58

Peninsulaof Sennr.

it dishonourab}e to kill madeat night, but the Shelooks (de?ming any one asleep) knockat the door,and call {ut " Hamet hamet, Shelook!" in a motnelltall the Arabs escape, and leave the wonlen children, and cattleto the invaders. Hamet seems to be fronlthe prophetwhose followers a lsamefor strangersX probably are their constantenemies. Wollderfulstories are told of the prowessof the S4helooks, andtheircourat,eandskill ill attacking whileswimming, whentheyseldom the hippopotamus andcrocodile fail to overconlethem. The men haveno names,the womenare all called Marianz marriageis unkllowll. The evening was beautiful,and we listenedto a plaintiveBornouair whicha slave girl sung wvhile makingbread. Mahometreturned with bad news. March31.-At three,P.1W., contribution, and The Kaimakam of Mogratwasabsentgathering dromedaries could not be procuredunder ten or fourteendays. consolingourselveswith the We therefore abandoned Wordofall, pl'OSp6Ct of gainingIndiaby the sacrifice. On ahe banks of the riveJ the musk of the crocodilewas so strong it pesfumedthe Bey's cangia wholeair. We embarked at sunset in Gourschied establishment for boatand lowed dovvllto lbrahimCapitaun's building, an hour lowes down the river. He receivedU9 with alldin the mornillgshowedus his much kindllessarsd hospitality, works. He has fourArabs, a Copt, and a Turkish soldierwith considering the nearapproaches him,andaboutfortyslaves, which., of the Shelooks,and the uncertainfidelityof so mally blacks, makeshis situatio whoseinterest it wouldbe to join the attackers, seasoll. ItItheKhareefi by lso n}eansagreeable duringthesummer also, all share alike in the dangerof the climate- yet Ibrahim in this Capitaun,withabilitiesto buildsolid boats, has remained sicklycountry sevenyears. He caaxe with Ismael Pacha, for a pay of three hllndredpiastresa month-twenty dollars- and tllis is not regulallypaicl. He wishesto return,andhas asked me to forward his requestto the consul. The boatsare builtof acacia, a nail a wood extrenlely durable,but so hard that whell seasoIIed will scarcelypenetrateit. The irollcomesfromOdessa,by way of Cairo. In Kordofaniron is found on the stlrface,but has sle^7er been examinecl by scientificpersons. Everyyearten large boatsare built, with the timbersand framesof ten more stowed withinthem. Ibrahim saysthat he saves the Pachathreehundred sum. pursesa yeal by these boats-all slleredible April 1.-We bade olir host adieu,andhavehad an agreeable day'srow down the Bahr-el-Abiad. The banksarelike the most beautifulwood alldlawnl viewsof theThanlesbut withouthouses. Towardsevening the shoresweremorebare. Saw severalhippopotami.

