Chimes of Mission Bells; an historical sketch of California and her missions

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n Fathers a well equipped monastery and mission at San Fernando in the northern part of the country. We have seen the Spanish Franciscans' zeal in the land of the Aztec, and we have also seen the noble cooperation given them by the government and civil authorities of Catholic Spain. We have traced the missionaries' steps, followed by gallant

fought just battles with prejudice in their behalf, with the blessed result that the thickest clouds of errors and "threadbare calumnies" have almost entirely disappeared, and with them the remaining mists of wrong are fast vanishing at the pow

itual and temporal welfare of their converts and neophytes, was guarded, and so great was the attachment of the Indians to the fathers that if a father was called on business from one mission to another, the Indians would follow him a long distance weeping. Very few of the Indians were taught the art of reading, not because the fathers were in any way unwilling to teach it, but because for this one art most of the Indians showed no desire or willingness to learn, yet this has given the ever ready, unscrupulous writer food for saying that "the fathers endeavor

frivolous (but for this latter class we are not writing) foolish and impossible. The missions too, with their honest wealth and industry were California's first centers of enlightenment and refinement. The Spanish missionaries were scholars as well as religious, and their institutions were California's cradles of literature, music and learning hand in hand with religion. To these early fathers we owe the first paintings and statues brought to California, while their well equipped missions, even contained medicine chests and medical books, to them we also owe the first architec

California, and it was they who made the first land grants, it was by Spanish explorers too that the first maps of California were drawn, under Spanish rule were many of the present towns and cities founded, from Spain came the first dawn of refinement and civilization, the first army and navy, the first artists, musicians, physicians and skilled workmen, in fine the first white child born in California was born of Spanish parents settled in Monterey. And what was the record of Spain's dominion in California? Setting aside unfounded calumnies as a

nd only 3,000,000 foreigners or of Mexican birth but of purely foreign extraction. Take, California, Arizona, New Mexico and other former Spanish possessions of whom the same may be said in proportion. In these places no Indian reservations are seen as where the Puritans held sway. If Spain were guilty of the cruelties so falsely imputed to her, Mexico in partic

ignorance or insult our intelligent readers by writing on such foolishness, we will only ask their permission to say that many so-called intelligent people have no conception of the Spanish type, race or character, but the

confiscated a large remaining portion of this "Pious Fund." In 1853 the Spanish Archbishop Alemany, then Bishop of Monterey and successor of Bishop Diego from whom the "Pious Fund" had been taken, started a litigation which was continued in turn by his worthy successor Archbishop Patrick Riordan of the archdiocese of San Francisco, with the good result that Mexico was made to pay the sum of $43,050 in Mexican currency annually as the interest at six per cent on the sum of $1,460,682 of the "Pious Fund" which the national treasury of Mexico had appropriated on the promise of Mexico to act as trustee of the fund and pay an interest of six per cent wh

ling ceremonies of the memorial erected in honor of Christopher Columbus by Act of Congress. Among the speakers present at the banquet were Ex-President William Taft (then president),

learning, "Modern Athens" has nothing in common with the memories aroused by contemplation of the events which we celebrate today. It may be well to tell our friends from New England that before the so-called Anglo-Saxon had set foot as a colonist upon the American soil, the followers of Columbus had penetrated into the heart of Kansas and gone down as far as Buenos Ayres. I want to lay stress upon the fact that we have not noted too emphatically today that it was the great Spanish race, with its strong and sterling faith, which accomplished this wonderful mission of civilization. Too long have we endured the

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s twenty soldiers three hundred years before the Anglo-Saxon took a glimpse at its wonderful and awe-inspiring beauty. These and other similar facts are attested by the report of the Bureau of Ethnology of Washington, as well as by many other reliable authorities, including that singularly gifted and scholarly student of Spanish history and folk lore, Charles F. Lummis of Los Angeles, himself a Puritan on both sides of his house for several generations back. It was the fortitude of this Spanish race, coupled by its strong devotion to the faith which you and I profess, which enabled them to solve the Indian problem as it has never been attempted since. While under our present system of the government of this United States, the Indian has been an out

he splendid heroism and Christian fortitude of the great Spanish race which contin

Fathers of San Francisco, contributed so much, and in which the Third Order of Saint Francis so prominently participated will be yearly renewed. Ecclesiastical and civil authorities, towns and cities, individuals, all had the "right spirit." The accounts of the press were glowing. Mr. Frank Powers of Carmel-by-the-Sea was California's representative at the celebration which Spain did not fail to hold in honor of her illustrious son; and Mr. Powers indeed proved a worthy representative, returning to California

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and sponsors of this movement, and with cooperation from faithful friends and the sanction of the Bishop of the diocese of Monterey and Los Angeles, we have no doubt that these glorious landmarks, some of which have alas too long been allowed to go to "wreck and ruin" while others are still more or less neglected, after the cruel years which extinguished their sanctuary lamps, left their altars bare and their belfries silent save for the hooting of the night owls, will ere long be in the proper repair to hand down with pride to posterity; and to further repair these holy temples and place them under their historical and original plans the most fitting priests to whom we could entrust them (at least wherever the necessary satisfactory arrangements are possible) are Spanish priests, compatriots of their founders, this too would serve to continue and strengthen the old friendly relations between Spain and California, and as whatever Spanish priests would take charge of the missions, would be scholarly