A LAND OF DROUGHT AND DESERT 



445 



of the missions are represented by frag- 

 ments of ruined walls and choked irri- 

 gating ditches. 



The records of the dangers and obsta- 

 cles met and overcome by such men as 

 Padres Salvatierra, Kino, and Ugarte in 

 their peaceable conquest of the peninsula 

 excite one's deepest admiration. The 

 work they accomplished and their re- 

 sourcefulness and steadfast courage en- 

 title them to a place in the front ranks 

 of those stout-hearted pioneer explorers 

 who first made known the wildest parts 

 of America. 



THE HIDING-PLACE OF FREEBOOTERS 



During one period in its history the 

 southern shores of the peninsula served 

 as the lurking place of Sir Francis Drake 

 and other freebooters lying in wait for 

 the treasure-laden Spanish galleons on 

 their annual voyages from Manila to 

 Mexico. 



Afterwards, during the first two- 

 thirds of the last century, those shores 

 were visited by numerous half-pirate 

 smugglers and by fleets of whalers and 

 sealers, drawn there by the swarming 

 abundance of whales, fur seal, sea ele- 

 phants, and sea otter. So ruthless was 

 the pursuit of these animals that in a 

 few decades they were on the verge of 

 extermination, and the business ended, 

 apparently forever. 



The pearl fisheries of the Gulf coast 

 were extremely productive at first and 

 furnished the Spanish court with some 

 of its richest jewels. Pearl-fishing still 

 survives as a profitable industry, and is 

 in the hands of two or three concession- 

 aires with headquarters at La Paz (see 

 also page 457). 



THE UNITED STATES HAVE TWICE HELD 

 POSSESSION OF LOWER CALIFORNIA 



It may be unknown to many that the 

 United States or its citizens have twice 

 had complete possession of Lower Cali- 

 fornia. During the Mexican War, in 

 1847, tne forces of the United States 

 occupied the principal points in the penin- 

 sula and declared it American territory, 

 but relinquished it at the close of hostili- 



ties. In i853- , 54 it was again captured 

 and a government temporarily organized 

 by bands of American filibusters under 

 Walker. This ill-advised venture lacked 

 support and quickly came to a disastrous 

 end. 



During the last half century all parts 

 of the peninsula have been visited, 

 mainly by Americans, in search of mines 

 and other natural resources, but little of 

 the knowledge thus gained has become 

 available to the public. Gold, silver, 

 copper, iron, and other minerals and 

 much fertile land have been found, but 

 the scarcity of water, fuel, forage, and 

 the difficulties of transportation have 

 united with other causes to bring about 

 many failures in the attempts to develop 

 these resources. 



A few silver mines, notably at Triunfo, 

 in the south, and Las Flores, on the 

 Gulf coast, have been worked profitably. 

 Onyx is mined and shipped to Califor- 

 nia, and enormous salt deposits exist on 

 the shores of the Santa Clara Desert and 

 on Carmen Island ( see also page 465 ) . 



The most extensive and successful 

 mining enterprise the peninsula has 

 known is that of El Boleo Company, at 

 Santa Rosalia, on the Gulf coast, where 

 a French company has one of the largest 

 producing copper mines in the world, 

 which supports a town of about 8,000 

 people. Considerable prospecting for 

 mines is still being done, mostly by 

 Americans, and efforts are being made 

 to develop mines at various points, al- 

 ways in the face of many serious obsta- 

 cles. 



Americans have made a number of 

 attempts to establish agricultural enter- 

 prises and colonies ; but, with the excep- 

 tion of the recent development of agri- 

 cultural lands by use of water from the 

 Colorado River, immediately south of 

 the border, opposite the Imperial Valley, 

 California, these efforts have been al- 

 most uniformly unsuccessful. 



TWO TFIOUSAND MILES ON HORSEBACK IN 

 THE DESERT 



In connection with our work, a pre- 

 liminary boat expedition was made by 



