Page:History of California, Volume 3 (Bancroft).djvu/603

Rh According to the laws of December 1836, the republic was to be divided by congress into departments, and each department by its junta into districts and partidos. . The corresponding decree of the junta was issued by Alvarado on February 27th, dividing the department of Californias into three districts, one of them belonging to the peninsula exclusively. Of the others, the first district extended from the Sonoma frontier to San Luis Obispo, with the capital or head town at San Juan de Castro; and the second from El Buchon to Santo Domingo on the peninsular frontier, with the head town at Los Angeles. The first district was divided at Llagas Creek into two partidos, of which the second had its cabecera at San Francisco mission, and the second district was divided at the space between San Fernando and Cahuenga, Santa Bárbara being the cabecera of the second partido. By the laws of December 30, 1836, and March 20, 1837, each district was to have a prefect appointed by the governor and approved by the supreme government; each partido, except one in every district, was to have a sub-prefect appointed by the prefect and approved by the governor. Accordingly the prefects were named on the same day that the division was made, or the next, José Castro being appointed in the first district, and Cosme Peña in the