tirred up over the granting of the ranches, which
they claimed were their own lands. Indeed they formed a plot to capture
the governor on one of his southern trips in order to protest to him
against the granting of the Temecula Rancho.

[Illustration: HOUSE OF MEXICAN, MADE FROM RUINED WALL AND HILLS OF
MISSION SAN FERNANDO REY.]

[Illustration: THE RUINED ALTAR, MORTUARY CHAPEL, SAN LUIS REY.]

[Illustration: ILLUMINATED CHOIR MISSALS, ETC., AT MISSION SAN LUIS
REY.]

The final secularization took place in November, 1834, with Captain
Portilla as comisionado and Pio Pico as majordomo and administrator
until 1840. There was trouble in apportioning the lands among the
Indians, for Portilla called for fifteen or twenty men to aid him in
quelling disturbances; and at Pala the majordomo was knocked down and
left for dead by an Indian. The inventory showed property (including the
church, valued at $30,000) worth $203,707, with debts of $93,000. The
six ranches were included as worth $40,437, the three most valuable
being Pala, Santa Margarita, and San Jacinto.

Micheltorena's decree of 1843 restored San Luis Rey to priestly control,
but by that time its spoliation was nearly complete. Padre Zalvidea was
in his dotage, and the four hundred Indians had scarcely anything left
to them. Two years later the majordomo, appointed by Zalvidea to act for
him, turned over the property to his successor, and the inventory shows
the frightful wreckage. Of all the vast herds and flocks, only 279
horses, 20 mules, 61 asses, 196 cattle, 27 yoke oxen, 700 sheep, and a
few valueless implements remained. All the ranches had passed into
private ownership.

May 18, 1846, all that remained of the former king of Missions was sold
by Pio Pico to Cot and Jose Pico for $2437. Fremont dispossessed their
agent and they failed to gain repossession, the courts deciding that
Pico had no right to sell. In 1847 the celebrated Mormon battalion,
which Parkman so vividly describes in his _Oregon Trail_, were
stationed at San Luis Rey for two months, and later on, a re-enlisted
company was sent to take charge of it for a short time. On their
departure Captain Hunter, as sub-Indian agent, took charge and found a
large number of Indians, amenable to discipline and good workers.

The general statistics from the founding in 1798 to 1834 show 5591
baptisms, 1425 marriages, 2859 deaths. In 1832 there were 27,500 cattle,
2226 horses in 1828, 345 mules in the sa