4.2b.2 Diary entry of Captain Fernando Rivera y Moncada at Monterey on October 3, 1774

Description

One of many brief, daily entries by Rivera y Moncada, written in Spanish from Monterey. Moncada served as Spanish military commandante of Alta California, 1774-1777. His diary includes a list of soldiers, craftsmen, and other non-native people living in Calif. at the time. According to Captain Fernando Rivera y Moncada, Indians “set fire to the brush so that new weeds may grow to produce more seeds, also to catch the rabbits that get confused and overcome by the smoke.”