Washington Trigg, a Western member, who had brought up the architect and builder from San Francisco, had returned in a state of excitement.  He had seen at an art exhibition in that city a small replica of a famous statue of California, and, without consulting his fellow members, had ordered a larger copy for the new settlement.  He, however, made up for his precipitancy by an extravagant description of his purchase, which impressed even the most cautious.  “It’s the figger of a mighty pretty girl, in them spirit clothes they allus wear, holding a divinin’ rod for findin’ gold afore her in one hand; all the while she’s hidin’ behind her, in the other hand, a branch o’ thorns out of sight.  The idea bein’—­don’t you see?—­that blamed old ’forty-niners like us, or ordinary greenhorns, ain’t allowed to see the difficulties they’ve got to go through before reaching a strike.  Mighty cute, ain’t it?  It’s to be made life-size,—­that is, about the size of a girl of that kind, don’t you see?” he explained somewhat vaguely, “and will look powerful fetchin’ standin’ onto a pedestal in the hall of the hotel.”  In reply to some further cautious inquiry as to the exact details of the raiment and of any possible shock to the modesty of lady guests at the hotel, he replied confidently, “Oh, that’s all right!  It’s the regulation uniform of goddesses and angels,—­sorter as if they’d caught up a sheet or a cloud to fling round ’em before coming into this world afore folks; and being an allegory, so to speak, it ain’t as if it was me or you prospectin’ in high water.  And, being of bronze, it”—­

“Looks like a squaw, eh?” interrupted a critic, “or a cursed Chinaman?”

“And if it’s of metal, it will weigh a ton!  How are we going to get it up here?” said another.

But here Mr. Trigg was on sure ground.  “I’ve ordered it cast holler, and, if necessary, in two sections,” he returned triumphantly.  “A child could tote it round and set it up.”

Its arrival was therefore looked forward to with great expectancy when the hotel was finished and occupied by the combined Excelsior companies.  It was to come from New York via San Francisco, where, however, there was some delay in its transshipment, and still further delay at Sacramento.  It finally reached the settlement over the new wagon road, and was among the first freight carried there by the new express company, and delivered into the new express office.  The box—­a packing-case, nearly three feet square by five feet long—­bore superficial marks of travel and misdirection, inasmuch as the original address was quite obliterated and the outside lid covered with corrected labels.  It was carried to a private sitting-room in the hotel, where its beauty was to be first disclosed to the president of the united companies, three of the committee, and the excited and triumphant purchaser.  A less favored crowd of members and workmen gathered curiously outside the room.  Then the lid was carefully removed, revealing a quantity of shavings and packing paper which still hid the outlines of the goddess.  When this was promptly lifted a stare of blank astonishment fixed the faces of the party!  It was succeeded by a quick, hysteric laugh, and then a dead silence.