CHAPTER XII

MISSION DAYS IN CALIFORNIA

THE strongest impulse to the occupation of California came from the Spanish inspector Galves. He it was who planned the fortifying of the harbors of San Diego and Monterey and who joined the Franciscans of the California peninsula in preparing for the conversion of the northern Indians by the planting of missions among them.

Immediately after the founding of the mission of San Diego in 1769, there was undertaken the first noteworthy exploration of the interior of California, under Governor Portolá. It had been the intention of this leader to sail north from San Diego and so reach Monterey by sea, but owing to the severe buffeting sustained by the fleet on the way to San Diego, and the ravages of scurvy, which left only a few of the sailors fit for duty, this plan was abandoned. One of the ships, the San Antonio, was therefore sent to San Blas for supplies and reinforcements which she was to bring as quickly as possible to Monterey and succor the land party, which should have reached that port upon the vessel's return from the south.

This land party consisted of sixty-four persons including soldiers, laborers, friars, and Lower California Indians. It traversed the region west of the coast range of mountains, crossing the pleasant valleys and plains of the Los Angeles district, and passing down the line of Santa Clara River to the sea coast; thence it marched westward along Santa Barbara Channel. The most toilsome portion of the journey

was that from the coast near Santa Barbara across the mountains to the Salinas Valley; but the river once reached, no further difficulties were encountered and the expedition reached the ocean at Monterey Harbor in safety.

Monterey had been visited and particularly described by Vizcaino in 1602-1603, and his description had been popularized by later writers. Yet, although this information, which should have enabled them to identify the spot, was in the hands of the party, they were not convinced that the indentation at the mouth of the Salinas was the place they were seeking. It was decided, therefore, to continue northward, hoping in this way to find the bay and the ship which was daily expected, for it was the 4th of October and the party had been on its way almost three months. Marching northward near the coast, the expedition reached on the 31st of October an elevated position in about latitude thirty-seven degrees thirty-one minutes, from which they beheld a wooded point to the northwest. This they recognized as Point Reyes, described by navigators as marking the insignificant port now called Drake's Bay.

Two days later, on the 2d of November, a few of the men climbed one of the higher hills in the neighborhood, and from its summit beheld, spreading out before them, a magnificent inland sea. Thus for the first time did civilized men gaze upon the great bay of San Francisco, and its beautiful portal, the Golden Gate.

Portola's company explored the shores of the bay to its southeastern extremity; then recrossed the mountains and made their way southward. On the shore of Monterey harbor they set up a cross, and at its foot buried a note, hoping that the San Antonio might touch there and learn that the land party had come and gone, and then these pioneer explorers of California retraced their course to San Diego, arriving there January 24, 1770.

The governor was disheartened by the conditions existing at the mission. No ship had arrived; supplies were almost exhausted; the mission had made no perceptible progress

in converting the natives, and early in the summer had even sustained a hostile attack from them. It seemed to Portola that nothing remained but to abandon San Diego before greater miseries were experienced, and to return to the south. He fixed on the 20th of March for the execution of this plan, unless succor should arrive in the meantime.

The friars, zealous for the conquest and conversion of this great region, steadfastly opposed the resolution of the governor and prayed for the intercession of the saints. As the date set for the departure drew nigh they redoubled their supplications, and on the 19th of March the fathers are said to have spent the entire day upon the hills overlooking San Diego Bay, engaged in passionate devotions; for this day would settle the fate of the Church in California. As the shadows of evening were gathering over the bay, a sail appeared in the offing, heading for the harbor. It was the San Antonio, laden with supplies. Captain Perez had learned from the Santa Barbara Indians that the land party had gone south, had turned the ship about and arrived off San Diego at the opportune moment.

San Diego being now supplied, Governor Portolá made haste to return to the place on the northern coast where his party had set up the cross, and which it was now agreed was the harbor of Monterey. The San Antonio sailed April 16th, bearing the president of the mission, Father Junipero Serra; while Portolá set out with a land party of twenty-nine men on the following day. These reached Monterey on the 24th of May, the ship coming in on the 31st. On the 3d of June, 1770, the mission and presidio of San Carlos were founded there.

The success of the pioneers in creating centres of Spanish activity in the north was greatly appreciated by the authorities in Mexico, and provision was immediately made for the planting of other missions. Two of these were established in 1771, the first, named San Antonio, was colonized from Monterey on the upper waters of Salinas River. The

second, San Gabriel, was established from San Diego at a spot near the present site of Los Angeles.

The year 1772 is noteworthy for several important incidents contributing directly and indirectly to the success of the operations in California. In the first place, the missionary establishments in the peninsula, which, since the forced retirement of the Jesuits in 1767, had been under the control of the Franciscans, were now turned over to the Dominicans, thus freeing a number of Franciscan friars for the larger field in the north, and stimulating this order to push its conquests in Upper California. Secondly, Governor Fages, acting upon orders from Mexico, undertook an important exploration of the country about San Francisco Bay. He set out from Monterey in March, crossing the mountains to the Santa Clara valley, which he descended to the bay, and then skirting the east shore to San Joaquin River, discovered the great interior valley of California. Its vast extent, however, was not suspected, for Fages thought it might be feasible to pass round the rivers which he saw flowing from the south and north in an effort to examine the yet unexplored portions of the inland sea. It was the intention to plant a mission at the old port of San Francisco; but the obstacles in the way of reaching Point Reyes by land were many and the plan was abandoned for a while. A third incident of this year was the journey of Fages and Father Junipero Serra to San Diego, in the course of which Serra founded the mission of San Luis Obispo, September 1st. From San Diego the mission president sailed to Mexico in order to report personally on the state of the northern missions; and with this event the first period of California history came to a close. Five missions had been established, all of which were protected by an insignificant military force of sixty men, distributed in small detachments, but with general headquarters at Monterey. The missions were officered by nineteen Franciscan friars.

Except for persistent efforts to Christianize the natives. centring about these five missions, and for some progress in