然而,1848年1月24日這天發生的一件事徹底改變了John的一生。這一天,他與他的合作伙伴兼工程師James W. Marshall相約去American River視察准備建造磨坊的地址,他們無意中在河床上發現了一塊金光閃閃的小石頭。在好奇心的驅使下,John拿著這塊小石頭找專家做了鑒定,結果很讓他震驚:這確實是一塊黃金!!!
In the Spring of Forty-seven,
So the story, it is told,
Old John Sutter went to the mill site
Found a piece of shining gold.
故事的發生
要從1847年的春天說起
老約翰.薩特在磨坊外
拾到一塊金子
Well, he took it to the city
Where the word, like wildfire, spread.
And old John Sutter soon came to wish he'd
Left that stone in the river bed.
於是帶著它去了城裡
在那裡關於金礦的消息
如野火蔓延開來
薩特很快就後悔
該把那塊石頭留在河床上
For they came like herds of locusts
Every woman, child and man
In their lumbering Conestogas
They left their tracks upon the land.
人們集聚如蝗
男人、女人和孩子們
在大篷車笨重的前行中
將車轍留在原野上
Some would fail and some would prosper
Some would die and some would kill
Some would thank the Lord for their deliverance
And some would curse John Sutter's Mill.
有人無功而返
有人心遂所願
有人長眠異鄉
有人圖財害命
有人將感激上帝解脫了他們
有人會詛咒約翰薩特的磨房
Well, they came from New York City,
And they came from Alabam'
With their dreams of finding fortunes
In this wild unsettled land.
Well, some fell prey to hostile arrows
As they tried to cross the plains.
And some were lost in the Rocky mountains
With their hands froze to the reins.
Oh...
他們有的來自紐約城
有的來自阿拉巴馬州
帶著他們的發財夢
來到這荒蠻的土地上
一些人在穿越平原時
命喪箭下
一些人失蹤在洛基山脈
凍餓而亡
Some would fail and some would prosper
Some would die and some would kill
Some would thank the Lord for their deliverance
And some would curse John Sutter's Mill.
有人無功而返
有人心遂所願
有人長眠異鄉
有人圖財害命
有人將感激上帝解脫了他們
有人會詛咒約翰薩特的磨房
Well, some pushed on to California
And others stopped to take their rest.
And by the Spring of Eighteen-sixty
They had opened up the west.
And then the railroad came behind them
And the land was plowed and tamed,
When Old John Sutter went to meet his maker,
He'd not one penny to his name.
Oh...
一些人執著前行去往加州
一些人駐足不往休養生息
1860年時他們開發了西部
鐵路隨後而至
荒原終被開發和征服
當約翰薩特離開人世
自己卻一文不名
Some would fail and some would prosper
Some would die and some would kill
Some would thank the Lord for their deliverance
And some would curse John Sutter's Mill.
有人無功而返
有人心遂所願
有人長眠異鄉
有人圖財害命
有人將感激上帝解脫了他們
有人會詛咒約翰薩特的磨房
And some would curse John Sutter's Mill
Some men's thirsts are never filled.
有人會詛咒約翰薩特的磨房
有人的欲望卻永遠無法滿足