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NEW MEXICO 
HISTORICAL REVIEW 



VOL. X 



JANUARY, 1935 



No. 1 




PALACE OP THE GOVERNORS 



PUBLISHED QUARTERLY BY 

THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF NEW MEXICO 

AND 

THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO 



M M ftA*A AA fUtfl* fUl A*** All fUlltl R* HH*H IW fUl IUI IUI fUlifUl fUl fUl 



\MEXICO 

REVIEW 



EditoY : * : Managing Editor 

LANSING B. BLOOM PAUL A. F. WALTER 

Associates 

PERCY M. BALDWIN E. DANA JOHNSON 

FRANK T. CHEETHAM THEODOSIUS MEYER, 0. F. M. 



VOL. X JANUARY, 1935 No. 1 

CONTENTS 

NUMBER 1 January, 1935 

Page 
Bourke on the Southwest, VI ... Lansing B. Bloom 1 

Pueblo Names in the Onate Documents . F. W. Hodge 36 

Alburquerque and Galisteo . . . Lansing B. Bloom 48 

Dedication of the Kearny Monument, Dr. H. C. Gossard 51 
Book Reviews : 

C. W. Hackett. Picardo's Treatise on the Limits of 

Louisiana and Texas. L. B. B 54 

V. A. Robles. Saltillo en la historia y en la leyenda 

John E. Englekirk 57 

F. Gillmor and W. Wetherill. Traders to the Nava- 

jos. Erna Fergusson 60 

M. G. Boyer. Arizona in Literature. P. A. F. W. 62 
B. C. Grant. When Old Trails Were New: the 

Story of Taos. Giorgio Belloli 65 

R. Calvin, Ph.D. Sky Determines. T. M. Pearce . 66 

A. C. Wilgus. Modern Hispanic America. L. B. B. 68 



Subscription to the quarterly is $3.00 a year in advance; single 
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Address business communications to Mr. P. A. F. Walter, State 
Museum, Santa Fe, N. M.; manuscripts and editorial correspondence 
should be addressed to Mr. Bloom at the State University, Albu- 
querque, New Mexico. 

Entered as second-class matter at Santa Fe, New Mexico 
UNIVERSITY PRESS, ALBUQUERQUE, N. M. 



NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL 
REVIEW 



NEW MEXICO 
HISTORICAL REVIEW 



Editors 
LANSING B. BLOOM PAUL A. F. WALTER 

Associates 

PERCY M. BALDWIN E. DANA JOHNSON 

FRANK T. CHEETHAM REV. THEODOSIUS MEYER 



VOLUME x 
1935 



PUBLISHED QUARTERLY BY 
THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF NEW MEXICO 

AND 

THE UNIVERSITY OP NEW MEXICO 






7 '36 



CONTENTS 

NUMBER 1 JANUARY, 1935 

Page 

Bourke on the Southwest, VI . . . . L. B. Bloom 1 

Pueblo Names in the Onate Documents . F. W. Hodge 36 

Alburquerque and Galisteo, 1706 . . . L. B. Bloom 48 

The Kearny Monument, Las Vegas . H. C. Gossard 51 
Reviews : 

Hackett, Pichardo's Treatise on . . Texas, I-II 

L. B. B. 54 

Alessio Robles, Saltillo en la leyenda, J. E, 

Englekirk 57 

Gillmor and Wetherill, Traders to the Navajos. 

Erna Fergusson 60 

Boyer, Arizona in Literature. P. A. F. W. . . 62 
Grant, When Old Trails Were Neiv . . . Taos 

Giorgio Belloli 65 

Calvin, Sky Determines. T. M. Pearce .... 66 

Wilgus, Modern Hispanic America. L. B. B. . . 68 

NUMBER 2 APRIL, 1935 

Civil Government and Society in New Mexico in the 

17th Century . . F. V. Scholes 71 

Notes on the Lineage of Diego de Vargas 

J. M. Espinosa 112 
Forts Robidoux and Kit Carson in Northeastern Utah 

A. B. Reagan 121 

Col. BuelPs Expedition into Mexico in 1880 

M. L. Crimmins 133 
Old Roads and New Highways in the Southwest 

Maud D. Sullivan 143 

Eugene Manlove Rhodes, 1869-1934 . . L. B. Bloom 150 

v 



vi CONTENTS 

A Blossom of Barren Lands (poem) Eugene M. Rhodes 151 
The Governors of New Mexico . . . . L. B. Bloom 152 
Reviews : 

Lesser, The Paivnee Ghost Dance Hand Game, D. 

D. Brand 158 

Gambrell, Mirabeau B. Lamar . . . Crusader 

F. M. Kercheville 163 

Faunce, Desert Wife and 

Reichard, Spider Woman, A. Esther Wilkie . . 165 

Wyllys, Pioneer Padre: the life of . . Kino. L. B. B. 167 

Noel & Torre Revello, Estudios y documentos para 

la historia del arte colonial, vol. I, L. B. B. ... 169 

Notes and Comments: 

The Diego de Vargas Notes. 
Governor Pile and the Archives. 
The Military Escort of 1834. 
Possible Origin of "Luminaries." 
Paul A. F. Walter. 

NUMBER 3 JULY, 1935 

The Spanish Military Chapels in Santa Fe and the 

Reredos of Our Lady of Light . A. von Wuthenau 175 
The First Decade of the Inquisition in New Mexico 

F. V. Scholes 195 
A Trade-Invoice of 1638 L. B. Bloom 242 

NUMBER 4 OCTOBER, 1935 

Onate a Marauder? G. P. Hammond 249 

Bourke on the Southwest, VII . . . . L. B. Bloom 271 
Kit Carson, Catholic . . . Father Claudius Antony 323 
Reviews : 

Richardson & Rister, The Greater Southwest 

P. A. F. W 337 

Thomas, After Coronado: Spanish Exploration 
Northeast of New Mexico, 1696-1727, L. B. B. . 339 



CONTENTS vii 

Otero, My Life on the Frontier, 1864-1882 

P. A. F. W 340 

Notes : 

The Frederick Webb Hodge Anniversary Publica- 
tion Fund 346 

Errata 
Index 






ILLUSTRATIONS 

The Great West in 1876, map facing 1 

Gen'l Crook's Trail from Camp Apache to Moqui 

Villages, 1874 " 8 

The Founding of Albuquerque, facsimile of ms. 

(1706) " 48 

Diego de Vargas Coat of Arms 71 

Eugene Manlove Rhodes 150 

"The Yucca blooms above its thorn," . . . . " 151 

Carved Stone Reredos at Santa Fe as It is Today " 175 

Urrutia's Map of Santa Fe (c. 1768) . . . . " 182 
Stone Panel, Our Lady of Light . . . between 182-183 
Frontispiece from Cofradia Constitution, 

1766 " 182-183 

Title-Page of the Cofradia Constitution . . . facing 183 

The Reredos in the Old Cathedral " 190 

Kit Carson's Baptismal Record ...... M 324 

Carson's Marriage Record 325 

Burial Record of Carson and His Wife " 327 



Vlll 



NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL 
REVIEW 



VOL. X JANUARY, 1935 No. 1 

BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST, VI 
Edited by LANSING B. BLOOM 

CHAPTER IX 
ARIZONA NOTES, 1873-74 

FOR THE next two years Lieutenant Bourke remained in 
the Department of Arizona as "acting engineer officer" 
and as aide-de-camp to General Crook. 1 The records extant 
for this period are rather meager : a single volume of notes ; 
two newspaper articles which were published, one in San 
Francisco and the other in Boston ; and a few casual details. 
In spite of the fact that Crook had the Indian situation 
in Arizona well in hand after his winter campaign, it would 
be a mistake to think that scouting and fighting abruptly 
stopped in March, 1873. 2 Fights with renegades averaged 
two a month during the next two years; there was a six- 
weeks' scout from San Carlos again in the dead of winter, 
and a two-months' scout in the Bill Williams mountains in 
the spring of 1874. 3 

What part Bourke had in these operations is not known, 
but it is clear that he trailed over most of Arizona and at 
least once he was across in Sonora : 



1. Compare with chronological record given in NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW, 
VIII, 5-7. 

2. See the list of engagements, in NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW, IX, 165-167. 
8. Heitman, Historical Register, II, 438-441. On August 19, 1874, occurred the 

fight at Adobe Walls, Texas. 



2 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

[Oct. 4, 1874] Today is the feast of Saint Francis 
which I spent, with so much interest and amuse- 
ment, last year, at Magdalena, Sonora, Mexico. 

No details of that visit are found, but years later Bourke 
wrote up for a newspaper friend in Boston what he says 
"is a true story of the hanging of four murderers in Tucson, 
Arizona, early in September, 1873." He may have wit- 
nessed this incident on his way to Sonora. One of the vic- 
tims named Williss had been in jail for a year; the others 
had Spanish names, and the story of their crime and expia- 
tion reads like a dime-novel. It was published in Boston (a 
sample of Bourke's humor perhaps) with the black-type 
heading: "A Tucson Tragedy: a True Tale of Terror: 
Knights of the Green Cloth, and the Pawnbroker's Last 
Pledge." 4 

The single notebook of 1874 begins September 22 with 
a brief diary of a march from Camp Verde to San Carlos. 
Under date of September 25 he writes : 

Passed old Camp Reno on our R[ight] today, also 
two little streams flowing into Tonto Ck. from W. 
Passed a number of old Aztec ruins today. Exam- 
ined one and found it to be the remains of a temple 
"teocalli." An outer wall of rock had enclosed a 
house, having a court-yard, in center of which 
could still be discerned a three-terraced teocalli, 
with foundation of an altar (?) on top. An en- 
trance through the house discovered signs of an 
attempt at making arches . . . 

After arriving at San Carlos, he recorded : 

Indians had a big dance tonight . . . The con- 
dition of affairs on the San Carlos we found aston- 
ishing and gratifying. Indians present numbered 
875. All living in villages with regular streets, 
houses of brush 12' high, bunks elevated two feet 
above the ground. Every morning at 7 o'c. their 
villages are policed with the greatest care and 
every Sunday an inspection is made to see that no 

4. Under date of Sept. 5, 1887, Bourke pasted the newspaper clipping with the 
comment: "I wrote it while at Rockville, Maryland, last fall." 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 3 

garbage has been allowed to accumulate around 
their quarters, and that beds and blankets are 
clean. Indians are detailed each morning to work 
in fields, to make adobes and other employments 
for which they make good laborers. Average 100 
adobes daily to the hand. Are very happy and 
seem well fed. Scarcely any sickness. Under best 
of discipline. Governed with firmness and justice. 
Are very well behaved. Not at all insolent. Al- 
ways uncover the head when saluting a stranger. 
Credit for all this is due to Maj. Randall, Babcock, 
and Ward, also Lt. London. 5 Indian Agent Clum 
just arrived and has quietly adopted all the mili- 
tary rules of management. Seems a good man. 6 

Indians had a dance last night in honor of 
arrival of Gen'l Crook, with whom they held a long 
conference today. Santos, Juan-clishe, and El Cal 
being the speakers. Said they were now thor- 
oughly whipped and under General C's orders. 
What he said, they would do &c &c &c. Would 
work like white people and hoped they would have 
plenty of work, so they could get money to buy 
blankets. Wanted to live there always and if any 
Indians came there from other Reserves without 
passes, would make them go to the guard-house or 
would kill them as they had the other bad ones. 
Thought the bad ones were all dead now, at least 
all among them were. (Found all at S. C. [San 
Carlos] pleasant, affable gentlemen.) 

From here the command proceeded north to Camp 
Apache, arriving September 30 : 

Found at post Majors Randall and Babcock, Capts. 
Montgomery, Reilly, Lieuts. Rice, Dodge, and 
Pratt. 

A general count of the Indians took place 
today; over 1760 are present on the Reserve. A 
mild form of calenture prevails among this tribe 



5. Maj. George M. Randall had been placed in command at Camp Apache in the 
spring of 1873. 

6. John P. Clum was commissioned agent by the Department of the Interior in 
February, 1874, and arrived at San Carlos in August. See NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL 
REVIEW, III, 7. 



NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

during the present season. Indians all seem 
orderly and well-disciplined. Post in fine order. 
Scenery is beautiful. Maj. Babcock relieved from 
the Department today. News received by courier 
of our Indians from Camp Verde, under guide 
Zeiber, having killed 13 renegades. Three of our 
Indians killed in the fight. . . . 

The Apaches . . . seem to put a high estimate 
on the telegraph line, without, of course, under- 
standing its mode of operation. Last fall, while 
Pitone, Alchisay, and Uclenny were in Prescott, I 
sent a telegram from them to their friends on the 
Reserve, having it carried by courier from Tucson 
to this place [Camp Apache]. Greatly to their 
surprise, a party of their friends met them on the 
mountains outside of the post, anxious to see what 
truth there was in the mysterious message so 
quickly conveyed. . . Lieut, and Mrs. Rice leave 
here next week for Omaha via Santa Fe and Den- 
ver. Ogilby's and Worth's companies of the 8th 
Inf. may be with us tomorrow, in which case the 
General and myself will depart for Prescott by 
Tuesday, Randall's Company leaving on same 
day. . . . 

Two Apaches are confined in guard-house for 
attempting to cut off their wives' noses the pun- 
ishment among this tribe for conjugal infidelity. 
Major Randall is determined to put an end to this 
and other cruel and inhuman customs of the 
Apache nation. 

Many sincere friends of these Indians regret 
that the philanthropy supposed to actuate those 
intrusted with their charge is not superior to the 
mercenary influences of trade. The shrewdness 
and discernment of the savage are known to be 
great; for every departure from an established 
rule, their curiosity demands an explanation. Not- 
icing that every seventh day, the store at the mili- 
tary post was closed, they learned the day was 
"Domingo" or Sunday and an opportunity was im- 
proved of informing them this cessation from busi- 
ness was in obedience to the Almighty's commands 
and in His honor. But while such an interpreta- 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 5 

tion was of itself comprehensible enough, a collat- 
eral circumstances threw a shade of suspicion upon 
the integrity of the translation. The establishment 
at the Indian Agency under the supervision and 
control of the Agent himself, was and is still kept 
open for business every day without distinction, 
to the no small wonder of the aborigines incapable 
of appreciating the religious conversation of men 
whose actions assure the world filthy lucre alone 
is the object of their coming to Arizona. ... 

Gen'l Crook held a long conference with the 
Indians today. They asked for another agent, say- 
ing Mr. Roberts was a liar while Major Randall 
always spoke truth. We're glad to see Gen'l 
Crook and sorry to have Maj'r Randall leave. 
Hoped Major Ogilby would prove as good a com- 
mander. 

Been busy all day laying in supplies for our 
trip to the Moqui pueblos and the Grand Canon of 
the Colorado. 

Oct. 7th, 1874 (Wednesday). Left camp 
Apache at 9 A. M., accompanied by three Indian 
guides, "Mickey Free," Santos, and Huero . . . 
[At] 5 miles met 2 Go's of 8th Inf. under Lieut. 
Craig. . . . [At] 18 miles came to forks of road, 
right hand branch, N.N.E. to New Mexico . . . 
Mickey Free says tomorrow we shall camp on 
Shevelon's Fork, called by the Apaches Sin Lin; 
on Friday the Colorado Chiquito will be reached, 
and on Sunday the Moqui village of Oraybe . . . 

Oct. 8th. ... At Cooley's ranch, established 
last year, found good, comfortable adobe houses, 
and outbuildings and corrals of pine fencing. 
Crop this year consisted of 90,000 Ibs. barley. 
Stock numbered between 230 and 250 head . . . 

The party continued its march northward, Lieutenant 
Bourke as usual making his careful fieldnotes, accompanied 
by detail maps of the route followed. The chief interest in 
his record lies in the fact that it was his first visit to the 
Hopi pueblos and in his ethnological observations. A few 
years later he was to make a more extended study of this 



6 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

people and there are few details in this first record which 
he did not use in his later writings. 7 

Shortly after his return to Prescott, he made his first 
essay into the field of scientific writing with an article which 
he sent to the Daily Alta California in San Francisco. It 
was published with the heading, "The Moquis of Arizona : a 
Brief Description of their Towns, Their Manners and Cus- 
toms." 8 It reveals a wide familiarity with historical 
sources, including the voluminous government reports of 
Whipple, Beale, Ives, and Wheeler, but in this respect it 
has less value than in its ethnological data. Bourke was not 
in a position to verify or correct the historical vagaries and 
surmises of earlier writers, with the result that his state- 
ments as to historical facts are sometimes at fault. The 
value of his work, both historically and ethnologically, lies 
in the observing and interpreting of his own times. In the 
case of the Hopi pueblos this may be illustrated by a few 
quotations from the notebook and from the above newspaper 
article, supplementing the information which is to be found 
in his later publications. 

The squaws keep the interior of their houses 
creditably clean, but the streets are rather squalid, 
filled with garbage and emitting a perfume of pu- 
trid vegetation, drying meat, goats, sheep, donkeys 
[burros], manure, dogs, chickens, and other smells 
for which no name can be assigned. Coleridge 
might have come to the Moqui villages before stig- 
matizing the smells of Cologne. . . . Furnaces are 
to be seen, cylindrical holes one foot in diameter 
and 2 feet deep, lined with cement and used as 
ovens for baking corn. . . . 

Of the religion of the people we learned noth- 
ing, altho we saw in nearly every house painted 
pieces of wood marked with rude representations 
of the human figure, probably idols. . . . 



