mcculloch then scouted for major general david e. twiggs but joined the rush to the california gold fields in 1849. he never struck gold, but he was elected sheriff of sacramento. (his old commander, colonel hays, had been elected sheriff of san francisco on the same day.) his old friends sam houston and thomas j. rusk, both now in the u.s. senate, tried to arrange for his appointment to command a frontier army regiment, but his lack of formal education was against him and so the appointment never went through. in 1852, president franklin pierce promised him command of the u.s. second cavalry, but u.s. secretary of war jefferson davis gave it to albert sidney johnston.