Measuring 34 3/4 inches in height, the cane is fitted with a German silver banded iron tip, a 7/8 inch thick hardwood shaft, and a golden handle. The handle is engraved with scroll and geometric patterns with oval discs of polished gold ore stone on the front and rear and the inscription "Charles E. DeLong/Virginia/Nevada" on the left and "F.F. Low/Perpetuum gratis/J.De.L." on the right. Virginia City was one of the great boom towns of the American West, established after the discovery of the Comstock Lode and peaking at a population of 25,000 (down to 800 as of 2010). Charles Egbert DeLong was born in New York in 1832 and relocated to California with his family while still in his youth. In addition to participating in the Gold Rush, DeLong also studied law, was appointed a Deputy Sheriff, and was elected to the State Assembly. In 1869 he was established as a Resident Minister at the American Consulate in Japan, where he would be responsible for formally recognizing Japan's claim to the Ryukyu Islands (aka Okinawa Prefecture), traveled with Japan's Iwakura Mission, and helped discourage the formation of a Sino-Japanese alliance against the Western powers. Retiring from foreign service as a Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary, he returned to the States in 1874, establishing a law practice in Virginia City, where he lived until his passing in 1876. Frederick Ferdinand Low was the Governor of California from 1863 to 1867, and ambassador to China from 1869 to 1873; he likely interacted with DeLong during their respective periods of foreign service.