travels in the californias. 229 
to him, hut likewise makes excursions in search of new ob¬ 
jects on which to expend his labors. 
He finds all his people docile, kind, vivacious, and active. 
Their district is well adapted to agriculture. Padre Sistiaga 
had some time before sown maize on some of it, which yield¬ 
ed well ; and Padre Helen had introduced the culture of gar¬ 
den vegetables; for all of which the Indians have acquired a 
relish. So that Padre Luyando has little difficulty in leading 
them into agricultural pursuits. He plants with his own 
hands five hundred vines, besides olive and fig trees, sugar 
canes, and many other exotic plants. He induces the Indians 
to sow considerable quantities of wheat and maize annually; 
so that on the fourth year of his residence among them, the 
whole harvest amounts to a thousand bushels of wheat, and a 
fine quantity of maize and fruits. He also persuades them to 
form themselves into villages, and to erect adobie and bough- 
houses. He introduces cattle, and makes every effort to cre¬ 
ate among them the desires of civilized life. And there is no 
doubt in the Padre’s mind, that the adaptation of their country 
to the pursuits of husbandry, will greatly facilitate his wishes 
for their spiritual improvement. But in the meantime all is 
not as fair as it seems. The old jugglers and priests of their 
former religion, so lately held in great respect, see their power 
and wealth fading under the new order of things, and them¬ 
selves becoming objects of contempt to the younger members 
of the tribe. It is not in the nature of civilized or uncivilized 
man, to bear such a change with indifference ; and these men 
resolve to use what influence they have left, to recover their 
rank. Accordingly they instigate some unconverted Indians 
to oppose the Padre’s labors by every available means. On 
a dark night, therefore, eight of them fall upon a catechumen, 
near the Padre’s cottage, and murder him. After this outrage, 
they persuade a whole rancheria, at some distance from the 
mission, to refuse all intercourse with the Padre. In this 
neighborhood, for two years, bands of malcontents shelter 
themselves, and dissuade the people from yielding to any ad- 
