The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1909-10-02
STORY OF HOLLYWOOD.
BY FATHER MURPHY.

> Who never to himself hath said,
This is my own, my native land.
Thus far Walter Scott. l may b.
permitted in prose, not having the in
SEPARATIONS of Sir Walters muse, to ask
Breathes there a man or woman will
soul so dead who is not interested IL
the bygone days of the hamlet, tow
or city in which he or she resides
AS a boy l lived in a city of history
Cambridge, Mass. We knew the ole
elm under which Washington frs
took command of the American army
We loved the old Colonial mansion
| which served as his headquarters and
later became the home of Longfellow
We knew the site whereon was estab-
lished the first printing press in Amer
! lea, and in our historical rides al
school the professor impressed upon
| our mind the fact that many boys and
pupils in this country of ours saw
only the pictures of these relics in
| their histories. and l for one pitied
the boy or girl who lived in a place
where nothing worth while mention
| ing in history ever happened. The
thought then comes home to us in this
the fairest city of California, the Eden
of the west nay more, our Gown home,
sweet home" did anything ever hap
pen there worth while recording? Who
lived on Prospect boulevard many hun
dreds Of years ago? Who first taught
school in the present city? Who first
taught of our Savior and his word in
Hollywood? These and other interest
ing topics will be briefly mentioned in
this paper. The original name of Hol-
lywood was Cahuenga-bit: Cahuenga,
the name of one of the most powerful
as well as the most cruel old chief
tains, and bit, an Indian termination
meaning town or village. The inhab-
itants were called Indians. They were
short of stature, of a dingy brown
color, with small eyes, fat noses, high
cheek bones and large mouths.
The early Indians of California lived
in small huts, constructed of light
poles, bound together and interlaced
with twigs. The dwellings Of the
chieftains were sometimes roughly
plastered with mud. Each village was
a tribe in itself, possessing its own
chief. The early mission fathers tell
us that there were seventeen abso-
lutely different languages among the
twenty-five or thirty Indian villages
in this country. A few hundred words
composed the whole of their vocab-
ulary, and to the Spaniard their talk
seemed to be made up of gruntings
and slobberings.
The Indians of Cahuenga were on
friendly terms with those of va bit.
Los Angeles. They were too timiS
too indolent to fight unless the occa-
sion was urgent. When some foreign
tribe undertook to enter and seize their
land they would fight to the bitter
END. for to leave their homes meant
death. They had bows and arrows
that were well made. Captured en-
emies were put 70 death with dreadful
fortunes Guardianship was hereditary
and carried with it the power to prac-
tice polygamy. The older men of the
tribe were the chieftains counsellors
and met with him in the temple to
discuss questions of state Decisions
were left to the sorceresses, who formed
a distinct aristocratic class.
Paint was literally used to ornament
the bodies. The Indian saved nothing.
He lived on Wild barley seed, acorns.
deer, coyotes, squirrels. snake and fish. |
The food was gathered by the women,
who went daily in search of it. The
women ground the acorns in stone
mortars, made the cake, build the fire |
and then went to summon her husband. |
who was browsing in the warm sun
shine. With all their indolent quail |
tiles they were a most hospitable peo-
pie, offering later even to. the white |
visitor such food and shelter as they |
had. The Indian was child of nature. |
His condition was mainly due to eli |
matte environment. He built no warm
Wigwams because few days in the |
year were inclement. He did not Gull
-ivate the soil because there was no
season when nature deserted him.
nj of o,Ix,
hollywood the period of the Indian
by the white man.
We must now consider another
phase. the coming Of the Spaniards,
some for gold and discovery, some for
souls. Among the former were Ca
orillo. who first discovered, in 1912.
santa Catalina, and landed at San
Pedro; Viscaino, who landed at San
Diego and San Clemente island, in
603 But we are not concerned with
hese as much as with those godly men
Who sought not for gold and silver.
Tut who recognized even in the In
Ian a brother redeemed by the same
savior, and who wished to impart to
i'm knowledge of the Christ of
who died not for Jew or
paniard, not for king or stateman,
ut for the Indian as we'll; he lived
nd died for ALL
Before speaking of the missionaries,
were better to give a brief sketch
( their foundation. We all love the !
Id missions of the days gone by; we
owe their history; we love their adobe S
walls, and we say, Woe betide him 9
Tho would level one of them to the '
ust. They are the links connecting {
s with the past. They tell story
f sacrifice on the part of their build I
rs. They tell of our race first set
ing foot on California soil, and what [
JAMESTOWN is to the English and [
fanhattan to the Dutch and Plymouth
} the Yankee. San Diego and Santa o
San Fernando and San Car 2
IS are to the residents of California.
he founder of the missionary fathers
as Francis born in Italy in 1882. In !
irly life he gave all his goods to
lie poor and became a preacher of the
ospel Clad in the toughest of cloth
g, he went about performing acts
mercy Others of noble birth were
tracted to him. and in 1909 the ]
franciscan order was established. It's
e was one of toll and privation; its
ms hoped not for earthly riches, but c
T the reward that comes to all who r
Dor for humanitys cause. After this
der had existed for 400 years a man
Imed Junipero Sierra was attracted
its cloisters in sunny Spain. On
lg. %, 1749, he sailed for the I'M
lown west, and after a long and
mpestuous voyage he arrived at