goldfields

Pres Longley, the Bard of Butte

Pres Longley, the “Bard of Butte,” wrote many, many poems for the newspapers. This one appeared in the Oroville Daily Register on December 24th, 1908.

A Poem for Christmas

About two thousand years ago
The Earth was filled with saddest woe
And men looked out from caverns dark
To catch a gleam, a single spark
Of some bright hope that might convey
The opening of a better day
But all was gloom -- no light divine
Amid the darkness seemed to shine.

No still, small Voice was heard to say,
"I am the Life, -- O come this way";
No great "Physician" cried aloud
Unto the maimed and sickened crowd,
"Believe in Me, I'll make you whole
In strength of body, mind and soul."
The rich ran riot in their lust,
The poor were groveling in the dust,
And few in God had put their trust.

Earth was a mansion of despair,
And every prospect bright and fair
Was merged in night; and none might turn
Aside the things that made them mourn.
But hear from off the wintry plain
A song of joy, a sweet refrain
Of angel voices singing nigh
That made sweet music in the sky.

And a Voice resounding o'er the hill,
To all mankind, "Peace and good will."
A star arose -- a glittering gem--
It was the "Star of Bethlehem."
Jesus lay in manger, and
Wise men came from Eastern land
To offer praise and homage due
To One whose love for man is true.

It was an era in our race
That brought to us the smile of grace.
He healed the sick, the lame, the blind,
And brought sweet comfort to the mind.
He drank the bitter cup of gall,
And dying broke our sinful thrall.
Without our Christ, we'd sink again
To hopeless sinfulness and pain.

But now we see o'er all the world
The banner of His Cross unfurled,
And written on its folds so dear
The words of of hope and cheer
And a Voice still crying, ere you sink,
"Ho! every one,come up and drink,
Drink of His love, 'tis free as rain,
And you shall never thirst again."

I’ll get back to writing about northern California history soon, I promise. You might get tired of hearing about my new book, and we don’t want that. But here’s one more tidbit of book news:

Yesterday I was interviewed by Jerry Olenyn for a news feature on KRCR-TV. Jerry did a good job of turning my stumblings and babblings into cogent soundbites, and it was fun to see how he does the job. You can watch it at the KRCR website. It was also a beautiful day to enjoy the fall colors at Bidwell Mansion.

Here are some Holiday Happenings I’d like you to know about.

The Bidwell Mansion Association is having its holiday event for member on Friday, December 4th, 6-8 p.m. Not a member of the BMA? You should join! Tickets are $30 for members and $35 for non-members, including a one-year membership, so you can save on your first year as a member.

Bidwell Mansion is all gussied up for the holidays, with lavish new decorations all through the house. John and Annie will be there to welcome their guests. The Glatz sisters will be presenting seasonal music in the parlor.

Catering is by A Fresh Approach, and wine-tasting (don’t tell Annie!) by Bertagna Vineyards. Steve Ferchaud and myself will be signing books. The BMA promises you a lovely evening to start off the holiday season.

For other holiday events at Bidwell Mansion — family photo sessions and holiday evening tours — take a look at the Bidwell Mansion SHP page.

If you aren’t coming Friday evening, but would like to get a signed copy of John and Annie Bidwell: The Long and the Short of It, please come to the Chico Library on Saturday, December 5 at 2 p.m. I’d love to see you there! Sales will benefit the Bidwell Mansion Association.

The first weekend in December is chockful of fun things to do. Here are two more:

Stansbury House presents A Merry Dickens Christmas Friday through Sunday, Dec. 4-6. Check their website for times and goings-on. Mark Twain will put in an appearance!

The annual Christmas Creche Festival takes place at the LDS Church at East and Mariposa, Thursday Dec. 3 through Sunday Dec. 6. Check their Facebook page for times. Thousands of nativity sets from around the world will be on display, and there will be refreshments and activities for the kids. Admission is free.

Thursday evening at the Creche Festival I will be reading The Gift of the Magi, by O. Henry, as part of a program of readings and music. I hope you can come enjoy the special spirit of Christmas at this event.

Dan Barnett’s review of John and Annie is in the Chico Enterprise-Record this morning. How nice to get an early morning e-mail from Carla Resnick telling me about it, and just as nice to read it in the print newspaper on this rainy Sunday morning.

“Colorful and captivating” is how Dan describes the book. Thanks, Dan!

John and Annie Bidwell: The Long and the Short of It is now available! It will be in the General’s Store (the gift shop) at Bidwell Mansion starting next weekend. Bidwell Mansion State Historic Park is open Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Other places that will be carrying it are Made in Chico and The Bookstore on Main Street.

If you want to get a copy into your eager little hands, and you live in Chico, you can contact me at goldfieldsbooksca@gmail.com. I will arrange for me to deliver, or you to pick up, your very own copy.

The cover price of the book is $16.95. Direct sales are $17 a copy, sales tax included.

This has been a fun project. It was a pleasure to work with Steve Ferchaud, who is not only a fine illustrator, but also a delightful human being. He had plenty of imaginative ideas for extending the text and enhancing the appeal of the book. Wait till you see his two-page spread on Bidwell Park!

From John Bidwell’s trail journal:

November. Monday, 1st. The Company tarried to kill game; an abundance of wild fowl and 13 deer and antelopes were brought in. My breakfast, this morning, formed a striking contrast with that of yesterday which was the lights of a wolf.

The “lights of a wolf” is described in other recollections as the windpipe of a coyote. Another member of the party had shot the coyote on the morning of October 31st. By the time Bidwell caught up with the rest of the men, the only thing left to eat was the lungs (lights) and the windpipe.

Got to be about the worst breakfast ever!

But their situation changed literally overnight. On the afternoon of the 31st they sighted the valley, “joyful sight to us poor famished wretches!!!” Antelope! Elk! Wild ducks and geese! On November 1st they spent the day hunting and feasting on wild game.

Bidwell tells it this way in his 1877 Dictation:

The eve of the next day found us surrounded by abundance. . . . It was about the first of November, and there was no time to delay if we were going to reach California that fall. Most of the party were ready and anxious to press forward. Captain Bartleson and his men though otherwise. They said we hadn’t yet reached California, we probably still had a long distance to travel, that such a place as we were in could not be found everywhere and they were going to stop and lay in meat for the balance of the journey.

Leaving them in camp and crossing the Stanislaus River, we proceeded down the north side of the same and camped. Early the next day the news came that the Indians in the night had attacked them and stolen all their horses. We remained till they came up, carrying on their backs such things as they were able.

John Bidwell never did get on with John Bartleson. There is a note of satisfaction here that once again, Bartleson was wrong and got what he deserved.

This blog has a new name — it is now goldfieldsbooks.com. Don’t leave out the “s” in the middle or you won’t find it. It’s still the same northern California history blog, but I’ll also be promoting my new book here. You can also still get here with the old URL.

My new book is John and Annie Bidwell: The Long and the Short of It. It’s a paperback picture book selling for $16.95. It has full-color illustrations by the talented Steve Ferchaud, and is aimed at the young readers who visit Bidwell Mansion and want to know more. I hope it will be equally valuable to teachers and families.

I am self-publishing the book under the imprint Goldfields Books. I don’t know what future projects are in store, but there may be more books from Goldfields in days to come.

John and Annie Bidwell is at the printer right now. It will be out well in time for Christmas. It will be for sale at Bidwell Mansion, at Made in Chico, and at other outlets around the area. I’ll keep you posted on where and when you can buy the book.