observed putting off from the United States sloop-of-war Cyane, then lying at anchor in the bay, and heading towards the schooner. Libby pointed them out to Greathouse and stated what they meant. Rubery thereupon insisted on running up all the sails, but Libby replied that there was no wind and it would be useless. In a few minutes afterwards the Cyane's boats arrived, followed by a steam-tug; the schooner was boarded and seized by the officers of the United States, and the enterprise nipped in the bud. Just before the seizure, Law, who seems to have in the meanwhile become intoxicated, made his appearance and got on board; and he, as well as all the others, was arrested. It was subsequently shown that the United States revenue officers had been aware of the intended expedition almost from the beginning and maintained a constant watch, night and day, of the vessel. On the afternoon of Saturday, when the clearance papers for Manzanillo were procured, they increased the watch-chartering a steam-tug and putting a number of policemen on board. They also made arrangements for the assistance of the two boats with their crews from the Cyane to act in conjunction with them on a given signal, and in addition provided in advance for the reception and confinement of their intended prisoners at the fortifications on Alcatraz Island. On Saturday evening the revenue officers themselves went on board the tug; proceeded to a wharf near that at which the J. M. Chapman lay, and watched Harpending's men going on board.

Upon arresting the men on board the schooner, it was found that they had destroyed many papers; but in the baggage of Harpending and Rubery were discovered, among other documents, a proclamation to the people of California to throw off the authority of the United States; a plan for the capture of the United States forts at San Francisco and particularly Alcatraz; a draft of an oath of fidelity to their cause, and an imprecation of vengeance on all who should prove false. Immediately after the seizure and arrest, the prisoners were taken to Alcatraz and confined there. The result of the trial was the conviction of Greathouse, Harpending and Rubery. They were sentenced by Judge Stephen J. Field to be imprisoned for ten years and to pay a fine of ten thousand dollars each. Not long afterwards

Rubery was pardoned by President Lincoln at the special request of John Bright of England; and in February, 1864, while Judge Field was absent, the other defendants were released by Judge Ogden Hoffman on the claim that they were included, upon taking the required oath, in Lincoln's amnesty proclamation of December 8, 1863. In the meanwhile the schooner J. M.. Chapman and its cargo were condemned and sold as prize of war and the proceeds distributed between the United States and the captors.'

But, while California was thus loyal, and disposed to support the vigorous and unyielding prosecution of the conflict, there was one war measure of the administration-and one of great importance and necessary to the Union in general-which did not entirely suit it and which it only accepted in a conditional manner. This was the legal tender or greenback currency provided by the United States treasury department. California and for that matter almost all the Pacific coast was a gold and silver producing country; and it did its financial business exclusively in gold and silver coin. There being no banks of issue and no bank-notes in the land, and the popular will being unalterably opposed to the toleration of anything of the kind, all values were based upon the gold and silver standard; and there was and of course could be no depreciated currency so long as they remained the standard. Goods were bought and sold and services employed and rendered for gold and silver prices, and credits were given and accepted for the same. But when the new war legislation made treasury notes a legal tender for debts, and particularly when those notes began to largely depreciate at one time going considerably more than fifty per cent below the gold standard-it became apparent in California that great injustice was being done by the operation of the law on the Pacific coast. Many instances occurred in which debts contracted on the gold basis were paid in greenbacks at a loss to the creditor of more than sixty per cent; and, however morally dishonest and despicable such payment was, it could not be prevented.

A remedy, which proved effective as to future bargains, was 'United States vs. Greathouse et al., In Re Greathouse, and Proceeds of Schooner Chapman, 4 Sawyer (U. S. Circuit Court), 457-516.

found by the legislature of 1863 in what was popularly known as the "specific contract law." This consisted in a series of amendments to the civil practice act, proposed by Assemblyman Sanderson of El Dorado county, providing that contracts in writing for the direct payment of money, made payable in a specific kind of money or currency, might be specifically enforced by the courts, and judgments on such contracts be made payable and collectable in the kind of money or currency specified. The sentiment of the assembly had already been shown on February 19 by the rejection by forty-nine ayes to eleven noes of a resolution, introduced by John F. Swift, to make legal tender notes the circulating medium in the state.' Sanderson's amendments were introduced February 24; passed the assembly March 17 by a vote of forty-two ayes to eighteen noes; passed the senate April 14 by twenty-two ayes to eleven noes, and received the governor's approval and became a law on April 27, 1863. But, notwithstanding the large majorities in the legislature in favor of the new provisions, there were great objections made by many persons who considered them opposed, if not to the constitution of the United States, at least to the policy of the federal government in carrying on the war and suppressing the rebellion. When the question came before the supreme court in July, 1864, however, that tribunal decided the provisions constitutional; and this decision was afterwards in effect confirmed by the supreme court of the United States. The result was the enforcement of specific contracts and the custom, in nearly every note or contract for the payment of money thereafter made in California, to make it expressly payable only "in gold coin." Another result was a great impetus to trade for the reason that Californian merchants and traders made large profits by buying goods in eastern markets for greenbacks and selling them on the Pacific coast for gold. Though several subsequent efforts were made to repeal the specific contract law, they all failed. It had been found beneficial and became generally popular. Oregon