Penznsula

of KS'enxlczr}

alld bil(ls of gay colours svere sportillgon the trees. NIollkeys 'rorn the wooda lawn slope(l gently to the river twenty yards. two species amongtlaem were bir(Ssillnurnerable: Oll the ballk.s the tail, the of ibis, one black,the othersshite,but blacktowards headsof bothblack-pelicans, mclnysorts of geese, dtlcks, and and In the riverspolteda hippopotamus water-lJircls. othersmaller here two crocodiles. 'Rhe oppositebank of tlle Bahr-el-Abiad, massoode(l. We walkedalong thanthe Nile at'lahel)es, broader for a conseyance lookin;,anxiously tlle shore to tlle 1lorth57ard, and the ACIOSS. There ere manydeep traces of hippopotami, recellt malbsof a lion, who probablyhad been to drink in the liver a few houls befole. Tmo have taken possessiollof this on the Arabs'flocksfor tllreeyears. A boat mood,alldfclttened crossedoverfor us it had leen sellt frolll Khartoolnby Courschied Bey for our use. \Ve crossedover alld found Ibrahim Capitaun,a Cephalolliall,boat-buildel to the Pacha at \Vadi Sihalliee 1 dischartedour caravan,ho were left on the east for fearof the liolls. balsk,aaldllrged themto departinlmedintely 1leverbeen in ttle islalld of The Arabswere simple mell; 11ad at the idea Sennal before they calnewith U8, and mele alarnled far from home. AVetook up our abode at XVadi of Shalliee,at t}lehollse of Abdallah,a l)ollz,olee,wolkerin iloll atld silver. rlthe tO\\'Il COllSiStS of fiftyor sixtyllolises alid a similar numberare at tuo other places a nlile off: tRhehollsesare of on the banksof the dollra stalks alid mattint, and are sitilated drybed of the rivel, a nlile froliltlle stater. At high rater the on their situatiollniust be beautiful; a tilickJood backsit, arsd and lnanybirds The town bralichesare ulonkeysilillumeralzle, otsthe map,as its positionis changed marked cannotbe accttiately of the Bua brancil ale Htissalleya, everyyear. The inhabitalits ill camels and lqocks. While clippingour karall,and x7ealti15 in the gleasy dish ullich a prettyslave of Abdallahplaced {illgers oll the mat befble us, Bischara,the great sheick of the Arabs, paid us a visit. He 51astoo fat and illdolelltto exert llimself, were even if it ilad not beell Ramadan. He saidno dronledaries andit was late at to be procuredherefor a jotllneyto Kordofal), to a guide to go with WTahomer olle, ane-l beforehe proctlred 1ligllt six lloursdistant. Waddi Sllalliee is only ttle villageof Alo^,rat, twelve hourSflom the frst island of the Sllelooks,who are as Axabsas these last are fealed by l)y the Hussaneya muchdreaded s. All l-lourflotn \\;adcli Shalliee i.s the island of Blood othel ot the Shelooks; (gezerih iddenl), so called from tl-lemassacres they are the firstblackpeoplewithwoollyhairandl)egrocharacter in greatllun-lbers. oll the Ballr-el-Abiatl.'I heymaketheirattacks Eithty canoes,containillt,tive lltlndredmen, lately plundereda villaz,ecalledTorio, close to us llele. Tlle attack is generally
2:oing so

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59

1V. --Notes on Upper Califor-rlta. Comalunicated by Dr. Thomas

Coulter. Read 9th March, 1835. thecoastof the Pacificto the Rio Colorado, andflolllthe boundary with Lower California, a few leaguessouthof San Diego, to the parallel of 421?N., whichis supposed to runthroughthe middleof the lake Tillspanogos(though,with respectto this latter circunlstance,I am by no meallssatisfied,being nluchinclinedto thil-sk tllatTilupanogos, which1 believeto be the salne as thatcalled by the huntersBlack Lake, is wllollyvithin the lNIexicall territor). But the collrse of the Rio Coloradois entirelywithilstlle Rocky WIountains, which are separated from the illhabited, alld indeed habitable, portiollof Califorl ia by a greatsalldplain,destituteof water. This plainis about 100 milesin breadthat its solltherll extremity,and about 200 at the northerll;about 700 nliles ill leng,th, gradually ascending towardtile north,alldsimilarin every respectto that on tlseeasternside of the RockyMountaills;alld we shallhavea muchbetteridea of tlle country by considerint, it tlleleforeas bounded to tlle eastnvald by this plain. Otlr viev is thuscolltilled, thell,to a narronv tractof COUntl-y of veryremarkable featules,the generalrUIlof its mountain-lidges, COI1til][lOUS withthechainof LowerCalifornia, beillgnearly parallel withthe coast,and allnostall the millor streamsrtlllnin,,northwesterly. Of the great rivers fallinginto the Bay of San Francisco, throughthe Boca cleCarquinas, the Sacramento ollly has a southerncourse. The Jesus Rlaria and tile Saxl Joaquin run westerly or north-Xsesterly, as do all the others collected in the Tule Lakesbeforeenterin,:, the bay. This viewof the country is somewhat different fromthat 1lsually elltertailled, aIldI am sorrythatI amllOt ableto speakto the whole of it Oll lllyOvllauthority, laothavino beento thenorthof San Frallcisco, noreastof the'rule Lakes. It is necessary here,hovzever, to notice the greatpopularerlor respecting these lakes. The great objectof the earlierSpallishexpeditions, ullderColtlmbus andhis inilnediate fbilo^slers, vas not the discovery of a newcontinent, bllt of a westerll passageto theislandsof thePacificantlto China; and evel]aftera ,reat extentof thecoastsof America hadbeenexplored, the discovery of this pa.ssag;e contillued to be a favouriteobject, everythint, thatellcouraged thehopeof its attaislnlent beinggreedily laid hold of. Hence the elldless accounts of deep illlets and illlandseas; and the extentto whichthe imagination was engaged iII thesemay be judged of by the leceptiongiven to the fabulotis StoJy of a passagesaid to ilavebeen actuallymadefrotnthe northwest coastinto fludson'sBay. This anxiety,then, to finda passage fromsea to sea, alldthe facilitysolne ot the earliertravellers

