Drake and
Fletcher could hardly have realised, however, that the good seed which
they then sowed, though it might remain hidden from view for many
generations, would in time spring-up and yield a glorious harvest.
We are not unmindful, of course, of the labours and teachings of the
Franciscans among the California Indians; but when this order of
things passed away and the Anglo-Saxon succeeded the Spaniard and the
Mexican, it was but natural that the old Church which had made Great
Britain what it was and is, aye, and moulded our civilisation on
this continent, should seek a foothold in the beautiful lands by the
Pacific and on the slopes of the Sierras. Many of the Church's sons
were among the thousands who sought California in quest of gold, and
these Argonauts she would follow whithersoever they went. They must
not be left alone to wrestle with the temptations which would beset
them far away from home and the hallowing influences of sacred
institutions and religious services. Hence it is that we behold that
zealous missionary of the Church, the Rev. Flavel Scott Mines, going
forth to seek out Christ's sheep in San Francisco and elsewhere, and
to gather them into the fold of the Good Shepherd.
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