1 Assembly Journal, 1863, 208, 226, 227.

2

Assembly Journal, 1863, 249, 380, 737; Senate Journal, 1863, 449, 494; Stats. 1863, 687.

3 Carpentier vs. Atherton, 25 Cal. 564.

and Nevada and the Pacific coast in general followed the example in this respect of California.

Though thus particular about its currency and, for the time at least, opposed to anything but coin as its circulating medium, California was exceedingly liberal with its gold to the national cause. Not only was no claim or demand upon it by the general government ever questioned or delayed, but its gratuitous and spontaneous contributions for the health and comfort and to alleviate the sufferings of the soldiers of the war were unparalleled. The movement, which became famous the world over by the name of the "sanitary commission" and of which California became the main supporter, commenced in 1862. In the disastrous campaign of that year, so many of those who were fighting for their country were stricken down by wounds or disease that the government was unable, on account of the heavy drain in other directions of its available funds, to take as complete care of them as they deserved. Under the circumstances a sanitary commission was organized in New York under the presidency of Rev. Henry W. Bellows, a Unitarian clergyman of that city, and various small contributions were solicited and obtained. Bellows proposed to Rev. Thomas Starr King, the silver-tongued Unitarian clergyman of San Francisco, whose voice had already been heard in eloquent favor of the Union cause, that something in the same line should be attempted in California; and King threw himself into the project with all his fervid soul. On the evening of September 6, 1862, a first meeting in reference to raising money for the sanitary fund was held in San Francisco; and the large sum of six thousand six hundred dollars was at once contributed. The enthusiasm became so great that other meetings were called; the most prominent citizens took part; committees were appointed; the work was systematized, and in about ten days a sum of one hundred and sixty thousand dollars in gold was raised and remitted to Bellows. In October another hundred thousand dollars were raised and remitted, and before the end of the year 1862 still another hundred thousand.

The Californian contributions, unparalleled as they were in comparison with those of other states, were in gold coin so that

they represented considerably over half a million in legal tender notes. And in the same manner, subsequent contributions were in gold coin, which continued to be, with some variations, much higher than greenbacks. In October, 1863, Bellows telegraphed to San Francisco that the sanitary commission had distributed "stores to the value of several million dollars" to all parts of the army at a cost of three per cent, and that California had been its main support. But he said that its funds were then low. Its expenses were fifty thousand dollars a month, and it could not live more than three months longer without large support from the Pacific. He suggested that if California would contribute twenty-five thousand dollars a month while the war lasted, the other twenty-five thousand could be made up in the east and the commission could continue on its existing magnificent scale of beneficence. To this, San Francisco answered that it would supply two hundred thousand dollars in 1864 and that the remainder of the state would doubtless make the sum three hundred thousand. Bellows, in his ardent enthusiasm, replied that his table was "illuminated with this resplendent message" and that in his haste to acknowledge such a glorious and patriotic continuance in well-doing he could "only stutter, 'Noble, tender, faithful San Francisco, city of the heart, commercial and moral capital of the most humane and generous state in the world!" San Francisco almost immediately organized a subscription and sent on a sum of twenty-five thousand dollars a month. After the close of the war, the report of the commission showed that, out of four million eight hundred thousand dollars cash received, California had supplied nearly a million and a quarter and Oregon and Nevada nearly a quarter million dollars, or together nearly a third of the whole amount contributed.

Previous to the commencement of the sanitary fund in 1862, San Francisco, which had given about one-half of all the money raised in California for that beneficent purpose, had contributed over fifteen thousand dollars for the sufferers in the Sacramento flood of the winter of 1861-2. It had given before on other occasions. Taking all together, Bellows, however much allowance is to be made for his personal pride and clerical exaggera