7. See various titles in the Bourke bibliography, NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW, 
VHI, 11-15. 

8. Bourke says that this was published as a monograph, but no such copy has 
been located. Doubtless the text was identical with that of the California newspaper. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 

Of the value of our money they could scarcely 
be made to understand an idea they knew well 
that with it in Santa Fe, Salt Lake City, and Pres- 
cott could be bought muslins and calicoes and pow- 
der, but of the worth to be assigned each note it 
was a matter of the greatest difficulty to make 
them believe anything. A bargain just concluded 
with them often was broken through their being 
displeased with some figure in the engraving. 
When a woman's figure formed part of the picture, 
success most frequently attached to our bargain. 
In trade they showed themselves more keen and 
we would have had no trouble in disposing of a lot 
of bright red flannel shirts at almost any valuation. 

One of the hardest duties a young officer can 
be called upon to perform is to purchase grain 
after dark from a set of rapacious, ignorant, one- 
sixteenth civilized savages and have to do this 
without the necessary small change, while the In- 
dians insolently ridicule as spurious any estimate 
of a greenback greater than a dollar. 9 

"Mickey Free," our Apache sergeant, proved 
equal as a trickster to any of his adversaries and to 
hear him expatiate with unblushing effrontery 
upon the almost priceless value of the paper money 
in his possession, one would think the knaves were 
not all dead yet. For two dollars he purchased bet- 
ter blankets than we could get for ten, and, more 
than that, the Moquis seemed to lie under lasting 
obligations to the young imp. 

Today [October 13] General Crook had a long 
talk with the Moquis, telling them they must cease 
commerce with all Apaches not on the Reserves, 



9. Some light is thrown on how the money difficulty was met by entries on the 
fly-leaf: 

"Oct. 12. Borrowed from Sergeant $1.60; Green 1.25; Cahill .25; Cahill 3.00, 
Scott $10. 

Oct. 13. General Crook borrowed of Hawes $20 ; of Cahill $5 ; of Mr. Lewis $2 ; 
and of Lt. Bourke 10, and of Scott $5." 

Oct. 16. Camp on Colorado Chiquito, paid Cahill $5 $3.25 being for himself 
and $1.60 for the men of the escort money borrowed Oct. 12th. This was done 
with the knowledge and consent of the Sergeant of the escort. 

Oct. 19. Camp on W. slope of San Francisco Mountain, paid Mr. Scott $10 bor- 
rowed from him Oct. 12. General Crook desired me to note he had borrowed 
$4 from Mr. Lewis Oct. 14th." 



NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

which they promised to do. Besides, they agreed 
to let us have 1,000 pounds of shelled corn at 4 
cents a pound in sacks; a very liberal deduction 
from the outrageous impositions of yesterday. 
They are also to give us a guide hence to Oraybe, 
their main village, and, if the General wishes, from 
there to the Colorado Canon. . . . Our Apache 
guides left us today to return to the Sierra 
Blanca. . . . 

. . . The village of Oraybe is now in a condi- 
tion of decadence and not perhaps as populous as 
the three visited yesterday. . . The supply of water 
is more ample and the soil seemingly more gener- 
ous; in every direction, look where you will, are 
forests of peach trees, the limbs of not a few break- 
ing down under their burden of the delicious fruit, 
upon which our hungry soldiers are now delight- 
edly feasting. Not even in New Jersey, Maryland, 
Tennessee, Michigan, or California, famed for 
their pomological productions, can be found fruits 
of better size for the table, more juicy or more 
grateful flavor than those lying on the ground 
about us in hundreds of bushels and which the 
squaws, in clusters of half a dozen, are engaged in 
drying on the sandstone benches on the southern 
side of the mesa. Probably thousands of pounds 
are at this moment exposed within a radius of 
three miles from camp. . . . The Indians here say 
there is a Mormon settlement on the line of tomor- 
row's march. . . Not being able to obtain a guide at 
Oraybe, General Crook was reluctantly compelled 
to return towards Prescott. . . The Moquis have no 
doors, no window-shutters, and no window-panes. 
In very cold weather warmth is afforded by closing 
dooorways with fur coverlids. 10 

. . . The Moquis are a thrifty, frugal and in- 
dustrious people one of the few native tribes 
which do not impose all the drudgery of domestic 
and outdoor labor upon the women. . . The wilder 
and nobler Apache and Navajo disdain the effem- 
inate Moqui, over whom their superiority must be 
conceded in every manly and barbaric virtue. 



10. Excerpts from the notebook of 1874. 





tfrJMM^PiSi 




BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 9 

Between Apaches and Moquis the contrast is 
striking; the former inured to the privations of 
nomadic life and darkened by constant exposure to 
the sun; the latter enjoying all comforts attainable 
by a people ignorant of the working of metals but 
enervated by an almost monastic seclusion and 
blanched by the protection of cool and lofty houses. 
The comparative fairness of the Moqui complexion 
has given rise to frequent remark, undiminished by 
encountering among them individuals of pure white 
skins, auburn hair and ruddy cheeks, correspond- 
ing to the Albinos of Equatorial Africa. They say 
that long ago these Albinos were numerous but 
are at present much reduced, probably not over 
fifty living in the entire nation. The other Moquis 
do not intermarry with them and the existence of 
a mutual contempt may be detected. . . 

To the archaeologist and ethnographer this 
peculiar people of the remote Southwest must, for 
a long time to come, furnish matter for reflection 
and discussion. Their habitations, manners and 
customs are today practically what they were when 
Cortez was "Marquis of Oaxaca," 350 years ago; 
and, if from their condition we may assume, as we 
have a right to do, a similarity in all respects be- 
tween them and the other nations of Mexico en- 
countered by the first Spanish adventurers, we 
must frame new ideas of the Aztecs whose ad- 
vanced civilization formed the theme of soldiery 
report and monkish story; the gorgeous palaces 
of Montezuma fade away and leave us villages of 
squalid stone tenements ; instead of a homogeneous 
and strongly cemented autonomy, we see a nation 
composed of many peoples, distrustful each of the 
other, indifferent to the maintenance of peace at 
home and impotent to resist aggressions from 
abroad. Historical iconoclasts have ere this alluded 
to Montezuma as a petty Captain, his Capital as 
a paltry and disorderly jumble of mud huts. The 
eloquence of Prescott has gilded the achievements 
of Cortez with the glamor of romance, but the com- 
ing generation may applaud the Spanish com- 



10 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

mander more for what he tried to do than for what 
he really won. 11 

Bourke expressed regret in his notebook that the party 
had been unable to visit the Grand Canon, but as they ap- 
proached the Colorado Chiquito river they passed through 
the Petrified Forest: 

For four miles the country was fine red sand, 
strewn with fragments of basalt, flint, and a va- 
riety of porphyry, base flint and crystals of red 
jasper of small size. Petrified wood could be seen 
in profusion, so nearly resembling fuel that had 
camp been made old soldiers would have been mis- 
led into raising it from the ground. At times the 
petrified chips, splinters, and blocks reminded us 
of the floor of a carpenter's shop. Trees petrified 
in the stump with stone branches lying near the 
parent stem were also passed but no silicified twigs 
were met with. 1 * 

So closes out the record of our brief stay in the 
country of the Moquis a nation interesting in 
many points as being one of the two or three main- 
taining the same domain today as they did when 
Cortez landed at Vera Cruz, and possessing all the 
industrial arts which can be acquired by a people 
unacquainted with the working of metals. While 
we have made the journey not without some profit 
and great interest to ourselves, it is not one to be 
repeated with advantage. Inhospitality, menda- 
ciousness, rapacity, and filth are not the qualities 
to contemplate which one cares to travel for 80 
miles across a desert without wood or grass and 
with only one watering place of importance and 
that one the stream on which we have made camp 
tonight, with current so turbid and sedimentary 



11. Excerpts from the Daily Alta California of Dec. 14, 1874. 

12. This comment is rather different from that with which, some years later, 
Bourke ended his article on "General Crook in the Indian Country" (Century Magazine, 
xli, 660) : 

"No better description of this great forest has ever been given than the one 
made by the first American trapper who visited it fifty years ago. 'Podners,' he 
said to his comrades on returning to Taos, New Mexico, for the winter, 'I seed a 
pewtrified forest of pewtrified trees, with their pewtrified limbs chock-full of 
pewtrified birds, a-singin' of pewtrified songs.' " 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 11 

that after bathing in it our faces and hands are en- 
crusted with red clay and sand. Everyone in the 
party rejoices at being once more across the line 
separating us from "God's country" where once at 
least each day can be found a pleasant spot for a 
bivouac alongside some purling stream or near 
some crystal spring. . . 

Our absence from Prescott has been, for all 
that, replete with much of interest and impor- 
tance. The operations of the military posts and In- 
dian reservations at Camps Verde, Apache, and 
San Carlos have been inspected ; the strange towns 
of the strange Moquis visited, and much scenery, 
good, bad, and indifferent, plain, mountain, fruit- 
ful field and arid desert, bubbling spring of crystal 
freshness and stagnant pool of slime and alkali, 
seen and experienced with varying sensations of 
pleasure or discomfort, but all alike laid away in 
the recesses of memory as episodes in one of the 
most pleasant trips of our military career. 18 



CHAPTER X 

FROM WHIPPLE TO SAN FRANCISCO 

March 12th, 1875. 1 General Crook received telegraphic 
notification from Adjutant General Townsend of his assign- 
ment to duty as Commanding General of the Department 
of the Platte, with Headquarters at Omaha : also congratu- 
latory telegrams from Major G. M. Randall, Colonel Cop- 
pinger and other officers of his old Regiment of the 23rd 
Infantry. Colonel A. V. Kautz, 8th Infantry, assigned to 
take command of the Department of Arizona, with his 
brevet grade of Major General. The above information, 
altho' anticipated for some time, caused no little excitement 
when officially conveyed to our little community of Fort 
Whipple. No one can doubt the affection entertained for 
Gen'l Crook by the officers and soldiers of his command and 
by their families; and altho with pleasure he accepts the 
new condition of things, he and his staff will leave with 

13. From the notebook of 1874. 

1. Beginning the Bourke notebook of March 12-April 25, 1875. 



12 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

many deep and unfeigned regrets the refined and hospitable 
circle of Fort Whipple and cherish with unalloyed affection 
reminiscences of the joyful days passed there. 2 

Mrs. Kautz, Mrs. and Miss Lynch, and Mrs. Thomas 
immediately concerted the necessary preliminaries for a 
complimentary Ball and supper to be tendered the General 
and staff prior to their departure. 

Nearly six years have dragged their sluggish course 
along since first I crossed the Rio Grande with a fresh com- 
mission and eager aspirations for glory: dear comrades 
have died, friends have come and gone, posts have been es- 
tablished and discontinued, yet still I have staid, apparently 
a fixture of the soil. But few other officers have had the 
good fortune to witness the operations carried on against 
the hostile Apaches, from their inception to their close 
and not one perhaps had the same opportunity of forming 
an acquaintance with this Territory and its people. Now 
to new scenes and to new acquaintances, the hand of Des- 
tiny carries us ; may they be as bright and as noble as those 
we leave behind ! 

March 13th, Sunday. Telegrams of regret received 
from Ewing, Collingwood, Nelson, Rockwell and other 
friends. 

Message sent to Major Ogleby, 8th Infantry, acquaint- 
ing him with the fact of the General's release from duty in 
this Dept. 3 Busily engaged all this day and the 14th in 
necessary preparations for our departure which will prob- 
ably take place on or about the 25th inst. Honorable Coles 
Bashford, Sec'y of State for Arizona, transmitted by tele- 
graph the resolutions of thanks to Gen'l Crook, his officers 
and men, for the noble services performed by them in Ari- 
zona, passed by the Territorial Legislature. 

Joint Resolution of Thanks to Gen. George Crook 
Be it resolved by the Legislative Assembly of the 
Territory of Arizona. That the thanks of the 
people of Arizona Territory are due and through 
their Representatives in the 8th Legislative Assem- 
bly are hereby tendered to that gallant soldier, 
Brigadier General George Crook, and the officers 



2. The next page holds a clipping from the Oakland (Calif.) Tribune, Mar. 12, 
which discusses Crook's transfer. 

3. Maj. Fred D. Ogilby had, it will be remembered, succeeded Randall at Camp 
Apache. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 13 

and men under his command for the noble services 
they have rendered this country in subduing the 
hordes of hostile Indians that had, until the advent 
of General Crook in our Territory held the country 
under a reign of terror and civilization in check. 
That we recognize the fact that the policy that Gen- 
eral Crook has pursued has been the means and 
the only means that could have effected the final 
grand achievement of peace within our Territory 
and immunity from depredations from the savages- 
Making war as he has, with vigor when war had 
to be waged and being merciful and just at all times 
to those in his power, he has not only commanded 
the respect but won the esteem of the savages 
themselves. 

That the Secretary of the Territory be instructed 
to transmit a copy these Resolutions to General 
Crook and to the Secretary of War and to all the 
papers printed in this Territory. 
Approved, February 12th, 1875. 

March 15th. The General Crook club rooms at Fort 
Whipple are being elegantly decorated for the Ball of next 
Tuesday [Weds.] evening: festoons of evergreens hang 
from the walls, while the ceilings are adorned with stars 
and wreathes of the same material. Over each window hang 
guidons and sabres and the regimental standards of the 8th 
Infantry, bearing the proud record of noble service, occupy 
the corners. Whether judged by the number of guests in- 
vited to participate or the elaborate nature of the prepar- 
ations made for the occasion, there is no reason to doubt 
that it will be one of the finest affairs ever known on the 
Pacific coast. 

A committee of prominent citizens of Prescott called 
upon Gen'l. Crook this morning, presenting a letter from a 
convention held last night at the Court House, asking that 
Gen'l. Crook hold a farewell reception to afford the great 
throng of his admirers an opportunity of manifesting their 
deep sense of his integrity, valor and ability as a true gen- 
tleman and soldier. 



14 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Prescott, March 16th, 1875. 
To Brig. Gen'l. George Crook, 

Headquarters Department of Arizona, 
Sir, 

At an informal meeting of a large number of 
citizens of Prescott and vicinity, when the subject 
of your early departure from our midst was dis- 
cussed, it was thought proper to say to you that, 
although you have been among us for nearly four 
years, although your services are as familiar as 
"household words," yet a large portion of our 
people have never met you personally and many 
indeed do not today know you by sight. 

The desire, therefore, to meet you is universal 
and it was decided to ask if you would set apart an 
evening when our people could see you, accompa- 
nied by your Staff, at the Court House in Prescott, 
take you by the hand, thank you for the peace our 
Territory enjoys and bid you good-bye. 
We are, General, 
Very Respectfully &c. 

( T. J. BUTLER 
Committee. ) C. P. HEAD 

( THOMAS CORDIS 

As the hour of our departure approaches, the scenery 
around Fort Whipple seems to grow more lovely, coquet- 
tishly adding new graces to the beauties we have known so 
long. Old Thumb Butte lifts his scraggy head above the 
general contour of the Sierra Prieta, which white with 
snow bounds our vista on the West and South ; to the North, 
San Francisco Mt'n wrapped in a mantle of virgin white, 
pure as the saint whose name it bears, looms up into a cloud- 
less sky, a noble landmark, one which will long hold a fond 
place in our memory. Even the pine trees on the hill-side 
grow more majestic as if they sought to entice us to stay. 

A sky of immaculate blue, a temperature serene as that 
of Italy and an atmosphere unruffled save by the softest 
Zephyrs, combine to make our last days at Whipple the 
most charming of those we have spent here. 

March 19th. The ground this morning is covered with 
a light drapery of snow and a bracing north east wind 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 15 

assures us that Winter has as yet no intention of relinquish- 
ing his Dominion over Northern Arizona. General Kautz's 
staff as thus far known will consist of Lieut. Thomas Wil- 
helm, 8th Inf., A. D. C. and Adjutant General and Lieut. E. 
D. Thomas, 5th Cav., A. D. C. and Engineer Officer. Invi- 
tations for the Farewell Ball, of Wednesday evening next 
are now issued ; one may be seen on the foregoing page. 

A list of invited guests and a programme of the dances 
will be found over the leaf. The extracts herein contained 
are clipped from the editorial columns of the "Arizona 
Miner," of March 20th, 1875. 4 

A prominent decoration in the ball-room is to be seen 
above the heads of the musicians; it consists of a large 
golden star, nearly covered with a wreath of evergreen, 
inside of which, surrounding a portrait of the General, may 
be read the legend in German text, "Arizona's best friend." 

March 20th. Turned over Engineering property to my 
successor, Lieut. E. D. Thomas, 5th Cav. 

March 22nd. General Crook relinquished command of 
the Department this morning in orders, General and Special, 
hereto appended. 

General Kautz assumed control, issuing General Orders, 
No. 8, in which his staff is announced. 5 

Many invited guests arrived to-day, which fact, added 
to the bustle incident to the transfer of the Head Qrs., im- 
parted an air of decided activity to Fort Whipple. 

Lieutenants Powell, Loshe, Pitcher (8th), Carter, 6th 
Cav., Captain Porter, 8th Inf., Colonel Nelson, U. S. A., 
Colonel and Mrs. Mason, 5th Cav., Major and Mrs. Bray- 
ton, 8th Inf., were among those reaching Hd. Qrs. on this 
date. 

March 23rd. The complimentary reception tendered 
General Crook by the citizens of Prescott in the name of the 
people of Arizona, took place to-night at 7 o'clock, in the new 
brick building known as Hatz's Restaurant. All of the 
officers and ladies stationed at and visiting Fort Whipple 
were conveyed to town in ambulances belonging to the Q. M. 
Depot, and for a short time the hum and rattle of wheels 
bore a faint resemblance to Broadway. Upon coming to 
town, the party was received by a delegation from the main 



4. The list of guests fills three pages ; and three more hold clippings from Ari- 
zona papers. 

5. The first of these is countersigned by Bourke, the second by Thomas. 



16 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

committee on reception and headed by the 8th Inf. band 
proceeded to the place of convention. Here upon an ele- 
vated, carpeted dais were seats for General Crook and 
Kautz and their respective staffs ; nearest the stage, rows of 
arm-chairs were devoted to the use of the great number of 
ladies present whose bright toilettes were admirably set off 
by the dark clothing of the surging mass of male humanity 
behind them. 

