The San Francisco call., 1903-09-09

versary OF the admission OF Cali
fornia into the sistsrhood Of
States. ii is emineatly fitting
that we should pause for a
backward look down the vistas Of the
years gone by 10 catch a glimpse Of the
long and romantic chain Of events which
binds US OF the present day to the dim
past Even now We see before US the
promise that California, the western pill
lar OF the continent, has a wonderful des-
tiny stretching out before II. Before we
venture 10 read the SibyIline books too
closely we should know the heroic epic
OF the brave days which have passed;
We should hear the story Of the dim
DAYS OF forgotten centuries when Cali
fornia first emerged out of the darkness
OF oblivion 10 play its part on the worlds
great stage.
Ours is q history which sings. Homer
with his epic Tyre never recited to beard
ed king a tale Of heroes IN an heroic age
which rang with more narrative thrill
than does the story OF California. Like
the Odyssey our tale Of adventure has
for its setting the fower-clad hills. the
rolling. sOmber mountains. the boundless
blue sea. Our Jason and the Argonauts
sought the golden fleece in the granite
heart OF the mountains. Our Ulysses was
q sturdy Englishman in casque and
buckler, who drove his pirate ship in er-
rant course up and down the coast in
vain search for a channel as mythical
the all-circling Oceanus OF the heroic
Greeks. The voyages Of sdventurers, the
sweet pastoral life of holy monks the
wild stampede OF thousands, drunk with
the greed OF gold, the reign Of murder and
the final triumph OF law and order, work
ing for the upbuilding Of an empire
these are the cantOs OF our great epic
the epic Of California
Few but scholars know that the original
title 10 the possession OF California came
from the hand OF a Pope in Rome and
that our ultimate right TO the land we
live on is found in the last instance in a
Papal bull, duly stamped and sealed with
the hsherman's ring. None other than
Alexander VI, father OF the disreputable
Lucrezia and Caesar Borgia, made the
award Of the title TO California which has
come 10 US through the hands Of Span
iards and Mexicans.
Previous 70 the voyage of Columbus in
1892 the Portuguese. under the benign in
huence Of their prince, Henry the Naviga-
tor, had rounded the southern cape Of
Africa and discovered the Azores Islands,
when Columbus, sailing under the patron
age Of the court Of Spain, made his me-
morable discoveries in the West Indies.
Portugal claimed that the lands touched
at by the three historic ships Of the great
navigator belonged 10 the crown OF its
prince by right OF the previous discovery
Of the Azores. The disputants referred
the contention to His Holiness, Alexander
VI for settlement.
Since in those days no Henry VIII had
yet arisen TO defy the temporal power OF
Gods vicar on earth, the ruler at Rome
could unmake kings at breath and
change the map at a scratch OF the pen.
So Alexander sat down and d.
vided the world as he would cut
q pie. OF course il was to his
mind a fat world which he was parti-
tioning, so he drew on the imperfect map
OF the time an arbitrary line Of longitude
one hundred leagues west Of the Azores.
All lands from that line west to the edge
OF the world were to be forever in the
grip Of Spain; Portugal must satisfy her
self with the possession of all discovered
or discOverable lands east Of this papal
meridian. Thus on May 3, 1493 did a
Pope, long since mouldering in some arch
way OF St Peters. make over into the
eternal keeping Of the crown OF Spain the
land We are living upon. For 40 years,
therefore, our land has been, legally at
least, in the possession Of the white race.