The California of the Padres; or, Footprints of Ancient Communism

San Francisco, CA: I. N. Choynski, 1875. General wear and toning. Damage to back strip.. A short book that glorifies the "Padres", the priests, who came over with the Spaniards and set up Missions in the New World. The book specifically deals with the missions built in California, and how their influence has waned since it was ceded to the US in 1848 after the Mexican-American War, and how this has been the detriment to society. The book provides 'evidence' of this in the treatment of Native Americans under American rule and the "American ranchero [who] does not kept Sunday as general thing". In regards to Native Americans specifically, Hughes states, "are they any better off to-day, lying around the streets of Los Angeles like masterless dogs, and half the time in the calaboose or chaingang [sic]? There are races that seem never to rise beyond childhood, and need wise training." This 'training' was provided by the Padres, who while also converting the Native Americans to Christianity, also employed them on the vast farms which were a part of the Missions. Hughes continues on to employ all Californians to learn from the lessons of the Padres, the greatest of which was " the example which they have left to the world of the practical success and self-supporting nature of great industrial organizations, even when commenced and carried on in the face of the greatest disadvantages, and with comparatively small means." 41 pgs. Printed wrappers. Measures 8 1/2" x 5 3/4