344 FREMONT SONOMA CALIFORNIAN EXPEDITION. 



not be perfected until the governor of California sanctioned his 

 permanent tenure of the land. 



In November, 1845, Lieutenant Gillespie was despatched from 

 Washington with verbal instructions to Captain Fremont who had 

 been pursuing his scientific examinations of California, and had 

 been inhospitably ordered by the authorities to quit the country. 

 Early in March of 1846, the bold explorer was within the bounda- 

 ries of Oregon, where he was found, in the following May, by Gil- 

 lespie, who delivered him his verbal orders and a letter of credence 

 from the Secretary of State. 



In consequence of this message, Fremont abandoned his camp 

 in the forest, surrounded by hostile Indians, and moved south to 

 the valley of the Sacramento, where he was at once hailed by the 

 American settlers, who, together with the foreigners generally, had 

 received orders from the Mexican General Castro, to leave Califor- 

 nia. Fremont's small band immediately formed the nucleus of a 

 revolutionary troop, which gathered in numbers as it advanced 

 south, and abstaining guardedly from acts which might disgust the 

 people, they injured no individuals and violated no private pro- 

 perty. On the 14th of June, Sonoma was taken possession of, and 

 was garrisoned by a small force, under Mr. Ide, who issued a pro- 

 clamation, inviting all to come to his camp and aid in forming a 

 republican government. Coure and Fowler, two young Ameri- 

 cans, were murdered about this period in the neighborhood, and 

 others were taken prisoners under Padilla. But the belligerants 

 were pursued to San Raphael by Captain Ford, where they were 

 conquered by the Americans ; and, on the 25th of June, Fre- 

 mont, who heard that Castro was approaching with two hun- 

 dred men, joined the camp at Sonoma. Thus far, every thing had 

 been conducted with justice and liberality by our men. They stu- 

 diously avoided disorderly conduct or captures, and invariably 

 promised payment for the supplies that were taken for the support 

 of the troopers. The Californians were in reality gratified by the 

 prospect of American success in their territory, for they believed 

 that it would secure a stable and progressive government, under 

 which, that beautiful region would be gradually developed. 



On the 5th of July, the Californian Americans declared their 

 independence, and organizing a battalion, of which Fremont was 

 the chief, they raised the standard of the Bear and Star. 



Fremont, at the head of his new battalion, moved his camp to 

 Sutter's Fort on the Sacramento, and whilst he was preparing, in 

 July, to follow General Castro to Santa Clara, he received the joy- 



