July 17. At night we reached an arroyo which has much water, much timber and firewood, and also has nearby redwood, and very much good sand and some very long valleys.
July 18. We reached Mission San José at a distance of six leagues.
Amador's diary helps us to estimate the location and numbers of the tribal groups in question. After leaving Mission San José in the evening, his party traveled till dawn. Since all the men were mounted, this means a probable rate of 4 miles an hour for at least six hours, or 24 miles. The following day, "in the evening," they reached the first rancheria of the Sacalanes. Allowing a ride of three hours, the total distance would be 36 miles. Since there is no mention of the coast, the route must have been the well-known inland trail through Pleasanton and Dublin. Hence the destination was in the Walnut Creek-Lafayette area. This effectually disposes, I think, of any possibility that the Sacalanes could have inhabited the Livermore Valley.
Further evidence is provided by subsequent events. After spending presumably several hours subduing the Sacalanes, Amador went over near the beach where he spent "all day," obviously meaning the rest of the day. Probably no more than three or four hours were consumed in the actual ride, or a distance of 9 to 12 miles. It must be remembered that now Amador was burdened with captives, who traveled on foot at a likely rate of no more than 3 miles per hour. Hence he must have reached the bay shore in the vicinity of Richmond.
At nightfall, the party went on to the rancheria of the Juchillones, which may have been a few miles up the coast. No indication is given of distance, except that at dawn they reached their destination. The most probable guess is that the rancheria was somewhere on the southeast shore of San Pablo Bay between Pinole and Rodeo. This view is supported by the account of the return trip.
After having attacked three rancherias, conducted negotiations, identified and secured several dozen captives, Amador began his retreat "along the coast." At night they reached a well watered arroyo, which could have been San Pablo Creek or Wildcat Creek. On the 17th the party spent the whole day moving down the shore to an arroyo, near some redwoods, which, according to the notation of the following day, was 6 leagues from Mission San José. The arroyo which best fits the description and the distance (about 15 mi.) is San Leandro Creek. This, in turn, is just about a day's journey from San Pablo Creek for a military party encumbered with numerous prisoners. There are therefore reasonable grounds contained in Amador's diary for placing the Juchillones on the shore of San Pablo Bay from Point San Pablo northeast to Rodeo or beyond.
With respect to numbers, it may first be noted that Amador found three rancherias fairly close together for each tribal group: Sacalanes and Juchillones. The only indication of size for the Sacalanes is the mention of 50 men and women who participated in the defense of the first rancheria; The other two rancherias had been deserted. Perhaps a maximum of 300 and a minimum of 100 inhabitants for all three villages is indicated. For the Juchillones, Amador states only that the third rancheria was "very large." This may be taken to mean a population of over 100, and on this assumption the total might be set within the range suggested for the Sacalanes, i.e., 100-300.
In the letter to the Governor covering his report, dated July 19 at Mission San José (Bancroft Trans., Prov. St. Pap., XV: 319-320) Amador says, regarding the Cuchillones [Juchillones] "... it is certain that there are many rancherias and very big ones; and this is the reason why they assemble to hold their councils and eat many seeds." This statement would favor a fairly large population. Furthermore, in replying to Amador on July 21, Governor Borica (Bancroft Trans., Prov. Rec., V: 118) notes that the expedition brought back 83 Christians and 9 Gentiles. This fact shows that the two tribal groups, Sacalanes and Juchillones, had already been able to absorb the losses occasioned by the missionization of 40 persons per tribe—plus the conversion of probably many others who were not fugitives or at least were not captured by Amador, plus the attrition due to disease and disruption of food supplies—and yet were in a position to maintain a total of 6 rancherias, each of moderate to large size. The preconquest population per group must have reached at least 300 and very likely was much greater.
After Amador's return in late July a full-scale investigation was ordered. A great many Indians were interrogated in an effort to discover the cause, not only of the bitter hostility of the East Bay villages, but also of the incorrigible fugitivism which plagued the local missions. Two sets of testimony are on record (Archivo General de la Nación, Ramo Californias, Vol. 65, no. 3, MS p. 101, and no. 5, MS p. 109, dated respectively August 9 and September 16, 1797) which are of interest to the student of Indian psychology but of no particular ethnographic significance.
Meanwhile, more small expeditions were sent out. The records of the pueblo of San José (Bancroft Trans., Dep. St. Pap., San José, I: 81-82) show that on July 2 an expedition was ordered to capture and punish Gentiles who had killed two mares. Later reports indicated that this objective had been accomplished. Subsequently, in a letter to Governor Borica dated at San José on September 3, Sergeant Amador described another expedition (Bancroft Trans., Prov. St. Pap., XV: 317-318). He says that "he set out at 8:00 p.m. on August 26 in search of the rancheria Pijugma. First they went to that of Juquili and at dawn fell upon the first rancheria [presumably Pijugma] where they did not find the chieftain they sought." However, they afterwards caught this chief, with three others, all of whom they took to the mission. Amador says the rancherias "will be about 10 leagues from the mission and are opposite the beach." The latter statement, together with the fact that the distance was covered in one night's travel on horseback, suggests the area of the Livermore Valley.