Behind the platform and above it a canopy formed of 
the national standard made a simple and becoming decora- 
tion to screen the hero of the occasion. 

Above the arm-chair in which General Crook took his 
place, hung his portrait embowered in evergreen and en- 
closed in the words, "Firm, Just, Brave, True." 

Mayor Luke, chairman, then addressed the General as 
follows : 

"In the name of the people of Prescott, I welcome you, 
General Crook, the hero of Arizona ;" and afterwards pre- 
sented to the audience Hon. John A. Rush who, in a telling 
speech, expressed the sentiment of regret of the people of 
Arizona to learn of Gen'l Crook's assignment to new fields 
of duty. The reply, made by the General was terse, em- 
phatic, full of feeling and productive of round after round 
of applause. In succession remarks were then made by 
General Kautz, Captain Nickerson, Lieut. Bourke and 
others, those of Nickerson being especially good and finely 
delivered. 

Telegrams were read to the audience expressing a sym- 
pathy of views and a coincidence of regrets on the part of 
the towns of Tucson, Yuma, Phoenix, &c. The entire audi- 
ence, numbering considerably over 300, now came forward 
in single file to shake the hands of General Crook and his 
staff, it was certainly a deeply suggestive scene this spec- 
tacle of merchant, miner, artizan, farmer and laborer, strug- 
gling forward to bid God-speed to the man they had learned 
to love as their Savior and Deliverer. 

Probably never in the history of our Union has such a 
spontaneous ebullition of feeling been witnessed on the fron- 
tier. Everything about the affair betokened the earnest- 
ness with which the citizens had entered into it, all seeming 
to feel they were saying Farewell to one who had been not 
merely a soldier executing orders but a friend truly devoted 
to their welfare. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 17 

An abundance of champagne, distributed among the 
guests, exhilarated them for the enjoyment of dancing, and 
to the notes of the fine band many couples were soon whirl- 
ing in the mazes of Lancers and Waltzes. About 10 :30 p. m. 
General Crook, Gen'l Kautz and their staffs with the guests 
from Whipple withdrew. 6 

March 24th. The farewell hop of this night was one of 
the grandest successes I ever knew. Whether in the decora- 
tions, the arrangements of the room, the good order of the 
dances, the excellence of the music, the elaborate toilettes of 
the ladies and the fine uniforms of the officers, or, finally, 
the perfection of the supper in all respects, the affair was 
beyond criticism and beyond description. More citizens 
attended this entertainment than any other given at 
Whipple during my residence. A separation did not take 
place until 2 a. m., of the 25th. Upon the walls were in- 
scribed complimentary expressions of good-will towards 
General Crook and the members of his personal staff depart- 
ing with him. The supper, comprehending every article of 
diet to be procured for love, labor or money, would have 
done honor to Delmonico's, while the savory dishes became 
ten fold more appetizing when presented with so much affec- 
tionate good-will. 

N. B. The supper at this party was prepared under 
the personal supervision of Mrs. Kautz, Mrs. Wilkins, Mrs. 
Small, Mrs. Thomas, and Mrs. Aldrich, who had just cause 
to feel proud of their grand success. 

March 25th. A sad day of parting, perhaps to meet no 
more until the Earth and the Sea shall give up their dead. 

By invitation, I breakfasted with General Kautz, Mrs. 
Kautz, and General Crook. The other guests were Miss 
Kitty Hitchcock and Captain Porter, 8th Infantry. After 
breakfast, escorted by a numerous and dazzling retinue of 
ladies, officers and citizens in vehicles and on horseback, 
General Crook, Captain Nickerson and family and myself 
left Fort Whipple at 9 o'clock, and took the road to Fort 
Mojave. 7 Miss Carrie E. Wilkins very courteously drove 
me in her phaeton to the rendezvous (near the Burnt 
Ranch about five miles from Prescott.) appointed for the 

6. Bourke here inserted clippings from the Arizona, Citizen, Mar. 27 and the 
Arizona Miner, Apr. '26. 

7. The attention of the reader is here called to the route taken to reach Omaha, 
Nebraska. 



18 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

final exercises of Farewell. A sky of immaculate blue, 
mountain scenery sweet beyond compare, a temperature of 
celestial serenity were the auxiliaries giving additional 
brightness and beauty to the gala array of carriages, horses 
and people drawn up on the summit of a little flat knoll in 
the center of which the departing guests took station. Cham- 
pagne and other stimulants were soon in generous circula- 
tion and after a few moments' desultory conversation, Gen- 
eral Kautz called the assembly to order and in a speech re- 
plete with wit and good points, bade an affectionate fare- 
well to the late Department Commander and staff and 
wished them new honors in their new fields of duty. 

Shaking hands for the last time now followed and amid 
the sobs of the ladies and tears of the sternest men this mel- 
ancholy duty was at last accomplished. Over 125 people 
were on the ground . . . 8 

A runaway team of horses broke the elegant carriage 
of Major Wilhelm, seriously injuring as was first thought, 
Mrs. Wilhelm; but, fortunately, only a slight fright was 
experienced. 

Old San Francisco reared his snowy head above the 
scene looking majestic as an ancient king; one last fond look 
at the snowy crowned monarch of the Sierras, one last 
fonder, more lingering look at our beloved friends and, amid 
uproarious cheers for General Crook, Captain Nickerson 
and Lieut. Bourke, we shook from our feet the dust of the 
Aztlan and commenced our journey to the land of the Daco- 
tahs. Another star gleams in the horizon of the future. 9 
Camped at old Camp Hualpai. 37 miles. 

March 26th. Moved to Willow Springs 45 m. 

March 27th. Moved to Beales Springs 40 m. 

March 28th. Moved to Mo j a ve (Fort) 36m. 

These days' marches were without any special incident ; 
on the 26th, we met at Anvil Rock, General Morgan and 
Lieut. Savage returning from General Court Martial duty 
at Mojave. Received a letter from Captain Byrne, 12th 
Inf. 10 As we approached Mojave, the weather grew very 



8. Bourke names many of these; and follows with two pages of clippings from 
the Arizona Miner, Apr. 27. 

9. Here Bourke has sketched an epaulette showing two stars ! Crook was com- 
missioned a brigadier general Oct. 29, '73, and did not become a major general until 
Apr. 6, 1888. 

10. Capt. "Tommy" Byrne is already known to the reader. He should not be 
confused with Capt. "Jimmy" Burns. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 19 

warm and our faces were badly burned in the sun. The 
banks of the Colorado were fringed with cottonwood and 
willow trees in full bloom and far as the eye could reach the 
sinuous course of the turbid stream which connects our new 
Department with the old could be traced. 

At the fort, an old-time hospitality awaited us; Capt. 
and Mrs. Thompson, Lieut. Allen, Dr. and Mrs. Lawrence, 
Mr. Ben Spear, Mr. Paul Breon, Mr. Charles Schroeder and 
some others had assembled to greet us on our arrival. The 
Battery belched forth its salute of (13) thirteen guns, after 
which an elegant dinner was served at the residence of Capt. 
Thompson, the post commander. To-morrow, Easter Mon- 
day, March 29th, we are to cross the Colorado river, ascend 
the mountain known as Pi-Ute Hill and begin our journey 
across the desert of Southern California. 

Easter Monday, March 29th. Transferred our heavy 
wagons across the Colorado river at day-break; partook of 
an elegant breakfast with the Thompsons and received the 
farewell greetings of a number of friends with whom we 
exchanged pledges of champagne. About 9:30 started for 
the Ferry and were soon being pulled across the river by the 
sturdy arms of Mojave Charons; u when on the Nevada side, 
one of our mules becoming frightened made a rush over- 
board and in doing so impaled himself upon one of the heavy 
iron bolts on the side of the vessel, tearing a gash in his 
breast about two inches in diameter and six in depth. This 
accident occasioned some delay but we were soon climbing 
slowly up the steep grade of the Eastern slope of the Pi- 
Ute Mountains : twelve miles out from Camp Mojave, passed 
the boundary monument between Nevada and California, 
making two states and one territory within whose limits we 
had been in one day; i. e. Arizona, Nevada and California. 
Descending this mountain range on the other side, our 
course lay across a barren, rocky and sandy plain for nearly 
12 miles when we reached Pi-Ute Springs, a beautiful little 
jet of water in a rift of barren hills. The stone buildings 
and corrals here were constructed as a picket station by the 
9th Infantry in bygone days. Water is forced from its 
bed by a small hydraulic ram, in fine working order. 
Through the courteous consideration of Capt. Thompson, v;e 



11. To those familiar with the Colorado river at that point and with the Mohave 
Desert beyond, this metaphoric allusion to the River Styx and the ferryman to Hades 
will not seem incongruous. 



20 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

were overtaken shortly before getting to this point by a 
courier with a copy of the latest number of the Arizona 
Weekly Miner, with an account of the ceremonies incident 
to the General's departure. Extracts from it are inserted 
also the valedictory editorial of the "Arizona Sentinel." 
Heard last night and to-day that the Companies of the 12th 
Inf., now in Arizona, are to be removed and the posts on the 
river now occupied by them garrisoned by companies from 
the interior of Arizona. 

To-day the wind blew bitter cold from the north-west. 

Tuesday, March 30th. A long, uninteresting drive of 
forty (40) miles to Marl Springs, through a country barren 
and devoid of picturesque adornment, with no vegetation 
save the wild date, cactus, Spanish Bayonet, soap-weed and 
artemesia; with rugged masses of Basalt, piled like Ossa 
upon Pelion in grand relief with the arid desert below. 
Lunched midway on the journey at Rock Springs. Found 
Marl Spring station a little "dug-out" excavated in the side 
of a mountain marl; the joists supporting the roof were 
gnarly branches of the stunted mountain cedar peculiar to 
this section; the thatching was formed of the leaves of the 
wild date palm and limbs of various species of cactus. 

The thorny plants indigenous to Southern California 
and Arizona had been brought into requisition to constitute 
railings and fences for the corrals and other appurtenants 
of the house. 

In the "dug-out" proper, a small den, in dimensions 15 
by 20 feet, served as a sitting room, general sleeping apart- 
ment and bar-room. On one side some sacks of barley were 
piled up ready for issue and sale to passing teams; on the 
other, a counter provided with a small decrepit pair of Fair- 
bank's scales, was the only ornament. Behind this arranged 
on a set of weak-minded shelves, were a few cans of peaches, 
tomatoes and peas ; yeast-powders, sardines, candles, heavy 
shirts, pickles, matches, cigars, and tobacco, in promiscuous 
confusion and perhaps not aggregating in value $200. 

Dismal as this place was, it yet parodied the functions 
of a mecca to weary prospectors who hied from the adjacent 
hills to learn at the "station" the latest news or what passed 
for news with these poor people. 

Who had "struck it rich" in the Greenwood; whose 
drift had "got in on" the "pay streak;" what Scotty Smith's 
ore was probably worth to the ton; were "things lively" 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 21 

down to Cerbat; who was running- the station at "Sody," 
why Wallace "got shot" and how in lazy continuity, the 
talk drifted slowly along from meridian until far after sun- 
set. 

The raiment of the miners was as monotonous as their 
conversation; cow-skin boots, old patched pants, coarse 
woolen shirts and hats which had a look of having been born 
second-hand. 

Yet to these hardy prospectors our nation is largely 
indebted for much of its material development and prosper- 
ity on the Pacific coast; the mines of Washoe, Arizona, 
Pike's Peak, Boise, and Panamint owe their discovery to the 
very class of men whose colloquoy and appearance are re- 
ferred to in these pages ; seldom do any of the poor wretches 
make money, like straws on the wave of a fast-advancing 
civilization they float along helplessly until they strand 
forever on some barren shore and become an example and 
a mockery to the children growing up in the mining towns. 
Sometimes, one more fortunate than his comrades will man- 
age to sell at a fair figure mineral ledges he has "prospected" 
and "located;" and then for a brief carnival the dissolute 
and depraved run riot with his hard-earned gains ; when the 
last dollar has gone, with no companion save a pack mule 
and dog, no fortune except a pannier or two of provisions, 
a pick, shovel and horn-spoon, away from the glittering 
lamps and squeaky music of the faro-banks which stand to 
him as the semblance of an alluring civilization, away to the 
desolate plains and rugged mountains, descending gloomy 
canons or slowly climbing dizzy precipices, away, restless 
as the Wandering Jew, until the sharp twang of the 
Apache's bow brings rest to the weary feet or until, worse 
fate, old age shall surprise him decrepit and almost imbecile, 
despised as a suppliant by the same gin-mills which trace 
their first prosperity to his old-time prodigality. 1 * 

March 31st. The character of country remained un- 
changed, except that during forepart of the day, wild date 
palms were much more numerous than at any other time on 
the trip. The last six or seven miles of the thirty-six 
passed over to-day led us across the dry bed of a dry lake, 
known as "Soda Lake," about seven miles in average width 
and nearly thirty in length. The painful, snowy whiteness 

12. Another clipping from the Arizona Miner (Apr. 9) comments on "Sheridan, 
Crook, and Kautz." 



22 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

of this vast mineral deposit unrelieved by a single stem of 
vegetation, prepares the mind for the information that from 
this point Northward runs "Death Valley," where no liv- 
ing creature exists, and where not infrequently prospectors 
and travellers have perished for want of food and water. 
According to Lieut. Wheeler's (U. S. A.) calculations this 
station of Soda Lake is 200 feet below sea level. A bubbling 
spring of crystal water springs to the surface near the door 
of the house; experienced travellers avoid its use as, being 
impregnated with soda, it has the effect of a drastic purga- 
tive. As a detersive, nothing can be imagined better, al- 
though it slightly corrodes the skin. 

This station consists of (2) two good adobe houses with 
shingle roofs and a stone kitchen. 

At this station, we found a very curious and entertain- 
ing "record" book of the arrivals at the station ; the follow- 
ing will better serve to convey an idea of the scope and 
character of the volume than a more extended description : 

"Tuesday, Mar. 5th, Drunken Irishman, Two Mexicans, 
broncos, Dutchman same who was here last week, Judge 
Dixon, Dr. Sawyer, a teamster, two miners unknown, Sam 
Patterson." 

April 1st. Marched through very deep sand to Camp 
Cady, 36 m., requiring 14 hours for the journey; observed 
along route how the sand blasts had carved and fashioned 
the hardest rocks into fantastic shapes. Lunched at "the 
caves," in a low, narrow box canon of the Mojave River. 
Deep gashes and cracks in the rocks about indicate the 
action of earthquakes. Country very barren; nearly desti- 
tute of wood, water and grass. Found Camp Cady an old 
government post of adobes, rather dilapidated and rapidly 
going to ruin. 

April 2nd. Made a rapid march of 40 miles over an 
improved country to the "Cottonwoods," where, finding the 
road to Bakersfield impracticable for heavy wagons, Gen'l 
C. changed his intention and determined to move direct to 
Spadra, the terminus of the R. R. Lunched this a. m. at the 
"Fishponds," 20 miles out; the character of our food on this 
trip has been excellent. The liberality of our kind-hearted 
friends at Prescott and Fort Whipple has kept us supplied 
with champagne, claret, whiskey, brandy, turkey, chicken, 
cake and other delicacies grateful to the weary and hungry 
traveller. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 23 

Slept this night under the "ramada" ; had a feline con- 
cert I cannot soon forget. An old tom-cat whose body be- 
yond a doubt contained the soul of Rossini or Mendelsohn 
set up a most infernal squalling at foot of my bed and at 
end of each piece would retire behind a cottonwood pillar 
evidently to compose some new symphony as we could hear 
him run through the gamut of all the Cat music since the 
days of George Washington. My sleep for this reason was 
slightly impaired. 

Saturday, April 3rd, 1875. Moved to Freer's Ranch 
38 miles ; for first 20 miles, line of travel lay through a for- 
est of date palms, afterwards belts of scrub juniper. Prog- 
ressing Los Angelesward, the houses and farm buildings 
improved greatly in appearance with each mile of way. 

Sunday, April 4th. When we awoke this a. m., a heavy 
sea-fog overspread the whole face of the country, obscuring 
the Cucamongo and San Bernardino Mountains near by, 
which we saw yesterday covered with snow. The pass in 
which this ranch is situated is called Cajon Pass and 
through it the R. R. to Arizona is to be built. 13 Passed along 
through a tributary, gorgeous in emerald green tapestry, 
variegated with countless wild flowers. The adjacent fields 
covered with green and russet were lighted up by the rays of 
the morning sun, straggling through the now fast dissipat- 
ing clouds. Farmhouses on every side, showing every evi- 
dence of thrift and comfort, vineyards with thousands upon 
thousands of vines; orange, apple, peach, English walnut 
and olive trees and bee-hives by the hundred were to be 
viewed on either hand. At 10 a. m. passed the "Cucamongo" 
ranch, renowned for the fine grade of wine there manufac- 
tured. The road was most excellent and our vehicles thun- 
dered along with the velocity of a R. R. train. At 12:30 
p. m. reached Spadra, the terminus of the R. R. running E. 
from Los Angeles. Found it a collection of hastily con- 
structed houses, grog-shops &c., tenanted by R. R. employees 
and evincing signs of life, greatly different from the quiet 
apathy to which we had become accustomed in Arizona. 

That evening, General Crook and staff and a small 
party of friends dined at Ruebottom's. 

Monday, April 5th. A short ride on the R. R. brought 
us to Los Angeles, and carried us through the heart of semi- 
is. Not until the spring of 1881 was rail connection with the East completed 
through southern Arizona and New Mexico. 



