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Territorial Enterprise, May 18, 1864

Travels and Fortunes of the Great Austin Sack of Flour

The famous Austin Sanitary Flour Sack was sold as follows at the mass meeting in Virginia on Monday evening. So far, the sack has paid the Sanitary Fund not far from $30,000:

Employees of the Gould & Curry mine, $3,500; A. O. Peck of the Gould & Curry Boarding House, $100; F. J. Hughes, $210; Mr. Bassett, $200; Gould & Curry Hash House, $110; Gartrell & Murray, $100; Fairview Gold and Silver Mining Company, $500; Potosi Gold and Silver Mining Company, $550; Bajazet & Golden Era Company, $500; George F. Jones, $100; Sandy Baldwin, $150; Charles E. DeLong, $150; Stewart & Baldwin, $500; the Bugles North American Segregation Mine, $100; D. E. Land & Brothers, $500; George F. Jones, (again,) $50; George F. Jones, $50; Booth's Mill, $200; Gould & Curry Hash House, $10; H. M. Bloomenthal, $25; W. A. Foster, $10; Benjamin Foster, $10; Patrick Quigley, $50; Gillig, Mott & Co., $250; employees of Gillig, Mott & Co., $200; employees of L. Feusier & Co., $100; C. J. Hillyer, $100; Howell, Black & Bro., $100; Master George L. Sankey, $25; George F. Jones, (again,) $20; Aspland House, $20; William Sherley, $20; ex-Alderman James Bolan, $20; P. H. Russell, $25; employees of the Union office, $100; employees of the Enterprise office, $150; Lewis Goodwin, $20; Phonographic Cutter, $100; National Guards, $100; cash (another modest man,) $10; Williams (colored,) $5; Empire Mill and Mining Company, $500; J. Barnett, $100; A. Elliot, $10; Sargent & Folger, $50; Robert Moore, $50; Union office, by J. Bolen, $100; employés of Leland & Brothers' mill, $300; A. K. Grim, $285; D. H. Folsom, $1; J. M. Woolf, $5; Dr. John A. Veatch, a Texan Union man, $50; employés of the Ogden Mill, $100; "Dad" Mitchell of Messrs. McLaughlin & Root's, $20; Franklin Ward, $20; J. P. M. Perham, $20; Hubbard & barker, $10; employés of Basset's mill, $100; D. Jones, $20; W. K. Sailth, of Gillig, Mott & Co.'s store, $20; W. Robinson, $10; J. G. Brant, $5; Sheba Hurst, $10; Virginia Restaurant, $20; George F. Jones, again $40; Virginia Restaurant, again $5; Mr. Glutz, $10; Sons of Temperance Lodge No. 2, $100; Asa Waugaman of the El Dorado Saloon, $100; C. C. Stackpole, $10; Dr. Spaulding, $50; Sons of Temperance No. 2, again, $50; Mr. McDowell, $5; A. Benham, $20; Charles Gilman, $25; employees of the Doth mill, $50; J. H. Manning, $25; J. McCarren, $10; Mr. Jordan of McLaughlin & Root's store; for Andy Johnson of Tennessee, by a patriotic man, $5; Charles Gilman, $19; Capt. Smith, $50; "Pocahontas," $5; Charles Gilman, again, $10; North Potosi Mining Company, by Mr. Thomas, Superintendent, $150; employés of the North Potosi mine, $100; Mr. Foster, the Ice Man, $25; Booth's Mill gave for permission to pass through the crowd in the street their carriage, $50; G. M. Morton, $20; Young Engine No. 2, $50; Dr. R. D. Keeler, $10; G. H. Fish, $25; Gentle Apple G. & S. M. Co., $50; Mary Genevie G. & S. M. Co., $25; Charles Gilman, again, $5; Norton Hardee & Co., $30; Charles Lincott, $10; Eagle Engine No. 3. $50. Yesterday's sales, $12,150; and Sunday's sale of $570 - grand total, $12,720.

OTHER CONTRIBUTIONS.

Thirty shares of the Great Western Coal Company by some liberal but unknown person; ten feet Bajazette and Golden Era stock by Charles [?]; five feet Bajazette and Golden Era stock by Dr. Edgar; ten feet Gentle Annie by P. Rice; three shares in the Central American Mining Company by some unknown person; a piece of Churchill county scrip for $50, by Milton Mygatt; a fine double-barreled shot-gun and pouches by Levi W. Taylor; a piece of Storey county scrip by G. M. Norton, sold for $20; one piece of Storey county scrip for $72, by R. Meacham; ten feet Silver Age stock by H. H. Lyons, one of the National Guard; twenty-five shares Gentry by Levi W. Taylor.

COMMITTEES.

During the meeting the following committees were appointed to solicit subscriptions: To call on the Superintendents of mines on the Comstock lead: Messrs. DeLong, Samuel Sankey, Louis Fenster, A. P. Paul and J. L. Black. To call on bankers: Col. Howard, M. Root and Edwards. To call on lawyers: A. W. Baldwin, Mark Twain and the Old Piute. To call on merchants: Samuel Sankey, Mr. Wood and Thomas J. Taylor. To call on saloons: George Lewis, John Burns, Patrick Quigley, Tom Peasley and M. Steeler. To call on livery stables: Alexander Benham, Ham Light, A. B. Olin and J. R. Heilshorn. To call on water and gas companies: J. W. Gashwiler. To call on brewers: John Dohle and Sam Clemens. To call on the ladies: Messrs. De Long, Paul, Charles H. Fish and Dan DeQuille. To call on butchers, bakers and stock brokers: Capt. Warner and H. H. Flagg. To call on county officers: Major Jones, C. J. Cook and Mayor Arick. To call on sporting men: Messrs. Robinson, Pat Lynch, William Stonseifer, Dan Whipley and Mr. Gentry. To wait on the military companies: Thomas O'Brien, G. W. Metzker and Capt. Murphy. These committees are requested to report to J. L. Black, the Treasurer of the Sanitary Fund, at the earliest possible moment.

