50 VOYAGE TO THE 



hospitality and good humour endeavoured to exceed 

 even the good father of Santa Clara. This worthy 

 man was a native of Old Castile, and had resided in 

 California since 1804, dividing his time between the 

 duties of his holy avocation and various ingenious 

 inventions. Supper was served in very acceptable 

 time to the fatigued visiters, and the good-natured 

 padre used every persuasion to induce them to do 

 justice to his fare ; treating them to several appro- 

 priate proverbs, such as " Un dia alegre vale cien anos 

 de pesadumbre," (one day of mirth is worth a hundred 

 years of grief,) and many more to the same purpose. 

 Though so many summers had passed over his head 

 in exile, his cheerfulness seemed in no way diminished, 

 and he entertained his guests with a variety of anec- 

 dotes of the Indians and of their encounters with the 

 bears too long to be repeated here. Nor was his 

 patriotism more diminished than his cheerfulness, and 

 on learning that one of the party had been at the 

 siege of Cadiz, his enthusiasm broke forth in the 

 celebrated Spanish patriotic song of "Espana de la 

 guerra, &c." Having served them with what he 

 termed the viatlco, consisting of a plentiful supply 

 of cold fricole beans, bread, and eggs, he led the party 

 to their sleeping apartment amidst promises of horses 

 for the morrow, and patriotic songs of his country 

 adapted to the well-known air of Malbrook. Inter- 

 rupting the good man's enthusiasm, they endeavoured 

 to persuade the priest to allow them to proceed early 

 in the morning, before the commencement of mass ; 

 this, however, was impossible, and he shut them into 

 their apartment, repeating the proverb, " Oir misa y 

 dar cebada no impede Jornada," (to hear mass and 

 bestow alms will not retard your journey). 



