CHAPTER XVIII. EARLY CALIFORNIA LITERATURE. The advancing man discovers how deep a property he has in literature, in all fable as well as in all history. -Emerson. THE remarkable strides made by California in material advancement are not unattended by a corresponding intellectual development, though the latter has in it more of the practical than of the aesthetic. While yet too young to boast of a literature wholly her own, she has achieved prominence in the field of letters by the number and variety as well as quality of books emanating from her midst. Just what proportion of these writings properly belong here is a question, for our leading authors were none of them born, or to any great extent educated, on the Pacific coast; nevertheless, there are present the conditions of development which have contributed essentially, if not wholly, in producing certain results. Environment moulds the mind for opportunity'; both of these all-important factors were here provided. The one acted imperceptibly, the other by waiting. Elsewhere scenery exists equally inspiring; indeed, it is not wisdom to dwell too much on the influence of snow-crowned sierras, Yosemite pictures, stately forests with towering sequoias, puffing geysers, and a land overflowing with industry and wealth. Temperate air, with pleasant and healthy surroundings, is more conducive to every kind of culture than the niasmatic tropics or hyperborean rigors. Our climate is that of Italy freed from its impurities, and reënforced with a bracing, quickening current, which pro ( 591 ) motes energy of body and mind. There is, as a rule, no depressing cold, no enervating heat to retard the machinery of life; on the other hand, there is everything to foster activity, as evidenced in the bustle that surrounds us. There is exhilaration in the air, and in the unfolding of countless resources in every direction, following quickly upon one another since the all-compelling discovery of gold. The excitement of constant disclosures, of ever-changing phases of fortune, has imparted a buoyancy, partaking frequently of feverishness, that might be regarded with apprehension but for the sustaining qualities of the soil and air. While these features influence literary life, it cannot be said that they are particularly creative, for no indigenous civilization sprang here into being, or found even a halting-place in this latitude. The superficial, vivacious Mexican brought no mental elements to be developed, but inclined rather toward sports, local turmoil, and patriarchal simplicity. Intellectual devolopment came from the east, brought by adventurous, enterprising men with liberal ideas. Every element for the formation of a most progressive commonwealth was thus all at once introduced. The traits of a dozen nationalities served to modify and improve the predominating American mind. They were full-fledged pioneers, and as such their efforts, physical or mental, might be claimed for their respective natal states; but without the stimulus here imparted their energies would have taken a very different direction, or, indeed, have lain dormant. These adventures, and the attendant opportunity, proved the cradle for productions stamped by those same agencies as distinctly Californian. Consider well the inspiring effect upon the mind of the physical surroundings, earth, air, and sky, after a tedious trip across the plains, or a long, monotonous Voyage by sea; and above all, of the new social conditions, of peculiar life, strange happenings, and exciting pursuits, restless activity, and great achievements UNDER MEXICAN RULE. 593 in developing character, and producing physical and mental exuberance. Letters poured eastward to friends and journals, revealing in their graphic narration the development of the new era. Local periodicals displayed their side of the picture, and occasionally enthusiasts tore themselves away from all-absorbing business and enervating excesses to elaborate their impressions in books, for which the universal interest in the country Provided a popular reception. Nor were these productions few when compared with those of other states. Indeed, more volumes were written in California within the quarter century following 1849 than in all the other states and territories west of the Mississippi. They number nearly two hundred, some of which sought a wider publishing field in eastern centres. These progressional phenomena are in striking contrast to the condition of mind in colonial times. During the period of Mexican rule, from 1769 to 1846, not a single literary effort appears worthy of note, and what was written consists almost wholly of letters and reports by officials, friars, and a few leading residents, which have swollen in course of time to a vcluminous mass, as indicated by a series of shelves in my library. They relate to the growth of the colony, to local disturbances, and even to petty revolutions; while rare foreign visits evoked a flood of details proportionate to the fears, jealousies, and excitement created. They are pervaded by the tone of bustling officiousness, from men intent on asserting their importance, and their pomposity becomes amusing when compared with the insignificant jurisdiction and interests concerned. The friars treat of the economic and spiritual administration of their charge, varied by disputes with the military commanders. Their communications breathe the self-sacrificing spirit of superstitious men who have voluntarily exiled themselves for the fancied cause of duty and humanity. The style compares favorably with similar emanations in Mexico; but on the whole it has less of that floridity and inflation which, however undesirable, indicates a bent for writing. It would seem as if the migration from the pleasant slopes and highlands of Anáhuac to the wild border had depressed any aspiration of the fancy to the level of the immediate surroundings. The lack of educational facilities operated against a development of taste on the part of the rising generation; yet the nature of the language, and the punctilious character of the people, compensated for a disadvantage that among our race would have left a more glaring deficiency; for the lower classes of Hispano-Americans display a remarkable correctness and fluency of expression. The general punctiliousness has led to that formal and forensic phraseology so characteristic of Mexican epistolary and narrative productions, and so conducive to loose and involved construction, which serves as additional hindrance to beauty and interest. Nevertheless, the natural sprightliness will find an outlet, even amid the exaggerated account of dangers and isolation on the distant frontier, prompted by the forlorn condition or longings of the exile. Several of the above writings have seen the light in government documents, journals, and collections, but only a few within the covers of a special book. The earliest production of this kind, prepared within the territory and by a resident, is the Relacion Historica de la Vida of Junípero Serra, founder of the missions, by his companion and successor, Francisco Palou, printed at Mexico in 1787. Although a biography of the pious labors of an examplary friar, it aims to give the history of California to 1783; and to this end the rhapsodies and prolix dissertations so common in such works are almost entirely dispensed with. While disposed to affirm the merits of his hero and his order, Palou displays much good sense in the treatment of the subject, without rising to any marked UNDER MEXICAN RULE. 595 excellency in his rather prosaic narrative. The same ground is covered with greater completeness, although less elaboration, in his Noticias, the sources for the former work, the publication of which made that of the other less needful at the time. The country did not possess a press until 1833; and of its productions, less than three score in all, seven attained to the respectability of book form. There were the Reglamento Provicional, 1834, 16 pages, rules for the legislature: Manifiesto, by Governor Figueroa, 1835, 183 pages; Catecismo de Ortologia, by J. M. Romero, 1836, 16 pages; Ecspocision, by Comandante-general Vallejo, 1837, 21 pages, suggestions concerning trade and custom-house; Botica general de los Remedios, 1838, 16 pages, reprint of a Cádiz medicinal pamphlet ; California, Comandancia General, Comunicaciones del General M. G. Vallejo, 1837-9, 21 pp., a collection of decrees. The last is a small 4to, the others vary from 12mo to 32mo. The imprint of the first three books is Monterey, the following are dated at Sonoma. Later the press was restored to Monterey, as indicated by the Catecismo de la doctrina, by Ripalda, 1842, 12mo, 8 pages. In most cases the other printing was poor and devoid of taste, the type being worn and the press warped. The only volume of any pretension is the Manifiesto of Governor José Figueroa in defence of his administration from 1832 to 1835, particularly in regard to his attitude toward the colonization project of Hijar and Padres; yet it does not rise above the usual style of such political documents among Mexicans. Besides the Catecismo of Ripalda reprinted here, the friars circulated a number of catechisms and sermons in manuscripts, which they had translated into different native dialects. In this connection were produced several vocabularies and grammars, two of which, by padres Arroyo de la Cuesta and Sitjar, form part of Shea's collection.' Zalvadea left several translations, and President |