ded, as we have seen, by Serra himself, September I, 1772, by the
end of 1773 the Mission of San Luis Obispo could report only twelve
converts. Serra left the day after the founding, leaving Padre Cavalier
in charge, with two Indians from Lower California, four soldiers and
their corporal. Their only provisions were a few hundred pounds of flour
and wheat, and a barrel of brown sugar. But the Indians were kind, in
remembrance of Fages's goodness in shooting the bears, and brought them
venison and seeds frequently, so they "managed to subsist" until
provisions came.

Padre Cavalier built a neat chapel of logs and apartments for the
missionaries, and the soldiers soon erected their own barracks. While
the Indians were friendly, they did not seem to be particularly
attracted to the Mission, as they had more and better food than the
padre, and the only thing he had that they particularly desired was
cloth. There was no rancheria in the vicinity, but they were much
interested in the growth of the corn and beans sown by the padre, and
which, being on good and well-watered land, yielded abundantly.

[Illustration: MISSION SAN GABRIEL ARCANGEL.]

[Illustration: SAN LUIS OBISPO BEFORE RESTORATION.]

[Illustration: RUINED MISSION OF SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO. Showing campanile
and protected arched corridors.]

[Illustration: THE RESTORED MISSION OF SAN LUIS OBISPO.]

In 1776 certain gentiles, who were hostile to some Indians that were
sheltered by the padres, attacked the Mission by discharging burning
arrows upon the tule roof of the buildings, and everything was
destroyed, save the church and the granary. Rivera came at once,
captured two of the ringleaders, and sent them for punishment to the
Monterey presidio. The success of the gentiles led them to repeat their
attacks by setting fire to the Mission twice during the next ten years,
and it was these calamities that led one of the San Luis padres to
attempt the making of roof tiles. Being successful, it was not long
before all the Missions were so roofed.

In 1794 certain of the neophytes of San Luis and La Purisima conspired
with some gentiles to incite the Indians at San Luis to revolt, but the
arrest and deportation of fifteen or twenty of the ringleaders to
Monterey, to hard labor at the presidio, put a stop to the revolt.

Padres Lasuen and Tapis both served here as missionaries, and in 1798
Luis Antonio Martinez, one of the best known of the padres, began his
long ter