Committee of Vigilance: Revolution in San Francisco, 1851: An Account of the Hundred Days When Certain Citizens Undertook the Suppression of the Criminal Activities of the Sydney ducks [Hardcover]

George R. Stewart (Author), b/w (Illustrator)

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin; 2nd Printing edition (1964)
• ASIN: B000NYCCS6
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,032,943 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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4.0 out of 5 stars Their History in 1851, June 24, 2008

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Acute Observer (By the Shore NJ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Committee of Vigilance: Revolution in San Francisco, 1851: An Account of the Hundred Days When Certain Citizens Undertook the Suppression of the Criminal Activities of the Sydney ducks (Hardcover)

This 1964 book has a history of 1851 San Francisco. The "Sydney ducks" were men who had been convicted of a crime in England and transported to Australia. Some came to California because for the gold mining but supported themselves by robbery. The economy was in a recession (p.4). A merchant was hit on the head and the 8 robbers stole a small fortune (p.5). Crime had become common (p.7). Colonial settlements functioned under established authority until rapid settlement after 1800 (p.13). Small towns organized their governments. San Francisco had a legal authority since its founding (pp.14-15). Miners were used to citizen's courts and community justice.

San Francisco was mainly settled by Americans from the northern states. It was a merchant town. Goods came in for shipping to the interior, gold was exported in payment (p.52). It had a high proportion of young single men (pp.53-54), like other frontier towns. The great fire of May 1851 upset and angered people (pp.84-85). What if the courts failed the citizens (p.90)? A thief caught red-handed became the first victim (p.108). Some of the "Sydney men" left the city (p.142). The next hardened criminal to be hanged was James Stuart (Chapter 18). Every town and mining camp organized their own committee of vigilance (p.207). The Governor advised the Committee to act "in concert with the civil authorities" (p.229). The Committee examined ships from Australia to reject suspected criminals (p.249).

Two men were caught by the Committee then were captured by Sheriff Hays (Chapter 23). The Committee later invaded the jail and hanged Whittaker and McKenzie (Chapter 25). Then the Committed ceased action except to back certain candidates (Democrat and Whig) in the election. Their victory marked a new era. The 'Retrospect' chapter tells of their future lives. Their actions are put into historical context, and compared to today (p.318). The Committee in San Francisco only operated for a hundred days (p.320). Their certificates of membership had a symbol of a watchful eye (p.298). That was years before Alan Pinkerton's Agency.