the state for ten years. Every means possible was employed to find the treasure. It was believed that the brigands had buried it near the dry slough, but the investigations brought to light only a few old clothes and a dirk-knife that they had buried some distance off. The ruse was tried of sending a man to the prison on some fictitious charge, who became intimate with Gray, but could not worm from him the secret of its hiding-place.

Another daring highway robbery was committed, on the twenty-fifth of June, 1864, near Bidwell's bar, as the Quincy stage was going towards Oroville. Charles Wykoff was driving, and had with him two passengers, O. W. Cherry and A. F. Linden, besides Whiting & Co.'s treasure-box, containing $1,882 in gold-dust and $220 in coin. Two men suddenly appeared in the road, one taking the horses by the head and the other demanding the treasure-box, with cocked pistol in hand presented at the driver. Wykoff responded that there was no treasure-box in the coach, when they told him they knew a "d-d sight better; hand it out, and put on no airs." This brought out the desired article. The robber took it to the side of the wheel-horses and broke it open. While doing so he dropped his pistol. Wykoff was about to shoot him with his own weapon, when the passengers discovered a third man in the brush with levelled pistol, and begged the driver to desist. About this time Constable Brown, of Bidwell's bar, arrived in a buggy. He was made to stop in the rear of the stage, while they went through him, also. But as he only had six dollars and a half, he was magnanimously allowed to keep it. They were about to rifle the baggage of the passengers, when the chief brigand told his followers to leave the passengers alone. They then held their pistols on the stage and buggy and told them to go, and not say anything about the matter until they got to Marysville, and not to tell any lies. The stage then proceeded to Oroville, leaving the robbers on the ground where the robbery was committed. Pursuit was immediately instituted, and a party of emigrants caught, who had an examination before Justice Coughey. There were two women and five men, who gave their names as Sheridan, Stairs and Sims, but changed them afterwards to W. S., U. T. and Charles Gassoway, J. F. Schuller and John Shores. They were arraigned before Judge Safford, tried, convicted, and sentenced to terms varying from three to ten years.

THE DEATH PENALTY.

At the present writing there have been two legal executions in Butte. The duty of sentencing a man to death on the gallows, and the duty of executing the sentence, are about as unpleasant and disagreeable things to do as generally fall to the lot of mankind. The first heat of indignation and horror has passed away when the case comes to trial, and when the lease of life allowed by the judge has terminated, these emotions are generally superceded by pity and commiseration for the unhappy prisoner. Then ensue long petitions to his gubernatorial highness for pardon, which, when unsuccessful, are followed by the final act of the tragedy in the execution of the condemned man. Brief sketches of these two affairs appear below::

On the night of December 12, 1855, George Brooks, a resident of Lynchburg, entered the St. Charles saloon, on Myers street, Oroville, in a state of intoxication sufficient to make him very quarrelsome and unreasonable. He was a tall, powerful man, with a full beard covering the lower part of his face. At the time, a great rivalry existed between Lynchburg and Oroville, and it frequently required but the slightest provocation to produce a first-class row. Brooks requested a man who was seated near the stove, by name Robert Stewart, to play a game of cards. Stewart declined. Brooks informed him he could hit him across the nose, and immediately went out into the street, expecting that the nose of Stewart would follow, that it might be hit. It, the nose, failed to walk up to the slaughter.

Brooks re entered the saloon, and remarking that he could whip Stewart, struck him a blow to convince him of his superior prowess. Stewart retaliated, and crowded his opponent into a corner of

the room.

At this, Brooks drew a large bowie-knife and made several passes at Stewart. Another man interfered with a stool, which he broke over the head of Brooks. Finding himself closely pressed, the valiant Brooks struck frantically with his knife at Stewart, but failed to inflict any injury upon him.

Albert Riesburg, one of the proprietors of the saloon, came in while the fight was in progress, and fired at Brooks over the shoulder of Stewart, striking the former in the left side. Brooks exclaimed "I am shot," and expired shortly after.

Riesburg, and Scholler, his partner, were examined before a justice and discharged. The coroner's jury implicated Riesburg in a large degree, and as he and his partner were preparing to leave town, they were re-arrested. A crowd came down from Lynchburg, for the avowed purpose of exercising retributive justice upon them, but, as there happened to be four deputy-sheriffs in town, the officers protected their prisoners from the fury of the mob, and succeeded in getting them safely in jail at Bidwell, then the county-seat. Riesburg was tried for murder in the district court, before Judge Daingerfield, who was then on the bench, and, on the thirteenth of March, 1856, the jury, of whom Samuel Walden was foreman, rendered the following verdict: "The jury in the case of the People of California vs. A. O. Riesburg, find the defendant guilty of murder, but recommend him to the mercy of the court." On the nineteenth of March, Judge Daingerfield pronounced sentence of death, fixing as the day of execution the twenty-fifth of April, 1856.

