion, for working in the mines. The C&liforaians, greatly t» their credit, have come to a different c inclusion. They have also, under circumstances of great difficulty, extemporised a creditable government ; they have diiplayed, on many occasions, great humanity and liberality to emigrants; and there is a good reason to hope that the new State will discharge functions serviceable to the community at large, though its exports may not, as was once anticipated, revolutionize the finances of ihe woi Id.