UPPER CAL T FO R NIA jS usually considel ed as extetldillgfrolll

60
creat;ivng

California. on [Npper Plotes

they wishedto find,wheretllerewas no imns1hat in had insignificant raised tllese comparatively riskof detection} mediate ale no^v Lakes Tllle The sea. inland vast a of rank the to ponds in fordable being length, total in llot to exceed 100 miles knoutn many their notwithstanding and places; several in dryseason the a collsiderable theydischargeduring fromthe eastward, tributaries Francisco.It San into ater M if little, very of the year, portioll usuallyencled is which afterthe rainyseasoll, only immediately is higl]range the on snowt the of thaw anddtlringthe February, by is any there that plaill, sand treat and lakes the betweell ofhills Such direction. tllis in them of waterfrom discharge considerable severe A hunters. American the by given least is the account at preventedmy Cl'OSSilig this ,roulld myself ill compally accident met with their but I aftelwards 7ith a partyof beaver-trappers; witl compared account, uthose from mat}, intelligent a vely chief, Gelltile the visited had lAtho thatof one of the missionarypriests venturedto of the lakes, Thaste on the borders lndians still some be cotlrse of tllerenlust laythellldoutn; alld thout,ll whilstit observation, furthel hope I respectingthem, uncertainty of the taken have I view general the confirm will correct, must by the eastwartl tlle to Limited,as I have supposed, COUtlt1-y. triallgular, somewzhat is country the of form general sandplaill,the Into several diNtidillt Califorl-lia Lolster from theridgeof moalntains Tlle northr^ZaI^d. advance they as diverge which slightly others,, being Gabliel, San of east Bernardino, Sall of peak snowy great rangesstart; the one, the the two prillcipal tlle pOillt frolllzslhich fromtile Tule Lakes; plain salld the separates chain, greatsnoy the seabold, not from Lakes and the other separatestl}e Ttlle minorridges Several Francisco. Sall tllall nortll farther rllnllillt, is this latterand the coast, of which the principal extelldbets7een separatillg Barbara, Sauta towards that runningfromMonterey River,fiom the coas$, or tlle Monterey the Rio San Bllenaventura, Ynes. The islands Santa about and unitingsitll the Tule chain the sumlllits of like aIsoseem DBarbara Santa of of tlle Channel parallelto tlle directioll chaill, lla in,:, its gelleral a sulvmarine others. to enter,at plesent,into much detailof It srillnot lJenecessury svastilatfron of zllich tlle principal coulltry nly jollrnetsirlthe G-ila l)ut I and Montele) to tlle junctionof tlle Rios Colorado the posidetermilling for used means the to state thinkit requisite lvut tions l?id down in longitude. I had a trausitin Monterey; allos to unfavourable too was weather though set up tllere, tlle is of theless upontlle results;llich, howeYer ule to dependInuch by Captaill n doz laid careflllly been has as thatpOil-st collsequence, as Monterey of lollgitllde the assunled therefore, 111ave, Beechev. chrollonletel. by eastward it froIn he gives it} alld takell departllres
an)7 (gentiles)

Ifofes 071 UpperCaZifornia.

The only pOillt at whichI thoughtit necessary to take lunar distances sas the ford on tlle Hio Colorado,six miles below its ullctionwith the Gil7l, and tllat only as a checkon my chrollometer; foxllavint,beell thellledtlcedto olle serviceable one, I felt it properto take some plecalltion lest ally accidentshoulcl 11appell to it oll my returl), andso (leprive me vf tlle advalltage of the retllluint,set of observatiolls fol tirzle. I 11owever got it safelyback to Nlollterey, alldas 1 fbtlndthe clitiexesces of naelidian madegOillg andletvlrllist,,as sho\!ll I)ythe chlollcxmetel olxly,to correspolld sely closely?I ttustecl to it solely.
1 alll tlle nlore cli3posed to illsist particulally upoll this pointX

