USA > Arizona > History of Arizona, Volume I > Part 3
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HISTORY OF ARIZONA.
who went down swore that when they reached these rocks, they were bigger than the great tower of Seville. They did not go further up the river, because they could not get water."
Thus we have, as related by Casteñada, the historian of the Coronado expedition, a brief outline of the Grand Canyon of the Colorado, at that time called the Tison (Firebrand) River, which was discovered by Melchior Diaz and his company.
On their return Cardenas and his companions saw some water falling over a rock, and learned from the guides that some bunches of crystals which were hanging there were salt, of which they gathered a quantity and brought it back to Cibola, dividing it among those who were there. They gave a written report of the expedition to the commanding general. The villages of that province remained peaceful since they were never visited again, nor was any other explora- tion made in that direction.
This, I think, comprises all the explorations or discoveries made by Coronado in what is now the state of Arizona, but he extended his explora- tions east, taking possession of all the Pueblo villages, which Casteñada says were sixty-six in number, with a population of over twenty thousand.
The army reached Tiguex, where they met an Indian whom the Spaniards called the Turk, who told them fabulous stories of the great richness in gold and silver of the District of Quivira, of which he claimed to be a native. An expedition was organized to explore it under the guidance
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EARLY SPANISH EXPLORATIONS.
of the Indian, who led them a wild goose chase across the plains of New Mexico, Texas and Kan- sas to near the southern boundary of the State of Nebraska. Of course, the stories of the Turk were proven false, he confessing that he had mis- led Coronado at the instigation of the Indians whom he had left behind, the intention being to lead the Spaniards into a wild country where they could be starved out and easily captured.
The Indian, of course, was killed.
While there was no immediate advantage to the Spanish Crown in the discovery of gold and silver, yet the expedition of Coronado was not unfruitful in ultimate results for it extended the Spanish domain in the New World over a very wide area of country, extending, as I have said, north to near the boundary line of Nebraska, south to within a hundred miles of Austin, in Texas, all New Mexico, and a portion of Colorado.
Bancroft lays out a route for Coronado from Ures (Corazones, or the Village of the Hearts), to Cibola, which would have carried him farther west through the Pima Villages, thence north- west to within about ten miles of what is now known as the Casa Grande, which Bancroft says Coronado may have seen. This seems utterly improbable, however, for had the general been cognizant of these ruins, it is hardly possible that he should not have mentioned them in some of his official dispatches, or that they should not have been named by Casteñada, the historian of the expedition, and others who wrote about it. The route I have adopted is that approved by
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HISTORY OF ARIZONA.
such eminent scholars as Bandelier, Winship and others, which, commencing at Ures, went north- east, following the course of the Sonora River, entering Arizona about fifty miles from its east- ern boundary. After entering Arizona, Coro- nado followed the course of the San Pedro River for some leagues, and then branched off to the northeast, passing through "The Wilderness," now the Apache Reservation, turning still more to the east at the site of Fort Apache, and thence across the New Mexican line to the Seven Cities of Cibola, or the Zuni villages.
"In the spring of 1542, Coronado started back with his men to Cibola-Zuni, through the rough mountain passages of the Gulf of California, and so on down to the city of Mexico, where he arrived in the early autumn, 'very sad and very weary, completely worn out and shamefaced.' "
Utterly unconscious that he had written his name among the immortals, he resigned from the governorship and retired to his estates. There is no further mention of his name in the annals of New Spain.
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CHAPTER IV.
EARLY SPANISH EXPLORATIONS (Continued).
ANTONIO DE ESPEJO-ROUTE OF ESPEJO-MOQUIS -MINES NEAR PRESCOTT-JUAN DE OÑATE
-FITS OUT EXPEDITION AT OWN EXPENSE- RESULT OF FIRST EXPEDITION-FOUNDS CITY OF SANTE FE-OÑATE'S SECOND EXPEDITION -OÑATE'S THIRD EXPEDITION-JEALOUSY OF ENEMIES-OBSTACLES AND DELAYS-AIDED BY FRIENDS-JUAN GUERRA-DONA EUFEMIA PENALOSA-AÑA DE MENDOZA-NEPOTISM OF OÑATE-RIO GRANDE-EL PASO DEL NORTE- SOCORRO-ABO PUEBLOS-PURUAI (SAN AN- TONIO)-SUBMISSION OF INDIANS-SAN JUAN -FURTHER SUBMISSION OF INDIANS-RE- VOLT OF ACOMA INDIANS-THEIR PUNISH- MENT-PRAISE OF ARIZONA-ZUNI PROV- INCE-RIO DEL TISON-CRUZADOS-OÑATE REACHES TIDEWATER-PUEBLO DE LA CON- VERSION DE SAN PABLO-OÑATE'S RETURN- SANTA FE.
