ELDORADO 215 



military despotism and threatened with extermination 

 if we did not depart out of the country, leaving all our 

 property, arms, and beasts of burden, thereby deprived 

 of means of flight or defense, to be driven through 

 deserts inhabited by hostile Indians to certain destruc- 

 tion * * * I also solemnly declare my object to be 

 to invite all peaceful and good citizens of California 

 who are friendly to the maintenance of good order and 

 equal rights, and I do hereby invite them to repair to 

 my camp at Sonoma without delay to assist in estab- 

 lishing and perpetuating a republican government 

 which shall secure to all civil and religious liberty," 

 (under Mexican rule the exercise of no religion was 

 permitted except the Roman Catholic), "which shall 

 encourage virtue and literature, and shall leave un- 

 shackled by fetters, agriculture, commerce and manu- 

 factures. I further declare that I rely upon the rec- 

 titude of our intentions, the favor of Heaven, and the 

 bravery of those who are bound and associated with 

 me by the principles of self-preservation, by the love 

 of truth and the hatred of tyranny, for my hopes of 

 success. I furthermore declare that I believe that a 

 government to be prosperous and happy, must origi- 

 nate with the people who are friendly to its existence ; 

 that the citizens are its guardians, the officers its ser- 

 vants, its glory its reward." This proclamation was 

 dated and signed, June 18, 1846, William B. Ide. 



A flag was improvised by painting in a rude form 

 the figure of a grizzly bear on a piece of white cotton 

 cloth. It followed Ide's proclamation and was the first 

 flag after California was declared independent of Mex- 



