Company

Dutch Jake (Jacob Dietrich) and his mining partner, Andy Massa, lived at the Tannery Ranch on Campbell Creek, about one mile up country from the small town of Camptonville. They had their long sluice box set up at the edge of Sleighville Creek on the "Neversweat" claim about 1.5 miles from their cabin. This claim had been worked in the 1850s, some eighty years prior to these events. Jake and Andy toiled in virgin soil and gravel on one side of the stream. Many shovels full of gravel went through the sluice box with the current, and the gold lodged in the riffles and screens at the lower end. Though they didn't strike it rich, they made a living. In the bedrock and between larger rocks, crevising was done. I saw Jake get about 75-cents worth of fine wheat-sized gold in one pan. Gold was about $18 an ounce at that time.

In a late fall of 1930s, the rains had started and snow would soon follow. The sluice box was placed on high ground and mining operations discontinued for the winter. Cabin fever set in; Jake and Andy were yearning for company and, as it happened, their wish was granted. At the door stood two forlorn-looking prospectors, one maybe 25, the other 40, looking for shelter. Dutch Jake welcomed the strangers with open arms, no questions asked. The warmth of the cookstove felt good.

It was getting toward suppertime, and a couple more places were set while the bayo beans were warmed up, then set on the table with a ladle within easy reach. The home-baked bread was partly sliced, and to complete the meal, there was a large bowl of cooked dried fruit, a homegrown product.

After the dishes were washed and put away, it was high time to swap mining stories. It was really fun; lonesomeness had gone out the window. The evening went all too fast, and two folding cots took care of the new friends for the night. Though the cabin was a bit crowded, it was so nice to have company.

In the morning Jake served pan-sized flapjacks and bacon with a big bowl of applesauce and lots of black coffee. The drizzle and sleet continued. To while away the time, Jake brought out his wooden eight-sided top, and the gambling for pennies commenced in earnest. "Pay two, take two, take all, and all put", and so it went into the night.

On the following day, the main course was canned corned beef and homegrown cabbage. Then it was back to spinning the top, with not too much talk (for this was serious business), and the time passed quickly in the cabin filled with tobacco smoke.

The third morning with the storm over, the unexpected happened. As Jake put it, "Our fair weather friends just pulled up stakes and disappeared, lock, stock, and barrel." Jake and Andy were disappointed that their guests had cleared out so suddenly. "They got the wrinkles out and flew the coop," said Jake.

After Jake missed his .38-caliber Smith & Wesson, all hell broke loose. The two yahoos had just vamoosed, and Jake's fighting spirit was aroused. He made a hurried trip to Camptonville to tell the Justice of the Peace what had happened. The Judge phoned the Sheriff's office in Marysville about the robbery, giving him the only clue besides the description of the robbers: the serial number of the revolver. Sheriff McCoy did his duty and sent his fifty-two postcards, one to each county sheriff in the state.

Nothing more happened until the following June, when two men were picked up and arrested for some minor crime in Sequoia National Park. They had a gun in their possession with a serial number that matched Jake's revolver. So it became a Yuba County case, and Sheriff McCoy brought the prisoners to trial at the Masonic Hall in Camptonville, with Judge Acton Cleveland presiding.

This trial turned out to be a big affair, with Dutch Jake and Andy as the main witnesses. Andy's testimony was clear and to the point. Now it was Jake's turn, and loving the notoriety, he made the most of it. Using his cane, he climbed the stairs to the stage to be sworn in, taking all the time in the world. Most of his answers were yes and no, but when he was asked where he kept the gun, he replied, "Under my pillow". But this took the cake! When asked why he didn't wake up when the gun was removed from beneath his pillow, he looked the Judge straight in the eye from under those shaggy brows and said, "I was just playing possum."

Next, Jake was asked to examine the weapon to be sure it was his. Here again the proceedings slowed up. He took the weapon and walked most deliberately with his cane to the window for better light. He touched the catch, opened the gun and was satisfied, saying, "Yes, that's my gun."

The two men were found guilty and sentenced. Jake felt proud of the outcome, and his last words before going home were "Justice has been done and helped put the yahoos where they belong."