24 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

tropical California. The egotism and inclination to boast- 
ing of the Calif ornians now seemed pardonable and justi- 
fiable as we were called upon to contemplate the magniiicent 
vista of fields, glowing in purple, green and gold with a 
background of sun upon the deeply-scarred flanks of the 
mountain ridges. Vineyards, alternating with orange 
groves and bordered by fields of alfalfa which stretched to 
the limit of vision, well-constructed ranches, great herds of 
cattle and droves of sheep, spoke in praise of the substan- 
tial wealth of the country, while the noble old Mission 
Church of San Gabriel, reaching its buttresses to within 
50 yards of the iron rails appealed to men to devote some 
little care to the accumulation of treasure not of this world. 
The rich haciendas of Shorb, Wilson, Stoneman and others 
lined the way and prepared us in some measure for the 
bright little city of the Angels, in whose streets to-day mad 
speculation and legitimate business distract the attention 
and almost banish the recollection of the fact that its foun- 
dation in 1781, by the Spaniards, was the extension of the 
Catholic religion among the neighboring tribes of abori- 
gines. The hospitality of the gentry of Los Angeles is al- 
ready proverbial ; in their treatment of Gen'l Crook's party, 
the old reputation of the community was fully sustained. 11 
The same evening, we started by rail to San Fernando, 
31 miles ; thence by stage to Bakersfield ; the "San Fernando 
cut," 156 feet deep, 400 yards long, through a ridge or 
stratum of indurated clay and sand is a dangerous pass, 
just admitting one team at a time, and is a favorite resort 
for the robbers lurking throughout Southern California. 
Old Fort Tejon, now known as Beale's Springs * is a situa- 
tion deserving of a more general reputation for beauty, 
salubrity and value. Nestling in among lofty snow and pine 
clad mountains, many little bubbling brooks find their way 
from the rocky fastness across the grassy turf and among 
the clumps of oak trees which almost hide the buildings. As 
our vehicle slowly drove through its limits, ourselves and 
companions forgot in the enjoyment of the moment the 
bitter cold of the night previous and the petty discomforts 
inseparable from all stage travelling. 

14. The Los Angeles Express, Apr. 6, carried an interview with General Crook 
which here fills six pages. And many other clippings of this approximate date are 
scattered through the subsequent notes. 

15. Not to be confused with the Beale's Springs 43 miles east of Fort Mojave. 
See N. M. HIST. REV., IX. 183. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 25 

Taking cars at Bakersfield, a journey of 18 very pleas- 
ant hours terminated in San Francisco, where we found 
excellent quarters in the Lick House, famous the world over 
for its beautiful dining room, decorated elaborately with 
scenic illustrations of the mountains, lakes and coast of the 
state of California. A run of visitors now commenced, leav- 
ing General Crook no time to do anything but receive calls 
from the prominent business men, politicians and army offi- 
cers of the city of San Francisco as well as a goodly repre- 
sentation of those from the whole Pacific Coast. Invitations 
to dinners, receptions, parties and other entertainments 
came in such numbers that an acceptance of them all would 
have prolonged our stay to weeks instead of days. At the 
residence of A. E. Head, we were the recipients of a compli- 
mentary dinner, more gorgeous in its appointments than 
any at a private mansion I have ever seen. The officers of 
the U. S. A., stationed at Angel Island, invited us to a 
matinee, memorable from the throng of beautiful and re- 
fined young ladies there found assembled. Visits to the 
Opera ("Girofle-Girofla") to the Theatre and Minstrels, 
and dinner parties with various friends made our evenings 
pass like a summer cloud. During the day, scores of old 
friends and scores of new came flocking in to congratulate 
the General on his new assignment and express earnest 
wishes for his complete success in his new field of service. 18 



16. The (Yuma) Arizona Sentinel of Mar. 20th quoted the following "Wash- 
ington gossip" from the Alta California: 

A Washington correspondent tells a nice little story about Mrs. General Crook 
who recently passed some weeks at the Capital. She is very desirous of having 
her husband transferred from Arizona where the climate is telling upon his health, as 
she says. At a recent entertainment the President (Grant) was promenading with 
Mrs. Cook, when she ventured upon a plea for her husband. The President answered 
her by saying that General Crook was too valuable where he was to be exchanged to 
any other post, and added: "He serves his country so much better when his wife is 
with him that you will have to return." 

Mrs. Crook was a Miss Daly of Winchester, Virginia, and was captured by her 
husband just after the celebrated battle in which he acted so conspicuous and brave 
a part. She is very handsome and sprightly, so she saucily answered the President by 
telling him that her husband was a greater General than he or Sheridan ; "for," she 
said, "it only took him two hours to reconstruct me, and, after ten years' trial, you 
and Sheridan have failed with the South." The President got even with her at their 
last meeting, when she asked: "Am I really to take that long journey through the 
Indian country to rejoin my husband?" "No," he said; "I am going to send General 
Crook to Alaska, and you can join him at San Francisco." 

Mrs. Crook has had nine happy years with her husband and is as proud of his 
military record as if she had never needed reconstruction. 



26 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

CHAPTER XI 
EASTWARD THROUGH UTAH 

With vivid recollections of the ovation tendered the 
General by his numerous warm friends on the Pacific coast 
and escorted by a delegation of admirers, our transconti- 
nental journey began at Oakland at 6 a. m. of the 13th April. 

Governor Pacheco of California met the General at 
Sacramento, in a very hearty and kindly manner, presenting 
some prominent gentlemen who had accompanied him to the 
depot. One of them, Major George B. Sanford, 1st Cavalry, 
U. S. A. 

At Ogden, Utah, the disagreeable news was borne 
across the wires of the break in the U. P. R. R. near Green 
river, caused by the unexpected floods which the melting of 
last winter's heavy snows had occasioned. 

We now turned S. on the Utah R. R. going to Salt Lake 
where General J. E. Smith and his officers were awaiting 
General Crook at the R. R. depot and conducted himself and 
staff to the Walker House, one of the two prominent hotels 
where quarters had been prepared for them. After dinner, 
we were driven to the post of Camp Douglass, 3 miles from 
town and 700 feet above it. Here we found the garrison of 
6 companies and Hd. Qrs. of the 14th Infantry, pleasantly 
situated in regard to everything except officers' quarters 
which were very inferior and very old. 

General Crook was called upon by all the officers and 
their families and was also honored by a salute according 
to his brevet rank: after witnessing dress-parade, we re- 
turned to our hotel in town. 

Salt Lake has been so much written about and so 
greatly studied that perhaps it is better understood than any 
of our cities on the frontier and a diffuse description of it 
is not necessary in this place. We found it a community of 
some 20,000 people, mostly professing with more or less 
fervor, the polygamic tenets of the "Church of Latter Day 
Saints of Jesus Christ/' called generally "Mormons." The 
situation of the town in contiguity to the Great Salt Lake 
and on a barren alkali flat is most unpromising but the pa- 
tience and skill of the religious fanatics making the first 
settlements have overcome many almost insuperable obsta- 
cles and made the desert truly to bloom as a rose. The streets 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 27 

are 80 feet wide, with canals full of running water on either 
side and shade and fruit trees in abundance around all the 
dwellings and in front of them. The manufactures of the 
vicinity are yet feeble, but promise very valuable results in 
time : salt can be obtained from the lake water in the won- 
derful ratio of 1 to 4 ! Woolen goods of very excellent tex- 
ture are produced in quantities sufficient for all domestic 
demands. 1 

Two fine hotels, the Townsend House and the Walker 
House, the first a Mormon, the second a Gentile establish- 
ment, afford accommodations of no mean order to weary 
travellers. The Walker House is provided with hot and cold 
baths, electric bells, gas, first class Billiard rooms, new car- 
pets and furniture and all the modern conveniences. 

April 16th. General Clauson, so styled, son-in-law of 
Brigham Young, Colonel Hooper, formerly delegate to Con- 
gress, and other representative men of the Mormon commu- 
nity paid their respects to General Crook and gave him a 
message from President Young, asking him to visit the head 
of the Mormon Church at his residence, the Lion House; 
Mr. Young offered as an apology for not first calling upon 
General Crook the increasing burden of his years and the 
remembrance of a gross insult offered him when last at the 
"Walker House." Accordingly, under escort of the gentle- 
men mentioned, General Crook and staff proceeded to the 
"Lion" or "Bee" House, a structure irregular in plan, but 
vast in size, built of stone and surrounded by a close of con- 
siderable area; the wall, bounding the precincts is of con- 
crete, defended by buttresses of the same material. Over 
the main entrance, a lion couchant is seen and on the very 
apex of the building, a golden beehive, emblem of intelligent 
industry, adopted by the Mormons as one of their symbols, 
attracts the notice of the passer by. This building serves, 
among other purposes, as the residence of many of Brig- 
ham Young's wives or concubines, but his favorite harlots 
have special domiciles alloted for their use. "Amelia's" 



1. A clipping follows from the Army and Navy Journal, April. 24, 1875, 
to which Bourke had evidently sent copies of the Arizona Miner. The latter is 
quoted: "Since General Crook must go away, we are pleased to know that General 
Kautz succeeds him, instead of a stranger to this Department. Arizona is a slumber- 
ing volcano, so to speak, that is liable to break out into a state of eruption at any 
moment, and it will require a steady hand. . .in case of another upheaval, to keep from 
getting scorched by the red-hot fire and brimstone that the Apache Devil knows so 
well how to stir up." 



28 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

house, inhabited by the youngest and prettiest of his harem, 
is built according to the latest Chicago touch, with Mansard 
roof, bay windows and projecting balconies. A portion of 
the "Lion" house is laid off for use as Offices of various 
kinds and in one of these, the main reception room, Brigham 
Young awaited General Crook's approach, surrounded by 
the Grand Council, the Apostles, Elders and other dignita- 
ries of his sect. The meeting was cordial and interesting 
and endured long enough to afford me an opportunity of 
noting what was important or valuable for future reference. 
Portraits of the long line of Mormon bishops ranged about 
the walls gave the room the semblance of a cheap picture 
gallery; the artistic execution of these paintings was very 
inferior and spoke very forcibly of the artist's want of talent 
in his art or the homely traits of the dead and gone rulers of 
Zion ; in general, the shrewd, penetrating sensual and cold- 
blooded looks of these believers in the text of Moroni in- 
spired the observer with repugnance and disgust; the same 
aspect of low cunning, lechery, avarice and grasping ambi- 
tion, combined with some share of practical business tact 
can be discerned in the faces of Brigham Young and his 
living associates. 

Brigham Young in age is 75, corpulent of body, massive 
in frame and yet very bright intellectually. Animal pas- 
sions strongly marked in countenance and evidently a man 
of no common character, but, as I think, has no faith in the 
creed he inculcates as the only means of salvation. All the 
Mormon leaders are in manners plausible and in conversa- 
tion insinuating; their courtesy to officers of the Army sta- 
tioned among them is very marked ; from motives of policy, 
they avoid a conflict with the military forces, not perceiving 
apparently that a more insidious and more deadly agent 
than War has already seized upon the throat of their power 
and is quietly but surely and rapidly suffocating it. The 
Pacific R. R. has effected a greater revolution in Utah than 
100,000 soldiers could have done in the time elapsed since 
its completion [in 1869]. Mormonism with its salient fea- 
ture, polygamy, can exist only in the isolation of our Great 
Western Solitude and this seclusion once rudely broken in 
upon by the iron messengers of a nobler civilization and 
more exalted religion, the disciples of Smith and Young, 
unable to find new deserts, unacquainted with more secluded 
fastnesses must submit to a destiny of dispersion and ex- 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 29 

tinction. If in twenty years, the vast edifices erected by this 
singular religion yet stand, it will be among an assemblage 
of unsympathizing and cynical antagonists jealous of the 
presence in their midst of the smallest vestige of the creed 
that but lately ruled the valleys of Utah. 

The Mormons profess a belief in the Holy Bible and in 
the text of a supplementary book written or engraved on 
sheets of copper by Moroni, represented as an angel of God ; 
yet neither of these volumes commands the respect accorded 
the "revelations," dictated by God to his chosen people by 
the mouths of his duly designated Apostles. These "revela- 
tions" are varied and comprehensive in character, ranging 
from a decision upon questions of dogma to counsels in mat- 
ters of business; Grace and Green Groceries, Religious re- 
generation and Railway management, Architecture and 
Growth in Holiness curiously mingle and alternate in the 
Fatidical [prophetic] enunciations with which Brigham 
Young regularly edifies the devout and regales the skeptical. 
The Mormons adopting the keystone of Catholic teaching 
Submission to authority carry the doctrine of Blind Obedi- 
ence from Religion to Politics and Commerce; the church 
prescribes, and proscribes; what article of Faith shall be 
believed and what article of merchandise shall be patronized 
come equally within the jurisdiction of the Bishops, whose 
domination now somewhat impaired is yet of great potency. 

Every street corner has its store bearing aloft the sign 
of a human eye, surrounded by a cabalistic symbol ; 



Z. C. M. I. 

Holiness to the Lord. 

(eye) 
Cheap Dry Goods 

and 
Groceries. 

Z. C. M. I. = Zion's Co-Operative Mercantile Institute. 

To these establishments, the pious Mormons wend their 
way, buying and selling one to the other that trade may as 
far as possible be kept from the hands of the Gentiles. 

Nevertheless some of the mercantile firms of strongest 
standing, are conducted not alone by Gentiles but by seced- 
ers from their own Faith. The House of Walker Bro's, 
doing an annual business of millions, bears the name of 



30 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

young men who have openly defied the authority of Brigham 
and the church. 

Little can be said of polygamy except reprobation, and 
scorn; the women who knowingly submit to a condition of 
concubinage in a Christian country would maybe have be- 
come prostitutes in the absence of such a religious dispen- 
sation; yet there are among the Mormon women examples 
of keenness and intelligence and in my own conversation 
with them I was not favored with any confidential outbursts 
against the degrading, soul-destroying influences by poly- 
gamy such as enliven the pages and chapters of books and 
treatises by travellers generally. 

The Mormons claim, and the claim must be allowed, 
that by their unaided energy they have overcome obstacles 
such as no other settlers in our 'midst have ever had to en- 
counter, making what once was the most frightful solitude 
of the Great American Desert blossom as the rose. Their 
city is a glorious exponent of the powers of man and ranks 
high in the list of corporations to be noted for careful drain- 
age, good ventilation, abundance of foliage, well-arranged 
gardens and common-sense dwelling houses. The equability 
of the climate, the charm of the majestic mountain scenery 
near by, the abundance and cheapness of fruit, vegetables 
and all articles of diet and the present accessibility by R. R. 
promise a bright and happy future for the valley of the 
Great Salt Lake when the objectionable religious feature 
shall have been eliminated. 

The noble ranges, snow clad from January to Decem- 
ber, known as the Wahsatch and Oquirrh Mountains hem 
in the valley on R. and L. and from their ore-seamed flanks 
have already commenced to yield rich returns in silver, iron 
and copper, a bright harbinger of the metallic harvest Utah 
will furnish the world after better development. 

Salt Lake City has but few buildings of note and none 
of much beauty. 

All tourists are expected to visit the Tabernacle, as the 
cathedral of the Mormons is called; here courteous attend- 
ants will always be found to escort and inform visitors. Its 
ground plan is an ellipse with transverse and conjugate di- 
ameters of 250 and 125 feet. 40 feet above floorings, the 
red sandstone walls give support to the trusses and struts 
bearing the ellipsoidal wooden roof, 68 feet from the upper 
extremity of its vertical conjugate axis to the planking 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 31 

below and 77 feet from the wooden shingles on the exterior 
to the same point. Any glowing anticipation of architec- 
tural elegance is brusquely dissipated upon seeing this 
enormous stone mud-turtle, for such it resembles ; the build- 
ers sacrificed all aspirations after a beautiful ideal to the 
more important demands of ventilation, acoustics and ca- 
pacity. 

Fifteen thousand can be placed within its walls, most of 
the audience can be seated and in case of fire the broad 
doors, placed not more than 25 feet apart insure the safety 
of the vast multitude worshipping there on solemn occa- 
sions. The peculiar mathematical configuration of the 
buildings causes every note of the organ, every sentence of 
the preacher and the words of the singer to be heard with 
a refreshing and unusual distinctness in all parts of the 
edifice. 

The organ,- claimed to be the 2nd largest in the U. S., 
and the 4th or 5th largest in the world is 48 feet from ped- 
estal to crest of pipes, of which it now has 2300, with the 
intention on the part of the Mormon authorities to augment 
this number to 3200 as soon as possible: it will then be 
worked by hydraulic power. 

During our visit, workmen were inside the organ, busy 
in its repair ; one of the elders of the church courteously in- 
vited us to go inside the vast instrument and for a few min- 
utes we moved about amid immense pipes of all sizes and 
tones. This instrument's especial merit is the mellowness 
and depth of its tone and simple beauty of its external ap- 
pearance. 

The Mormons declare themselves very proud of a pro- 
duction from their own resources, erected by their own 
people. 

Upon gala days, this tabernacle is adorned in great 
profusion and not always in good taste with flags, banners, 
standards, evergreen wreaths and festoons; this occasions 
an odd architectural innovation in the hundreds of holes 
bored in the ceiling and walls the use of which is a problem 
of difficult solution until the guide explains that through 
them ropes and cables are passed to sustain the scaffolding 
the workmen must use in getting the necessary decorations 
into position. 

On the spandrels of the arches supporting the galleries 
were affixed mottoes, some of which I write from actual 



32 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

transcript: "Obedience is better than Sacrifice," "Suffer 
Little children to come unto me/' "We thank thee, God, 
for a prophet!" "Keep your armor bright," "God bless our 
teachers," "The kingdom of God or nothing," "Honor thy 
father and mother," "Praise the Lord, Hallelujah," "Glory 
to God in the Highest," "The Pioneers of 1847," "Be temper- 
ate in all things," "Utah's best crop, children," &c. &c. &c. 