I)ecavtse doults llavel)eenexplessed of t[se possibility ot zIsint, a chronometer on sllore,ffom tlseditSiculty of tlallspoltillg it safely, p;llticularly oll 11orsebac1i. I ans satistied,fxonl mepealed trials, that t!-lisclifficalty is llot so gleat as has been ill}agined. All that appears to be 1lecessary, is to carsytlle chronometer l)elted ti^,ht a^aillsttlle alJdomell, arld^!ear it so day and llight. rlthelasarcll of t}at carriedon this voyat,eaffords olle proof out of severcil I COllld state of what can ill tilis^5ray be accomplislsed even undel veryunfavourable circumstallces. ;rlle stlbioined tablesshowthe rateit Icept, (wlld the luodesIdopted of checleinb it at (litierent points of thejoulney. l-t sztill le seell by tllesetllattilne+vas takell,both gOiXlr, andreturllin^, at severalpoints,::alld tl,slt,lladally derantenlentoccurred, it musthavel)eelldetected.
ObserrrzZions in the orde1 of t/leiwdcttes.
m, s.

Jan. 2 i. Feb. 2:2. Alar. 20. Ail 6. ,, 2.3. ,, 30. May s. ,, 17. ,, 27. Jurle15. Jtlly .5.
,, #

Monterex . Chron.by 1U.T. + ,, ,, + ,, " + Santa Bar rbara ,, + San Gabri 1 ,, La Pala ,, Fortl ,, .. ,, La Pala ,, San Gal)ri lel SanFaBar rbara _
, .

22 45'fi

,, 19. Aug. 2.

,, ,, ,, Same ob.?erlatio7ls aarzn^,edin

Morlterey ,,

18 16 5 2 7 17 18 10 8 4 - 4 + 2 + 1 sets for rate.

s.

54*3 06*9 09'1 54 o 35 1, 4S S 59'7 40 . 50 *s 39 ' s 54 9 33 4 07's1

m.

Montel

ey.

J an. 22. Chr. by M.T. + 2 S 45 e; m. s. Fel). 22. ., -t l8 5,3 4 Rate-7 5 daily. March20. ,, + lc 06 9 ,, - 6 l ,, July 19. ,, + 2 33?a1 ,, -6 7 ,, Au;,.2. ,, + 1 07X1 ,, -6 lS ,,

California. Noteson Upper

ln. 8. 8. 09 *1 S!3S8 Rate- 6*56daily ,, -6 7 ,, 54 9 54*5 6e7 ,, 50 3 35a4 ,, 40 S ,, -6*8 48*8 59*7 ,, -7X88 ,,
tt -

SantaBarbara.Apr. 6. Chr.by M.T. + 5 - 4 ,, July 5. ,> - 4 ,, ,, 7. ,. - 2 ,, San Gabriel. Apr. 23. - 8 ,, June 15. ,, - 7 ,, Apr. 30. La Pala. -10 , May 27. ,, -17 ,, Ford, on RiolMay 8. -18 ,, Colorado. f ,, 17.
Restclts,

returning - 2S 38 5}mean 28 .31 45 } ,, Ford = 8 59 otmean 8 54415 Monterey,to tdiS. madegoing returning = 8 48 91 ,, Santa Barbaraf 6 19 l|mean 6 15@9 tSantaBarbara,ld;ff.madegoing returning = 6 12j7 ,, to San Gabrielj = 13 15 51mean 13 2029 San Gabriel, totdiS. madegoing returnlng = 13 2G3J ,, j Ford The sum of the three latter means (28m 31s*95) corresponding nearly with the result of the firsttaken singly.

of the able in the easting and westing in some of the divisisms journey, whilst thele is none on the whob. This is not very great, and may be partlyaccounted for by the wallt of a barometel, which, fionl havin,gfrequentlybroken tubes before, I did not carry Otl this journey, ^shichI was obliged to make very rapidly. I was consequently obligefl to correct the refraction by glless. Whatact ever errorthere may have been in my guess would -nzanifestly

whichreRespectingthese tables,therearetso circumstances qlliresolne little explanation. One is the changeof rate to the of aboutone seconddailyduringmystayat ElioColorado, amount to WlliCiI urewere thele perhapsto the excessise l-leat attributable of the plain exposedto the radiation subjected,the tllermonleter, at 140?Fahr. (Furtheron therewill be frequelitly only,standing Ollthe causesof this veryhigh temperature, folind some remarks in an extia-tropicallatitude,with some other observaso unusual to the tions on the climate of Mexico which maybe interestilig l eader.) Perhaps this degree of heat ought riot to effect tile that I was obliged to but I folindit so intolerab}e, chrononleter; it, and to allowit to lie horileaveoff the belt in whichI carried to promayalso hanecontribilted zontallyduringmy stay,szshich duce the disturbalice. The elTectof this chan,e is got entirely at n)y oser by nlakingaccotilit only of the time by chrollometel leavingout of account the ten and againon my departing, arrival statioliarv. whichI reinailled da-s during, obseivdeservingnote is the difference rrhe othercircumstalice

Stiexico,

22d,

P.1W.

