8 HISTORY OF CALIFORNIA. 



Lucas. Tho* other, sixty miles east by north of San 

 Lucas, is called Cape Palmo. The peninsula is about 

 seven hundred miles long. 



Upper California extends, upon the Pacific, from 

 the 32d parallel of latitude, northward to the 42d 

 parallel, a distance of about seven hundred miles. It 

 is separated from Oregon by a range of highlands, 

 called the Snowy Mountains, or, by the Spaniards, 

 the Sierra Nevada. The eastern limit of Upper Cali- 

 fornia is rather uncertain. By some it is considered 

 as including the region watered by the Colorado River, 

 while others limit it by the great mountain range that 

 extends along the western side of the continent. 



The Californian peninsula seems to be a prolonga- 

 tion of the great western chain of mountains. It 

 consists entirely of high, stony ridges, separated by 

 sandy valleys, and contains very few tracts of level 

 ground. In a general view, it might be termed an 

 irreclaimable desert. The scarcity of rain and the 

 small number of springs of water, with the intense 

 heat of the sun's rays, uninterrupted in their passage, 

 render the surface of the country almost destitute of 

 vegetation. Yet in the small oases formed hj the 

 passage of a rivulet through a sandy defile, where 

 iiTigation is possible, the ground may be made to pro- 

 duce all the fruits of tropical climes, of the finest 

 quality, and in great quantity. The southern portion 

 of the peninsula contains several gold mines, which 

 have been worked, though not to any great extent. 

 On the Pacific side, the coast ofiers many excellent 

 harbors, but the lack of fresh water near them proves 

 an obstacle in the way of their occupation. The 

 principal harbors are the Bay of la Magdalena, 

 separated from the ocean by the long island of Santa 



