that they held a mass meeting, and declared thd state
government unlawful and the authorities not to be
obeyed. Two of their number were arrested, charged
with rebellion, and lodged in the prison brig. On
the day above mentioned forty armed men, under a
mounted leader, marched through the streets down
to the prison brig for the purpose of releasing the
prisoners, and also to recover certain lumber of which
one of their number had been dispossessed.
Arrived at the levee they found close at their heels a large crowd hooting at them, and making warlike demonstrations. The mayor, sheriff, and other offi- cials were on the spot. Closely pressed by the popu- lace, the squatters wheeled and fired. The mayor, assessor, and a dozen others were struck, several mortally. The fire was returned by the sheriff and his supporters, and continued for about an hour. The leader of the squatters was killed and the band finally dispersed. Thus far five or six only were dead. Next day the sheriff with about twenty men set out in the direction of the fort for the purpose of arrest- ing such squatters as they could find. Stopping at a saloon to drink, the sheriff's party was fired upon by squatters concealed in an adjoining room, and a gen- eral melee ensued, in which three, including the sherifi", were killed, several wounded, and four squat- ters taken prisoners. On receipt of the news, the governor, then at San Jose, ordered a brigade of militia to proceed to Sacramento and assist in quelling the riot. This uprising of the squatters was con- demned on all sides; a torrent of public indignation burst upon them from all parts of the state. For taking up arms against the constituted authorities, there appeared no justification, no palliation. Cali- fornia was not yet a state; the titles to public lands and Mexican o-rants were ill understood, but a resort to arms was not the way to settle them.
Such, briefly, Was the great Sacramento squatter riot of 1850. The squatter party was composed
