Alta California, December 24, 1849
LAWYERS IN CALIFORNIA.
--The well known correspondent of the N. Orleans Delta, Capt. Tobin, who came to this country early last summer, and whose death at Sacramento city has been recorded, in writing from Tobago, made the following estimate, and all things considered, very just observation:
Of nearly two thousand passengers now between Chagres and Panama, there are about six hundred lawyers, and of them four hundred go out with the expectation of being returned to Congress, or the legislature, at least: seventeen are electioneering for the gubernatorial chair, and twenty-one embryo senators are already calculating the savings to be made on the mileage allowed by Uncle Sam from San Francisco to Washington and back.
The letter adds:
" Blessed are those who expect nothing, for they shall not be disappointed."
Practicing Law in Frontier California
Gordon Bakken has made good use of the manuscript collections of unknown but active and interesting lawyers whose careers helped to make law accessible to individuals in a highly dynamic society."--"The American Journal of Legal History""The study makes a valuable contribution by applying analytical criminal justice concepts to an important but frequently unnoticed portion of the United States."--"The American Academy of Political and Social Science"
