and explain fully that it was
undoubtedly owing to the influence of Padres, whom he well knew. But
before the end of the year Echeandia and his friends rose in rebellion,
deposed, and exiled Victoria. Owing to the struggles then going on in
Mexico, which culminated in Santa Anna's dictatorship, the revolt of
Echeandia was overlooked and Figueroa appointed governor in his stead.

For a time Figueroa held back the tide of secularization, while Carlos
Carrillo, the Californian delegate to the Mexican Congress, was doing
all he could to keep the Missions and the Pious Fund intact. Figueroa
then issued a series of provisional regulations on gradual emancipation,
hoping to be relieved from further responsibility by the Mexican
government.

This only came in the passage of an Act, August 17, 1833, decreeing full
secularization. The Act also provided for the colonization of both the
Californias, the expenses of this latter move to be borne by the
proceeds gained from the distribution of the Mission property. A shrewd
politician named Hijars was to be made governor of Upper California for
the purpose of carrying this law into effect.

But now Figueroa seemed to regret his first action. Perhaps it was
jealousy that Hijars should have been appointed to his stead. He
bitterly opposed Hijars, refused to give up the governorship, and after
considerable "pulling and hauling," issued secularization orders of his
own, greatly at variance with those promulgated by the Mexican Cortes,
and proceeded to set them in operation.

Ten Missions were fully secularized in 1834, and six others in the
following year. And now came the general scramble for Mission property.
Each succeeding governor, freed from too close supervision by the
general government in Mexico, which was passing through trials and
tribulations of its own, helped himself to as much as he could get.
Alvarado, from 1836 to 1842, plundered on every hand, and Pio Pico was
not much better. When he became governor, there were few funds with
which to carry on the affairs of the country, and he prevailed upon the
assembly to pass a decree authorizing the renting or the sale of the
Mission property, reserving only the church, a curate's house, and a
building for a court-house. From the proceeds the expenses of conducting
the services of the church were to be provided, but there was no
disposition made as to what should be done to secure the funds for that
purpose. Under this decree t