e mission, where we halted to make our
observations. This mission is not so extensive in its buildings as that
of San Jose, but the houses are generally in better repair. They are
constructed of adobes; the church was open, and, entering the interior,
I found the walls hung with coarse paintings and engravings of the
saints, etc., etc. The chancel decorated with numerous images, and
symbolical ornaments used by the priests in their worship. Gold-paper,
and tinsel, in barbaric taste, are plastered without stint upon nearly
every object that meets the eye, so that, when on festive occasions the
church is lighted, it must present a very glittering appearance.

The rich lands surrounding the mission are entirely neglected. I did
not notice a foot of ground under cultivation, except the garden
inclosure, which contained a variety of fruits and plants of the
temperate and tropical climates. From want of care these are fast
decaying. Some excellent pears were furnished us by Mrs. Bennett, an
American lady, of Amazonian proportions, who, with her family of sons,
has taken up her residence in one of the buildings of the mission. The
picture of decay and ruin presented by this once flourishing
establishment, surrounded by a country so fertile and scenery so
enchanting, is a most melancholy spectacle to the passing traveller,
and speaks a language of loud condemnation against the government.

Proceeding on our journey, we travelled fifteen miles over a flat
plain, timbered with groves and parks of evergreen oaks, and covered
with a great variety of grasses, wild oats, and mustard. So rank is the
growth of mustard in many places, that it is with difficulty that a
horse can penetrate through it. Numerous birds flitted from tree to
tree, making the groves musical with their harmonious notes. The
black-tailed deer bounded frequently across our path, and the lurking
and stealthy _coyotes_ were continually in view. We halted at a small
cabin, with a _corral_ near it, in order to breathe our horses, and
refresh ourselves. Captain Fisher had kindly filled a small sack with
bread, cheese, roasted beef, and a small jug of excellent schiedam.
Entering the cabin, the interior of which was cleanly, we found a
solitary woman, young, neatly dressed, and displaying many personal
charms. With the characteristic ease and grace of a Spanish woman, she
gave the usual salutation for the hour of the day, "_Buenas tardes,
senores caballeros_;" to which