The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-06-30
FATHER OREsPrs DISCOVERY.


man who, though lame, trudged afoot
across the burning desert from Mexico to
San Diego and there planted the cross OF
the Master, Father Crespi, his most eff
Gent aid, was the most remarkable of the
Franciscan monks who in California paved
the way for the pleasant life which we now
enjoy. When the Franciscans had worked
as far northward as Monterey, establish
ing missions along the way, Crespi started
on foot to find the bay which that cheerful
pirate, Sir Francis Drake, had mapped on
the northerly coast. The sturdy Francis
can and his small band of retainers first
encountered the Pajaro River, which
('paiaro" being the Spanish for "bird")
they so named because of the large mum Der
of ducks whose wings Swallowed the stream
Next good Crespi discovered most Won
derful tree in the region now known as
the Santa Cruz Mountains. Though an
educated man, he had never heard of this
strange vegetable production, q tree of
lofty height and beautiful symmetry.
More than likely he cut one down in order
that he might study its structural peculi-
arities, for in his quaint report of his expe-
dition he calls it a marvellous tree and
names it "paio colorado''-red tree. In
stead OF naming it after him, preferring
instead to call it ''sequoia,' after Semi
mole chief who invented an alphabet for
the language of his tribe, we still in COM
mon speech call it redwood" which is
really the name he gave it.
The next startling discovery made by
Crespi was from the summit of some high
mountain of the range that follows the
trend of the coast. His delightful report
does not inform US what mountain it was,
but from its summit, to which, doubtless,
he clambered laboriously to see what it
might reveal, he saw the great ocean on
the west and fine inland sea on the
north; and this likely was the true dis
covery of the bay of San Francisco. This
shining sheet stretched as far northward
as he could see; and on its eastern side
were reared the dun slopes of the Coast
Range.
With an innocence hardly compatible
with Our conceptions of his intelligence, he
never dreamed that this ''sea" had an out
let to the ocean. for when he reached the
Golden Gate, probably overlooking it from
the heights back of Fort Winfield Scott,
he was dismayed to discover that his ad-
sNshNS hO4eh" did Woo ChCShCo ny u Utdubl-
full deep-blue channel mile wide, which
Sir Francis had never mentioned. 1t is
immaterial to discuss the fathers account
of his journey back by way of Alviso and
around the Contra Costa shore in circum-
scribing the bay, and how surprised he
was to discover that great river poured
into the bay from the northwest, and that
he had to build raft on which to cross
the Straits of Carquinez. He arrived at
brakes Bay at last III safety.
Wonderful things have happened since
then. The banks of rivulet that emptied
into San Francisco Bay about at the pres
ent crossing OF Montgomery and Clay
streets were lined with highly aromatic
shrub which was new to the early explor-
ers and which they used as medicine.
They called it ''yerba buena" (good herbl,
which in our degenerate times is princi-
pally constituent of mint juleps. But
that was the original name of San Fran
cisco, which is not nearly so rich in whole
some memories as is that of the strange
old monk CT Assist. There are those of
us even in these hard and grasping days
who, upon ascending the lofty hilltops
that overlook the City, can form some con-
ception of the inspired thoughts that must
have lent wings to the soul of old Crespi.