hough it is very perceptible.

The men, as a general fact, are well made, with pleasing sprightly
countenances, and possessing much grace and ease of manners, and
vivacity of conversation. But hitherto they have had little knowledge
of the world and of events, beyond what they have heard through Mexico,
and derived from the supercargoes of merchant-ships and whalemen
touching upon the coast. There are no public schools in the country--at
least I never heard of one. There are but few books. General Vallejo
has a library with many valuable books, and this is the only one I saw,
although there are others; but they are rare, and confined to a few
families.

The men are almost constantly on horseback, and as horsemen excel any I
have seen in other parts of the world. From the nature of their
pursuits and amusements, they have brought horsemanship to a perfection
challenging admiration and exciting astonishment. They are trained to
the horse and the use of the lasso (_riata_, as it is here called) from
their infancy. The first act of a child, when he is able to stand
alone, is to throw his toy lasso around the neck of a kitten; his next
feat is performed on the dog; his next upon a goat or calf; and so on,
until he mounts the horse, and demonstrates his skill upon horses and
cattle. The crowning feat of dexterity with the _riata_, and of
horsemanship, combined with daring courage, is the lassoing of the
grisly bear. This feat is performed frequently upon this large and
ferocious animal, but it is sometimes fatal to the performer and his
horse. Well drilled, with experienced military leaders, such as would
inspire them with confidence in their skill and prowess, the
Californians ought to be the finest cavalry in the world. The
Californian saddle is, I venture to assert, the best that has been
invented, for the horse and the rider. Seated in one of these, it is
scarcely possible to be unseated by any ordinary casualty. The
bridle-bit is clumsily made, but so constructed that the horse is
compelled to obey the rider upon the slightest intimation. The spurs
are of immense size, but they answer to an experienced horseman the
double purpose of exciting the horse, and of maintaining the rider in
his seat under difficult circumstances.

For the pleasures of the table they care but little. With his horse and
trappings, his sarape and blanket, a piece of beef and a _tortilla_,
the Californian is content, so far as his personal comfo