The Spanish in the Southwest . ed when, one day in 1826, there /came from the east to San Gabriel mission a party ofAmericans. The story of their appearance was really very S. Smith was the leader of about fifteen trapperswith whom he was hunting in the RockyMountains. He had come from his head-quarters at Salt Lake, and had struck theold Santa Fe trail at a time when he wasnearly dying of thirst and hunger in thedeserts. As he was nearer San Gabrielthan Salt Lake, he made his waythither, guided by an Indian. He wasnot very well received. This was a newkind of an American. He d
The Spanish in the Southwest . ed when, one day in 1826, there /came from the east to San Gabriel mission a party ofAmericans. The story of their appearance was really very S. Smith was the leader of about fifteen trapperswith whom he was hunting in the RockyMountains. He had come from his head-quarters at Salt Lake, and had struck theold Santa Fe trail at a time when he wasnearly dying of thirst and hunger in thedeserts. As he was nearer San Gabrielthan Salt Lake, he made his waythither, guided by an Indian. He wasnot very well received. This was a newkind of an American. He did not intendstaying in California, he had not come totrade, and he was accompanied by a bandof savage-looking, well-armed men. Alto-gether the party was so unwelcome to theMexican officials that the governor ordered Smith to hurry on out of the province. An American trapperThis was not so easy as it seemed to the Californians. It was more than a year before Smith could get together the supplies needed to continue his trapping. 198 Spanish California expedition. Long before that time had passed, the patienceof the Californians was exhausted and their fears awak-ened. At last they would not wait for Smith to completehis arrangements, but forced him out of the country alone,leaving behind his faithful companions. The leader wasprobably killed by the Indians, for he was not heard ofafterwards, and in his unprotected state he would havefallen an easy prey to the savages. Such treatment of Smith and similar usage that wasgiven other parties of Americans who came overland intoCalifornia could not keep out the pioneers. Smith, thefirst in that great army, has been called the Pathfinder ofthe Sierras. Other hunters and trappers like him con-tinued to open the way. They were followed by tradersthrough New Mexico over the old Santa Fe trail. Later,came families in the great covered wagons, or prairieschooners as they were called, in ever increasing numbers,until there was reason for the
Size: 1125px × 2221px
Photo credit: © The Reading Room / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, bookidspanishinsou, bookyear1903
