H I S T E T 



OF 



OREGON AND CALIFORNIA, 



ETC. 



CHAPTER I. 

 To 1543. 



Preliminary Observations — Efforts of the Spaniards to discover Western Passages 

 to India — Successive Discoveries of the West Indies, the North American 

 Continent, the Eastern Passage to India, Brazil, and the Pacific Ocean — Search 

 for a navigable Passage connecting the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans — Sup- 

 posed Discovery of such a Passage, called the Strait of Anian — Discovery of 

 Magellan's Strait and the Western Passage to India — Conquest of Mexico by 

 Cortes, who endeavors to discover new Countries farther north-west — Voyages 

 of Maldonado, Hurtado de Mendoza, Grijalva, and Becerra — Discovery of Cali- 

 fornia — Expedition of Cortes to California — Pretended Discoveries of Friar 

 Marcos de Niza — Voyages of Ulloa, Alarcon, and Cabrillo — Expeditions of 

 Coronado and Soto — The Spaniards desist from their Efforts to explore the North- 

 West Coasts of America. 



The western coasts of North America were first explored by the 

 Spaniards, in the sixteenth century. In order to convey a clear idea 

 of the circumstances which led to their discovery, as well as of the 

 claims and pretensions based upon it, a general view will be here 

 presented of the proceedings and objects of Europeans with regard to 

 the New World, from the period when its existence was ascertained, 

 to that in which the exploration of its north-west coasts was begun. 



The islands found by Columbus, in his voyage across the Atlantic 

 in 1492, were supposed to be situated in the immediate vicinity of 

 Asia, the eastern limits of which were then unknown ; and their dis- 

 covery was the result of endeavors to reach, by a western course, the 

 shores of India, from which Europe chiefly derived its gold, silks, pre- 

 cious stones, and spices, and those of China and Japan, of the wealth 

 of which empires vague accounts had been brought by travellers. 



With the same objects in view, the Portuguese had been long 

 engaged in exploring the Atlantic coast of Africa southward and 

 eastward, in search of some channel or sea, by which their ships 



