equal interest in the history of
San Francisco. The city grew up from three points--the Mission"--I
pulled a poppy from my bouquet and placed it on the table to mark the
old adobe--"the Presidio"--I moved a salt cellar to the right of the
flower--"and the town of Yerba Buena," this I indicated by a pepper box
below the other two. "Roads connected these points like the sides of a
triangle and gradually the intervening spaces were filled with houses."

"Go on." He leaned back in his chair, but I had already risen. "It will
be more interesting to hear the story on the spot tomorrow," I assured
him as I drew on my gloves.

The Presidio

The Spanish Fortifications and the Love Story of Concepcion and Rezanov

The Presidio Past and Present

We hailed a car marked "Exposition" and were soon climbing the hills to
the west. Between the houses, we had fleeting glances of the bay with
its freight of vessels. Here waved the tri-color of France, while next
to it the black, white and red flag of Germany was flung to the breeze,
and within a stone's throw, Johnny Bull had cast out his insignia. At a
little distance the ships of Austria and Russia rested side by side, and
between the vessels the bustling little ferry-boats were churning up the
blue water.

"It is difficult to picture this bay as it was in early Spanish days," I
said, "destitute of boats and so full of otter that when the Russians
and Alaskan Aleuts began plundering these waters, they had only to lean
from the canoes and kill hundreds with their oars."

"But what right had the Russian here? Why didn't the Spaniards stop
them? Otter must have brought a good price in those days." There was a
ring of indignation in his voice, that told his interest had been
aroused.

"San Francisco was helpless. There was not a boat on the bay, except the
rude tule canoes of the Indians--'boats of straw'--Vancouver called
them, and these were no match for the swift darting bidarkas of the
Alaskan natives."

"And Luis Argueello in command!"

"I saw my idol falling, and hastened to assure him that the Comandante
had built a boat a short time before, but the result was so disastrous
that he never tried it again. The Presidio was in great need of repair
and the government at Mexico had paid no heed to the constant requests
for assistance, so Comandante Argueello had determined to take matters
into his own hands. The peninsula was destitute of large timber, but ten
miles ac