,,

4332

Ccllifornia. Noteson Upper

63

in oppositeways,going andreturning,alldits effect be got rid of by takingthe mean of the results,the onlyevil being the discredit to throwon the chronometer.* it appears I havelaid down the junctionof the Rios Coloradoand Gila Hardyhas done, norththan Lieutenant fortymiles farther nearly and this also it is necessaryto explain. This point, which was of Sall Pedroand San Pablo, has long the site of the two missions a good deal of attentiol1. Ever since the unsuccessfa11 attracted a comPadreKino,to establish of theJesuits,particularly attempts over-landbetweenSonora and California,this point, munication ford the onl) practicable illdeedusually nearwhichis the best,aald lookedto. After belowthejunction,hasbeenespecially on theriver settled, the t?o missionsaboveUpper Californiawas partially a[ldat {irst throvewell; but in conwereestablished, mentioned in chargeof them, in of the commander sequenceof the removal rose, de^ had great colltidence,the lleophytes whomthe Tlldialls the mission. The remainsof thaton the stroyedand aban(loned northside are still visible; it was built on a pointof rockprojecttlle extremesouthern ing a little into the river,alld col1stituting mhichthe river has gratowards point of the Rocky Aloul1tail1s, dually cut its way, leavint behinda broadplain now prettywelt covered with poplarand brushwood. Tile junctiol1of the two is not a mile abovethis point, the Coloradocomingsoutl rivers andthe Gila nearlywest. Hardyfoundhimselfon thepointof the island WhenLieutenant of Algodones, fortyn1ilessouth of this, nothingwas more easy, on eitherside, thanthat as he was with the country unacquainted he shouldsupposehin)selfat thejunctiol1of the two rivers. The to each respect at this point*un, vvith of the (Solora(lo two channels other,exactlyas the two riversdo; and if he had knownanythillg of the IlliSSiONS andtlle pOillt of hill on whichone of them was built, he hadin view, ol1his 1orth, a knoll, the only one i11the andclose to the river, whichwollld plain, btlt veryremarkable, himastras. muchassistit1Ieadint, It wollldoccupytoo muchtin e to t,o at presentinto any great detailof n1ytravellinoinland. I am tempted,howevel, to say a are of whichtlle plincipalobservations few wordsof the jow}llley
measurementsbetweerlMexico * I subioin also a short table of the chronometrical made and Zimapan,made in precisely similar circumstances. The chronometer51vas (1361). by Crossthwaite Zimapan, . ..April 8th, A.M. 8 h. Chr. by M. T. I 8 40 7 l 6 31-3 , ,, 15th, P.M. 4 ,, ,, 29th, A.M. 71 ,, R. D. Monte, May 1st, P.M. 37 ,, 14th, A.M 8* ,,
,

h. m. s.

,,
ax

1 5 lO 1 6 32*2 4*3 1 3

64

Noteson Upper California.

