kind. "The Americans and Californians," he proclaimed with the same exaggeration of his authority as at Santa Fe, "are now but one people; let us cherish one wish, one hope, and let that be for the peace and quiet of our country. Let us as a band of brothers unite and emulate each other in our efforts to benefit and improve this our beautiful, and which soon must be our happy and prosperous home."[1]
At the end of May, 1847, he returned to the east, and Colonel R. B. Mason of the First Dragoons, whom the government had sent out for the purpose, became governor and commander-in-chief. Mason was an excellent executive, able, experienced, sensible, strong and faithful. Some thought his character hard, but probably all clear-headed persons realized that it was just. He believed in firm though kind methods, avoided entanglements, and bore sway successfully till the close of the war.[2]
The restless faction of the Los Angeles district, free from the restraint of a large American element, still existed, and at intervals caused considerable anxiety. Indeed it is clear from Mexican sources that a hope of troops from the south was fondly cherished there for a long time. The approach of the Mormon battalion, which after suffering many hardships on the route from Santa Fe arrived at San Diego under Captain Cooke in January, 1847, excited the people, for that sect was loathed in California. A great deal of trouble about land titles arose, for the surveying had been poorly done, the boundaries overlapped in many instances, and few had the proper documents. Frémont's volunteers, expecting large pay, refused to be mustered into the service under the law of May 13, 1846, and were discharged in a very angry frame of mind, April, 1847, with no pay at all; and very little was done toward compensating the people for the spoliations committed by the volunteers.[3]
The government, though tempered by the maintenance of the alcalde system, was necessarily a military one; the old alcaldes, familiar with the customs of the land, would not serve; the new ones, though generally good men, could not always give satisfaction; and the growing American element, disgusted with so unsystematic a system, demanded self-government and written laws. No funds could legally be had for the ex-
