The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-08-21


TaIe-OnIy known Foundation
for the Legend.
Five prospectors are QUILTING at San
Diego, Cal, for a quest similar to that
for the Holy Grail or the Golden Fleece,
and without doubt will be as barren Of
results. The expedition IS ose of search
for the tabled three consecrated bells of
the last mission of Santa Ysabel, in Baja
Uower) California.
The mission of Santa Ysabel was found
ed by the padres in 1903 as a sort of over
flow from the parent mission of San Fer
nando, established in 1860
The famous gold placers of the PENN
sula, then a virgin field, are said to have
produced the precious metal in such
quantities that the strong boxes of the
padres were soon filled to overlooking.
The altar ornaments were of pure gold,
cast In crude molds designed and made
by the monks. 1t was the reported rich
ness that originated the first raids by the
brigands and outlaws from the mainland
They had no computations against loot
ing the mission treasury, foraging on its
Iarder and orchards, and driving off the
hooks, but they are said to have had
molly fear of consecrated vessels. Know
in5 this, according to the legend, the pa
ores cast their chests Of virgin gold into
chalices, crucifxes, fonts, etc, until they
mad as many they could possibly find
excuses for, and still they had a large
amount of bullion on hand. Finally they
Necided to cast the remainder into three
bells Tor the mission, and the legend has
1t that about $50 pounds troy, possibly val
ued at $50 in gold, was cast into the three
beIIs' and these bells consecrated with
great pomp and solemnity.
Inc peace of God that had so Ions, on
Neioped the cloisters gave way to the
strife Of man, and the flint-lock musket
was more often in evidence about the
walls than was the prayer book as the
priests repealed raid after raid of bri-
gands and Indians.
BURIAL OF GOLDEN BELLS
Finally, by an act of the state the
padres were driven from their nossAs-
SONS and the mission of Santa Ysabe1
Is said TO have experienced the hardest
luck OF ALL A drought of several wears
erred their Irrigation bitches, their In
olan conEerts deserted them, and in turn
became despoilers of The sf1ocRs and herds
until the Taires, to escape faninira and
perhapsi 4EOrse, Teres Fofgseda to abandon
the quiet home zthey had constructed to
the Wilderness, They packed all their
movable possessions on mules and turn
ed their faces again toward. the coast.
leaving behind the three bells. which
they are said to have buried in a secret
place against their return, leaving as
guard a lew trusty Cocopah Indians The
paores never returned, and some have
1t that the Indians, or rather some of
their descendants, are there yet, keeping
faithful watch and ward over their
trust confident in their simple belief that
the beloved padres of their fathers viii
yet-retu'n to claim their own -
Further. the fable says that the walls
OF the mission have been feveIed. the site
covered by the drifting sands of the
desert, and that the location is only a
matter OF surmise, from the fact that
outside Of certain small district men
may come and go unframed but within
that district they receive a warning to
go at once, and If the warning is NOT
Obeyed they disappear forever Organ
lied bands Of brigands are said to have
made raids on the locality within com
parauvely recent years, but always have
been beaten off by the Indians who sig
naled from the surrounding mountains
Tor others OF their tribe to come to their
assistance At times these armed con-
1Icts have assumed such proportions that
local chrOniclers say the government was
forced 10 Senda' Il company OF 1urales
(border police to keep the peace Now,
the recovery of those mythical bells is
the object of the five prospectors. They
claim a foundation of fact for their ro-
nance by saying that one man has seen
the bells, bur was driven away by the
Indians, glad enough to escape with his
life.
Oq ~,
legend are true but the main features
are much to be doubted.
ONLY FOUNDATION FOR LEGEND.
There was Santa Ysabel mission:
any one living in the central part of the
IA peninsula will point out its location, or
r. one can hire an Indian for 81 a dav Mex
lean money, to guide one directly to the
mission. 1t was abandoned by the pa.
dres owing to the secuIarization act That
1t was often raided by brigands and the
thieving Cocopahs cannot be questioned,
7 but the statement that the site of the
mission is not known is not true. The
drought story is also fiction, and the
golden bells-huh!
The site Of the mission is in a park in
the mountain. Although the meadowlille
spot is cultivated no longer, it still fur
nishes rich pasturage for deer and noun
tain sheep, and is not at all what the
! legend describes it to be-a waterIess.
T desert waste The mission building, or
| rather the chapel is in miserable state
Of decay, and the walls of the corral, or
! Enclosure of the cloisters, are almost level
with the ground. One building is in a
! comparatively good state of preserva-
! ton, evidently having been used at one
/ time as a storehouse. A few Santa Ca
/ tarina Indians, not Cocopahs, descend
/ ants of the. neOphytes of the mission
! make the park their home and keep up
the repairs to the mission stOrehouse
| In the stOrehouse are a few relics.
some old missals and a Spanish Bible
20 years old, a few old and battered can
ielabra and altar ornaments of bronze
! and some worn and discarded priestly
| robes. An old Indian that carries the
! ponderous siX-inch iron key will show the
entire outfit for a 10-cent package Of
smoking tobacco, and will tell you the
whole story and more for dos reales g."
two bits, or. as you say back there, "a
quarter" Ask him about the bells of
gold and he looks at you with surprise
e.and envy-you know better story about
lis trust than he does.