gisen above,as it was the mostinterestint,, the lollgest,andby far the mostlaborious of those 1 madein California. The rainyseason of 1832 ellded late in Fel)ruary,which is rather attertheusualtime,andI started so SOOI1 as the countrywas passable, wllichit is not at all duringthe rains, nor for some time afterzzards.The rizers, whichill the dryseasonare merebedsof sand, are quite impassablewhen s^ollell; and even fol some weeksaftel theyhavefallenlow, thedallt,er allddifficulty of crossilogsome of them,on Ilorseback, are veryconsiderable. If these streanls carrieddownonly sand, they mit,ht be passedas soon as the ra'pidity of the culrentas so far abated that a llorse could stalld; but the salldcolnes dowll nlixed svith a vastquaaltity of mud, wbich settlestogetherWitll it; so thateven whenthe stream becomesso low thata snlallanilnalcan walk across a holse or a mancannot. It is not ulltilthe mud is gradually vtasbed out of tbe surfaceof the deposit that tllis beconlespossible. We have then a bed of hardsandrestingllpoll one of semi-fluid tnudand sand; andit is verydifficultto say uJhenand whereit i3 safe to attemptthe passave. On tilisoccasionI hadto passthe Guadalupe, in tlliSstate, betseen San Lttis Obispoand La Purissima; 7(nd it wasonly afterlong searchthat I founda place ^^here a bear had passedS and trusting to hissagacity 1 followedhis steps. Tlle strearn was broad,very shallo^t,alld the bedofclear salld on the surfaceof the depositmusthave beell very thitl, for it swa^,ged ullderfoot like the surEace of a quaomire. A body of troops whichpassedthis waysomedaals before,thoughon a most urgent aSair,was oblit,edto wait for ten dats to allow the sandto settle. IvromMollterey soutl-lward alle road rtlnsthrouglla series of arrow raYiness as faras Sal1 Ltlis Obispo; but alzout SantaYnez, sollth of Sall Luis, alld aga ill ill tlle lleighbourhood of S; anta Barbara, it lllllS on, or close by tlsebeacll; sellence, soutilward, it keeps cllietly alon,, tlse west foot of Ihe nloulltains,separated fromthe sea by low sand-hills,in some places of considerable breadth,as at Sall Gabriel, whele theyare altnosttwelveleat,ues broad. 'Ihe best way to tbe Colorado,in the dryseason, is to followthe coast roadas faras SaalLui.sRey, alld ti-elace ascend tlle Pala streal1l, whicl1 runs in a sely narrowrasine behilld the malitimelidt,e, crossingthe summit level L)etween its headand thatof tlle smallstreat11 of San Felipe, whichrunssoutll-eastward till it reaches the borderof the saud plain at Carizal, whereit sinks; thoughits cotlrse acrosstl-leplaill, when swollen, wlich it raely is, is malkedby a drychanel, in manypointsof hicl a little water,usuallyverybaA,is to be hadl)y deep di^,gin;,. Tllere iS llOt IBUCll diffiCIlity ill any part of the journeyup to tbis pOillt-tlle Carizal; but fionl hence acrosstle plaill,shich is 11elealJoutolle iltlndredmiles broa(l,alld totallydestituteof

Notes on lEppe?Ccllifor?ilz.

65

pasture, cattlesufferextremely.It is alwaas possible to carry

vater enough for a party of men; but horses and mules must pass the first two days absolutely without wateror food, and even then get only brine at the point ealled tlle Aqua Solal fiom it.s being the only pond on the plain. VVhell I passed, the water I found at this plaee was sc}strong that it purged both nlen and eattle. There is here some rush and reed which nlules ^rill eat, thout,h horses usually refuse them. *4ronl hellee there is still allother clay'sjourney to the Rio Colorado. After passinw the river the sallle diffieulties eontinue f{r sevels days farther, on the Sonora roa(t, as far as Alta; bllt this palt of the journey, fiom its bleater length, it is extremely imprudent to attempt vvithouta proper guide. The only uater to be had is found in the ravines, frequentlv at some distanee from the road, in exeavations ealled 'l'inajas, made by the Illdians, who were formerly mueh more rlLTmeloUs ill this neighbourhood than they are at present. 'rlle only settled poltioll of Upper Califorllia lies along the eoust; the missions being nearly all vithill olle day's jollrney fiom it. Tbe only point lvhere a nliSSiOIl has any settlenlent Jarlher inland is at Sall GabrieJ, whele the Ralcho of Sall Bernardillo is at the llead of the valley, some thirtv leagues fionl the polt of San Pedro. This is indeed the ollly pollatof eilher CaliforniasX south of San Frallcisco, capable of sllstainillg a large population. l'he valley is above thirty leagues lon, and of collsideable breadth to the mestzard, where it approaclles tl-leeoast, and jOillS Oll eithel' side tlle plain ot Sall Fernandoaufl Sall Luis Rey. It is il] mally plaees very fertile, alld wheat, where it cn be irligated, yields better here tllall ill any other part of the Mexicall territoriesthat I have seen. The wine aIso tllrives better, alld is l)eginllillg to be extellsively cultizated. The missiol] alolle has above a hllndled alld twenty thousand vines illsmediatelyabout it; and the il!habttants of the Pueblo have many fine villeyards. Here thele is roonl for a great illcrease of population. The want of a safe port is incleeda great illconveniellce; but I hase 1lo doubt that it srill be got osel} and that xveshall see the Plleblo rise rapidly to the rank of a considerable tOWIl. I'he auchorate of Sall Pedro, t}lough ery unsafe in bad steather, need l)e used but for the tnoment ressels are taking cargo orl board or discharging; and tlle time they are saIting hides, or are otherwise detained, may be passed ill perfect safety at the island of Catalina, in frol)t; which, besides two rather exposed allchorages to the east and soutll, with good water at this latter, has a very beautifLIl little bay on tlle west side, perfectly land-locked, where might be tlle salting-houses. '1t}2e present goverllment does not allow this, from feal of smugglillg,
.

