Zenas Leonard - Narrative of the Adventures of Zenas Leonard

The principal part of their hides are sold to U. S. vessels trading on the coast. When a trading vessel anchors on the coast for the purpose of trading, the news is spread over the whole country like wild fire. The owners of cattle, who are of the wealthier class, collect together all the poorer Spaniards and Indians for the purpose of catching and butchering the cattle, in order to get their hides. This is the commencement of their sporting season. They are all mounted on their fleetest horses, and on these occasions the hunters go in pairs, one provided with a noose and the other with a spear or lance, which is used in cutting the sinews of the animals hind legs after it is noosed, which causes it to fall to the ground, after which they are easily despatched. After they strip off the hides and take out the tallow, and sometimes the choice part of the meat, the remainder of the carcase is left on the ground to be devoured by the wolves. The hides are then stretched out on the ground, and the tallow moulded into large cakes. As a compensation for their labour, the butchers, or hunters, receive one third of all the tallow they can collect. When the vessel is about leaving the coast, the hides and tallow which has been collected, is conveyed to the beach, where the hides are sold at $1.50 a piece, and the tallow at 4 cents per pound.

The greater part of this cargo is paid for in merchandize at high prices, but which is as valuable here as money itself, and much more useful. A vessel loaded with hides and tallow from this coast is of the greatest value, and has afforded an easy path to wealth for many of the American merchants.

After travelling leisurely along through their country, which still continued thinly inhabited by these people, and passing two small missionary establishments, we arrived at a small town called St. Hose, or St. Joseph, about 10 miles south of Monterey, where we arrived on the 25th of December. This is also a missionary station, and the largest of any we had yet encountered, containing about 900 Indians, principally from the mountains. This station is constructed and managed similar to that of St. Juan, except the church, which is much larger, and built with a greater display of the arts of civilization. Here we remained for two days, employing our time in watching the proceedings of these Indians in their devotional exercises. The manoeuvres of those who have been lately converted to the christian religion (being of the Catholic faith,) is something very singular, as they at one moment manifest the most unbounded transports of joy, and the next throw themselves into the greatest paroxysm of weeping and lamentation. – We then continued our journey and soon arrived at Monterey, which town is build on a beautiful situation on the south side of Monterey Bay – this Bay being formed by Kings river. This is the Capital of Upper, or North Calafornia, and under the government of New Mexico. The town is small containing only about 30 or 40 dwelling houses, one church, one calaboose a part of which is used as a house of justice, or in other words, a court house, where the Governor transacts his public business, and a kind of a fort, built in a commanding situation on the edge of the bay, to be used in the defence of the town in case an attack should be made upon it from the sea, containing several pieces of artillery.

This bay is very deep, affording an excellent harbor for any number of vessels. The town has every natural advantage that a seaport could desire; and if a proper spirit of enterprise prevailed among the inhabitants, it might be made to flourish equal to any other town in the dominions of New Mexico. Vessels sailing along the coast of the Pacific to the north, all stop here to take in supplies, as it is the last white settlement they pass, until they reach the Russian dominions of the North-West; but as the inhabitants raise no grain only what is used for home consumption; the mariner is only enabled to supply his vessel with meat and water. – Besides the advantage the agriculturalist might derive by supplying vessels with provisions, he might be enabled to carry on a large exporting business – as the soil and climate is very calculated to raise large crops of grain. Another prominent advantage the town of St. Joseph would have, is the facility of internal communication with the Indians now inhabiting the prairies and mountains of the interior, or the white race, who, it may reasonably be expected, will have undisputed dominion over this entire region before long.

As it is at present, there are some men here of considerable wealth, the principal part of which they have acquired by trading with vessels different kinds of peltries, such as Spanish hides, tallow, beaver, sea-otter, bear, deer and elk skins, and also horses and mules. There is also a brisk trade carried on in this place with the Sandwich Islands, about nine days sail from this port – and which might be rendered quite lucrative. The most of the vessels, however that put into this bay are on fishing expeditions. The Sperm whale are very numerous in this part of the Pacific ocean – the oil of which affords a profitable reward to all who embark in this dangerous and toilsome business.

On the 29th some of our men arrived in St. Joseph, with a portion of the peltries we had collected whilst crossing the mountains, and which we exchanged with Capt. Baggshaw for merchandise, such as groceries and ammunition to do us whilst on our return to Missouri the next summer. After concluding our trade with Captain Baggshaw, and spending the last day of the expiring year on land, we all resolved by invitation, to celebrate New Years day on board the Lagoda, with the Governor and Capt. Baggshaw. The day was spent quite merrily, and the whole company manifested the best possible humor, each one contributing to keep up the sport by telling some mountain adventure or sea-faring exploit. In the evening we ended the celebration by returning on shore and taking a few rounds with our rifles – which terminated by conclusively convincing the sailors that if they could beat us in telling "long yarns," we were more than a match for them with the rifle.

On the morning of the 2d of January 1834, Capt. Baggshaw insisted on us again visiting his vessel, for the purpose of taking a glass, which we gladly accepted, and after shaking hands all round, and affectionately bidding farewell with our friends on board the vessel, returned to land in company with the Governor, when his Excellency offered our Captain a gratuity of a tract of land seven miles square if he would bring 50 families, composed of different kinds of mechanicks, and settle on it. Capt. Walker was well pleased with the country, and said he had a great mind to accept the Governor's offer, as he had no doubt he could in a few years amass a fortune, and be at the head of a rich and flourishing settlement; but his love for the laws and free institutions of the United States, and his hatred for those of the Spanish Government, deterred him from accepting the Governor's benevolent offer – and we bid farewell to the Governor and his people, well pleased with the reception we had thus far every where met with among the Spaniards.

We now left St. Joseph and returned with our merchandize, consisting principally of groceries, ammunition, amp;c., to our encampment, where we arrived without meeting with any difficulty; finding everything in good order, and all well except one man named Philips, who was laying in a very precarious state from wounds inflicted by a bear. It appeared that Philips had been out hunting deer, and having killed one, took out the insides and hung it upon a tree, and started to the camp to get a horse to bring it home. After travelling a mile or so, whilst ascending a hill, came suddenly upon an old bear and two cubs. – The bear immediately on seeing Philips, as is their custom, reared on her hind feet, and being very close, commenced growling most furiously. This our hero could not brook, and fearing the consequences if he should shoot and wound her lost his presence of mind, and started to run – The bear immediately pursued and caught him. He now found it quite useless to attempt to get loose, and only saved his life by sinking to the ground and affecting to be dead. The bear then left him, but not with- out wounding him to such a degree that it was a long time before he could collect strength enough to raise to his feet. It was late at night when he reached the camp, and was so far gone, from hunger amp; loss of blood, that his life was despaired of at first. One of his arms was broke amp; his body most shockingly cut and mangled.