The veritable and truly notorious Buckskin Sack of Flour, left this morning for California by the Pioneer Stage, in charge of its guardian R. C. Gridley.

This Sack of Four has secured the following sums for the Sanitary Fund since its advent in Austin, on the occasion of the Municipal election at that place: In Austin, $5,300; in Virginia, Sunday last, $570; in Virginia Monday, $12, 945; in Gold Hill, Monday, $6587.50; in Silver City, Monday, $1,800; in Dayton, Monday, $1,865. Total, $29,077.50.

Miss Hardinge has donated to the Fund the sum of $150, a portion of the receipts for her lecture on Sunday evening.

A resolution was adopted recommending R. C. Gridley, the guardian of the sack, to the kind consideration of Californians, and with cheers for DeLong, Gridley, Paul, General Grant, Abe Lincoln, and the Austin sack of flour, the meeting adjourned.

The Sacramentans, on Wednesday, last, had a grand Sanitary gala-day, at Pine Grove alias "Bellows Grove," among the foothills of Placer county. Twenty-eight cars, drawn by the Gov. Stanford, and by another engine, when the Governor by accident was disabled, conveyed, along the Pacific Railroad, an immense multitude to the place appointed for a picnic. Two hours earlier another train had left Sacramento with the early birds. They had all a very happy time of it. The general details of the occasion, however, need not be here given. From the report of the proceedings in the Sacramento Union of yesterday we extract and condense only what relates to the famous sack of flour (which reached the party from Washoe, before they left the Grove) and the contributions to the Sanitary Fund. When the train was waiting near Roseville for a fresh engine, after the accident to the Gov. Stanford, an incident occurred which is thus related:

Frederick George, a barber on J street, caught sight of a hare belonging to the long-eared party, borrowed a gun, gave chase and bagged his game handsomely. The dead quadruped was immediately put up at auction, and kept up till he had been sold repeatedly, for the aggregate amount of $157, all of which was added to the Sanitary Fund. The belated train finally reached the beautiful grove at half-past 12 o'clock, and the excursionists at once deployed into the grounds. * * * *

The cheery jingling of money going indirectly into the Sanitary Commission's coffers was incessant. At about 2 o'clock a respectable train arrived from Folsom, and the company marched on the ground in procession headed by an "intelligent contraband" carrying the famous Austin sack of flour. Another long-eared rabbit was scared up, which was chased through the crowd hilariously, and finally wounded and made prisoner, whereupon he was put up at auction immediately, making a lively competition with the Roseville beast. The Rev. Dr. Bellows was introduced, immensely applauded and made a short and fervid speech, complimenting California in general and Sacramento particularly on her many proofs of patriotism and liberality, and predicting glorious news speedily to come from the East, attended with new demands on our humanity and benevolence. Following the speech came the sale by auction (Benton, auctioneer,) of a worsted rug, embodying "on to Richmond" in embroidery, and facetiously described as representing Gen. Grant on a white horse on a scarlet coat and carrying a French horn, riding furiously, ferociously and toward Richmond, with Lee just behind, a meek prisoner, also in scarlet. George W. Beamer of Forest Hill bought the rug for $60. It was then put up again and repurchased by the same man for $30. Next a field-glass was sold for $80, to Montague of the Railroad; and that Austin sack of Sanitary flour was sold to Julius Jacobs for $75; and to Haines & Daylor for $100 - being in each case presented again to the Sanitary Association. The crowd was now invited to call directly on Dr. Bellows, paying $1 a head for the privilege, and the result was the Doctor's had was filled about half full of corn. Peripatetic auctions went on sporadically throughout the day. For example: one bouquet of flowers realized in this way $12, and a single strawberry of monstrous size was sold repeatedly for from $5 to $10. At about 4 o'clock the last train from Sacramento arrived, bringing 400 or 500 more visitors. By 6 o'clock, the excursionists were on their way back to Sacramento.

In the evening the Rev. Dr. Bellows addressed an audience in the Sixth street Congregational Church, on the subject of the Sanitary Commission. Other speeches were made by Nathan Porter and Dr. Anderson of San Francisco. At the close of the meeting Dr. Bellows read a dispatch from A. B. Paul of Gold Hill, N. T. Also a letter from Austin, N. T., respecting and recommending Gridley & Co.'s famous sack of flour, which had already been sold for from $30,000 to $35,000, including town lots and lots of other things. J. H. Carroll was "roped in" to serve as auctioneer to sell the sack of flour, which lay on the desk largely labeled. The bidding went forward spiritedly, and the property was disposed of about a dozen times, netting for the evening $2,150. The following were among the several purchasers: Leonard Goss, $350; D. O. Mills & Co., O. D. Lambard and John Arnold, each, $300; C. Crocker, R. T. Brown, Capt. Harron, Mrs. Klopenstine, and several others, $100 each. The selling went on till after 11 o'clock, when the meeting adjourned, the flour remaining yet in the hands of the Sanitary Commission, to be disposed of hereafter.

This wonderful sack of flour may be expected before long in San Francisco, when the length of the purses and the openness of the hearts of our citizens will be tried by it.

(Reprinted in San Francisco Bulletin, May 20, 1864, p. 5.)

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