The military post established by Melchior Diaz in the Sonora Valley, at or near the Cora- zones (Ures), having been captured and de- stroyed by the Indians before Coronado's return, the limits of New Spain remained the same as before his expedition, Culiacan being its farthest northern limit. The discovery of the rich silver mines of Zacatecas was made about the year 1542, which gave an impetus to mining in every part of New Spain, owing to which there was no fur-
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HISTORY OF ARIZONA.
ther attempt made to explore the country dis- covered by Coronado for forty years, or until about 1580, when Antonio de Espejo organized an expedition at his own expense to search for three Franciscan fathers who were supposed to have been killed by the Indians. Accompany- ing this expedition was Fra Beltran. It is more than probable that Espejo, in making this expedition, was not entirely controlled by a de- sire to be of service to his church. He was a miner who had acquired great wealth in that vocation, and, like all prospectors, was ever ready to embark upon new enterprises which promised a reasonable return.
Espejo was a native of Cordova, Spain, and a resident of the city of Mexico. He was at Santa Barbara when he organized this expedition, and, with fourteen men, he penetrated the wilds of New Mexico, going through the Zuni villages and from thence to the Moqui villages, an account of which is contained in Bell's "New Tracks in North America," which seems to have been copied by Bancroft, and is as follows :
"Twenty-four leagues westward from Acoma, they arrived at Zuni, by the Spaniards called Cibola, containing great numbers of Indians. Here were three Christian Indians, left by Coro- nado in 1540. They informed Espejo that 'three score days' journey from this place there was a mighty lake, upon the banks whereof stood many great and good towns, and that the inhabitants of the same had plenty of gold, as shown by their wearing golden bracelets and earrings.' They said that Coronado intended to have gone there,
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EARLY SPANISH EXPLORATIONS.
but having travelled twelve days' journey, he began to want water, and returned. Espejo, de- sirous of seeing this rich country, departed from Cibola, and having travelled twenty-eight leagues west, found another great province of about fifty thousand souls. As they approached a town called Zaguato, the multitude, with their caciques, met them with great joy, and poured maize upon the ground for the horses to walk upon, and they presented the captain with forty thousand mantles of cotton, white and coloured, and many hard towels with tassels at the four corners, and rich metals which seemed to contain much silver. Thence traveling due west forty- five leagues, they found mines, of which they had been informed, and took out with their own hands rich metals containing silver. The mines, which were on a broad vein, were in a mountain easily ascended by an open way to the same. In the vicinity of the mines, there were numerous Indian pueblos. Hereabout they found two rivers (probably the Colorado Chiquito and Rio Verde) of a reasonable bigness, upon the banks whereof grew many vines, bearing excellent grapes, and great groves of walnut trees, and much flax, like that of Castile. Captain Espejo then returned to Zuni."
I may be permitted to remark that the Moquis, having increased from a population of 4,000 at the time of Coronado's expedition in 1541, to 50,000 in 1581, was apparently an extremely pro- lific race, hardly excelled by the record made by the Jews during their Egyptian captivity.
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HISTORY OF ARIZONA.
The mines which Espejo discovered are sup- posed to have been somewhere near the base of the San Francisco mountains and not far from the present city of Prescott.
Espejo returned to New Spain in 1583, and undoubtedly his report of the country through which he passed gave rise to the expedition of Juan de Oñate.
