sions, many facts came to light which might otherwise never have been known. Among other things, it appeared that Castillo had arbitrarily ordered some of the Indian boys to be cruelly flogged. Figueroa, as soon as he heard of it, wrote a letter reprimanding him in the severest language and declaring that neither Castillo nor any other person would be permitted to infringe the laws, which prohibited the flogging of Indians even though they were mere boys. Nor was he less imperative

in respect to the rights of the gentiles. An old abuse-corrected for a time in the days of Borica—had again sprung up in the practice, upon hostile expeditions against the gentiles, of seizing their children and distributing them among the families of the captors as domestic servants. Towards the end of 1833, on account of the frequency of raids by Indian horse-thieves, it was found necessary to organize monthly expeditions of soldiers, assisted by the rancheros, to keep the marauders in check; and, during these campaigns, it was not unusual to seize and make prisoners of gentile children whenever they could be laid hold of. An instance of this kind, occurring in the course of an expedition from San Jose to the Tulare country, was called to Figueroa's attention in the early part of 1835. Seven children had been seized and carried to San Jose. Figueroa immediately wrote to the alcalde, characterizing the outrage in terms of deserved reprobation; ordering the children to be sent to the missionary of Santa Clara until a fitting opportunity might present itself of restoring them to their parents, and directing that no further expeditions should be made, except in actual pursuit of horsethieves, without express permission of the government.

Figueroa's great sympathy for the Indians was doubtless due more to his humane heart than to any other cause, though he himself attributed it to his Aztec blood. "I am of Indian extraction," he was accustomed to say, "as my color and figure clearly indicate. As such I feel for the Indians, who have the misfortune to be despised by the other classes of the population and especially by the haughty pride of those who make a boast of European blood." " But at the same time no one could claim for a moment that he favored the Indians at the expense of the

1 Cal. Archives, M. IX, 581-599.

Cal. Archives, D. S. P. S. Jose, IV, 565.

• Osio, MS,

whites, or that he favored their vices or crimes. Throughout his entire career in California, though fault might be found with his policy, no one could arraign his motives or deny that he was invariably actuated with a sincere desire to forward the true interests of the country. In this respect he resembled the grand and admirable old governor of the last century, Diego de Borica. Like Borica also, he took a great interest in education, which was perhaps of all things the most important to the future welfare of the Californians. In his speech at the opening of the deputation on May 1, 1834, he called attention to the fact that there were no primary schools in the territory except at Monterey, Santa Barbara and Los Angeles and that even those were kept by incompetent and ill-paid teachers. He therefore urged upon that body to make provision for more and better schools. Every people, he said, who appreciated civilization and true progress, paid most sedulous attention to education, well perceiving that the future fate of all the interests of society depended upon the enlightenment of the individuals who were to carry it on; and this was especially the case with every community which was free and claimed the privilege of exercising political rights.' At his instance, a number of new teachers were employed with liberal salaries not only at the points mentioned, but also at Sonoma, Santa Clara, San Jose, San Gabriel, San Luis Rey and San Diego. The school at Monterey had been founded in 1833 by William E. P. Hartnell, and Figueroa had encouraged it with all his influence and power;' so that his subsequent action was only a carrying forward of the same enlightened spirit which he had thus manifested from the beginning of his administration. But it was not until November, 1834, that he put the keystone to his efforts in this direction by the establishment of a normal school at San Gabriel, for the support of which public taxes were imposed, and an order issued to the pueblos respectively, both white and Indian, to selec. and send thither two of their most promising young men to be instructed as teachers.

Unfortunately for the country and its dearest interests, Fig

1 Cal. Archives, L. R. II, 36–39; D. S. P. Ben. Misc. II, 2077, 2078.

? Cal. Archives, L. R. II, 557-564.

Cal. Archives, D. S. P. III, 441-458; D. S. P. Ben. Misc. II, 85, 86.

• Cal. Archives, L. R. II, 567–581; M. X, 183; D. S. P. Ben. LXXIX, 654

ueroa's health, which had not been good at any time since his arrival in the territory, broke down under his manifold labors. On August 29, 1835, after suffering some time in silence and in patience, he wrote to Jose Castro, the first member of the deputation, that he had again applied to the supreme government at Mexico to be relieved from his office. The climate of Monterey, he said, had never agreed with his constitution and he now found himself so continually exposed to serious attacks of illness as to be totally incapacitated from attending to the duties of his position. He was daily growing worse. It was absolutely necessary for him, under the circumstances, to seek relief and cure at some other point which was warmer and not so much exposed to the northerly winds. He therefore resigned the political command of the territory until such time as he might gain restored health to Jose Castro, who as "primer vocal," under the authority of the imperial law of May 6, 1822, was entitled to the succession.1 Soon afterwards he left Monterey with the intention of going to Santa Barbara; but, upon reaching San Juan Bautista, he found himself unable to proceed any further; and there, on September 29, 1835, after making a few hurried dispositions as to his private affairs as well as to the affairs of the territory, of which he had been governor since January 15, 1833-a period of two years and about eight months-he died."

