The Shasta courier., 1866-12-08
led in one of the islands of the Mediter

resided in one of the islands of the Mediter
ranean. and from his childhood was educated
for the church. He showed a wonderful fac
ulty for attaching to himself the affections of
the natives, and seemed by his presence to
charm them into new mode of life. 1t is
said that, even before cultivated audiences,
he would hammer his breast with a stone,
and hold his flesh in the fame of candle,
to show that pain had no terrors in view of
the love for Christ that filled him. In trav.
cling, which he usually did on foot, though
lame from chronic ulcer on his leg, he wore
sandals and never stockings. The visitor
generals proposal for an expedition to the
north of his desolate field in Lower Califor
MIA chimed exactly with his desire and Gal
YES himself did not more urgently strive
than he to make the undertaking a success.
When he came up to Portala' s rendezvous on
the Lower California frontier to start for
San Diego, he was so lame that he could
scarcely mount and dismount from his mule.
Portala gave orders for litter to be made
Tor tls conveyance, but the tender hearted
farther would not hear Of burdenng the
Indians to carry him. After prayer that
this Gun might be spared him, he called one
OF the muleteers and asked him what to do
for his sore foot and leg but the muleteer
|
and only equal to the task of curing the sore
backs of beasts. Then consider me a
beast, said the father - ard my limb as his
| back" The muleteer, under shelter of this
fancy, ventured upon the cure. and applied
to the ailing limb a salve of mashed herbs
and tallow. The next morning the father
was in excellent condition and royal spirits.
| He mounted his mule and rode off apparent.
| lv as well as the rest of them
Junipero's life was written bv a devoted
friend and admirer, Father Francisco Palou.
| the first priest who had charge of the Mis-
| sion Dolores, and his book was doubtless
the first book written at San Francisco or in
Upper California. 1t was published in Mex.
leo in 1857, and with it map of the coun-
try. which shows the nine missions and the
three presidios, and the road between them,
all lying near the coast, while to the eastward
was blank
Before Father Junipero Sierra rested from
his labors he had founded eight missions.-
Their location speaks loudly for the Judge
ment and taste of the fathers. They occupy
the very choicest valleys that snuggle
| between the coast ranges. Generally con-
venent to the sea, or, if not, close by the
stream that dries up latest during the long
droughts, their vicinity is green when the
other plains are parched. The best pastur
age, the fnttest land, the prettiest valleys to
look down upon from the mountain passes, or
up toward from the sea. were chosen for
mission sites. Perhaps the least desirable
of all them for purely mission purposes was
the one at San Francisco. Though the Fran
ciscan order owned no richly freighted gal
leon annually sweeping deYn the coast and
generally needing harbor, yet it was so
ba 6
Spain, that the Bay of San Francisco plead
ed for a mission on account Of its positon-
Indeed Father Junipero long had his eve
on the sites Of both San Francisco and Santa
Clara, and when he went to Mexico to
straighten up some other matters, he obtain
ed promise from the viceroy that they
should be founded so soon as communication
was opened with them from Monterey by
land. Captain Jaun Baptsta ANA effected
that In lll3, reported the fact to the viceroy
and returned With quite company of fami
lies in ll16. Meanwhile the San Carlos had
gone up the coast, and by actually entering
the Golden Gate or the Gulf of the Fara.p
lones as they called it, in June, HIS, de-
monstrated that the land locked bay-whose
two arms stretched, one to the north till it
met with another great bay into which st.
Francis river, feG by five other rivers flowed
and the other southeasterly some fifteen
leagues-was open from the Pacific for YES
sells to sail into at pleasure.
On the 18th of September, the presidio of
San Francisco was founded An expedition
was organized to explore the interor-a
portion to go by water up San Pablo Bay.
portion by land The latter strayed into one
of the canons of the Diablo range and discov-
cred the San joaquin Valley.
On the 9th of October, l776-year ever
memorable as the date of American InGe-
pend ,nce-the mission De los Dolores de
Nuestro Padre San Francisco de Asis' was
established.