This building, first commenced in 1864, was completed 
in 1867; an average of 300 workmen being employed on it 
for that time. 

Near the tabernacle, a temple of very imposing charac- 
ter is in course of erection in granite of fine crystallization 
brought from near the "Emma Mine." In elevation it is 
almost a reproduction of Westminster Abbey. 2 

The Mormons say all this labor has been in sequence of 
plans submitted to Brigham in a "revelation" by an Angel : 
the celestial visitant's knowledge of architecture is worthy 
of much commendation. 

The hotels of Salt Lake, the "Walker" and "Townsend" 
Houses, already mentioned, are very carefully conducted, 
and rarely fail to give satisfaction to all who may visit them. 
During our stay, the "break" on the R. R. caused many pas- 
sengers, anxious to escape the inconveniences of an enforced 
detention at Ogden, to imitate our example and seek the 
more pleasant accommodations of the Mormon capital. Each 
hotel was crowded to its utmost and in a spirit of rivalry 
which pervades every principle of their management, the 
respective proprietors, gave a number of very enjoyable 
little hops, participated in by a majority of the guests from 
each establishment. The Townsend House is supported by 
Mormon capital, its rival representing the moneyed interests 
of the Gentile population. At the former house were met 
many young ladies belonging to the principal families of 
Brgiham Young's church : one of them, I was informed, was 
the 28th daughter in a family. Very little social intercourse 
is maintained between the conflicting religious elements 
peopling the valley of Deseret ; both parties seem anxious to 
conciliate the good-will of the military authorities, who in 
turn are very careful not to incline, in their official relations, 
toward either side. 



2. In San Francisco and in Salt Lake City Bourke secured a number of photo- 
graphs of the buildings and scenery of which he writes, and these were inserted in 
his notes, together with numerous clippings from those cities and from Omaha. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 33 

The great evening drive of Salt Lake is to the military 
post of Camp Douglass, at the hour for band practice and 
dress-parade. The level, hard-beaten drive of 3 miles from 
town to the post is fairly lined with vehicles, filled with 
ladies, gentlemen and children. Around the parade-ground, 
at the time of our second visit to the Camp, between one 
hundred and two hundred conveyances of every character 
were ranged, the occupants listening with appreciation to 
the band's rendition of operatic airs. The animation of this 
regular evening scene is a very marked and agreeable inci- 
dent in the daily routine of garrison life at Camp Douglass. 

After band practice followed dress-parade of the 6 com- 
panies stationed at the post : Major Bryant, 14th Inf., con- 
ducted the manoeuvres. In a pleasant evening breeze, blow- 
ing from the Lake, the spectators rapidly sought their way 
back to their homes in town. 

Salt Lake claims one of the most elegant and complete 
buildings for banking purposes in the United States ; unfor- 
tunately, the bankruptcy of Jay Cooke & Co. involved those 
concerned in the Western enterprise and caused a suspen- 
sion of business in this concern, a very handsome edifice, ar- 
ranged interiorly with what looked more to me like atten- 
tion to the comfort of the bank directors than to the securitv 
of deposits to them confided. 

Tesselated pavements, counters of rich black and white 
marble, surmounted by a railing of bronze and walnut, with 
windows of cut glass; heavy chandeliers of bronze, lofty 
ceilings very handsomely frescoed a ' 'directors' room," 
furnished in red morocco and oiled oak, carpeted without 
consideration of cost this grandeur and luxury will now 
make a poor recompense to depositors whose hard-earned 
moneys will be withheld from them forever or at best during 
the whole tedious process of liquidation. 

From Salt Lake to Ogden and from Ogden to Omaha, 
our travels were one succession of delays due to the unpre- 
cedented snows of last winter having been very suddenly 
melted by the great heat of an early spring; in places for 
200 miles, the track of the U. P. R. R. was washed away or 
had sunk in the soft yellow clay lining the banks of Green 
River and its affluents. Much trouble was experienced in 
providing sleeping-car accommodations for the pent up 
humanity anxious to escape from confinement; finally, our 
train started with its load and after a journey of five in- 



34 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

stead of two days reached our destination. Our passengers 
determined to make the best of a bad bargain; as we had 
all been previously acquainted with each other or with com- 
mon friends of long standing, we became sociable more 
rapidly, even than is the rule on the Overland road. 

Our party comprised: General George Crook, U. S. 
Army; Captain A. H. Nickerson, U. S. A., A. D. C.; Mrs. 
A. H. Nickerson and little daughter, Florence; Cutter Mc- 
Allister, Esq., and Miss J. G. McAllister, San Francisco; 
Chico Forster, Esq., Los Angeles; W. B. Hellman, Esq., 
and family, Los Angeles ; Thomas Mott, Esq., Los Angeles ; 
Archibald Colquhoun, Esq., London, Eng. ; W. B. Lyon, Esq., 
Los Angeles; Mrs. Keeney, Albert Morrow, Esq., J. C. 
Stubbs, Esq, and Mrs. Stubbs, all of San Francisco ; and the 
writer. 

At Laramie city, General I. N. Palmer, U. S. A., Colonel 
2nd Cavalry, comd'g the post of Fort Sanders, met General 
Crook on the train and as we slowly passed the post, the 
band, drawn up in line played a few complimentary strains, 
acknowledged as best we could by waving of handkerchiefs 
to the officers (Clarke and Fowler) in charge. 

At Cheyenne, Gen'l Reynolds, Colonel of the 3rd Cav- 
alry, awaited General Crook's coming. Among the officers 
with him we saw many old familiar faces and found our 
hands warmly grasped by friends we had known in the 
troublous days in Arizona. 

The next day, April 25th, our congenial party broke 
up, the Gen'l and his staff remaining in Omaha, the others 
going by various lines East and Southeast to New York and 
Saint Louis. Scarcely had we been shown to our rooms in 
the Grand Central Hotel when the notes of the "General 
Crook March," played by the band of his old regiment, the 
23rd Infantry, broke upon the air and a long line of Offi- 
cers, most of whom had served under General Crook from 
British America to Mexico, filed up the main stairway 
headed by the soldierly figure of Colonel R. I. Dodge. Our 
long journey fittingly and delightfully terminated in a warm 
welcome from old comrades whose bread and blankets we 
had so often shared on crag and in canon, across mountains 
and desert in the glorious days of the long ago. 

Lieut-Col. R. I. Dodge, Lieut, and Adjutant Charles 
Bird, Lieut, and R. Q. M. W. F. Price, Lieut. F. Dodge, Cap- 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 35 

tain 0. W. Pollock, Captain Charles Wheaton, Lieut. P. 
Broderick, Lieutenant 0. L. Wieting, and Lieut. Lockwood 
were among those of former Arizona acquaintance, who at 
this early opportunity paid their devoirs to the new Com- 
mander of the Dep't. General Brisbin, 2nd Cavalry, Cap- 
tains Eagan and Wells, Lieuts. Allison and Sibley of the 
same regiment were among the new friends met at this time. 
A full and very accurate description of the complimentary 
reception tendered by the Merchant's club, in behalf of the 
people of Omaha, will be found herein, extracted from the 
pages of the local journals. 

The next morning, General Crook assumed command 
of the Department of the Platte and announced the members 
of his staff ; 8 nothing of importance in the Department could 
well be transacted until after consultation with Lt. Gen'l. 
P. H. Sheridan, to see whom Gen'l Crook went, May 1st, to 
Chicago, taking me with him. 

As will appear later, General Phil Sheridan was to be 
the one chiefly instrumental in the return of Bourke to the 
Southwest in 1881, under special assignment to continue his 
ethnological research. 

(To be continued) 



3. This announcement was dated at Omaha April 27. Captain Nickerson and 
Lieutenant Bourke were continued as aides-de-camp. 



PUEBLO NAMES IN THE ORATE DOCUMENTS 
By F. W. HODGE 

EVERY student of Spanish-Indian contact in the South- 
west from the time of Bandelier, covering a period of 
more than half a century, has been beset by the confusion 
of Pueblo Indian names occurring in the chronicles as pub- 
lished in the Pacheco y Cardenas Coleccion de Documentos 
Ineditos, Madrid, 1864-1884. Of these none certainly have 
been more perplexing than the names referred to in the 
documents concerning the Ofiate conquest and colonization 
in the last years of the sixteenth century, especially the 
"Treslado de la posesion que en nombre de Su Mag* tomo 
Don Juan de Onate de los reynos y Provincias de la nueba 
Mexico y de las obediencias y Vasallaje que los yndios de 
Algunos pueblos de los dichos Reynos y Provincias le Dieron 
en el dicho nombre" (1598) and "Discurso de la Jornada y 
Camino que desde la nueba espana hizo el Campo de Su Mag* 1 
A la nueba Mexico," both of which are printed in Volume 
XVI of the work cited. 

As every one knows, the Pacheco y Cardenas Coleccion 
is replete with inaccuracies, while the misprinting of proper 
names is notorious. To prevent further error so far as 
possible (for the names of tribes and settlements are by no 
means always easy to read), I venture to correct those that 
are printed in the two documents, and also in a partial du- 
plicate of one of them which includes only the Obediencia 
y Vasallaje of the Province of Zuni. In the first of these 
especially many corrections are necessary. It is not expected 
that much information respecting the application of all the 
names appearing in the "Treslado" can be added, for when 
Onate assembled the representatives of various pueblos at 
Santo Domingo on July 7, 1598, and also took the vows of 
obedience and vassalage of the remaining pueblos later, his 
evident aim was to include by name every settlement of 

36 



PUEBLO NAMES IN THE ORATE DOCUMENTS 37 

which any of the Indians had knowledge, with the result 
that various pueblos were repeated in the varying languages 
of the informants, hence a worse jumble would be difficult 
to imagine. To make confusion worse confounded, the 
scribes who copied the documents for the Pacheco y Carde- 
nas Coleccion were often extremely careless, and that the 
printers were not always paragons of accuracy we may be 
sure. 1 

In the following every effort has been made to insure 
accuracy by examining with care photostat copies of the 
original documents cited in which the names occur, in the 
hope that future students may avoid the pitfalls to which 
others have been subjected. In the not distant future it is 
hoped that these and other documents pertaining to the 
Onate colonization may be published in full, a hope that will 
probably be realized sooner or later in publications of the 
Quivira Society. 

All the Indian or pseudo-Indian names will here be 
noted, the first being those as they appear in the printed 
Coleccion, followed by the names, in Italics, as given in the 
manuscripts, and by brief explanatory notes when neces- 
sary. 

Abbo, A bo. The well-known Piro pueblo east of the Rio Grande which 

became the seat of San Gregorio mission in 1629. 
Abo, see Abbo. 

Acacagua. Evidently the same as Acacagui. See Accafui. 
Acacagui, see Accafui. 

Accafui, Acacagui. An unidentified Tigua pueblo. 
Acogiya, Acotziya. Apparently a fusion of Aco (Acoma) and Tziya 

(Tsia or Sia). 

Acoli. Evidently a Tigua or a Piro pueblo east of the Rio Grande. 
Acolocu, Acolucu. Probably one of the Tigua pueblos east of the Rio 

Grande. 

Acoma, see Yacco. 
Aggey, Aggei. Evidently a Tigua or a Piro pueblo east of the Rio 

Grande. 



1. For example, in the caption of the "Treslado" the copyist or the printer gives 
us "Judios" for Indios, and in the "Discurso" the date 1526 is given for 1596. 



38 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Aguatuyba. Mentioned by error as the name of a Hopi "captain" in- 
stead of the pueblo of Awatobi. 

Aguicobi, see Aguscobi. 

Aguiuocobi, see Aguscobi. 

Aguscobi, Provincia de Zuni. The "province" of Aguscobi is men- 
tioned in the manuscript in the words "Pueblo de Aguiuocobi, 
Provincia de Zuni," but spelled Aguscobi in the printed text as 
before. The pueblo is later given as Aguicobi. This was the 
Zuni pueblo of Hawikuh. 

Alipoti, Olipoti (?). A Keres pueblo. 

Alle. Evidently a Tigua or a Piro pueblo east of the Rio Grande. 

Amaxa. Evidently a Tigua or a Piro pueblo east of the Rio Grande. 

Amo. A Piro pueblo on the east side of the Rio Grande. According 
to the list this would seem to have been the southernmost pueblo 
on that side of the river. 

Apena, Apona. Evidently a Tigua or a Piro pueblo east of the Rio 
Grande. 

Apona, see Apena. 

Aponitre, Aponitze. Apparently a Piro pueblo on the east side of the 
Rio Grande. 

Aponitze, see Aponitre. 

Aquiabo, see Aquicabo. 

Aquicabo, Aquiabo. Apparently a Piro pueblo on the east side of the 
Rio Grande. Bancroft (Ariz, and N. Mex., 135) misprints it 
Aquicato. 

Aquima, see Aquinsa. 

Aquinsa, Aquima. The Zuni pueblo of Kiakima. 

Ategua, see Atepua. 

Atepua, Ategua. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio Grande. 
Bancroft (Ariz, and N. Mex., 135) misprints it Atepira. 

Atica, see Ytriza Atica. 

Atripuy. A province consisting of forty-two pueblos, apparently 
Piro, on both sides of the Rio Grande, which were the last settle- 
ments on the river going southward. Mentioned also (Atzigues) 
as a pueblo of the Jumano in the region of the Salinas east of the 
Rio Grande. 

Atuyama. Given with Chein as two Tigua or Piro pueblos in the 
print, but in the manuscript the names appear as Atuya, Nya- 
chein (or Mdchein). 

Atzigues, see Atripuy. 

Awatobi, see Aguatuyba. 

Axauti. A Tigua or a Piro pueblo east of the Rio Grande. 



PUEBLO NAMES IN THE ORATE DOCUMENTS 39 

Axol. A Tewa pueblo, possibly the same as Axoytze, given as a Tigua 
settlement. 

Axoytre, Axoytze. Given as a Chiguas (Tigua) pueblo. See Axol. 

Aychini, Cuchin. An unidentified pueblo. Compare Atuyama. 

Ayqui. A Piro pueblo on the east side of the Rio Grande. 

Ayquiyn, Ay-quin. A pueblo of the Trios or Tzios (Tzias, Sia ?). 
Mentioned also under the form Ayquian (Ayquim). Perhaps con- 
fused with Ayqui, given as a Piro settlement. 

Baguacat, Xutis. These two names in the printed document appear 
in the manuscript in the single form Baguacatxuti. The pueblo 
is not identified. 

Bove, Bone. The name of the Tewa pueblo of San Ildefonso (Sant 
ylefonsso) as recorded. 

Caatri, Catro. A Jemez pueblo. In the manuscript list the name 
is spelled Caatzo, followed by Catzoho. Unidentified. 

Caatzo, see Caatri. 

Cachichi. Probably a form of Katishtya, the pueblo of San Felipe. 

Calciati. Apparently a Piro pueblo on the east side of the Rio Grande. 

Camitre, Camitze. Given as a Chiguas (Tigua) pueblo. 

Camitria, Camitza. A Tewa pueblo the ruins of which Bandelier 
claimed to have found in Rio Arriba county. Compare Camitre 
and Comitre, which may be the same, although given as a Trios 
(Tzios, Sia) pueblo as well as a name for San Felipe. See also 
Castixes. 

Camitza, see Camitria. 

Canabi. The Zuni pueblo of Kyanawe or Kechipawan. 

Canocan. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio Grande. 

Cantemachuc, see Cantensapue. 

Cantensapue, Cantemachuc. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio 
Grande. 

Castixes, Castixe, "called Sant Philipe and Comitre" (Comitze). 
Castixes is the Spanish form of Katishtya, the native name of 
San Felipe (called Kacht'ya at Laguna). See Camitria; Comitre. 

Catroo, see Caatri. 

Catzoho, see Caatri. 

Caypa, Sant Joan. The Tewa pueblo of San Juan. 

Ceca. Mentioned as a Jemez pueblo in the second printed list and 
the second manuscript list. In the first printed list it is mis- 
spelled Lecca, and in the corresponding manuscript it appears 
to be Cecca. 

Chealo, Chealo. Probably the group of Tigua pueblos east of the Rio 
Grande. Bandelier believed it to be the pueblo of Chilili, but in 
the documents it is given as a province. 



40 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Chein, see Atuyama. 

Cherechos. The Queres (Keres) ; probably confused with Querechos, 
the Apache of the Plains, as Cheres also is given. See Hores. 

Cheres. The Keres or Queres; misprinted Hores, q. v. 

Chiguas. The Tigua. 

Chiu, see Dhiu. 

Chochiti. The pueblo of Cochiti. 

Cienega de Carabajal. A Tano pueblo (Tewa name Tziguma) in the 
valley of the Rio Santa Fe 12 miles southwest of Santa Fe. 

Cizentetpi, see Cuza. 

Coaqueria, Coaquina. The Zuni pueblo of Kwakina. 

Cochiti. The Keres pueblo of that name. 

Cohuna, see Couna. 

Comitre, Comitze. The pueblo of San Felipe. Bandelier thought 
Comitre to be an error for Tamita, the name of the mesa at the 
base of which San Felipe originally stood, but Comitre, it is seen, 
is an error for Comitze. The name is given also as that of a 
Trios (Tzios or Sia?) pueblo. See also Castixes. 

Comitze, see Comitre. 

Couna, Cohuna. A Tigua or a Piro pueblo east of the Rio Grande. 

Cuanrabi, Cuaurabi. A Hopi pueblo; probably the result of a mis- 
understanding of the name, unless intended for Walpi, which is 
not otherwise mentioned. It is not Oraibi (see Naybi). 

Cuchin, see Aychini. 

Cueloce. Probably the same as Quelotetrey (Quellotezei), a Jumano 
village. 

Cumaque, see Zumaque. 

