176 CALIFORNIA. 



they espoused his cause. Alvarado fled to the country, and raised 

 the standard of revolt in the pueblo of San Juan, some leagues from 

 Monterey. The people of California being naturally lazy, ignorant, 

 and indifferent, required some strong stimulus to arouse them ; but 

 this was effected, and in consequence of the dissoluteness of the 

 priesthood, and the loss of clerical influence with the lower orders, 

 which ten years of their bad management of the missions had 

 brought about, they were quite unable to restrain the people. It has 

 even been alleged that they favoured the design, in order to have a 

 change, and avoid the heavy exactions that had been made upon 

 them of late by the governor. Be this so or not, there was either no 

 exertion made by the clergy in favour of the government, or their 

 power was too insignificant to be effective. 



The people were easily persuaded that a shameful misappropriation 

 of public funds had taken place, and that the robbery of the missions 

 was still going on. The discovery that Chico, who, as has been 

 stated, was forced to resign in favour of the then governor, had de- 

 frauded the troops of their pay, and the missions of twenty thousand 

 dollars, satisfied every one that such embezzlement was going on, 

 and furnished a powerful incentive to many to join the standard of 

 Alvarado. He was now acting under the advice and by the direc- 

 tions of the foreigners, who declared their intentions to be — 1st. To 

 hoist a new flag, and declare California independent of Mexico. 2d. 

 To banish all Mexicans. 3d. That California should be declared an 

 independent state ; and 4th. That all foreigners then under arms, or 

 who took part in the revolution, should be declared citizens. These 

 declarations, although they had the desired effect, were evidently 

 made rather to satisfy the foreigners than to please the natives, and 

 are supposed to have emanated from the administrador Ramierez, 

 and Penne. These men, the most able of the Californians, were 

 desirous to make use of the foreigners to gain their own ends, in 

 which they so far succeeded, that although the foreigners were, in 

 regard to fighting, the prominent actors in the revolution, the result 

 proved that they were but tools employed to gain the ulterior ends of 

 these two designing persons. 



Alvarado was now directed to move forward towards Monterey, 

 which from all accounts he was of himself unwilling to do ; but the 

 directors of his movements impelled him forward. Who these were, 

 is not well known ; but the presumption is, that various citizens of the 

 United States, as well as of England, advised and gave him promises 



