AROUND SANTA ROSA 28S 



sions from San Diego to San Carlos, and later those 

 in Sonora and Texas and the Territories, stands as a 

 magnificent illustration of human endeavor impelled 

 by the Christian idea of upliftment. Eliminate the 

 object, — the saving of souls, — and the mere physical 

 act of penetrating through and over this arid region 

 with insufficient equipment, depending on the country, 

 marks the work of the early Spaniards and Mission 

 Fathers as among the heroic achievements of mankind. 



Strange happenings have taken place at all these 

 islands. Wild invaders have vented their strength 

 here; islands have been fought for. I have found the 

 skeletons of dozens of men piled, one upon another, 

 at San Clemente and San Nicolas where men have 

 battled to a finish. Men and women have fled to 

 these realms of seeming peace to escape the world; 

 romance and tragedy have been bom in every caiion. 

 At Santa Catalina, on the west end, many years ago 

 a man built a home, furnished it, even prepared a 

 meal, and waited for the bride that never came. It is 

 said that he stepped out of the house, leaving the 

 table set and everything as it stood, and never returned. 

 The house still remains. 



Early in the sixties Santa Catalina was invested with 

 a mining boom. The land was divided up, claimed, 

 and tunnels built here and there along the shore and 

 all over it. Silver ore was found in Silver Caiion. 

 San Nicolas, the wind-swept, was laid out in lots in 

 1886. Desperate attempts have been made to wrest 

 San Clemente from the Government and give it over 

 to settlers; but men would not settle here on any 

 terms, except to fish and enjoy the varied sports. 

 And so, if one could collect the histories of all these 



