Juanita finds the Indian women peaceable, absolutely ignorant,
and yet tender to their offspring. The babes are carried in wicker
baskets on their backs. A little weaving and basket-making comprise
all their feminine arts. Rudest skin clothing covers their stunted
forms.
Don Miguel encourages the visits of these wild tribes. He intends
to use them as a fringe of faithful retainers between him and the
Americans. They will warn him of any approach through the Sierras
of the accursed Yankee.
The Commandante, reared in a land without manufactures or artisans,
regarding only his flocks and herds, cherishes his military pride
in firmly holding the San Joaquin for the authorities. He never
turns aside to examine the resources of his domain. The degraded
character of the Indians near him prevents any knowledge of the
great interior. They do not speak the language of his semi-civilized
mission laborers from the Coast Range. They cannot communicate
with the superior tribes of the North and East. All their dialects
are different.
Vaguely float in his memory old stories of the giant trees and the
great gorge of the Yosemite. He will visit yet the glistening and
secret summits of the Sierras.
Weeks run into months.
Pages:
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55