The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1921-06-04
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men had done their best; they had
suffered through scurvy and dearth
and slow starvation all they could pos
sibly stand; to remain any longer
was to open the camp to death; surely
it was sad and terrible to fail, but
failure must often be faced by man,
along with all his other woes and
trials. The order was given to re-
treat. San Diego was to be abandon
ed. SPANS effort to settle California
was to be given up. Perhaps it would
never again have been attempted. It
was one more inevitable and now a
crushing defeat
But, no, it was not!
Junipero Sierra interposed his
mighty will. The Sword had quailed;
but Sierra pointed to the Cross, and it's
lesson of unconquerable patience, of
an absolute faith. He at leas. would
never go back. He might die there,
but he would not live anywhere else.
He had come to California to do his
work. So, of course, having reached
California Though hundred times
along the way his life had beer des-
paired of, how impossible for him to
leave California with his work I'M
done! No. Portola and the soldiers
and his brother friars, if so the latter
| willed, might go back to Mexico. He,
Junipero Sierra, would stay right there.
That settled it.
Portola could not shake the fixed
| resolution, and his own common sense
decision to retreat began to waver.
Sierra was quick to take advantage of
that fact. Stay with me-" he sug-
gested; "stay long enough to COM
plete a novena to st. Joseph, the pa
iron of the Conquest, begging him to
intercede with God for our succor,
Yes? All, very good! We will begin
| today"
So the novena, the nine days of
pleading with the spiritual powers, be-
gan, Sierra leading the assault upon
| heaven. Day after day went on: Sierra
nightly calm and concentrated; Por-
tola hopeful and cast down by turns.
| The first day passed and the food got
| lower; the second day passed, another
case of scurvy; the third day, and the
| soldiers began to grumble louder; the
fourth day, and Portola reopened the
matter with Sierra, but Sierra quickly
closed it again; the fifth day, and
some of the soldiers would no longer
pray; they stood apart and growled,
but Sierra only waxed more insistent,
to make up for them; the SIKH day,
! and Portola began active preparations
for the retreat. the seventh day. and
word was given to cut down sill more
eighth day, and tomorrow We turn
our faces to the SOUTH" said Portola; ;
and then the ninth day came-the
Feast of st. Joseph himself; where
upon Sierra sang High Mass, and
preached sermon hot with faith,
which concluded the prayers of the
novena, while the soldiers put all
things together for the retreat. But
as Father Palou chronicles the matter
THAT same afternoon God interven-
ed to satisfy the burning desires of
His servant permitting ttem to
see clearly and distinctly ship
Far out at sea, a sharp sill.
houette against the misty, heated,
shimmering blue and argency of the
horizon and the sun-drenched waters
"You see," remarked Sierra to Por
tola, there's the ship
Portola and the soldiers stared with
t awed eyes, and before their gaze the
ship was swallowed up, as if truly il
t were but a heavenly apparition, a
symbol of hope, sign of faith But
: four days later, the ship came into
, port. 1t was the packet-boat "Sar
Antonio" returning from San Bias ir
) Mexico with orders to reach Monterey
) without stopping at San Diego. The
, glimpse which the settlers had of its
/ sails on the day of the novena's close
r was due to the fact that the captain
/ was following the coast line. Near
: the channel of Santa Barbara. how
ever, the ships anchor had been los
: and the captain decided to return tt
5 San Diego, where he believed he would
5 find another ship, the San Carlos,
! and procure an anchor before ventur
ing into the unknown waters of tn,
/ earth. This was the accident, thu
4 coincidence, which explained the ar
e rival of this wholly unexpected succor
i But what if Portola had not con
+ sented to remaining long enough t.
e hold the novena?
: If that had happened, it is exceed
e ingly likely that Spain would not again
= have attempted northward COLOMBIA
S ton. California would have fallen t,
e England or Russia. In the hands o
l. either nation, California would no
e have offered the same easy prize t.
the westward sweep Of the Unite,
States. But Sierra remained to pray
| and things are &C thau oro