Juan de Oñate, the colonizer of New Mexico, was born in Zacatecas, Mexico, of a wealthy family, who owned at Zacatecas, some of the rich- est mines in the world. His father was a con- quistador, Don Christobal. Don Juan married Doña Isabel, daughter of Juan de Tolosa, a granddaughter of Cortes, and great-grand- daughter of Montezuma. Of his explorations Lummis, in his "Spanish Pioneers," gives the following account :
"Despite the 'golden spoon in his mouth,' Oñate desired to be an explorer. The Crown re- fused to provide for further expeditions into the disappointing north; and about 1595, Oñate made a contract with the viceroy of New Spain to colonize New Mexico at his own expense. He made all preparations and fitted out his costly expedition. Just then a new viceroy was ap- pointed, who kept him waiting in Mexico with all his men for over two years, ere the necessary permission was given him to start. At last, early in 1597, he set out with his expedition- which had cost him the equivalent of a million dollars, before it stirred a step. He took with him four hundred colonists, including two hun- dred soldiers, with women and children, and
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herds of sheep and cattle. Taking formal pos- session of New Mexico, May 30, 1598, he moved up the Rio Grande to where the hamlet of Cha- mita now is (north of Santa Fe), and there founded in September of that year, San Gabriel de los Españoles (St. Gabriel of the Spaniards), the second town in the United States.
Oñate was remarkable not only for his success in colonizing a country so forbidding as this then was, but also as an explorer. He ransacked all the country round about, travelled to Acoma and put down a revolt of the Indians and, in 1600, made an expedition into Nebraska.
In 1604, with thirty men, he marched from San Gabriel across that grim desert to the Gulf of California, and returned to San Gabriel in April, 1605. By that time the English had pene- trated no farther into the interior of America than forty or fifty miles from the Atlantic coast.
In 1605 Oñate founded Santa Fe, the City of the Holy Faith of St. Francis, about whose age a great many foolish fables have been written. The city actually celebrated the three hundred and thirty-third anniversary of its founding twenty years before it was three centuries old.
In 1606 Oñate made another expedition to the far northeast, about which expedition we know almost nothing; and in 1608, he was superseded by Pedro de Peralta, the second governor of New Mexico.
Oñate was of middle age when he made this very striking record. Born on the frontier, used to the deserts, endowed with great tenacity, cool- ness and knowledge of frontier warfare, he was
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HISTORY OF ARIZONA.
the very man to succeed in planting the first con- siderable colonies in the United States at their most dangerous and difficult points."
The following account is condensed from Ban- croft, and taken from all accessible authorities, mainly from a book published in 1610, and from documents obtained, in modern times from the Spanish archives, and, as Bancroft says: "Now utilized practically for the first time in writing the history of New Mexico."
From this account it appears that Oñate was not the unselfish hero that Lummis describes, but was not without selfish motives in his patriotic desire to colonize and conquer the territory which had heretofore been explored by Coronado and Espejo, and to extend the dominion of the church.
According to Gregg's resume of the memorial made by Oñate to the Crown, Oñate offered to raise 200 men, and to supply at his own ex- pense livestock, implements, merchandise, and one year's provisions for the colony. In return he asked for himself the titles of governor, etc., for five lives ; 30 leagues of land with all the vas- sals thereon; a salary of 8,000 ducats annually, and exemption from the crown tax for working mines; for his family hereditary nobility and liberal encomiendas; for his army, arms and am- munition; for his officers, repartimientos of native laborers for his colony, a loan of 20,000 pesos from the royal treasury, and for the spiritual wellbeing of all, 6 friars and the fitting church accoutrements. He also asked for in- structions respecting the forcible conversion of
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EARLY SPANISH EXPLORATIONS.
gentiles and the collection of tribute. Gregg does not indicate what demands were granted or declined in the marginal note, nor is it apparent whether this was the original arrangement, or the final one, as modified by a new viceroy. It is stated in the N. Mex. Mem. 188-9, that Velasco accepted the offer by indorsing the sev- eral articles of the petition in marginal notes. Villagra (the poet-historian of the expedition), says that Oñate got 4,000 dollars in money ; Tor- quemada and Calle add also 6,000 dollars as a loan. (Marginal note, Bancroft's "Arizona and New Mexico," pp. 116-7). Concerning which Bancroft says: "Oñate's petition and contract are not extant; but the former with marginal notes of approval and dissent was seen by Gregg at Santa Fe; and his brief resume, confirmed by incidental allusions in other documents, shows that the contract did not differ materially from the earlier ones that have been described. The empresario agreed to raise a force of 200 men or more at his own expense; but seems to have been furnished by the king with a considerable quantity of arms and ammunition, and even a sum of money, being also authorized to confiscate the property of Bonilla and other adventurers (who had preceded him into New Mexico with- out the authority of the Crown) if he could catch them. He was made governor, adelantado, and captain-general of the territories to be colonized ; and his somewhat extravagant claims for honors, titles, lands and other emoluments, were freely granted by Velasco so far as the royal instruc- tions would permit." 3
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HISTORY OF ARIZONA.
