THE ROMANCE OF MONTEREY 43
Portola and his fellow explorers. They made their way to Carmel Bay, on the south side of the Monterey peninsula, opposite Monterey harbor, and not five miles from where Vizcaino had landed; but by some peculiar twist of fate, they did not see Monterey harbor.
Here they lingered for a few days, during which time, according to a written statement of Portola which has been preserved, they “were all under hallucinations,” and had begun to suffer from “keen hunger, which was wearing us out.” This statement, prepared by Portola in September, 1773, was evidently intended to explain his failure to find the harbor which lay between the mouth of the Salinas river and Carmel Bay, and near which he passed. Worn, sick and hungry, and having failed to find the harbor whose existence Portola had begun to doubt, the adventurers concluded to return to San Diego; but before starting, they erected two large crosses, one on
Carmel Bay and one near Point Pinos, not far from the very harbor they were seeking. Cut into the wood of each cross were the words, “Dig; at the foot you will find a writing,” and there was buried a bottle containing a message for the commander of the San Antonio, or other vessel that might be sent to Monterey with supplies, who might be expected to sight these crosses and investigate. Among other requests was one that the vessel sail down the coast, near to land, in an effort to succor Portola’s party.
On December 11, 1769, the forlorn and dispirited company began its return march to San Diego. Portola,
