Page:History of California, Volume 3 (Bancroft).djvu/173

Rh he wished, to follow the coast up to the Columbia via Bodega.

The Californians supposed for a month that they were rid of their overland guests; but at the beginning of February 1827 some of them were seen at different places, particularly near San Bernardino, where Smith appeared on the 2d of February. There he left a sick man, and thence he seems to have sent a letter to Padre Sanchez by one of his men. The letter, as translated at the time, stated as the reason for return that the trappers in crossing a stream had been attacked by Indians, who killed eight of their number and stripped them of everything but their clothes — a statement that would seem to be false, though Smith bore the reputation of truthfulness. At any rate, the trappers had tried without success to cross the Sierra, and were reported to be in a destitute condition. The two men to whom I have referred were, I suppose, Isaac Galbraith and Joaquin Bowman, who were detained at the time for examination, and who remained in the territory. Orders were issued to detain the whole party, but Smith had left San Bernardino before the orders could be executed.