but these have entirely
disappeared.

It was the habit of Padre Zalvidea to send certain of his most trusted
neophytes over to the islands of San Clemente and Catalina with a "bolt"
or two of woven serge, made at the Mission San Gabriel, to exchange with
the island Indians for their soapstone cooking vessels,--mortars, etc.
These traders embarked from a point where Redondo now is, and started
always at midnight.

In 1819 the Indians of the Guachama rancho, called San Bernardino,
petitioned for the introduction of agriculture and stock raising, and
this was practically the beginning of that _asistencia_, as will be
recorded in the chapter on the various chapels. A chapel was also much
needed at Puente, where Zalvidea had six hundred Indians at work
in 1816.

In 1822 San Gabriel was fearfully alarmed at the rumor that one hundred
and fifty Indians were bearing down upon that Mission from the Colorado
River region. It transpired that it was an Opata with despatches, and
that the company had no hostile intent. But Captain Portilla met them
and sent them back, not a little disconcerted by their inhospitable
reception.

Of the wild, political chaos that occurred in California after Mexico
became independent of Spain, San Gabriel felt occasional waves. When the
people of San Diego and the southern part of the State rebelled against
Governor Victoria, and the latter confident chief came to arrange
matters, a battle took place near Los Angeles, in which he was severely
wounded. His friends bore him to San Gabriel, and, though he had
entirely defeated his foes, so cleverly did some one work upon his fears
that he made a formal surrender, December 6, 1831. On the ninth the
leader of the rebels, the former Governor Echeandia, had a conference
with him at San Gabriel, where he pledged himself to return to Mexico
without giving further trouble; and on the twentieth he left, stopping
for awhile at San Luis Rey with Padre Peyri. It was at this time the
venerable and worthy Peyri decided to leave California, and he therefore
accompanied the deposed governor to San Diego, from which port they
sailed January 17, 1832.

After secularization San Gabriel was one of the Missions that
slaughtered a large number of her cattle for the hides and tallow. Pio
Pico states that he had the contract at San Gabriel, employing ten
vaqueros and thirty Indians, and that he thus killed over five thousand
head. Robinson says that the rascally contrac