y houses at sixty cents per square
foot, and had the contract signed, half to be delivered at the side of
the ship by such a date and the other half at a subsequent date. I
delivered the first half of the houses on the time agreed, sending them
down the Hudson river by a barge on a tow. I sent the second half on a
barge to get there on the day they were due, apprehending no trouble, I
going down myself a few days in advance. They commenced complaining at
the ship that they would not have room for the balance of my houses on
board, although I had their written contract to take them at sixty cents
per foot.

There was great California excitement about this time, and other parties
had come to the conclusion that the _Prince de Joinville_ was probably
the fastest ship taking freight for San Francisco. I saw them accept of
offers at $1.50 per foot, when their contract with me was for less than
half that price, which would make a difference of several thousand
dollars in their favor. So, if the balance of my houses did not arrive
within the time stated in the contract, they would not be taken on that
vessel, and my speculation ruined. The time was up the next day at
twelve o'clock. I was down on the Battery the next morning early
watching for the tow, with the barge with my houses. The ship was at the
dock in the East river. About ten o'clock, A.M., I had the good fortune
to see the barge rounding the Battery. I cried out to the captain to cut
loose from the tow, employ the first steam tug and I would pay the bill,
which he did, getting on the side of the vessel by eleven o'clock, thus
saving my contract by one hour. But they did not commence taking them on
board, so the captain of the barge put a demurrage of $20 per day for
detention. In the meantime, I had bought my ticket to sail by the
steamer _Georgia_ to the Isthmus to go on the 1st of July which was but
a few days off. They, seeing that I had them on my contract, came to me
and said that my houses should go on their ship according to contract,
if they had to throw other freight out, and that they would sign a
regular bill of lading for all the material deliverable to me upon the
arrival of the _Prince de Joinville_ at the port of San Francisco, and
take my carpenters' specifications for the description of them, which
seemed all right to me.

The following is an article from the _Albany Evening Atlas_ of June 23,
1849:

"CALIFORNIA HOUSES.

"Our estimabl