VOL, Y.

wherethe Diego moreover, withoutsoncereason. San not and is not distant. partof the saltingis now pertormed, chief the generalgobecause subject this into thavegolle thus far colonise Upper to eiforts is nosvmakingconsiderable vernment if not done, that ffom Mexico, underthe apprehension This apCalifornia numbers great will get in in too North Americans reatenyas the as the tierras rational, to be hardly appears as they prehelesion in Californiaf are state, the of disposal still at the lands at the disor gratis, given colonies, havebeen ill the Spanish as in the always and1lot sold to the best bidder, of government, colonising cretion of pllrpose the for States. Any effortsmade towardsthe portionof the IJnited should be directed California Upper and east of the Tule north alld east of San Francisco collntry andof sufficietlt well woodedandwaterecl, whichis fertiVe, the lakes, speculation; a as worthmhile Tule to ulake its colonisation tlle of extent west and Francisco south of San of tbe country rest San Gabriel, tlle exceptiollof the valleyofportionirrit,awith possessillt, lakes, small very a of this little cltivable ground,and too rich.Wheat, usually it is alable,beill^, there however, soil, remarkably lule-the thrive tried, been ville,andall fruittreesthathas7e frequently the Monterey, about coast mildewnearthe thoughtEle name l well which by or 1QCUSt chapul, the and wheat; vine, the the hults is knowll, often destroys followed varietyof grasshoppers great be to else. A mild winteris sure indeedevery-thing appearto alld southof SantaBarbara. They thi3pest, particlllarly by north-westerly and as the they alongthe coast in the sand-hills; breed everatthing destroy alld inland, carried inds prevail,theyare meet. is black-cattle, ill Upper California The greatarticleof produce notyet seventy is It has beenreallyprodigious. theirincrease and of to the number twtenty-three cattle, since their firstintroduction, aears possessed210,000 branded follnd is head. In 1827 the missions lt notless than00,()00 unbranded.to keep the it wassl1pposed an(l annually, to slaughternot less thall60,000 necessary whichit is supposedit cotlld to the stockdownto its presentstandard, untilmoreof the ccountry beara notmuchexceedwith advanta;e, usually cows youllg The shallhavebeen settled. which, with the rule usually eastward they ale to years old, of bearillg,will account for before calf bllt observednot to kill a cow capable haveincreasednearlyas rapidly, not hase I theirrapidincrease. Sheep courltry the of to the trade rarely are areas yet of littleinterest Fiheep fromGalifornia. heardof anyexport of wool as their price has been kept up by collsumption, for is, I fear, slaughtered anydefinitemotive,or whatIt is suffithe priests,eitherwithoutsome calculation. mistaken morenearthe tratl-lfiom the fattest bullock is worthollly eight where that cientlystrange

66

fln Upper Notes

Catifornta.

Notes on UpperCalifornia.

67

be sold at all, andwhereyoungcows in calf dollars,and can rarely 16s8, can be boughtin drovesat about two dollars,and frequently a sheepcannot be bought for less thaxlthreedollars. This state of the mis of thillgsof coursecannotlast long. The destruction will throwinto tlle marketa stock of about in progress now sion8 head,whichof coursemustsoon fall to its propervalue 200,0C)0 very has also increased The numberof the white inhabitallts rapidly,and I believe is now not under six thollsalld,thoughX veryexactlyuntilI shallhaveexamined cannotstatetheirnumbers which 1 havecollected. ulaterials the statistical inhabitants. is the casewith the aboriginal however, The reverse, ill nunlber,though, itl this They have diminishedconsiderably case, olle would suppose theyought at least not to have 108t beendrivellfromtheirhomes,as in the United ground,ilot having States,llorhavinghadardentspiritsat all wittlintheirreachuntil lately. But theyhave been compelledto live under a restraint theycould not bear,and to labotlra little neitherof which they avoidit. Thoughthe fact mouldsubnlitto if theycould possibly I believethata greatdeal bothof is as far as possibledisselnbled, them togetherill misforceandfraudwere 1lsedill congregating withdrawn, sions; andthe momellt tllat forceshall be altogether to the woodsX of tllemwill retllrn I llaveno doubtthatthe majority is prettymuchoccupiedby whites,the InZ Now thatthe seabord dians will probablyretireto theirrelationsstill living free in the
interiorX

