New-York tribune., 1872-05-11
A CALIFORNIA RANCHO.


m KEEPING-A STRANGE EDUCATIONAL DEBT
PAYING RACE THE RANcHERos AMUsE-
MENTs.
PRoM AN OCCASIONAL CORRESPONDENT or THE TRIBUNE
SAN DIEGO, Feb. Son my way from San
Bernardino stopped night at a large Mexican
rancho the Laguna. La0una means lake; the house
stands IN fact at end Of large fresh water lake.
with mountains towering up all sides. The sheet Is
about four miles long and three wide; IL has border OF
perhaps half mile OF arabic land on the side when
passed over We got to Seor Ms house an hour before
sunset and received grave permission 10 un-
saddle our horses and remain over night An indian
came nm 20 take away the horses, which were turned
into a pasure lot 10 shift for themselves;
receiving little barley In the evening ana heAo uorF
ing As for ourselves looked around WIN sohe eur
osity for this was the first time had bad az opPor
tunity to sec how the old Caifornians OF weah hye'
senor NJ. is reputed 70 possess 10000 acres Oh hn "
told me that he had sold last FALL ioo young cois' ~
&c nor head He owns several thousand sheep; as 10
cottle he could not tell till after the rodeo
how many there were. The rodeo Is tne an
nual gathering OF cattle, when ue o""i' "
n large district drive all the STOCK lhto QUO
great plain and each with his vacqueros picks out us
own cows wthdraws them into separate herd prahus
the calves which nnocently follow their mothers ana
then turns the whole adrft again. or IN some cases
drives them home to his land Senior NJ Is there-
fore person OF substance; he Is man ABOVE miuo
hight little cOrpuent, fortyhve years OF age h'
grzzled and ragewith all the gravity OF tine Spau'
He politely invited US into the house; but seeing my III
clnaton to remain out Of DOORS when magnificent sun
set was making rosy the western mountain tops' nc
eavely and silently brought out chairs for u.s. As for
himself be leaned ND against the house, and looked at
| my curiosity with mild contempt offered MIN ratner
good cigar. whereupon he became little communica-
tive He had worked hard he said but he was now get
| ting old and took it easy.
"swEET CONTENT DOTH FILL HIS DAYS"
| % he nd Orfzyl
tansfD "Wel yes nc could; but he not fond Of
grizzly bears one had down among flock OF his
sheep mile or the night before; but the herder had
driven it off 1t bad BEAST he used to hunt them
| when he younger; but nOw"-and he shrugged MS
shoulders Eyes he had Indians "-seeing me look at
severa who we're skylarkng about the place. catching
each other with lassos-" they useful people, not
good for much" he added"" hut quiet he paid them
| SIS month; and they bought what they
| needed at his store. You imust understand that,
in California parlance. a man "has" Indians
| but he "is in" sheep cattle, or horses.
remarked that the Laguna was lovely piece OF water.
| "Yes~ he said, ait will do" with another shrug He
| had had a boat, but nobody took care OF it, and IT
roted away A flock Of wild ducks took advantage OF
this circumstance to sail about under our noses at such
prudent distance from the shore as made IL mere mur-
der for me to shoot them for should have had to swim
out to get what had shot looked into his garden,
where he half Of young grape vines two or
three dozen young apple and orange trees, and small
orchard OF young English walnuts set out much too
close together. undertook to admire this moderate
collection in horticulture, whereupOn at last the grave
spaniard relened little. "Yes," he said with mild
shrug very WE'LL the garden is growing 1t Is not
much; but am mug cOntent well satisfied. "What
do want more 7" he asked with kind of grave scorn
| al am well; have enough; 1 nobody money; II
| anybody comes to buy of me he must bring me the
money In his hand" Don MS countenance looked
little implacabe "I am not afraid TO die he ADDED
| "only don't want TO be SICK Muy conteiIte' he re-
peated his gentle and careless voice several times to
impress it upon my cars which are unaccustomed TO
Spanish. .
| Presently a fire being made upon the hearth In the
sttngroom and night falling upon us in that noiseless
way with which the dark comes on in this country,
where no chiripDg humming insects are heard, we
walked in and sat down. And now you shall hear how
this contented man OF great wealth lived. The house
was of adobe which, you know, Is sun-drled brick
II was an obong and contained three rooms. The front
floor was store shop, where he dealt out cahcOes
sugar Coffee and other dry goods and groceries, beside
erapebrandy to his Indians and Others who chose
| IN come The next room, which had no windows con-
tained two beds in which his three young boys slept
II contained aso the materials for the family sewing
| and "A closet. The third room, which held Senor
| Ms bed and a fireplace, was also our
dlnngroom; and here, presently coarse
| but clean cloth was spread, and three women aud "a
little girl began to hay the table and serve the supper
At one side OF the house small room had been built on
for a kitchen; opposite to that was eapaeous store
ROOM in which hung Seeo, erked beef from the
rafers bloody sheets of meat, which look unfit TO eat
but make savory stew; while the floor two or three
| voune lambs were confined, which by and by
succeeded in getting out and came bleating into the
dining-room, a quite startling spectacle to us,
but evidently INDUCED playthngs. Beyond the house
ITSELF about Is feet distant, clay oven for baking
bread covered over with BULBS hide the hairy side
downward intended keep the top dry in should
rain and beyond this, few feet further off, making tho
boundary Of what Western peope'eall their yard was
range OF open shantes, which riding up had inno-
Gently taken for cattle sheds Here close TO the house.
the Indians lived
A RANCHO SUPER.
Later in the evening hearing singing and the dronng
a IL tt,n Ii of stringed instrument, walked out. and
saw how they live. Half a dozen men were sitting
around wood fire, which mad been made in the center
of the open shed. They sat on wooden blocks or
ounged on the earhen floor they talked in Indian or
in spansh as happened and at intervals one broke In
with snatch Of song which taken up by the rest,
and swept not unmuscaly, through the air,
slowly rising and falling away until there re-
| maned only the htm Il tum II OF the musician.
whose instrument composed of corn stalk about 80
inches long, stretching single string made Of lambs
entras They poor creatures, sadt tSenor NJ, with
n shrug of his shouders "pOor creatures. but quiet
not good for much,,b useful" But where do they
seep.D asked He pointed to door. which opened into
a lightly incosed shed, which had imagined to be the
chckenhouse In the further end truly the chickens
at roost but the large part foored with poles
ON which barley spread and here the indians
slept IL they slept Of which, later, had occasion
10 entertain doubts Outside OF the yard near the
| house was the wood heap near 1t lay beers head.
| skinned and gory everywhere except Immediately
above the house what should call careless dis
urI.. Etrahf fxNnh