any British possession; but then ours may not be such
a free country. Father was most indignant, and wrote to Marryat's
newspaper calling on the British Consul to take official notice of
the affair, but I don't remember the result. Marryat was, I believe,
an Englishman.

The next little incident I shall name the "Battle of the Standard,"
because it was all about a little flag. It was the celebration of the
laying of the Atlantic cable, and all the public school children took
part in a monster parade. Each child carried a small flag, such as we
have for the Queen's birthday celebration in Canada.

As may be supposed American flags swamped the British in numbers,
still there was a good sprinkling of the latter. I happened to be one
British boy among many American boys, and they bantered me
considerably about my flag being "alone," and at last exasperated me,
and on my flag being snatched away by a boy I snatched it back again,
and in the scuffle it was torn from the stick and I cried with
vexation. One of the teachers, however, supplied me with another,
which you may suppose I took good care of. Will the Americans never
get over their silly jealousy with respect to the flying of foreign
flags in their country? We Canadians are always pleased to see
the Star Spangled Banner waving alongside the Union Jack, and hope it
may long wave.

The Mexican coin valued at two reals, or two bits, as we called it
then, represented the value of two small apples in those days, and
everything was dear in proportion. These coins were more in
circulation than American, I think, the place being full of Mexicans.
They were very picturesque, riding about dressed in buckskin trousers
with fringe down the leg, wearing wide-brimmed felt hats and on their
heels immense spurs, which made a great noise as they walked. They
were a great attraction to me as they galloped like mad after cattle,
throwing with great skill a rawhide lariat or lasso, which rarely
missed its victim. My thirst for adventures led me with several other
kindred spirits to play hookey from school, and go into the country
to see these Mexicans drive wild cattle about, and then to the
slaughterhouse to see them killed. When I was found out I was well
whipped, of course, but I often escaped.

San Francisco in those days was mostly built of wood, and when a fire
started, with a fair wind, the damage done was something enormous. My
spirit of adventure took me to many of these fir