fact tllat their decreaseis greatly lt is a very extraordinary by the failureof femaleoffspring, or the much greater hastened the females in early youth than numbel of deaths amon3gst which, to determine thenlales, I havellotbeenableclearly amollg of thoughthelatterappearsthe mole probable; the fact,however, of wolen livingthanof men, therebeing a muchsmallelnumber so called,is not common,though properly is certaill. Infallticide, veryfrequentrecourseis had to the means of producingahortion, chieflymechanically;but tllis till llOtaccountfor the state of thillgs desclibed, as males and females must be sllpposed in this way to suffer equally. All the missionsof Lower Calior ale perishillgfrom this cause, or at least forniahslveperished allditl Upper Califorllia, circunlstance; with this acconlpanyint, all the nlissions, a great manyof the men callnotfind ill <llmost ex-wives. The nlissionof San Luis Rey is the only remarkable ception. In it tbe Indiansare statedto be llponthe increase,and equalto the men; but my acquaintance the women in numbers of tlle causes zlith thismissiollis too limitedto enableme to spealv appearsto be the inevitable escapefiom mrhat of theirmomentary of whitemen-a fate from fate of theirracein the neighbourllood whichI feartlle Luisenosare not likelyto escape. The politicut
F 2

68

Noteson Upper California.

reforms nosv in active-operation in California, and of which the firstandmostimportant measure is the destruction of the missions, willenablethe whiteinhabitants to acquirepossession of the gleat bulk of the missionlands; and tliough agreeably to the spiritof the Spanishlaws, whichcertainly wereIneant to atiordthe Indians a degree of protection unknown in ourold colonies, theymayfor a long time retaina portion of theirancientpossessions, it is but too probablethat tlle combination of their own vicesto which they cling, with thoseof their intrudingneighbours, which they veryeasilyacquire,will ensure the ultimateannihilation of a race vhich exhibitsso few tracesof moralenergy. :tshallnot at present go into anyexamination of the vet,etation of California,thoubh this, as well as its Fauna,is mell worthy of the most attentive consideration. But I am tempted to makea few observations on some circumstances in the generalaspectof the country,which appearsufficiently striking. The accompanying map,thoughveryrude,andsn manyrespectscertainly not very correct,will serve at leastto shonv thatwe must consider thewhole of the two Californiasas one greatchain of nsountains, zitli severallong but usually narrow valleysdividint, it illtO ridt,esnearly parallelwith the coast, and as a whole, separated by the gulf of Cortez and the great sand-plain,from Sollora and the Rocky Mountains;withwhichlatter, however, the Califorlianchainappearsultimatelv to unitenorth of the parallel of 42?,aboutthe great summit-leveldividingthe waters of the Columbia from those fallinginto the bay of San Frallcisco. The neighbourhoocl of this bay is the only partof the country likelyeverto becomeof much interestto Ellropeans. Ttis highlyfertile,vvellwooded,watered, and perfEctly healthy. tRhe Sacramento is navigable to a considerabledistancealldrunsthrou^,h a country capableof sustaining an immensepopulation. Even the Tule lakes,thoughllavigable fol steanl-boats only wllenflooded, will thellaffordthe means of transport for timber, hides,alldotherproduce,fronla considelable andsaluabletractof country. Lower California is pretty rich in nlinerals. I have seen very ricllargentiferous Ieadores fromthe southern extremity of it, and gold is also foundill severalplaces. But in Upper California, I knowof no place whereeither has beell found,exceptto the eastwardof SantaYnez, wherea small silvermine was successfully wroughtfor sometime, till the owllers werekilledby the I1ldians; andin one of the streams fallin into the southern I'ule lake some gold has also been foundby the beaverhunters,but as yet in very smallquantity. I sllall conclude this paper with a few remarksupon the climateof Mexico. In an earlypartof my letterI statedthat the thermometer had frequently stood at 140?Fahr. This, it is ne-