[p. 67 Commodore R.F. Stockton, 1908e, p. 67]
On the 15th of July Commodore Stockton, on the Congress, arrived at Monterey from Honolulu and reported to Commodore Sloat for duty. Sloat was an old man, having entered the Navy in 1800; his health was failing and he was anxious to retire from active service. He made Stockton commander-in-chief of all the land forces in California. Stockton on taking command, made Fremont a major and Gillispie a captain. On July 26th, the battalion was loaded on the Cyane, which sailed the next day for San Diego. Sloat, after transferring the command of the Pacific squadron to Stockton, sailed on July 29th, on board the Levant for home.
Commodore Stockton, on assuming command, issued a proclamation in which he arraigned the Mexican government for beginning hostilities against the United States. He was very severe on Gen. Castro, whom he called a usurper, and the Californians for outrages committed on the American settlers. "Three inoffensive Americans," said he, "residents of the country, have been within a few days brutally murdered; and there are no California officers who will arrest and bring the murderers to justice, although it is well known who they are and where they are." He ignored the brutal murder of the three Californians, Berryessa and the two De Haro boys, who were shot down in cold blood by Fremont's men while begging for quarter. Bancroft says of the proclamation, "The paper was made up of falsehood, of irrelevant issues and of bombastic boasting in about equal parts." Commodore Sloat read the proclamation at sea and did not approve of it.
Gen. Pico and Gen. Castro, on their arrival at Los Angeles, immediatelty set to work to organize an army. Every man between fifteen and sixty was summoned for military duty and any Mexican refusing or excusing himself on [p. 68] any pretext was to be treated as a traitor. Those physically unable to do military duty were required to aid with their property. The response to the call of the leaders was not vey enthusiastic; sectional jealousies, quarrels and feuds destroyed, or at least, paralyzed patriotism. The foreign residents who were mostly Americans, secretly sympathixed with the invaders. Money and the munitions of war were scarce. Castro sent a message by two commissioners, Flores and de la Guerra, expressing his willingness to enter into negotiations with Stockton. The commodore showed the messengers scant courtesy and dismissed them with an "insulting threat." Castro and Pico finding it impssible to defend the capital with the small force at their command, determined to quit the country. On the night of August 10th they took their departure; Castro accompanied by his secretary, Francisco Arce, and eighteen men, going by way of the San Gorgonio pass and the Colorado river; Pico by way of San Juan Capistrano and Santa Margarita, to Lower California.
Stockton began his march to Los Angeles on August 11th. On the 13th Major Fremont, with his battalion of 130 mounted men, met him just outside the town and the combined forces entered the capital. The United States flag was raised and possession was taken of the town. The reception of the Americans was not cordial. Some of the better class of citizens had fled from the city, but these in a few days returned to their homes. Fremont's cavalry scoured the country and brought in a number of leading men who had held civil or military office; these were paroled. Stockton, on the 17th, published a much milder proclamation in which he announced himself as commander-in-chief and governor of the territory; he stated that California belonged to the United States and would be governed by military law until a civil government could be established. Captain Gillispie was commissioned by Stockton as commandant of the southern department with headquarters at Los Angeles. He was assigned a garrison of fifty men taken from Fremont's force. On September 29th, Commodore Stockton, with his sailors and marines, returned to their ships at San Pedro and sailed for Monterey. A few days later, Fremont, with the remainder of his battalion, began his march northward for Sutter's fort, where he expected to recruit his force from the immigrants now arriving in the country.
While the combined forces of Stockton and Fremont, numbering about 500 men, had occupied the town, the inhabitants had been quiet and submissive. But with a small force left to keep them in subjection, they soon began to manifest their old turbulent and revolutionary disposition. September 16th, the anniversary of Mexican independence, a number of young men, under the stimulation of wine, and probably more in a spirit of mischief than with any serious intent, [p. 69] made an attack about midnight on Gillispie's headquarters, which were in the old government house. The garrison drove them off with a volley of musketry, in which three men were killed-so Gillispie reported-but the dead were never found. The next day Gillispie ordered the arrest of a number of leading citizens to be held as hostages. He also vigorously enforced military law. In a very short time he had a full-grown Mexican revolution on his hands. Some 300 men underr the leadership of Flores and Serbulo Vareles, besieged his garrison. In the corral of the government house were five or six old cannon that Castro had spiked and abandoned. Gillispie had two of these unspiked and hauled up Fort Hill, where they were mounted. He made cannon balls out of some lead pipe that he found and cartridge covers out of a piece of red flannel captured from a store. The Californians had a brass four-pounder, known as "the Old Woman's gun" because, on the approach of Stockton's army, an old woman by the name of Rocha had buried the gun in her garden; it had been used in firing salutes at church festivals, and the old lady declared that the "gringos" should not have the gun of the church.
