Officers
and men had taken of the holy communion; and now their wives and
children stood on the island at the entrance of the harbor, watching the
white sails as they grew fainter and fainter and at last disappeared in
the haze of the coming night.
Then the watchers returned to their lonely homes with heavy hearts, for
in those days few came back who sailed out on the great South Sea.
Storms, battles with the natives, and scurvy made sad havoc among the
sailors.
Early in November Vizcaino entered "a famous port," which he named San
Diego, finding it, as Padre Ascension's journal says, "beautiful and
very grand, and all parts of it very convenient shelter from the winds."
After leaving San Diego, the next anchoring place was the island named
by Vizcaino for Santa Catalina, on whose feast day his ships entered the
pretty little harbor of Avalon.
The Spaniards were greatly pleased with the island and also with the
people, whom they described as being a large-figured, light-complexioned
race; all, men, women, and children, being well clothed in sealskins.
They had large dwellings, many towns, and fine canoes.
Pages:
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83