Cunquile. Apparently a Piro pueblo on the east side of the Rio 
Grande. 

Cunquilipinoy. Erroneous fusion of Cunquili and Pinoe, apparently 
the names of two Piro pueblos on the east side of the Rio Grande. 

Cutzalitzentegi. A Tigua or a Piro pueblo noted in the manuscript, 
but in the print it appears as two pueblos, "Cuza" and "Cizen- 
tetpi." 

Cuza. Given as a Tigua or a Piro pueblo, but in the manuscript this 
and "Cizentetpi" appear as Cutzalitzentegi. 

Cuzaya, Cuzaya. Probably one of the Tigua pueblos east of the Rio 
Grande. Bandelier believed it to be Quarai. 

Dhiu, Chiu. A Tigua or a Piro pueblo east of the Rio Grande. 

Emmes, Ernes, Emmes. The Jemez. 

Emxa, see Encaquiagualcaca. 

Encaquiagualcaca. Mentioned in print apparently as a Piro pueblo 
on the east side of the Rio Grande, but in the manuscript it is 



PUEBLO NAMES IN THE ORATE DOCUMENTS 41 

found to be a misprinting and fusion of the names of two pueblos, 
Emxa and Quiaguacalca. 

Esperiez. Mentioned as a Hopi pueblo, but an evident error; perhaps 
a misunderstanding of the name of a headman as that of a 
pueblo. On this point see Aguatuyba. 

Fia. Given as a Jemez pueblo. An error for Tzia, which appears in 
the second printed list as a part of "Mecastria." In the manu- 
script it forms part of "Quiameca Tzia," spelled "Guiameca Tzia" 
later on. It was evidently Sia, the Keres pueblo. 

Fiapuzi. Given as a Jemez pueblo in the first printed list; in the sec- 
ond it is hidden in "Trea, Guatitruti"; in the manuscript lists it 
appears as "Tziaguatzi.Tzyiti" and "Tzea. Guatitzeiti" (?). The 
name (or names) is inextricably confused. Fiapuzi is followed by 
Triyti, seemingly two pueblos, with which compare those here 
given. 

Galisteo, see Glisteo. 

Genobey. A Jumano pueblo. 

Glisteo, Galisteo. The Tano pueblo which Onate names Santa Ana. 
Not to be confused with the Keres pueblo of Santa Ana. 

Guatitruti, see Fiapuzi; Tryiti. 

Guayoguia. Listed as one of the Jemez pueblos, but, like the others, 
inextricably confused. In one of the lists the first part of the 
name is the last part of Yxcaguayo or Yjar Guayo, and the sec- 
ond part of Guayoguia is the first part of Quiameca or Guiameca 
(Quiamera as printed). 

Guayotri. Guayotzi. A Tigua pueblo; possibly Wasotse, the Keres 
(Cochiti) name of Sandia. 

Guiameca, see Quiamera. 

Guipui, Quigui. "Which is this said pueblo of Santo Domingo." The 
present Keres name of Santo Domingo, according to varying 
dialects, is Djiwi (Laguna), Tyiwa (Cochiti), Kiwa (San 
Felipe), Tiwi (Acoma), T'wiwi (Santa Ana). 

Halonagu. The Zuni pueblo of Halona (the gu evidently intended for 
kwin, the locative). 

Hawikuh, see Aguscobi. 

Henicohio. Apparently a Tigua pueblo; mentioned with Puarai 
(Puaray). 

Hohota, Hohota, Yhohota. A Tigua or a Piro pueblo east of the Rio 
Grande. 

Hopi, see Mohoce. 

Hores, Cheres. The Keres (Queres). 

Jumano, see Xumanas. 



42 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Junetre, Junetre. Probably one of the Tigua pueblos east of the Rio 
Grande. Bandelier believed it to be Tajique, although there was 
an early Tewa pueblo of the same name. 

Juni, Tzuni, Zuni. The pueblos of the Zuni. 

Kechipawan, see Canabi. 

Keres, see Cherechos; Cheres. 

Kiakima, see Aquinsa. 

Kyanawe, see Canabi. 

Leeca, see Ceca. 

Macaqui. The Zuni pueblo of Matsaki. 

Machein, see Atuyama. 

Matsaki, see Maaequi. 

Mecastria. Given as a Jemez pueblo. A confusion of the last sylla- 
bles of Quiamera and Fia in the printed copy. In the manuscript 
we find Quiameca Tzia and Quiameca Tzia. Tzia is Sia. 

Mohoce, Mohoqui, Mohuqui. Identical with Moqui, or Hopi. 

Napeya. The Tigua pueblo of Sandia; from the native name Nafiat. 

Naybi, Oraybi. A Hopi pueblo. 

Nueva Sevilla, Nueba Seuilla. A Piro pueblo, identified with Sevilleta. 

Nyachein, see Atuyama. 

Ohaha, see Ojana. 

Ojana, Ohaha (?). A Tano pueblo south of the hamlet of Tejon in 
Sandoval county, according to Bandelier. 

Oraybi, see Naybi. 

Paaco, Paaco. Bandelier believed this to be the Tano pueblo of San 
Pedro, south of the mining camp of that name in Santa Fe county. 

Paniete. Given as a pueblo in the print, but the manuscript reads "de 
los pueblos de poniente. . ." 

Pataotrey, Pataotzei. A Jumano pueblo. 

Peccos, Pecos, Pecos. The well-known pueblo of that name. 

Peecheu, see Pelchiu. 

Peeguey, see Preguey. 

Peequias, see Pesquis. 

Peixoloe, Peixoloe. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio Grande. 

Pelchui, Peecheu. Mentioned with other Keres pueblos, including 
Tamaya (Santa Ana) and Yacco (Acoma). 

Pencoana. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio Grande. 

Penjeacu. A piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio Grande. 

Pequen. A pueblo of unknown affiliation, but possibly Pecos, called 
Peku at Sandia and Isleta, Peahko at Santa Ana, Peakuni at 
Laguna. 

Pesquis, Peequias. A Piro pueblo on the east side of the Rio Grande. 

Peytre, Peydoe. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio Grande. 



PUEBLO NAMES IN THE ORATE DOCUMENTS 43 

Piamato. Given as a Chiguas (Tigua) pueblo; unidentified. See 

Xiomato, mentioned as a Tewa pueblo. 
Piaqui, Piaque. A Chiguas (Tigua) pueblo. Bandelier thought it to 

be possibly identifiable with Pahquetooai, a traditional village of 

the Tigua of Isleta. 

Picuries, Picuries. The Tigua pueblo of Picuris. 

Pilopue, Pilopue. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio Grande. 
Pinoe. Apparently a Piro pueblo on the east side of the Rio Grande. 

See Cunquilipinoy. 
Piomato, see Xiomato. 
Pipen, see Poxen. 

Polooca, Poloaca. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio Grande. 
Popen, see Poxen. 
Potre, Potze, see Poze. 

Poxen, Popen (?), Pipen (?). A Tigua pueblo; mentioned in connec- 
tion with Puarai (Puaray). 
Poze, Potre, Potze. A Jemez pueblo. In two places in the manuscript 

the spelling is Potze. 

Preguey, Peeguey. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio Grande. 
Preguey. A Piro pueblo on the east side of the Rio Grande. 
Puaray, Puarai. A Tigua pueblo, noted in history. 
Pueblo Quemada. Either a Tano pueblo, known as Tzenatay, at the 

site of La Bajada, 20 miles southwest of Santa Fe, or a Tano or 

Tewa village, also known as La Quemada, 6 miles southwest of 

Santa Fe. 
Pura. Given as a Tigua pueblo, evidently identical with Puaray 

(Puarai), which is mentioned in the same connection. 
Qualacu, Qualacu. A Piro pueblo on the east side of the Rio Grande, 

mentioned in the Discurso as next to the most southerly settlement 

on that side of the river. In the list of pueblos assigned to Fray 

Juan Glares, however, evidently in order from north to south, 

Qualacu is followed by Texa and Amo. 
Qualahamo, see Tecahanqualahamo. 
Quanquiz, Quauquiz. A Tigua or a Piro pueblo east of the Rio 

Grande. 
Queelquelu, Quelquelu. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio 

Grande. 

Quellotezei, see Quelotetrey. 
Quelotetrey, Quellotezei. A Jumano pueblo. 
Quelquelu, see Queelquelu. 
Quemada, see Pueblo Quemada. 
Quiaguacalca, see Encaquiagualcaca. 



44 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Quialpo. Apparently a Piro pueblo on the east side of the Rio 

Grande. 
Quiamera, Quiameca, Guiamecd. A Jemez pueblo. See Guayoguia; 

Mecastria; Yxcaguayo. 
Quiapo, Quiapo. Apparently a Piro pueblo on the east side of the 

Rio Grande. 
Quigui, see Guipui. 
Quiomaqui, Quiomaqui. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio 

Grande. 
Quiotraco, Quiotzaco. Mentioned as a Tewa pueblo, possibly the same 

as Quioyoco. 

Quioyaco, Quioyoco. An unidentified Chiguas (Tigua) pueblo. 
Quipana, Quipacha. A Tano pueblo located by Bandelier south of the 

hamlet of Tejon in Sandoval county. 
Qui-Ubaco, Qui Ubaco. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio 

Grande. 
Quiusta. A Jemez pueblo, possibly identical with Giusiwa, the seat 

of San Diego mission. 
Rayados, Rrayados, see Xumanas. 
San Cristobal, see Sant Xupal. 
Sandia, see Napeya. 
San Gabriel. The Spanish name of the Tewa pueblo of Yukewingge 

at the mouth of the Rio Chama. 
San Joan Batista, Sant Joan Baptista. The Tewa pueblo of San Juan, 

named San Juan de los Caballeros by Ofiate. 
Santa Ana. The Keres pueblo of that name, which still exists. Native 

name Tamaya. 

Santa Ana, Sta Ana, see Glisteo. 
Santa Clara. The Tewa pueblo of the same name. 
Sant Chripstobal, Sant Xpoual. Important Tano pueblo between 

Galisteo and Pecos; native name Pant-ham-ba, according to 

Bandelier. 

Sant Joan, Sant Juan, see Caypa. 
Sant Joan Baptista, Sant Juan baptista. Probably a Piro pueblo at 

the site of Sabinal. 
Sant Marcos. A Tano pueblo, at which some Keres seem also to have 

lived, 18 miles southwest of Santa Fe. Native name, Kwakaa. 
Sant Phelipe, see Castixes. 
Sarai, see Xalay. 
Sevilleta, see Nueva Sevilla. 



PUEBLO NAMES IN THE Off ATE DOCUMENTS 45 

Sant Xupal, Sant Xpoval, Sant XpouaU The Tano pueblo of San 
Cristobal. 

Sant Ylefonso, Sant ylefonsso, the Tewa pueblo of San Ildefonso. 

Sant ylefonsso, see Bove. 

Sia, see Tria, Trios. 

Tamaya. A Keres pueblo belonging to the province of Trias (Tzias, 
Sia) ; identified with Santa Ana, the natives of which call it 
Tamaya. The name appears also as Tamy in the documents. 

Taos, Taos. The well-known Tigua pueblo. See Tayberon. 

Tayberon, Tayberin, A name applied to the Tigua pueblo of Taos. 

Tecahanqualahamo. Mentioned as a pueblo, evidently of the Piro, on 
the west side of the Rio Grande. In the manuscript, however, the 
two pueblos of Tecahan and Qualahamo are given. 

Teeytraan, Teeytzaan. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio 
Grande. 

Tegualpa, Tegwalpa. Probably one of the Tigua pueblos east of the 
Rio Grande. 

Teguas, see Tepuas. 

Teipana, see Teypama. 

Tepuas, Teguas. The Teiva. 

Tercao, Tercao. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio Grande. 

Texa. A Piro pueblo on the east side of the Rio Grande. 

Teyaxa. A Piro pueblo on the east side of the Rio Grande; probably 
Tajique? 

Teypama, Teipana, Teypama, Teypana. A Piro pueblo on the west 
side of the Rio Grande, named Socorro by Onate. 

Tigua, see Chiguas. 

Tipoti. Mentioned with Keres pueblos; possibly the name of an in- 
dividual, as all the Keres pueblos of the period are otherwise ac- 
counted for. 

Tohol. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio Grande. 

Tojagua, Toxagua. Mentioned with other Keres pueblos. Compare 
Towakwa, a former Jemez pueblo. 

Toxagua, see Tojagua. 

Trea Guatitruti, see Fiapuzi; Tryiti. 

Trelagii, Tzelaqui. A Piro pueblo on the east side of the Rio Grande. 

Trelaquepu. Apparently a Piro pueblo on the east side of the Rio 
Grande; mentioned in the printed copy, but not in the manu- 
script. 

Trenaquel de la mesilla, Tzenaquel de la mesilla. A Piro pueblo the 
last one down the Rio Grande on the west side. 



1. The Greek letetrs "Xp" (equivalent to "Chr") were used to abbreviate the 
name "Christ" (Spanish Cristo.) Editor. 



46 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Treyey, Tzeyey. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio Grande. 

Treypual, Tzeygual. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio Grande. 

Tria, Tzia. The Keres pueblo of Sia. 

Triapi, Tziatzi. A Tewa pueblo. 

Triaque, Tziaque. A Tewa pueblo. 

Trias, Tzias. A form of the pueblo name now generally called Sia. 

In the present document it is referred to as a province. 
Triati, Tz-iati. This name appears to be confused with Tzia (Sia). Cf. 

Tryiti; Tziaque, Tziatzi. 

Trimati, Tziymatzi. An unidentified Tigua pueblo. 
Trios, Tzios. Synonymous with the name of the pueblo of Sia, called 

Tsia, not Zia, by its inhabitants. 
Triyti, see Tryiti. 
Troomaxiaquino, Tzoomaxiaquimo. A Tewa pueblo, the ruins of which 

Bandelier claimed to have found in Rio Arriba county. 
Trula, Tzula. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio Grande. 
Truni, Tzuni. The six pueblos forming Zuni. 
Tryiti. Given as a Jemez pueblo, spelled Triyti in the first printed 

list; evidently confused with Guatitruti in the second printed list 

and with Guatitzeiti (?) in the second manuscript list. In the 

first manuscript list it is Tzyiti. 
Tuchiamas. An unidentified Tigua pueblo. 

Tuzahe. Seemingly a Piro pueblo on the east side of the Rio Grande. 
Tzea Guatitzeti, see Fiapuzi. 
Tzelaqui, see Trelagu. 
Tzenaquel, see Trenaquel. 
Tzenatay, see Pueblo Quemada. 
Tzeyey, see Treyey. 
Tzeygual, see Treypual. 
Tziaguatzi, see Fiapuzi. 
Tziaque, see Triapi. 
Tziaque, see Triaque. 
Tziati, see Triati. 
Tziatzi, see Triapi. 
Tzijaatico, see Ytriza Atica. 
Tzios, see Trios. 
Tziymatzi, see Trimati. 
Tzomaxiaquimo, see Troomaxiaquino. 
Tzula, see Trula. 
Tzuni, see Truni. 
Tzyiti, see Tryiti. 

Vareato, Veareato. Apparently a Tigua pueblo. 
Veareato, see Vareato. 



PUEBLO NAMES IN THE ONATE DOCUMENTS 47 

Vumahein. Apparently a Piro pueblo on the east side of the Rio 
Grande. 

Walpi, see Cuanrabi. 

Wasotse, see Guayotri. 

Xala, see Xalay. 

Xalay, Xala. Evidently the Tigua name (Sarai) of Zuni. 

Xiamela, Xiamela. A Tigua or a Piro pueblo east of the Rio Grande. 

Xatoe, Xatoe. A Tigua or a Piro pueblo east of the Rio Grande. 

Xiomato. A Tewa pueblo; probably the same as Piomato. 

Xumanas, Xumases, Xumanas, Xumanes. The Jumanos, evidently a 
Caddoan tribe, called also Rrayados, with which compare the tat- 
tooing custom of the Wichita, called Panis Piques by the French. 

Xumupami, Xumupavi. The Hopi pueblo of Shongopovi. 

Xutis, see Baguacat. 

Yacco. Mentioned as a pueblo of the province of Trias (Tzias), 
which was Sia. An evident mistake for Aco, or Acoma. 

Yanamo, see Yancomo. 

Yancomo, Yanamo. A Piro pueblo on the east side of the Rio Grande. 

Yates, Yatez. Believed by Bandelier to be San Marcos, the native 
name of which was Yatze. 

Yhohota, see Hohota. 

Yucaopi, Yncohocpi. An unidentified pueblo. 

Yonalus, Yonalu. A Tigua or a Piro pueblo east of the Rio Grande. 
Bancroft (Arizona and New Mexico, 135) misspelled it Xonalus. 

Ytriza, Atica. A confusion of "y Tzijaatico" in the manuscript. An 
unidentified pueblo. 

Yxcaguayo, Yjar Guayoguia. Yxcaguayo, Yjar Guayo. A Jemez 
pueblo. Guayoguia in the printed document is composed of 
Guayo and guia, the first part of the name of Guiameca or Quia- 
meca, given as another Jemez pueblo. 

Zumaque, Cumaque. A Piro pueblo on the west side of the Rio Grande. 

Zuni, see Juni; Truni. 



ALBURQUERQUE AND GALISTEO 
CERTIFICATE OF THEIR FOUNDING, 1706 

Edited by LANSING B. BLOOM 

EST summer the University of New Mexico received from 
the Rockefeller Foundation a grant in aid for the con- 
tinuing of the archive work in Mexico which had been begun 
there by the writer during the fall of 1930. One of the 
smaller documents which were photographed during August 
is the interesting certificate of the founding of Albuquerque 
and the re-founding of Galisteo. It is here translated, and is 
accompanied by a facsimile reproduction of the original. 1 

[I] Don Francisco Cuerbo y Valdez, Caballero of 
the Order of Santiago, Governor and Captain Gen- 
eral of this Kingdom and [the] provinces of New 
Mexico, and Castellan of his forces and Presidios 
for H[is] M[ajesty] &c. 