Riesburg was a native of Prussia, and only twenty-six years of age. It seems he had never seen Brooks until the night of the shooting, and, consequently, could not have premeditated the killing, which should have been proven before a verdict of murder in the first degree was rendered. Judge Lott, who assisted District Attorney Kleine in the prosecution, tried to make it a case of manslaughter. Riesburg averred to the last moment that he fired the fatal shot because he thought a fellow-man was in danger, and did it to save him. It is said that an opportunity was once given him to make his escape, after he had been sentenced. The jail-door was open and a carriage stood ready to carry him away, but he refused to avail himself of these means to escape the penalty of the law.

At a quarter of two on the afternoon of his execution, Riesburg left the Bidwell jail for the scaffold, accompanied by Rev. Hobart and the sheriff, Peter Freer, with a guard. He was very pale, but firm, and shook hands with those who recognized him. Fifteen hundred persons witnessed the execution, among whom were many women. Great commiseration was felt for the unfortunate young man whose hasty crime met with such a terrible punishment.

On Wednesday, March 12, 1862, the body of a man named Jurgen Jansen was found on the side of Table mountain, near Morris' ravine. It was one of the most horrible mutilations ever witnessed in the county. He had been murdered in his bed, evidently with an axe. His head was literally chopped in pieces and nearly severed from his body, hanging by only a few muscles and tendons. After the murder had been committed, the body was carried a distance of eighty or one hundred yards up the side of the mountain, and buried under some rocks. He had been missed for several days, and the search that was made for him resulted in the discovery of his hideously-mutilated body. Suspicion had already attached to Adic Eckron, who shared his bed and cabin with the deceased at the time of the commission of the murder, and in answer to queries as to the whereabouts of Jansen, had stated that he did not know where he had gone. He was held to answer to the court of sessions, bail being refused. In a few days the case was transferred to the district court.

Previous to the examination of Eckron, the body of the murdered man was brought to Oroville and placed in the hall of the court-house. It presented a sickening and horrible spectacle, and an immense crowd, full of curiosity, thronged thither to view the remains. Four yawning gashes were visible

one where the blade of the axe had been sunk into his forehead, one in either cheek, and a fourth in the back of the neck, nearly severing the head from the shoulders.

Eckron's trial was held in November, 1862, Judge Sexton presiding. Judge J. M. Burt appeared for the prisoner, and District Attorney John S. Berry on the part of the people. The evidence was wholly circumstantial, but so strong that no one could doubt the guilt of Eckron. Eckron's axe was found covered with blood, and the cot they both had slept on showed the marks made by the murderous weapon as the fearful blows were rained upon the writhing victim. Other circumstances were proportionally instrumental in establishing Eckron's guilt, and the jury, on the third day of the trial, brought in a verdict of murder in the first degree. On the ninth day of December, 1862, Judge Sexton pronounced sentence of death upon the prisoner, fixing the day of execution upon January 30, 1863. The prisoner's counsel took an appeal to the supreme court, but the judgment of the district court was affirmed. The execution took place privately, in the jail-yard at Oroville, on the twenty-second of May, 1863, being witnessed by only a few persons, who were admitted by permission of the sheriff, W. O. Middleton. To the last Eckron protested his innocence. Both the murderer and his victim were Scandinavians, and, as the former could not understand English, the death-warrant was interpreted to him.

Two Chinamen, Ah Lee and Ah Coon, now lie in jail, convicted of the murder of Ah Lin, a Chinese merchant of La Porte. They were convicted in the superior court in June, 1881, and their case is now before the supreme court on appeal.

CASES OF MOB VIOLENCE.

Of Butte county it may with truthfulness be said that her people are exceptionally law-abiding. Fewer instances of mob violence have occurred within her borders than, we believe, any other county in the state, of equal age, can boast of. Her officers and courts have generally performed their duties with so much promptness and justice that disgraceful scenes of lynching have been like the visits of angels in their rarity-no necessity existing for the people to take the law into their own hands. The first instance of the kind occurred at Bidwell's bar in 1850, when an Indian was shot by a mob. We have knowledge of no other happening until the extraordinary affair of 1857, at Bangor.

A wholesale demonstration of mob-law, whereby a number of victims meet their fate simultaneously, is not of frequent occurrence. Mob-justice is generally satisfied with one subject on which to wreak its vengeance, but Bangor can boast the singular spectacle of three men dangling in a row, having paid the heavy penalty of their crimes. The trio of unfortunates alluded to were Charles Ringgold, S. R. Lake and J. N. Johnson. One of their accomplices, Charles Jones, was taken with the rest, but spared the fate of the others because of his readiness to confess his partnership in the rascality of his associates.

In the month of March, 1857, several outrages were committed against peaceable Chinamen in Oroville and at Bangor. A Chinese camp at the former place had been robbed, while in the latter place robbery had been supplemented with murder. The people took the part of the simple foreigners, and determined that justice should be done them. On the thirtieth of March, the four men named above were arrested at Long bar, on the Yuba, on suspicion of being implicated in these crimes. The next day, Mr. Mooney, constable for Wyandotte township, went to Marysville for the prisoners, and brought them back to Bangor, locking them in a house. Having heard numerous threats of lynching, the officer began to fear for their safety, and under cover of the night took them out of town and endeavored to secrete them in the chaparral,

About two o'clock in the morning, a band of men, all completely disguised with blackened faces,