The Mission

A view from Twin Peaks--The city with its historic crosses. A visit to
the old church--Its past, and the romance of Lüis Argüello.



The Mission and Its Romance

"Tickets to the city, Sir?" The conductor's voice sounded above the
rumble of the train. As my companion's hand went to his pocket he
glanced at me with a quizzical smile.

"I should think you Oaklanders would resent that. Hasn't your town put
on long skirts since the fire?" There was an unpleasant emphasis on the
last phrase, but I passed it over unnoticed.

"Of course we have grown up," I assured him. "We're a big flourishing
city, but we are not the city. San Francisco always has been, and always
will be the city to all northern California; it was so called in the
days of forty-nine and we still cling affectionately to the term."

"I believe you Californians have but two dates on your calendar," he
exclaimed, "for everything I mention seems to have happened either
'before the fire' or 'in the good old days of forty-nine!' 'Good old
days of forty-nine,'" he repeated, amused. "In Boston we date back to
the Revolution, and 'in Colonial times' is a common expression. We have
buildings a hundred years old, but if you have a structure that has
lasted a decade, it is a paragon and pointed out as built 'before the
fire.' Do you remember the pilgrimage we made to the historic shrines of