rendered the latter very fcarce. The wells that we had dug, on our firff
viftt to Monterrey, though not perfectly dry, afforded too fmall a quantity
to anfwer our demand, and we had no means of obtaining a fufficienCy
of water nearer than up a valley about half a mile to the eaftward of the
Prefidio, and full that dillance from the fea-lide, where a fluggilh
ftream oofed through the bed of a water-courfe, compofed of a loofe
fandy foil ; and here, by finking feveral calks, temporary wells were
formed, which afforded only a fcanty fupply, though the water was extremely
good. This mode of procuring it was very tedious, and thedif-
tance which the cafks, when filled, had to be rolled, through a loofe
fandy gully, to the boats, was very great, and proved to be a very laborious
talk, yet the water was infinitely preferable to any that could
have been collected from the ftagnated brackifh' pools, in the vicinity of
the Prefidio.
On funday part of the (hip’s company were indulged with a run on
Monday to. fliore, and the day following we were bufily employed in facilitating, as
much as poffible, the procuring of our water, by the beft arrangement
in our power, not with Handing which we could not prevent its being a
very laborious bufinefs.
TueHaytt. Xhe weather continued to be remarkably pleafant, and on tuelday
evening Sen'- Don Diego Borica arrived at the Prefidio, where, the next
morning, accompanied by Mr. Puget and moll of the officers of both
veffels, I waited upon him, to congratulate him on his fafe arrival, and
to acquaint him with my reafons for vifiting the countries under his
jurildiftion; thefe attentions, I had the pleafure to find were perfeftly
fatisfactory, and were received in a manner that was highly compatible
with the refpeftive Hâtions that each of us had the honor to fill.
The indulgence I had folicited, and which had been granted by Sen'-
Arguello, was now very politely extended by the governor, with further
permiffion to ereft our tents and obfervatory on fhore, under the direction
of our officers, and proteftion of our own guard, to which he very
obligingly added the alfurance of doing every thing in his power that
could in any way contribute to make our Hay as pleafant and agreei
' able
able as their limited fociety and the lonelinefs of the country would M .
afford. 1-----■ '
After this introductory difcourfe, we underfiood from Sen'- Borica,
that, accompanied by his wife and daughter, a young lady about eleven
years of age, and a fuitable number of attendants, he had come from
Mexico to this place on horfeback; as no other mode of conveyance
was to be procured. They were provided with a fmall camp equipage,
which was occafionally pitched, either as a retreat from the heat of the
fun, or for reH during the night. Upwards of eight months had been
employed in performing this journey, through a country very thinly inhabited,
and which afforded but litde comfortable accommodation for
travellers.
In the evening an exprefs arrived from Mexico, which brought dif-
patches from the viceroy of New Spain to the governor, together with the
long expected infiructions to Sen'- Alava, refpcfting the ceflion of Nootka
to the crown of Great Britain, but nothing addrelfed to me accompanied
thefe credentials ; and, from a converfation with Sen'- Borica, I was not
flattered with the leafl probability of receiving -any intelligence from
St. Diego, becaufe it was not likely, had any difpatches for me arrived
there, that he fhould have remained ignorant of the circumfiance ; and
as the deflmation of Sen'" Alava was well known to the officers commanding
the fouthern pofls of this province, letters for either of us,
would moH likely, immediately on their arrival, have been tranfmitted
hither.
The embarraffment I had been long under was now very materially
increafed, and I was greatly at a lofs as to what • meafures' were befl
to be purfued. From this dilemma, however, I was very unexpeftedly
. relieved the next day,- by Sen'- Alava very obligingly confiding to me, Wcdnef.i*;
that part of his inffruftions which Hated,, that no further altercation
would take place with refpeft to the precife meaning of the firfi article
of the convention of the 20th of oftober, 1790., as the documents tranfmitted
by the late Sen'Quadra and myfelf, had enabled our refpeftive
courts to adjuH that matter in an amicable way, and nearly on the terms
which I had fo repeatedly offered to Sen'- Quadra in feptember 1792. In
U u 2 addition