CERTIFY to His Majesty (whom may God guard for many 
years), to his Viceroys, Presidents, Governors, and other 
Officials : 

That I founded a Villa on the margin and meadows of 
the Rio del Norte in a goodly place of fields, waters, pastur- 
age, and timber, distant from this Villa of Santa Fe about 
twenty-two leagues, giving to it as titular Patron the most 
glorious Apostle of the Indies San Francisco Xavier, calling 
it and naming it the Villa of Alburquerque [I located it] 
in a good site, keeping in mind what is prescribed by His 
Majesty in his Royal Laws of the Recopilacion, Book IV, 
Title VII, and there are now thirty-five families settled 
there, comprising 252 persons, large and small. The Church 
[is already] completed, capacious and appropriate, with 
part of the dwelling for the Religious Minister, the Royal 
Houses [are] begun, and the other houses of the settlers 
finished with their corrals, acequias ditched and running, 
fields [already] sowed all well arranged and without any 
expense to the Royal Treasury. 

1. The document was found in the Archive General de la Naci6n (Mexico), 
seccion de las Provincias Internes, tomo 36, ramo 5. 

48 




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?rt4~> f , sAtt*/ fifoito&tsJ&db&t# f * ( s/? 

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&4&S/J^j^& 

i> ^ x X s*^\ jg/ 

/t #*$#/, J^^t; i&/*** \J***'J* 

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FOUNDING OF ALBUQUERQUE 



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ALBURQUERQUE AND GALISTEO 49 

Likewise I CERTIFY: 

[that] I settled the old Pueblo of Galisteo with 150 
families of Christian Indians of the Tano nation who were 
found dispersed since the year of 1702 [and] living in the 
other pueblos, ranches and frontiers in poverty and misfor- 
tune, whereas today they are found assembled and very 
happy in their said Pueblo entitled Santa Maria de Gracia de 
Galisteo; 2 and it has been completely rebuilt, and also the 
Church and Convent [but] without minister, church-bells, 
or ornaments ; and the fields sowed and cultivated likewise 
until now without cost to the Royal Treasury, both one and 
the other [of the] new settlements. Thus I certify, and in 
order to validate it I give this certification as testimony of 
its truth, in this Villa of Santa Fe, on the 23rd day of the 
month of April, 1706, signed by my hand, sealed with the 
seal of my arms, and witnessed by the subscribed secretary 
of government and war, and on this ordinary paper since 
there is no legal paper nor is there any in these parts. 

[signed] 

FRANCISCO CUERBO Y VALDES (rubric) 
By order of the Sr. Governor and Captain General : 
[Signed] Alfonsso Rael de Aguilar 

Secretary of government and war 

So far as the wording of this certificate goes, the date 
of the actual founding might have been much earlier than 
April 23, 1706 even back in the previous year. Other doc- 
uments, however, in the archives at Santa Fe definitely place 
it in the year 1706, 8 so that it must have occurred during 
that spring and only shortly before the date of the certi- 
ficate. 

Unfortunately the official record of the actual founding 
seems to be lost beyond any hope of recovery. The "instru- 
mento de la f undacion" as it was called may have included 
the written petition of those who wished to settle in the new 
villa; it certainly embodied the written authorization of 



2. Bancroft, Arizona and New Mexico, 228, misread this name "Santa Maria de 
Grado," and confused Galisteo with Santa Cruz. Hodge, Handbook of American 
Indians, I, 482, also gives the name incorrectly. 

3. The year is definitely stated in a petition addreesed in 1708 by the residents 
of Alburquer'que to the council at Santa Fe. Twitchell, Spanish Archives, I, no. 1205. 



50 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Governor Cuervo y Valdes, and also the formal proceedings 
whereby the settlers were placed in possession. Responsi- 
bility for its loss or disappearance would seem to lie with 
Captain Martin Hurtado who was the first alcalde mayor of 
Alburquerque and who held that office until 1722.* Five years 
burquerque brought before Gov. Juan Domingo de Busta- 
mante, protesting against three local grants which Captain 
Hurtado had made while he was alcalde and without consult- 
ing "todo el comun de esta villa." The governor had said 
that the instrument of the founding of the villa was neces- 
sary, and therefore they petitioned Bustamante to order 
Hurtado to show this document before the governor or else 
explain where it then was. 5 It appears that Bustamante 
started an investigation but the last pages of the record 
are gone. We should like to know what Hurtado had to say, 
but even if he still had in his possession in 1727 the "instru- 
mento de la f undacion de esta villa," it would now seem to be 
irreparably lost. 

When was the City of Albuquerque founded? The most 
definite reply that can be made is : "In the spring of 1706." 

As to Galisteo, the Indian pueblo which was reestab- 
lished by Governor Cuervo y Valdes stood a mile and a half 
northeast of the present Spanish-American plaza of the 
same name. In spite of its "hundred and fifty families,"' 
this pueblo was a failure and it entirely disappeared toward 
the end of the eighteenth century. It was decimated by 
smallpox and by persistent hostilities of the Comanches, 
until in 1794 the few survivors abandoned their pueblo and 
moved down the Galisteo river and were absorbed by the 
pueblo of Santo Domingo. 



4. Twitchell, Spanish Archives, II, no. 319 ; his resignation in February, 1722. 

5. The petition, in incomplete form, was found at the Bancroft Library, Berke- 
ley. It was dated June 20, 1727. 

6. Hodge, op. cit., has "90 Indians" whereas the total individuals must have 
been about ten times that number. He has been mislead by Bandelier and Bancroft 
who strangely confused the records as to this pueblo with those of Santa Cruz de la 
Canada which was refounded by Gov. Diego de Vargas in 1695, north of Santa Fe. 



DEDICATION OF THE KEARNY MONUMENT 
LAS VEGAS, NEW MEXICO, AUGUST 15, 1934 

Address by DR. H. C. GOSSARD, President of the 
Normal University 

WE ARE gathered today on a historic spot. Nearly four 
centuries ago Coronado and his soldiers presumably 
encamped near here and marched by this site. Many of 
the great figures of United States history have been in 
this plaza. Here passed the old Santa Fe Trail and over it 
went that long stream of traders and pioneers. For many 
years this town was a cattle capitol of the southwest. 

We are not only gathered on a historic spot but we 
have also met to commemorate a great historical event 
through the recognition of a great historical character. 
This man was Stephen W. Kearny, soldier and statesman. 
The event was his issuing of the proclamation that declared 
this land to be a part of the republic of the United States. 

Let us picture the scene eighty-eight years ago today. 
It is eight o'clock in the morning. The plaza is filled with 
the soldiers coming from the army of seventeen hundred 
men camped last night on the Gallinas north of town. The 
house tops and windows about the plaza are filled with the 
citizens of the community. General Kearny has taken his 
place on the roof of a nearby building. He reads this proc- 
lamation and follows it by giving the oath of allegiance to 
the alcalde, Don Juan de Dios Maes. The column of soldiers 
forms and is led by General Kearny along the Santa Fe 
Trail to repeat this proclamation at Tecolote, San Miguel, 
Pecos, and Santa Fe. Today we are recognizing this man 
and this event by the dedication of this monument. 

This dedication is significant and worthy as seen by a 
personal analysis of the character of the man, his acts, and 
their significance to us as citizens of this community, this 

51 



52 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

state and the nation. The personal life of General Kearny 
is largely the history of a soldier-statesman from 1812 to 
1848. Time does not permit our covering the history of that 
period. 

The proclamation issued on this spot in 1846 revealed 
both the character of General Kearny and his breadth as a 
statesman. Briefly, it informed the citizens of the south- 
west that they were citizens of the United States of America 
and that he and his soldiers had come as friends to protect 
their persons and property, that they would not be asked to 
take up arms against their own people and that they should 
continue in the paths of peace and their crops, herds and 
homes would not be disturbed. If any damage should be 
done by his army it would be paid for by the United States. 
They would be protected from the roving Indians. They 
were to have fullest religious freedom. 

Another statesmanlike act of General Kearny was his 
issuance of the Kearny Code, September 22, 1846. Gen- 
eral Kearny gave the credit for this code to Colonel A. W. 
Doniphan and to Willard P. Hall who was later to be gov- 
ernor of Missouri. This material was derived from the laws 
of Mexico, modified in part to conform to the constitution 
and laws of the United States. It also was derived in part 
from the laws of Missouri, Texas and Coahuila. It was 
copied on an old press in Spanish and English by Captain 
David Waldo, uncle of Henry Waldo of Las Vegas. The sig- 
nificance of this code lies in the fact that it has continued 
basic to the laws of New Mexico even to this day. The code 
preserved the mode of thought, the legal practice, and the 
customs of the people of this area. 

Through the Kearny Proclamation and the Kearny 
Code and the entire conduct of General Kearny we see his 
breadth of thought and statesmanlike mind. He was an 
honorable gentleman, chivalrous, generous, just. He was a 
faithful officer, loyal to his duty and devoted to his country. 
He was a soldier, gentleman, and statesman. We would, 



DEDICATION OF THE KEARNY MONUMENT 53 

through this monument, hold him up as an example to our- 
selves and to our children. 

Here today we establish our recognition and apprecia- 
tion of something more than General Stephen W. Kearny. 
We recognize the significance, to the Southwest and to the 
United States, of this soil becoming a part of our Republic. 
To the citizens of the Southwest this change of sovereignty 
brought relief from the severe strife that had so long cursed 
Mexico. It led to the early development of a safer life under 
the control of the peoples of the Southwest. Also, it brought 
the fruits of peace, and freedom from the curse of war 
and from the attacks of the Indians. To the United States 
this act brought potential wealth. The gold of California, 
the rich copper ores of Arizona, and the vast agricultural 
and horticultural resources of Arizona and New Mexico 
were added to the potential wealth of our nation. Through 
the control of the Pacific ports, the United States was put in 
command of the Pacific Ocean. It brought to our country 
natural boundaries, but it also brought something far 
greater and more significant than all this. It brought to our 
people the cultures of the Spanish folks and the Pueblo In- 
dians. These cultures are increasingly influencing Ameri- 
can life through their color, their literature, their music, 
paintings, folk lore, and folk customs. 

Today, most fittingly, we dedicate this monument that 
preserves in imperishable stone the life and growth of what 
was once a living tree. May it be an imperishable symbol of 
the life it recognizes. We dedicate this appropriate monu- 
ment to you, Brigadier-General Stephen Watts Kearny, in 
recognition of your exemplary life and to commemorate the 
significance of the events of eighty-eight years ago which 
were enacted in this historic plaza. 



BOOK REVIEWS 

Picardo's Treatise on the Limits of Louisiana and 
Texas, I-II. Edited by Charles W. Hackett. (Austin, Uni- 
versity of Texas Press, vol. I 1931 ; vol. II 1934. Pages xx- 
630; xv-618; four folding maps; bibliography, index. 
$6.50 each.) 

In a long sub-title, Piehardo's monumental production 
of 1811 is properly described as "an argumentative histori- 
cal treatise . . . written to disprove the claim of the United 
States that Texas was included in the Louisiana Purchase of 
1803" (italics ours). The treatise is really a compendium 
and digest of everything which Father Pichardo could find 
to throw light upon the question. How comprehensive and 
exhaustive the result was is shown by the bulk of these two 
volumes. Dr. Hackett has employed eight-point type for all 
of his quoted matter and yet he felt constrained to abridge 
Pichardo's text by omitting over half of it! It would be in- 
teresting to know whether any official of the Spanish gov- 
ernment ever read the entire report except perhaps the 
long-suffering fiscal who had to digest and report upon it. 

That it was "argumentative" is evident in all its parts. 
Father Pichardo was commissioned for a definite task, and 
we find repeatedly that he quotes from earlier writers whose 
interpretation or assumption (if favorable to his argument) 
Pichardo accepts and defends, or (if unfavorable) he con- 
tests often advancing assumptions of his own which at 
times seem quite unwarranted. 

Recognizing its argumentative character, what histori- 
cal value does the treatise have? By reason of his official 
appointment, Pichardo was enabled to ransack the archives 
and other depositories of Spain and of New Spain, and he 
gathered a formidable array of authorities which are listed 
in the two bibliographies. Moreover, Dr. Hackett, in his 
careful and illuminating editorial work, has drawn upon the 
work of many later writers also indicated in the bibli- 

54 



BOOK REVIEWS 55 

ographies. As a result we have in these two volumes a 
perfect wealth of historical source material, a great part of 
which is inaccessible to the average reader. Yet because 
Pichardo has made an argumentative use of his sources, 
any careful student of Southwestern history must read the 
treatise critically. There is a possible "factor of error" in 
the work of the translators and editor; in Picardo's own 
statement and interpretation; and lastly in one or another 
of the sources used by Pichardo or Hackett. 

For example, the "plains of Cibola" form a principle 
theme in the treatise and Pichardo asserts (I, 71) that the 
Spaniards who accompanied Coronado in 1539 (sic) so 
named the plains "by reason of the very great number of 
buffaloes which grazed upon them." Was Pichardo mis- 
taken in this assertion ? If so, his whole argument is invali- 
dated. 

More than a year ago the present reviewer pointed out 1 
that the word "Cibola" was first associated by the Span- 
iards with the Zuni pueblos; then its application was ex- 
panded to the whole Pueblo country and finally to the 
Great Plains. For a hundred years before there was any 
"Texas," the Spaniards regarded the Great Plains (so far 
as they had any claim to that region) as an extension of 
"New Mexico." The country was not named for the buf- 
falo, but the buffalo (many years later) were called "cibo- 
los" because they ranged the "plains of Cibola." These 
strange animals, the great game animal of the northern 
regions, were called "las vacas de la tierra" (to distinguish 
them from the cattle of Castile); and because the country 
was "Cibola," this term became "las vacas de Cibola." Then 
to call them "cibolos" was a simple transition ; and yet the 
older term continued in use into the eighteenth century. 

This point affects radically the entire argument of 
Pichardo. It gives quite a different concept of the northern 
frontier from that which he presents, and yet it is sup- 
ported by evidence which Pichardo himself supplies. Even 

1. Bloom and Donnelly, New Mexico History and Civics (1983), 26-27. 



56 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

the map of 1811 with which he illustrated his treatise 2 has 
the title "New Mexico and Adjacent Lands" ! Perhaps also 
it will clear up a point which has puzzled Southwestern stu- 
dents with regard to Father Morfi's Viaje de Yndias y 
Diario del Nuevo Mexico (II, 544). This diary relates to 
present Texas but not to present New Mexico, but it is intel- 
ligible if "New Mexico" is understood in the broader his- 
toric meaning. 

Father Morfi, by the way, never visited the present 
New Mexico, and his Description Geografica de Nuevo Mex- 
ico (II, 544) was not original with him. He took it verba- 
tim as it was supplied to him by a former missionary at 
Zuiii, Padre Damian Martinez. This fact was unknown to 
Dr. Thomas when he published his Forgotten Frontiers 
(1932), and he credited it to Morfi. In this he agreed with 
Pichardo (II, 97) ; and now he has been followed by Hackett 
(II, 329). 8 

Again, in various references to governors of New Mex- 
ico (especially II, 257, 276, 365, 370, 512) Dr. Hackett has 
relied on Bolton, overlooking the fact that the latter * says 
that he copied his list from Bancroft. Since Bancroft wrote 
in 1889 this list has been extensively revised and can be 
found in the last four issues of the New Mexico Blue Book 
(1926-1934). It is regrettable to find, even in the editorial 
notes, names misspelled and errors in dates, relatively unim- 
portant as this may be. 

A feature of Pichardo's treatise which will probably 
be of paramount interest to students of the Southwest, as 
pointed out by Dr. Hackett in his preface, is the argument 
that the legendary "Quivira" country lay in the present east- 
ern Texas. It is an intriguing idea, and if the reader ac- 
cepts the sources as Pichardo interprets them, and if he 
overlooks the suppositions which crop out so frequently, he 



2. The "Texas" part of this map is reproduced in volume I on page 474 ; the 
entire map is placed in a jacket at the back of volume II. 

3. The plagiarism is manifest by collating the "Morft" document with the 
"Delgado" manuscript which immediately follows it in A. G. M., Historia 25. 

4. H. E. Bolton, Guide to . . . Archives of Mexico (1913), 473-474. 



BOOK REVIEWS 57 

will find himself with Coronado in eastern Texas and then 
he must solve (with Pichardo) the problem of identifying 
the quicker and more direct route by which Coronado re- 
turned to Tiguex on the upper Rio Grande! 

However one may question the deductions of Father 
Pichardo, he will credit him with having carried through a 
most formidable task and with having given to us a perfect 
mine of Texas source material. The translating and edit- 
ing by Dr. Hackett and his colleagues is of a very high or- 
der; and the press work is admirable very few typo- 
graphical erors have been noted. The authorities of the 
University of Texas are to be congratulated on a most aus- 
picious series of studies which is inaugurated by these two 
volumes. L. B. B. 

University of New Mexico. 

SaltUlo en la historia y en la leyenda. By Vito Alessio 
Robles. (Mexico, A. del Bosque, 1934. (With illustrations 
and maps.) 

This is the second of what we hope will form a series of 
popular histories of the most important and most colorful 
provincial cities of Mexico. When Vito Alessio Robles sub- 
mitted his thoroughly readable account of the history and 
legends of that exotic seaport of "Manila galleon" fame, 
(Acapidco en la historia y en la leyenda, Mexico, 1932), he 
scored an immediate success, and was urged from all sides 
to follow it up with another on some equally interesting 
city. While it would appear extremely difficult at first to 
decide upon some spot quite as reminiscent of the past and 
as significant historically, culturally, and spiritually as the 
distant port of tropical Acapulco, one is prone to concur 
rather promptly with the writer's choice of Saltillo. And 
just as Acapulco has ceased to be "but a point on the map" 
and lives again in the fascinating pages of her recent chron- 
icle, so too is Saltillo born anew in this account of her proud 
past, vital historically and fruitful in legend. 



