Book excerpt: John M. Letts of New York sailed for California via Panama in January 1849. California illustrated (1853) describes that voyage and his landing in San Francisco. Next he travels to Sacramento and the Northern Mines of the American River, where he describes gambling and crime in the camps, Native Americans, and mining techniques. He devotes considerable attention to politics in the camps, focusing on the California Constitutional Convention and debate on slavery 1849. He describes his trip home, with stops at Sacramento and San Francisco and his return to New York via Panama, with notes on stops in Acapulco, Managua, and Chagres.