pecially as in some parts of the land veins of metals
are to be seen ; " — porque en algunas partes en la
tierra firme descnbrian betas de metales. Thus, there
is little wonder that very early the rumor was abroad
that there was gold in California, though without any
foundation, as the interior had never yet been visited
by white men.
As far from the truth as the preacher's story and the king's story, is the statement passed from one writer to another without comment, that Loyola Ca- bcllo, a priest of the mission of San Jose, bay of San Francisco, on returning to Spain published, in 1690, a work on Alta California, in >vhich the existence of gold in placers was mentioned. I do not know whom to hold responsible for starting this fiction, though one George M. Evans has been active in circulating it. We can only wonder that so many respectable persons have repeated it as fact. In the first place no such book was ever published. Secondly, in 1G90, and for nearly a century thereafter, there was no San Jose mission on the Bay of San Francisco, though there was a San Jose dtl Cabo,.near Cape St Lucas. Lastly, if there was such a man, and such a book, and such a place, there was no gold there.
Fortunately for mankind, believing a thing, or fan- cying a belief in it, be it never so sincerely or strongly, does not make it true ; nor is seeing always believing, when perforce, one must see through the eyes of sail- ors, whose statements are proverbially unreliable. "De Gualle saw many islands eastward of Japan in latitude 32° and 33°," says old Arthur Dobbs; and sailing further east, he saw many populous and rich islands, some with volcanoes, which abounded with gold, cotton, and fish . . . Gemelli mentions rocks seen in latitude 30°, and an island said to be rich in gold ; and also another in latitude 32°, called Rica de Plata, which from their names and abounding in gold, may be supposed to be well inhabited." By how many have these gold bearing islands been