While besieged on Fort Hill, Gillispie on September 24th, sent a messenger, Juan Flaco (lean Jean) with dispatches to Stockton asking aid. By one of the most wonderful rides in history, this man, John Brown, reached San Francisco where Stockton had gone from Monterey, six hundred miles distance, in five days. Stockton at once ordered Mervine, commanding the Savannah, to go to the relief of Gillispie. On account of a dense fog, the vessel did not leave San Francisco until October 4th. Gillispie held out bravely for seven days, then capitulated, with honorable terms. On September 30th, with flags flying, drums beating and his two old cannon mounted on carretas, he began his march to San Pedro. On October 7th, Mervine entered the harbor. At 6:30 a.m. of the 8th, he landed a force of 299 men, which included Gillispie's volunteers. A small force of the enemy appeared and Captain Mervine ordered Lieut. Hitchcock, with a reinforcement of eighty men from the vessel, to attack; but the enemy retreated and the detachment returned to the ship. Captain Mervine and his men then started for the pueblo. They took no cannon and had no horses. After a fatiguing tramp through tall mustard and clouds of dust they encamped at the Dominguez rancho. The enemy, under the command of José Antonio Carrillo, and numbering about eighty men, appeared on the foothills and some skirmishing at long range took place. During the night, Flores arrived from the pueblo with a reinforcement of about sixty men and the "old woman's" gun. They opened fire during the night on Mervine's camp with this cannon, but did no damage. The next morning Mervine's men resumed their march and had not proceeded far before they encountered the enemy. The Californians opened fire and Mervine, fearing a charge from their cavalry, formed his troops in a [p. 70] hollow square with their baggage in the center. A running fight ensued; the Californians firing, then dragging the gun back with riatas, loading, and firing again. Mervine, finding he was losing men without injuring the enemy, ordered a retreat. The Californians fired a parting shot or two, but did not pursue the Americans, as they had exhausted their ammunition. Mervine reached San Pedro that evening and went aboard his vessel. His loss was four killed and six wounded. The dead were buried on the Isla de los Muertes, or Deadman's island. The Savannah remained in the harbor and the Californians kept a small detachment at Sepulveda's ranch and another at Cerritos to watch the Americans.
On the 25th Commodore Stockton arrived at San Pedro on the Congress and remained there about a week. Although he had a force of nearly 800 men, he did not deem this sufficient to recapture the capital, as he greatly overestimated the strength of the enemy. On November 1st he sailed for San Diego. At the time of Flores' attack on Gillispie the American garrisons at San Diego and Santa Barbara were driven out of these towns. The force at San Diego went aboard the Stonington, a whale ship lying in the harbor. Lieut. Talbot with ten men was stationed at Santa Barbara. When called upon to surrender, this party fell back into the hills and reached the head of the San Joaquin river, where they obtained food from the Indians; then traveled down the valley, subsisting on the flesh of wild horses and finally, by way of Pacheco's pass, they crossed over to the coast and joined Fremont's battalion at Monterey.
The departmental assembly, having been called together by Flores, met at Los Angeles, October 26th. The members were all from the south. The first business in order was to fill the offices of governor and commandante-general left vacant by the flight of Pico and Castro. It was decided to combine the two offices in one person and José Maria Flores was chosen commander-in-chief and governor ad interim. He took the oath of office November 1st and was really the last Mexican governor of California. Flores and the members of the assembly made some provisions for continuing the war, but their resources were very limited. Their recent successes over the Americans had somewhat encouraged them and they hoped to be able to hold out until reinforcements arrived from Mexico.
Stockton, on his arrival at San Diego, had set to work to organize an expedition against Los Angeles. The Californians had driven the cattle and horses back into the mountains and the Americans found great difficulty in procuring animals. Frequent forays were made into Lower California and horses, cattle and sheep procured. The remnant of Fremont's battalion, after taking from it garrisons for San Diego, Los Angeles and Santa Barbara, had returned to the Sacramento valley in September. Here it was recruited to 160 men, and on October 13th sailed from San Francisco on a merchant vessel, with orders to operate against the rebels in the south; but between Monterey and Santa Barbara they met the Vandalia and learned of Mervine's defeat, and of the impossibility [p. 71] of procuring horses in the lower country. They put about and the battalion landed at Monterey October 28th. Vigorous efforts were at once made to recruit men and horses. A number of immigrants had arrived from the states. These were induced to enlist on the promise of $25 per month pay. Horses were purchased, or where owners refused to sell, were confiscated. A company of Walla Walla Indians were enlisted-these were known as the "Forty Thieves." Sutter's "warriors in bronze" (Indians) were also enrolled for service. In the latter part of November, the recruits were collected at San Juan. They numbered about 450 riflemen and 40 artillerymen, representing many nations and many different kinds of arms, and were divided into ten companies. Fremont had been commissioned as lieutenant-colonel in the regular army and was commander-in-chief of the battalion. While Fremont's officers and men wre engaged in collecting horses, an engagement took place between a detachment numbering about 60 men, under Captain Burroughs and Thompson, and the Californians under Manuel Castro, who had been made commandant of the Californian forces in the north. The Americans had gathered several hundred horses and were taking them to the camp at San Juan. The advance guard, consisting of eight scouts, encountered the Californians near Natividad. They posted themselves in an "encinalito," or grove of little oaks, and a fight ensued. The main body of Americans coming up, a reckless charge was made. Captain Burroughs and four or five others were killed and five or six wounded. The Californians lost about the same number; the result was a drawn battle.