Gold, economics version of the universal solvent, immediately began dissolving the U.S. military presence in California. Soldiers deserted in droves and sailors jumped ship, all headed for the river of gold where any laborer could earn more in a day than the military paid in a month. Sherman seethed with frustration. Each morning’s roll call seemed to show more troops missing. One regular even took off with his favorite double-barreled shotgun.
Finally, one evening the orderly sergeants reported to the assembled officers that a total of twenty-eight men had apparently headed for the hills. Sherman took the lead in rounding them up, knowing that when they hit the flat Salinas valley at daybreak, they would be easy to spot. His plan worked, and he proudly recorded having captured all but one, thereby preventing the desertion of the entire Second Infantry. But the leakage continued, and Sherman’s efforts to stop it were largely ineffective. He and his brother officers were in command of an evaporating force.