Promising friends at home the truth about the glowing reports of California, Helper wrote letters that became this sour, detailed account of the Gold Rush: the balance-sheet of profit and loss, rough society, San Francisco’s growth, miners’ cabins, law and lawlessness. Its contempt for the Chinese, Mexicans and other peoples is open and harsh, a document of the prejudices of the 1850s.
A blunt antidote to Gold Rush romance from the future author of The Impending Crisis of the South. Download the free EPUB.