* SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA. 483 
can paper for more than six months; and the latest 
intelligence I had had was of the date of May, 1851, 
or eight months previous. 
January 7th. The north-west wind continuing, 
we made rapid headway under a close-reefed mainsail — 
and foresail. Our little craft, which had seen rough 
weather in the harbor of New-York, scudded beauti- 
fully before the fresh breeze, half the time covered 
with water. The shores of the gulf were occasionally 
seen in the dim distance, rising abruptly from the sea, 
barren and desolate. In some places sandy beaches 
and desert plains intervened between the sea and the 
mountains. Saw the islands of Carmen and Catalina 
on our right. Behind the former lies the town of Lo- 
reto, the principal place on the Californian peninsula. 
As little has ever been written about this part of the 
world, I append a brief account of this town and its 
adjacent country, which will convey a correct idea of 
the peninsula.* 
‘‘Loreto stands in a valley of about two or three 
thousand feet wide, surrounded by wild and sterile 
mountains, of which that called ‘‘ La Giganta” is the 
highest and least picturesque. There are two gardens 
in the place, in which the vine, peach, fig, quince, and 
date are cultivated. A considerable quantity of wine 
is annually made. Peaches and pears are dried as well 
as figs: the dates are preserved. 
‘The situation of Loreto being i in a valley of very 
limited extent, in which there is only space for the 
town and two gardens, and there being no possibility 
_* Hardy’s Travels in Mexico. London, 1829, p. 244. 
