14 HISTORY OF CALIFORNIA. 



Santa Cruz, and possession of it was taken in the 

 name of the Spanish sovereign. 



The country claimed by Cortes for Spain, was the 

 south-east portion of the peninsula, which was after 

 wards called California. The bay, called by Cortes, 

 Santa Cruz, was, perhaps, the same now known as 

 Port La Paz, about a hundred miles from the Pacific, 

 near the 24th parallel of latitude. Cortes landed on 

 the shore of this bay, rocky and forbidding as it ap 

 peared, with a hundred and thirty men, and forty 

 horses. He then sent back two of his ships to Chia- 

 metla, to bring over the rest of his troops. The ves 

 sels soon returned with a portion of the troops, and 

 being again despatched to the Mexican coast, only 

 one of them returned. The other was wrecked on her 

 way. Cortes then took seventy men and embarked 

 for Xalisco, from which he returned just in time to 

 save his troops from death by famine. A year was 

 spent in these operations, and the troops began to 

 grow discontented. A few pearls had been found on 

 the coast, but the country was found to be barren, 

 and without attractions for Spaniards. 



In the mean time, the wife of Cortes hearing reports 

 of his ill success, sent a vessel to Santa Cruz, and en 

 treated him to return. He then learned that he had 

 been superseded in the government of New Spain by 

 Don Antonio de Mendoza, who had already entered the 

 capital as viceroy. Cortes returned to Mexico, and 

 soon after, recalled the vessels and troops from Santa 

 Cruz. 



The viceroy, Mendoza, had received some informa 

 tion concerning the country north-west of Mexico, 

 from de Cabeza-Vaca and two other Spaniards, who 

 had wandered nine years, through forests and deserts, 