This was about the year 1595. The contract signed, Don Juan secured the support of the highest officials and most influential men of Mexico, Nueva Galicia and Nueva Vizcaya and invoked the aid of his four brothers and his four nephews, the Zaldivars, with other active friends, and began to recruit an army, by no means a long and difficult task. Captain Vicente Zaldivar was made sargento mayor, and unfurled his enlist- ment banner in the grand plaza of Mexico with a salute of artillery. The scenes of '30 and '40 under Guzman and Coronado were repeated; re- cruits came from all directions, attracted by the favorable terms offered and the hope of wealth and fame in the north. The ranks were soon full. Success was assured, and preparations were made for an early departure when a change of viceroys occurred, the Count of Monterey suc- ceeding Velasco. Oñate's brilliant prospects and the unusual powers granted him created jeal- ousy; his foes and rivals at once banding to- gether, had more influence over the new viceroy than over the old one. Before he reached the capital, Monterey asked for a delay, but after Velasco had explained the matter by letter, con- sented to a completion of the arrangements. Ar- riving and taking possession of his office on November 5th, Monterey proceeded leisurely to investigate the adelantado's fitness for his posi- tion and the truth of certain charges made against him. The exact nature of the charges is not explained, but soon everyone not interested in the enterprise itself, seems to have had some- thing to say against Don Juan. The leader of
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1256551 EARLY SPANISH EXPLORATIONS.
the opposition, Pedro Ponce de Leon, wishing to undertake the conquista, wrote the king on De- cember 20th, asking that ratification of Oñate's project be delayed until new information was obtained. The poet's narrative of these and similar complications, says Bancroft, is con- firmed by documents from the Spanish archives.
Eventually the viceroy approved his prede- cessor's contract with certain modifications, in- sisting particularly that Oñate should not, as he demanded, be independent of the audiencia in the administration of justice, or of the viceroy in war and finance, which seems to have been a proper curtailment of his powers, for had the demands of Oñate been complied with, he would have been an absolute despot in the country over which he was appointed to rule.
Preparations were now actively renewed for the march, but when the modifications alluded to became known to some members of the colony, whose privileges were more or less curtailed, a new storm of complaints gathered, of which Oñate's foes did not fail to take advantage. To escape these, he made haste to begin his march northward. "In June, 1596, Lope de Ulloa y Lemos was commissioned by Monterey to make a visita general, or inspection and inventory. Ulloa was also instructed to remove the army from the settlements on account of certain com- plaints of disorderly conduct, and he began his inspection in July, appointing Francisco de Es- quivel as assistant or comisario," which caused a delay, but the viceroy had sent a friendly letter, assuring the governor that the visita was a mere
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HISTORY OF ARIZONA.
formality, and soon the force moved on, a part to the Caxco, or Taxco, mines in Durango, and the rest still farther to the San Bartolome Valley.
A year had now passed since the contract was signed and the colony had been considerably re- duced during the delay. A courier was daily ex- pected with orders to march, and at last he came on the 9th of September, with a sealed packet for Ulloa, which the general and his army thought was an order to advance. Their disappointment can well be imagined when the packet was found to be, instead of an order to march, a royal order directing the suspension of the entrada until the receipt of further instructions, which was caused by the viceroy's letter of the past December and the negotiations with Ponce de Leon. Enclosed was the viceroy's letter of August 12th to Ulloa, instructing that officer to make known the king's will, and to order Oñate, under the severest pen- alty, including the revocation of all past conces- sions, to make no further advance. In October came a repetition of this order. The governor promised to obey, although his expenses for the expedition, thus far, had been 500,000 ducats. Concealing the bad news from his army, he joined in their festivities, having no thought of giving up his enterprise. His friend Juan Guerra, came to his assistance, and generously offered to bear a portion of the heavy expense en- tailed by this new delay, which was destined to last over a year. It was, unquestionably, a pre- concerted plan of his enemies, by delays and unusual obstructions to cause the forfeiture of his contract. One visita followed another, and
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to protests against the delay on the part of Oñate and his friends, the viceroy always replied that he could not act without royal orders. Con- cerning this delay and its causes, Bancroft says :
"The adelantado's foes wished of course to break up the expedition altogether, and at times such was the policy of the government as well, but at other times there seemed to be a desire to keep the force together until Ponce de Leon or some other royally favored individual could be in some way given the command. Padre Duran became discouraged and left the company with most of his friars in spite of all remonstrances. But amid all troubles, Oñate, if we may credit his somewhat partial biographer (Villagra, the poet), stood firm as a rock, sustained by his friends, and by the influence of Doña Eufemia, the beautiful wife of Alferez Penaloza, who pub- licly harangued the men, urging them to imitate the fortitude of their leader. Some were mu- tinous, and bent on going to New Mexico in spite of the king's prohibition ; but cutting off the head of their leader checked the ardor of this party."
