The Wasp — 1879 — page 753: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This page features a biographical profile and portrait engraving of General John A. Sutter, a prominent California pioneer. The text describes him as "the acknowledged king of all adventurous spirits" and chronicles his remarkable life: born in Germany, he served in France's military before coming to America, where he established himself as a landowner in California and became the legitimate father of the state's development. The profile emphasizes his accomplishments while critiquing his later misfortunes—he was reportedly stripped of his lands and plundered by the U.S. Government despite his contributions to California's establishment. The piece appears celebratory but tinged with sympathy for his subsequent financial ruin and dispossession.