[ 31] From the context it is clear that at this point the party entered False River, as they could not fail to do if they went upstream past Antioch, took the channel on their right, and held close to the south shore.
[ 32] The party may have been at the foot of Mandeville I., where Old River and the main San Joaquin unite, or at the foot of Bacon I. If the latter theory is correct, then the channel running to the left (Abella was pointing south) might have been Connection Slough, which joins Middle River a few miles to the southeast.
[ 33] The expedition is now proceeding up Old River past Palm, Orwood, and Byron tracts, on which are still the remains of aboriginal habitation sites.
[ 34] The long trip south, the appearance of Indians and villages on the shore, the short swing of the river to the east, and the proximity of dry land at the stopping place, all indicate arrival in the vicinity of present Highway 4, near the western tip of Union I., 3 or 4 mi. northwest of Bethany. The Bolbones, probably a Yokuts tribelet, had been converted at San José during the preceding decade.
[ 35] Referring to Carmel R.
[ 36] Abella makes little reference to the fact that he was accompanied by Fr. Buenaventura Sitjar and that the expedition was actually under the military command of Sergeant José Sanchez.
[ 37] “Mais de umedad”: corn planted and dependent upon rain for moisture, as opposed to corn dependent upon irrigation.
[ 38] The village of Pescadero is known to have been situated on the southwestern side of Union I., somewhere near White House Landing, a mile or two northeast of Bethany. The site itself is lost, the river bounded by levees, the land under cultivation. Some of the old oaks, however, still stand along the river, behind the levees.
[ 39] This body of water is mentioned by several explorers of this period. It no longer exists, nor does it appear on any modern map. It probably was a shallow backwater in the vicinity of Tracy.
[ 40] The most probable location for the stopping place is approximately north of Tracy where there are oaks which easily could have been surrounded by swamp. The fork in the river at just about this point would be that in which Salmon Slough runs northeast to join Middle River and the main San Joaquin and in which Tom Paine Slough runs southeast to meet the main river near Lathrop. Abella’s group would have gone down Salmon Slough.