In 1597, came orders to get ready to start and to submit to the final visita. In September, Juan Frias de Salazar was commissioned as visitador, Esquivel retaining his position as comisario, and in December, when the army was reunited at the Santa Barbara mines, the final inspection began.
Here let me remark that there seems to have been as much politics in New Spain at this time as there was in Arizona at any time during her territorial vassalage, which, as we proceed, will be found to be "going some." Every viceroy ap-
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HISTORY OF ARIZONA.
pointed was surrounded by a clique of enemies, endeavoring at all times to accomplish his over- throw; the same with the governors. This may account for the fact that the viceroy instructed Salazar, secretly, to deal as leniently as possible with Oñate, disregarding small deficiencies, for the records show there was a deficiency in both supplies and men, of the latter only 130 remain- ing. To cover this deficiency, it was decided that the viceroy should raise 80 men at Oñate's ex- pense, Juan Guerra and his wife, Aña de Men- doza, becoming sureties, and about this number were indeed sent north the next year.
The final inspection was concluded on the 20th of January, 1598, and the army started north- ward six days later, and on the 30th reached the Conchos. They remained in camp on the Con- chos for a week, getting rid of the visitador, who is said to have departed without bidding the colo- nists good-bye, and also having to part with Padre Marquez, their confessor. Arrangements having been made for a new band of 10 Fran- ciscans, these friars, under Padre Alonzo Mar- tinez, as comisario, came north with Captain Farfan and his party, who had escorted Padre Marquez on his return, and joined the army soon after the start.
It would seem that Oñate was somewhat of a nepotist, his relatives occupying the principal positions in the command. Don Christobal de Oñate, son of Don Juan, a youth of ten years, accompanied the expedition as teniente de gober- nador y capitan general; Juan de Zaldivar was master of the camp, and Don Vicente, his
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brother, was sargento mayor. There were 83 wagons in the train, and 7,000 head of cattle.
From the Conchos, Oñate proceeded north to the Rio Bravo. Two exploring parties were sent out in advance to find a way for the wagons. The progress of the wagons was naturally slow, but there were no adventures or calamities. This was the first exploration of northern Chi- huahua. On the 20th of April, the expedition reached the Rio Grande, and on the last day of the month, a few leagues up the river on the western bank, Oñate, with all the complicated and curious ceremonies deemed essential in such cases, took formal possession for God, the King and himself, of New Mexico and all the adjoining provinces. These ceremonies were accompanied with imposing religious ceremonies, including mass in a chapel built for the occasion, and a ser- mon by the padre comisario. On the 4th of May, 1598, 25 miles above the point where they first reached the Rio Grande, the Spaniards were shown by the natives a ford, which the army crossed to the eastern bank. Bancroft says:
"I have no doubt that this 'ford of the river of the north' was the original El Paso del Norte, a name that has been retained ever since for the locality where the river leaves the territory which is now New Mexico."
From the 5th to the 20th, the army marched slowly up the river on the eastern side for fifteen and a half leagues, where Captain Aguilar joined them upon his return from an advance explora- tion, having reached the first pueblos and entered one against the orders of his chief, who pardoned
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HISTORY OF ARIZONA.
him at the intercession of his men. Fearing the natives might run away with all their food sup- plies, Oñate with the Zaldivars, Villagra, padres Salazar and Martinez, and fifty men, started on the 22d, and after journeying about 25 leagues in six days, reached the first group of the pueblos, the southernmost group, which is now named Socorro, occupying three pueblos of which the names of only two are given, to wit: Teipana and Qualacu. The natives extended a welcome to Oñate and his troop, and furnished them with supplies of maize, which desirable "socorro" was sent back to the main camp. It was the middle of June when Oñate and his advance party left what may be regarded as the first group of towns.
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