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EARLY SCIENTIFIC EXPEDITIONS TO CALI- 

 FORNIA.— II. 



By Willis L. Jepson. 



It was but a few years following the departure of the vessels of 

 the ill-fated La Ferouse Company from Alta California, that the 

 ships of a second scientific expedition, commonly known as the 

 Malaspina Expedition, in the course of a voyage about the world 

 skirted the shores of western North America, and in September of 

 the year 1791 cast anchor in the Bay of Monterey. These ships 

 carried the royal banner of Spain ; they had been fitted out at the 

 king's command and were intended not only for discovery, but 

 designed, indeed, for a scientific survey of the lands of the king- 

 dom in the more remote quarters of the globe, that exploitation of 

 the natural resources might be conducted with greater advantage 

 to the mother country. The King of Spain at this time was 

 Carlos IV, but the Malaspina Expedition, as planned and executed, 

 was really the conception of the preceding reign. Carlos III, who 

 had died in 1788, is generally conceded to have been the most 

 liberal monarch that succeeded to the crown of Castile in the last 

 century ; in any event, his reign was in striking contrast to that of 

 many modern Spanish rulers. He encouraged the useful and devel- 

 oped the fine arts, and was especially interested in the colonial posses- 

 sions, in the development of commerce and trade with them, and in 

 the acquisition of knowledge concerning their natural resources. 



It was still a dream of Spanish geographers that exploration 

 might demonstrate the existence of an inter-oceanic strait in 

 northern America, and the discovery of this strait was also one of 

 the objects of the expedition. So it was that Alejandro Malaspina, 

 a capable navigator, in command of two vessels, sailed from Cadiz 

 in July, 1789. The vessels were the corvettes Descubierta and 

 Atrevida, the latter being under Jose de Bustamente y Guerra, 

 second in rank. The scientific corps included apparently about 

 half a dozen men. 



The expedition touched the east coast of South America, and 

 lingered a considerable period on the west coast, before proceeding 

 on its mission of locating a northwest passage near Nootka. On 

 the northward journey the ships stopped at Panama, Guatemala* 