At the time of Figueroa's death, the territorial deputation was holding its sessions at Monterey. It had met there on August 25 with Jose Castro, Manuel Jimeno Casarin, Antonio Buelna, Juan B. Alvarado and Salvio Pacheco as members--Jose Antonio Carrillo and Jose Antonio Estudillo, who would have been first and second members if present, being absent. Figueroa was present at the opening meeting; but four days afterwards, as already stated, he resigned the political command into the hands. of Jose Castro as acting "primer vocal." At the session of October 13, the first after his death, on motion of Alvarado, it was ordered that the portrait of the deceased governor should be placed in the hall of meeting and that underneath it should be affixed the words, "Benefactor of the Territory of Alta California." It

1 Cal. Archives, D. S. P. Ang. XI, 244; M. XI, 655.

Cal. Archives, D. S. P. IV, 139.

Cal. Archives, D. S. P. IV, 150, 151.

'Cal. Archives, L. R. II, 250; D. S. P. Ben. Misc. II, 416.

was further ordered, on motion of the same, that for the purpose of preserving his memory in perpetual and grateful remembrance, a lasting monument with a fitting inscription should be erected in his honor at the capital. And it was still further ordered that three copies of the resolutions thus adopted should be prepared; one of them given to the deceased's executors; the second transmitted to his widow and children in Mexico, and the third sent to the press to be printed, published and distributed.'

In his will, made on September 27, Figueroa, after recommending his soul to God, its author and creator, and his body to the earth as the common mother of mortals, expressed a wish to be buried if possible in the church of the mission of Santa Barbara. In accordance with this request, the remains were removed from San Juan Bautista to Monterey and were there placed in state in the church of the presidio until October 17, when all the necessary arrangements for the obsequies were completed. On the afternoon of that day, a grand funeral procession was formed and the remains removed with great pomp and ceremony to the American brig Avon, then lying in the harbor, for transportation to Santa Barbara. A military escort was provided to accompany them; and the deputation directed Jimeno Casarin to do the same as its representative. No such a funeral spectacle had been witnessed in the territory. During the procession, a gun was fired every half minute; and when the coffin reached the brig, it was placed in the cabin, enveloped by Captain Hinckley in the folds of the Mexican flag, and a sentinel placed in testimonial of the highest respect. At the same time the vessel's martial band commenced the solemn tones of a requiem to the departed soldier, which were continued in eloquent suggestiveness until the sun sank beneath the horizen." A few days afterwards, the brig sailed and on October 27 anchored at Santa Barbara. The next day, with honors second only to those at Monterey, the remains were disembarked and placed in state in the chapel of that presidio; and the day subsequent they were removed to the mission and with religious. ceremonies deposited in their final resting place in the mission church.❜

1 Cal. Archives, L. R. II, 295, 296.

Cal. Archives, D. S. P. IV, 181–186; L. R. II, 310, 311.

CHAPTER X.

CASTRO, GUTIERREZ, CHICO, AND GUTIERREZ (AGAIN).

N September 22, 1835, while Figueroa lay sick unto death at San Juan Bautista, having already resigned the political command into the hands of Jose Castro as first member of the deputation, he wrote to Lieutenant-colonel Nicolas Gutierrez at San Gabriel to hasten to him and assume the military command of the territory. Gutierrez at once started northward, but was too slow to see Figueroa before his death. He therefore proceeded on to Monterey and called a council of officers to take into consideration the exigency and decide upon what was to be done in reference to the military command. According to a circular which he published on October 8, he did not wish to assume it and pleaded that, on account of his personal infirmities, he was unfit for active military service. But the council insisted upon his complying with Figueroa's request, and he obeyed. He thereupon gave notice of the fact to all the military comandantes in the territory and also notified the new political chief to the same effect. Castro replied in courtly terms, expressing his satisfaction, in view of the great loss the whole country had sustained in the death of Figueroa, that the military command had fallen into such good hands and flattering himself with the hope that the territory would continue to enjoy the peace and prosperity, which the illustrious dead had bequeathed to it. So far as lay in his power, charged as he was with the temporary political command, he was ready to assist in every measure calculated to promote the public tranquillity and welfare."

Castro, on assuming the political command, had notified the various subordinate jurisdictions of that fact; and the replies of ' Cal. Archives, D. S. P. IV, 152–156.

Ca. Archives, D. S. P. IV, 154, 155.