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Memoirs of Theodor Cordua - Pioneer of New Mecklenburg in the Sacramento Valley (December 1933) (25 pages)
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Page: of 25
5 The Memoirs of Theodor Cordua
one could make purchases, retail and wholesale, according to one’s wishes. As soon as the anchor had been cast in
the harbor, the prospective customers came aboard so that at times a regular little fair was improvised. Captain Paty
had his wife and son with him. The supercargo, in whose veins flowed Hawaiian blood, was Mr. William Davis of
Honolulu, a good business man and a pleasant companion. During the trip, however, he was too busy to be much in
our company.
From the Bay of San Francisco we first visited Monterey. Here we had an opportunity to witness the cruel
entertainment, which is rather popular in California, of a fight between a large grizzly bear of about six hundred
pounds and a spirited steer of about twice the size. in a circular enclosure a fore-leg of one animal was tied to that of
the other by a rope 20 yards long. As soon as the steer saw the bear and felt that the latter was hindering it from
moving about freely, it rushed toward the poor grizzly and ran his horns into the bear’s ribs. After many such violent
thrusts, the bear finally clutched its great paws around the neck of the steer and embraced it so tightly that the bull
could not move and showed its fear by frantic bellows. Frequently the bull is strangled in this manner while the bear
clings to its neck with its entrails dangling. The two animals participating in the fight we observed, were still alive
after a struggle of two hours, although they were mortally wounded. The butcher gave them the death-blow with his
knife.
From Monterey we traveled to Santa Barbara, a city of about two thousand inhabitants, and at that time the most
beautiful in California. It is the residence of the bishop, situated not far from the sea, in a valley whose background
is formed by high mountains. At the foot of these mountains bubble several hot springs. Even at that time it was the
residence of several English and American families, who did everything in their power to make the stay of a stranger
in Santa Barbara as pleasant as possible. Here, I had the pleasure of attending a wedding in one of the most
prominent families in California. The marriage was solemnized in the beautiful church. On the way home all the
guests, who had been at the nuptials, accompanied the bridal couple. The young husband, escorting his wife, threw
handsful of dollars from time to time among the children following the procession, as the custom demanded. In this
manner more than one hundred dollars were given away. Every one who married, whether rich or poor, had to make
a similar sacrifice according to his means. I have not been able to learn how this custom originated. The procession
went back to the home of the parents-in-law of the husband where the wedding feast was served, followed by a
fandango. Fandango here is not a single dance, but music and dancing in general. Every once in a while the ladies
would throw an egg filled with eau de cologne at the young gentlemen they favored. Every throw which hit the mark
increased the joy and the laughter. Besides that all kinds of jokes were played, especially such as would embarrass
the young couple. A celebration like this lasted sometimes for a week or a fortnight.
From Santa Barbara we visited San Pedro. This harbor is situated about twenty English miles from the Pueblo de
Los Angeles, in a charming valley with brooks which flow constantly and irrigate all the gardens of the place.
Pueblo de Los Angeles, at that time the largest city in California with about twenty-five hundred inhabitants,
appeared to be a garden.’ Nearly every house was surrounded by vineyards and fruit trees. These gardens were open
to every known foreigner. We were in Los Angeles at the time when all fruits were ripe. The trees, especially the
peach, were almost breaking under their burden. In the garden of an old Frenchman‘ I saw ripe oranges. I enjoyed
the delicious grapes, the delicate pears, figs, and peaches Although I daily ate many fruits I always remained in good
health. Dysentery, which is so common in my home country in the fall, is not known here at all. In southern Upper
California only a few valleys are suited for the cultivation of wheat, corn, and vegetables. As it does not rain here
very often there is no agriculture to speak of, except where artificial irrigation is possible. But everywhere in the
whole of southern Upper California, in the mountains as well as on the plains and in the valleys, cattle, horses, and
sheep are raised with great success. The cattle are nearly always fat in July, but they often suffer a want of food from
November to February because the first rains in the fall spoil the old dry grass and the young grass grows but
slowly. Since this part of Upper California was the first to be settled one could find here, at my time, numerous and
Cordua probably meant the outlying settlements. In old pictures Los Angeles looks like a rather bleak town.
4
Undoubtedly Jean Louis Vignes, or “Don Lois,” a French cooper and distiller who had come to California via Honolulu in 1831. Settling at Los Angeles. in a few years he possessed
the largest vineyard and made the best wine in California. He also had much to do with the growing of oranges at Los Angeles, and was instrumental to causing many French citizens
to immigrate to California. He died in 1862 at the age of 79 (or 82). (Hittell, History of Calfornia, I, 179; Bancroft, History of California, V . 762.)