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Show total extinction ot tms once populous race, tnere are no trastwortny data, and it would profit us but little to enter the wide field of speculation. Of their manner of living little if anything is known. Cabrillo states that on most of the islands miserable hats existed, bat on the mainland there were houses similar to those of the Indians of New Spain. On one of the islands, however, which he states was four leagues long, there were many good houses of wood. We are at a loss for further information on this point, but it is certain that the dwellings of these peo- ? le were constructed of perishable materials and not of adobe bricks like the Pueblo ndians of New Mexico, since no trace can be discovered of such material, and it is hardly possible this would be the case in the short space of time since Cabrillo's visit. It is extremely probable, therefore, that they built their houses of timber, or else used the skins of animals slain in the chase. Referring to the matter of houses of wood up* » n the islands, some doubt might apparently be thrown upon this portion of Cabrillo's narrative, for at present no trees of a size sufficient for building purposes are found on the islands; but this author states that on the Isle de St. Augustin he saw trees 60 feet in height and of such girth that two men could not encircle them with their arms joined. In their choice of localities for towns these ancient people showed the same degree of sagacity as that evinced by the American aborigines down to the present day. On the islands were myriads of water- birds and quantities of sea- lions and seals ; the water fairly teemed with fishes and molluscous animals, affording a plentiful supply of food, and no doubt at the time they were occupied tljere was plenty of sweet water to be had, which, unfortunately, is not the case at present. On the mainland, at all the localities visited, the circumstances of environment must have been such as to render the struggle for existence extraordinarily easy. For instance, at Santa Barbara and up the coast, or what was called the Pueblos de las Canoas, the land is extremely fertile, and must have yielded good crops, for Cabrillo especially mentions that the In-diars lived in a fertile valley, and had an abundance of corn and many cows. In addition to their pastoral pursuits, the Santa Inez Mountain afforded them game, and the waters, fishes, clams, mussels, & c. From the great quantities of shells found in the graves and kitchen- heaps, and the absence of mammalian bones in any quantity, it is fair to suppose that the tribes living near the seaside derived the greater portion of their sustenance from the waters. The favorite places for towns appear to have been not far from groves and near small mountain- streams. Anterior to 1542, these Indians must have been idolaters, but we have good reason for believing that after the advent of the mission priests many of them embraced the Roman Catholic religion, and faithfully followed its teachings. Cabrillo speaks of having seen ou one of the islands ( probably San Miguel) a temple of wood with paintings on its walls, and idols. San Miguel and some of the other islands have been carefully searched for this temple, but in vain. It is hardly necessary to refer again to the different utensils fonnd in the graves or these people, but it may be well to state that all the ollas, mortars, cups, pipes, and pestles met with were fashioned out of steatite, or magnesian mica, a sort of soaps tone, consequently very soft, which alone was used for the ollas, sandstone of different degrees of hardness for the pestles and mortars, and serpentine for the cups and pipes. It is easy to understand that the ollas were readily carved from the soft soapstone- like material by means of stone knives, but how the gigantic and symmetrical mortars were hewn out with such rude tools is beyond our comprehension; yet they must have been easily procured, otherwise such lavish generosity in burying them with the dead would hardly have been possible. It is thought that the steatite articles were not made by the mainland Indians since no deposits of this mineral were at their disposal, but by the dwellers on the islands of Santa Catalina and Santa Rosa, where alone this mineral existed, and the supposition is that the islanders trafficked with those of the mainland for their commodities, giving in exchange utensils of steatite. The ollas were doubtless used for cooking, as many of them bear marks of fire, and the mortars for bruising grain, acorns, and grass- seeds, the smaller cups and basins for ordinary household purposes, and the pipes for smoking. Canoes are mentioned by Cabrillo, who states that some were small, holding only two or three persons, while others were of sufficient capacity for ten or twelve. These were probably hewn, not burned, from logs of redwood cast up by the waves. The one mentioned as discovered by our party containing a skeleton was, however, formed of three planks, which had been lashed together by sinew or cord, the joints being payed over with asphaltum. The ornaments and beads of domestic manufacture were made of the nacre of shells and of small shells, but the glass beads found were undoubtedly of European workmanship. There seems but little doubt that nets were used for trapping fishes, a small portion of what appeared to be mesh- work being found. Furs are spoken of as articles of clothing in Cabrillt/ s narrative, but beyond this nothing is known, In speaking of the & employment- of furs, mention is made of the long, tine, black, and beautiful hair of the natives ; this statement is corroborated by the appearance of some hair found on the skull which we have spoken of as being fonnd covered with a copper pan. |
