Angeles, recruits obtained across the frontier — for Carrillo's jurisdiction, if he had any, extended over the peninsula — and the remnants of Portilla's men, Don Cárlos formed an army of 100 men or more for his new general, who soon marched northward. At Las Flores, after passing San Luis Rey, he heard that the enemy had left Angeles for the south, and here Tobar's army made a stand, perhaps on the same day that Castro's force came in sight, and probably on the 20th or 21st of April. An adobe building of the rancho served as barracks, and an adjoining corral as a fort. Three cannon were mounted so as to command the approaches, the gunners being protected, and weak points strengthened, by a judicious arrangement of hides, pack-saddles, and whatever else was at hand. Juan Bandini and José Antonio Carrillo seem to have been present as well as Don Cárlos. Requena, Ibarra, and other prominent Angelinos were also within the fortified corral.[1]
Meanwhile Castro and Alvarado had united their forces, obtaining volunteers also from Santa Bárbara and perhaps from Angeles, and had marched south from that city with over 200 men, occupying the mission of San Juan Capistrano about the same time that Carrillo reached Las Flores.[2] An advance guard of
- ↑ Botello, Anales, MS., 64-8, Janssens, Vida, MS., 129-39, and Coronel, Cosas de Cal., MS., 25-8, give some meagre details. The last two were present, Janssens having charge of one of the guns. Botello, being disabled, remained at S. Luis with Pio Pico's family. Don Pio, Hist. Cal., MS., 63-70, accounts for his own absence by claiming to have discovered in advance that Carrillo intended to capitulate, and he was busied with plans to surprise S. Buenaventura, and thus counteract the cowardly policy of D. Cárlos!
- ↑ Ignacio Ezquer, Mem., MS., 5-10, who was temporarily in charge of S. Juan, the administrator having gone to join the southern army, tells us that J. A. Carrillo with a small party from the south came one evening and inquired about Castro's men, of whom nothing had been heard. He intended to sleep at the mission, but finally decided to go to the arroyo near by to spend the night, taking along a supply of wine and aguardiente. At midnight, narrator was roused from sleep by the arrival of Castro's men. Later, much liquor was consumed, and narrator was compelled to get drunk, not losing consciousness, however, until the new-comers had fired a cannon toward the port, thus scaring away the sleepers at the arroyo, who left some of their accoutrements behind. Pinto, Apunt., MS., 74-5, confirms the story that the gun was fired on account of Alvarado's suspicions that there might be foes in that direction, and that some horses were found tied there. Alvarado, Hist.
