the birdless thickets,--all seem to indicate a
peculiarly sterile destiny. One thinks, as he presses forward, that some
gloomy Fate finds harbor in the place. All around, far as the eye may
see, it looks in vain for relief in variety. There still stretch the
dreary wastes, the dull woods, the long sandy tracts, and the rude hills
that send out no voices, and hang out no lights for the encouragement of
the civilized man. Such is the prospect that meets the sad and searching
eyes of the wayfarer, as they dart on every side seeking in vain for
solace.

Yet, though thus barren upon the surface to the eye, the dreary region
in which we now find ourselves, is very far from wanting in resources,
such as not only woo the eyes, but win the very soul of civilization. We
are upon the very threshold of the gold country, so famous for its
prolific promise of the precious metal; far exceeding, in the
contemplation of the knowing, the lavish abundance of Mexico and of
Peru, in their palmiest and most prosperous condition. Nor, though only
the frontier and threshold as it were to these swollen treasures, was
the portion of country now under survey, though bleak, sterile, and
uninviting, wanting in attractions of its own. It contained indications
which denoted the fertile regions, nor wanted entirely in the precious
mineral itself. Much gold had been already gathered, with little labor,
and almost upon its surface; and it was perhaps only because of the
limited knowledge then had of its real wealth, and of its close
proximity to a more productive territory, that it had been suffered so
long to remain unexamined.

Nature, thus, in a section of the world seemingly unblessed with her
bounty, and all ungarnished with her fruits and flowers, seemed desirous
of redeeming it from the curse of barrenness, by storing its bosom with
a product, which, only of use to the world in its conventional
necessities, has become, in accordance with the self-creating wants of
society, a necessity itself; and however the bloom and beauty of her
summer decorations may refresh the eye of the enthusiast, it would here
seem that, with an extended policy, she had planted treasures, for
another and a greatly larger class, far more precious to the eyes of
hope and admiration than all the glories and beauties in her sylvan and
picturesque abodes. Her very sterility and solitude, when thus found to
indicate her mineral treasures, rise themselves into attractions; and