58 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

No one was better qualified for the pleasurable duty of 
garnering the data and the lore necessary for the present 
work than Vito Alessio Robles, historian of Coahuila and 
Saltillo's own son. The just regional pride that moved his 
pen and the intimate acquaintance with folk material that 
served to animate and to lighten the true historical narra- 
tive, were his by right of birth ; by choice of enriching these 
endowments, he has delved into the archives of his country 
and state, has acquired valuable manuscripts and many 
copies of rare documents, and has shared his finds in such 
publications as his Bibliografia de Coahuila (Mexico, 1927) , 
Francisco de Urdinola y el Norte de la Nueva Espana (Mex- 
ico, 1931), and other studies. His intoxication with the 
pure bracing air and the rugged pastoral beauty of the val- 
ley of Saltillo has been prompted, if not definitely guided, 
into its present channel of expression by the exemplary 
achievements of one of Hispanic-America's most inspired 
historians, also of Saltillo, Carlos Pereyra. 

In his opening pages the writer stresses the key posi- 
tion Saltillo is recovering in recent years, due to the many 
improved channels of communication that now link that 
city with other points in the republic and with the United 
States. Easily and quickly accessible today by road, espe- 
cially from Monterrey and the north, the city is destined 
to become the summer haven for northern Mexico and for 
the "Yankee" tourist. With this thought before him, Ales- 
sio Robles impresses his readers with a very moving descrip- 
tion of its material beauties, its unexcelled climate, and the 
as yet unmarred colonial aspect and spirit that make of 
Saltillo a most attractive tourist center. 

Saltillo, he tells us, was founded sometime around 1575, 
and, in all probability, as an outpost for the provisioning of 
the mining centers. Santiago de Saltillo, for so it was 
called in its early years, soon became the commercial and 
spiritual metropolis of northern Mexico and the "fecund, 
generous mother of the most important towns of El Nuevo 
Reino de Leon, Nueva Vizcaya, Coahuila, Texas, and Nuevo 



BOOK REVIEWS 59 

Santander." Its preeminence, historically and socially, 
throughout the long colonial period, continued well into the 
first century of independence from Spain and contributed 
largely to its being chosen as the capital of Coahuila. Today 
Saltillo is often referred to as the "Athenas de Mexico" be- 
cause of the remarkable number of scientists, artists, liter- 
ati, and musicians who claim its famous Ateneo "Fuente" 
as their alma mater. 

From among the many and varied episodes and legends 
that color its colonial past, Alessio Robles reconstructs in 
interesting detail the founding of Nueva Tlaxcala of Saltillo 
in 1591 by the four hundred families from the Republic of 
Tlaxcala who settled there upon the request of the viceroy 
for the protection of the Spanish colonists from the native 
tribes; the search for Gran Quivira, when all Saltillo left 
everything behind to follow and apprehend Castano de Sosa 
who, without authorization from Mexico City, had set out 
in quest of the fabled spot ; the legend that grew up about 
the revered Urdinola who, because of being suddenly and 
mysteriously imprisoned, was forced to cede the conquest of 
New Mexico to Juan de Onate; the persecution of Carabajal, 
"tan obstinado y perfido judio, que decia que si no hubiera 
Inquisition en estos reinos, contaria el por los dedos de sus 
manos los catolicos cristianos, y se dejo quemar vivo" ; and 
the legends that grace the image of "El Santo Cristo de la 
Capilla." 

We are told of the annual feria of Saltillo, as famed as 
those of Acapulco and Jalapa; of the part the city played 
in the War for Independence ; of the dynamic personality of 
Ramos Arizpe; of the battle of Buena-Vista, lost to Taylor 
(asserts Alessio Robles) only because Santa Anna's "mag- 
nificos soldados espontaneos" had reached the limit of 
human endurance he denies the charge that the Mexican 
general prevented his troops from winning the day ; and of 
other events that bring us down to the Saltillo that we know 
today. 



60 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

The book is well illustrated with views of the city and 
with maps and sketches of its location, of its highways, and 
of the battlefield of Buena- Vista. A select bibliography and 
a very attractive jacket, the work of Bolafios Cacho, are ad- 
ditional features of the volume. Save for an occasional 
typographical error, it is a well printed and well edited 
work. 

It is no easy task to present so large and so varied an 
amount of material in a coherent and smooth-flowing ac- 
count. Possibly the present work could have been more 
carefully planned. There is much repetition of subject mat- 
ter from one chapter to another, a weakness that could have 
been corrected in the final drafting of the study. Consistent 
with this weakness is the tendency to stress certain events 
to the detriment of others; this is particularly apparent 
when some event is, so far as one can determine from the 
text, not as intimately woven into the historical pattern of 
Saltillo as some other. These are but minor failings, how- 
ever, that do not detract from the general excellence of the 
work or disqualify it from becoming a worthy successor to 
its companion-study. JOHN E. ENGLEKIRK. 

University of New Mexico. 

Traders to the Navajos. Frances Gillmor and Louisa 
Wade Wetherill. (Boston, Houghton Mifflin Company, 1934; 
265 pp., $3.00. Illustrated) . 

Frances Gillmor has written an important book, has 
made a record that should have been made long ago. She 
writes as an easterner to whom everything western In- 
dians, deserts, the stern ways of pioneering are terrify- 
ingly and thrillingly new. Things that were commonplace 
to the Wetherills were as strange to Miss Gillmor as Marco 
Polo adventuring in Cathay. And she writes well. So her 
book has glamour, maybe a bit too wide-eyed, but charming 
for all that. And she was level-headed enough to realize 
when she went to spend a summer at Kayenta that she had 



BOOK REVIEWS 61 

at hand one of the most remarkable women in the South- 
west. 

Louisa Wade was born in Colorado and has lived her 
whole life in that state, in New Mexico, and in Arizona. 
When she was very young, she married John Wetherill, the 
very type of intelligent pioneer. He has not only fought and 
conquered the desert and its Indians; he has known what 
he was doing; he is a student of the backgrounds in ruins 
and in old legends. He has discovered some of the most not- 
able ruins in the Southwest, and as guide he has brought to 
them some of the best archaeologists we have. 

Mrs. Wetherill, possibly because she lived closer to the 
Indians while her husband ran cattle, is the one who knows 
the Navajos. They say she speaks their language better 
than she does English. Navajos look to her as to their best 
friend. Mrs. Wetherill moves quietly, but her eyes flash 
like lightning, seeing everything, understanding everything. 
Her voice can be deep and smooth, or deep enough to scare 
a malefactor to death. She is a force, that woman. She has 
lived widely, deeply, and well. Out of simple living on 
ranches and at remote trading posts she has accumulated 
such riches that a marked trail has been beaten to her door 
by everyone who would understand Navajos. One of those 
rare people who achieve true culture out of what is at hand, 
she learned Navajo because she needed it. She learned 
legends, customs, beliefs and manners as one learns from 
daily association. She had to understand Indian medica- 
tion because often there was no other. It was only when 
students began to come to her for help that Louisa Weth- 
erill realized that she had a priceless record, valuable for 
all time. So she began to write down what she knew and 
to collect sand-paintings and songs. Her material accumu- 
lated for years before Frances Gillmor undertook to put it 
into shape for publication. Her book may prove to be most 
valuable as an introduction. She has told the life of the 
Wetherills and she has cleverly incorporated much data 
from Mrs. Wetherill's collection. But not all. There is still a 



62 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

store of knowledge there which must some day. be made 
available. 

Everyone who has known and appreciated the Wether- 
ils must be grateful to Miss Gillmor for presenting them so 
sympathetically and so intelligently. For all of us feel, as 
Witter Bynner wrote in their guest book years ago : 

John and Louisa Wetherill 

I don't forget and never will. 

ERNA FERGUSSON. 
Albuquerque 

Arizona in Literature. By Mary G. Boyer. (The Ar- 
thur H. Clark Company, Glendale, Calif. 574 pp.) The 
compilation of a regional anthology such as this for Arizona 
by Mary G. Boyer, associate professor of English, Arizona 
State Teachers College, is apt to be very much a labor of 
love rather than an undertaking for profit. The only re- 
ward for the research and industry it implies is the satis- 
faction of finding gems buried in the dross of time, the res- 
cuing from oblivion of fragments of creative work which 
deserve to be enjoyed again by present, and perhaps, future 
generations of students and other readers in the locality in 
which the anthology has its roots. In a narrower sense 
practically all literature is local even though in its broader 
aspects universal in appeal. There is the locus of author- 
ship, though the work itself relates itself to distant climes. 
There is also the background or atmosphere which may be 
placed in a locality having no relation to the birthplace or 
residence of the author. Thus in the present volume the 
compiler had to select her material from two entirely dif- 
ferent sources. Not one in ten of the more than one hun- 
dred and fifty authors cited is a native of Arizona. To most 
of them other regions can lay greater claim, both as to 
nativity and length of residence. 

The compiler found her material not merely in readily 
accessible books, magazines and newspapers but also in un- 
published manuscripts and in small private editions of books 



BOOK REVIEWS 63 

out of print. The volume reflects convincingly and color- 
fully much of the rapidly disappearing southwestern fron- 
tier, with its Indian and Spanish origins and its impress of 
pioneer miners, cowboys and ranchers. These pictured 
against background of desert, mountains, mesas and can- 
yons and a fauna and flora quite distinctive have a fascina- 
tion giving the anthology more than a regional appeal. Com- 
prehensive as is the volume of almost six hundred pages, 
it can hardly lay claim to all inclusiveness and it will take 
future anthologies from time to time to bring to light for- 
gotten or omitted authors and worth-while writings to 
which would be added the newer productions deserving to be 
preserved in this form. 

"Short Stories" fill the first 138 pages, opening with 
"Abandoned" by the gallant Captain William O'Neill of the 
Rough Riders who died from a Spanish bullet in the charge 
on San Juan Hill. Then follow stories by Alfred Henry 
Lewis, Edmund Wells, William C. Barnes to whom New 
Mexico has prior claim, Stewart Edward White, Romaine 
H. Lowdermilk, Will H. Robinson, Estelle Aubrey Brown, 
Gladwell Richardson, Goldie Weisberg, Roscoe G. Wilson, 
whose places of nativity range all the way from Kovno, 
Russia, to San Francisco, California not one a native of 
Arizona, but all of whom have caught that indefinable 
something in atmosphere which justifies their inclusion in a 
Southwestern anthology. 

"Tales of Adventure" begin with extracts from the 
"Personal Narrative of James 0. Pattie," the Kentucky 
youth who accompanied his father on a trapping expedition 
into New Mexico and Arizona, a hundred and ten years 
ago. R. B. Stratton, Frank Evarts Wells, William M. Break- 
enridge, Walter Noble Burns, Lorenzo D. Walters, Dan 
Rose, Wm. P. Stover, are the other authors cited under this 
group heading not one of them a native of Arizona. 

Extracts from "Novels" form the third category and 
the authors represented are Ross Santee, Walt Coburn, T. C. 
Hoyt, Owen Wister, Forrestine C. Hooker, General Charles 



64 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

King, Harold Bell Wright, Lorabel Marie Wallace, Zane 
Gray, Dama Margaret Smith, Frances Gillmor, Robert 
Ames Bennet, Jack O'Connor, Neil E. Cook, James Willard 
Schultz, Annie Fellows Johnston; of these only O'Connor 
and Cook are native Arizonans. 

More than one hundred pages are given to "Poetry/' 
much of it quotable and some of it still current. The Cow- 
boy poems of Badger Clarke and the swinging verses of 
Sharlott Hall, perhaps are the most characteristic of the 
region : 

The night wind whines in the chaparral and grieves in the 

mesquite gloom ; 
It talks of a land it never knew; it smells of white plum 

bloom ; 

It is full of voices I used to hear voices I've tried to forget ; 
Strange, with the things that lie between, how they haunt 

and hold me yet ! 

John P. Clum, first U. S. Weather Bureau observer in 
Santa Fe sixty-four years ago, later Indian agent, whose 
contributions on the Apache campaigns in recent numbers 
of the NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW are classics, is 
characterized as the "dean of Arizona pioneers," and his 
tribute to "Nellie Cashman" is the first contribution under 
"Biography and Autobiography," which is followed by 
"Description and Exposition," "Humorists' Writings," 
"Legends," "Criticisms," and last of all "Spanish Transla- 
tions" (from Castaneda's account of the Coronado Expedi- 
tion, Antonio Espejo, Juan de Onate, Eusebio Francisco 
Kino, and Francisco Garces) conclude the volume. There is 
a convenient index of authors and titles, and we find also 
reproductions of the words and music of two Arizona songs 
and a frontispiece in color by Jack Van Ryder, a noted Ari- 
zona painter. The book is handsome in typography and the 
A. H. Clark Company deserves our gratitude for the publi- 
cation of works on Southwestern history and biography that 
otherwise might find difficulty in seeing the light of day. 
One can only wish that some day some one will go to the 



BOOK REVIEWS 65 

trouble, and experience the joy, of compiling a similar an- 
thology for New Mexico, the only change to be suggested 
being that it be issued in several small octavo volumes in- 
stead of one large, heavy octavo of almost 600 pages on 
heavy paper. P. A. F. W. 

Santa Fe. 

When Old Trails Were New: the Story of Taos. By 
Blanche C. Grant. (Press of the Pioneers, New York, 1933 ; 
$3.00.) 

This Story of Taos, commendable at any time, acquires 
a greater importance now that arsonry, the doubtful bene- 
fits of Incorporation, an all-too-conscious civic spirit, the 
Laurentian and other cults and dynamic symmetry threaten 
to change irreparably the physical and spiritual physiog- 
nomy of the old village. 

The Frontier Life is dying of natural death, the saddest 
of all, in spite of all the artificial inhalations and injections 
of festive ceremonies, rodeos, bailes, mantillas and guitars. 
One might as well face bravely the fact that it has already 
become history and put it down and enjoy it vicariously in 
books. 

Most of the first part of this story is already known to 
the more diligent citizens of New Mexico through its 
original sources (Prince, Garrard, Inman, Ruxton et al.) 
which are here patiently integrated with extracts from little 
accessible documents and publications in out of state libra- 
ries, the whole deftly amalgamated so as to produce a pleas- 
ant continuity. 

No doubt the portion of the book that will awaken the 
greatest interest will be the one dealing with the Kit Carson 
period, as it is the more abundantly documented and more 
closely associated with Taos. 

Also very enjoyable, and mostly unknown to all but a 
few old-timers, is the next period dealing with the various 
mining enterprises whose memories still cling to the ghost 
towns of the neighborhood. The abundance of anecdotes 



66 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

springing therefrom will not fail to interest people ac- 
quainted with either places or protagonists. 

Last but not least merit of this book, on whose story it 
is wise not to expatiate, is its bringing Taos up-to-date, and 
settling once and forever the thorny subject of which artist 
arrived first, where. It cheered us considerably to see some 
credit being given at last to the pioneers of the art colony 
now sadly wrestling their merit (a faithful respect for en- 
chanting tradition and nature, both well worth pictorial per- 
petuation and representation) from their more clever suc- 
cessors who renounce vociferously the Spirit of the Place in 
favour of standard Frenchy experimentations. 

One wishes that at times the author would allow the 
facts to tell their undeniably romantic story without the 
accompaniment of some obviously sentimental strings, but 
even such minor stylistic defects do not detract from the 
intrinsic merit of this patient, orderly and loving tribute to 
the last citadel of Frontier Life. GIORGIO BELLOLI. 

Santa Fe. 

Sky Determines. By Ross Calvin, Ph.D. (The Macmil- 
lan Company, 1934. 355 pages; illustrative photographs; 
bibliography; index. $2.50.) 

"Sky determines/' writes Dr. Calvin at the outset of 
each chapter in his book determines desert, mountains, 
plants, animals, forests, peoples, vocational pursuits. This 
theme, challenging as it is to information and to observation 
and arresting to imagination, is also challengingly ambigu- 
ous. Dr. Calvin has presented vividly and exactly the char- 
acter of Southwestern life the mesquite, "low, armored, 
sprangling shrub with the odd habit of lying buried, all but 
its head, in a sandy, red-earth dune, until some Mexican 
wood-digger exhumes it for his fireplace," which he calls 
"probably the greatest water-collector in the world"; the 
talus beds below sandstone cliffs, the dissected plateaus 
which form mesas, the deep gashes in earth which are 
arroyo beds and barrancas ; the life-zones of flora and fauna 



BOOK REVIEWS 67 

which embrace not only the native denizens of plains and 
forest but also the dwellers of torrid desert and Arctic- 
Alpine summit. I know of no book that has brought to- 
gether more effectively the facts of the New Mexican scene 
and the esthetic rewards "sky determined" than this book. 
Mary Austin in The Land of Little Rain and The Land of 
Journey's Ending has leaned heavily upon Dr. Calvin's the- 
sis in interpreting the ways of nature and the ways of man. 
Because she did not so thoroughly pursue the single theme, 
"sky determines," she did not draw so great a mass of ar- 
resting detail to so definite an end nor set up so positive a 
point of view to be defended. 

Long before the author brings the name of Huntington 
into the study, the reader anticipates Ellsworth Hunting- 
ton's point of view, that of the geographic determinist. And 
the reader finds his reserve developing in the same direction 
that reserve develops toward any hypothesis which is too ex- 
clusive. "Sky determines" how far and how much? 

"Earth Mother," the Navajos write in their creation 
myths, joined with "Father Sky" to determine First Woman 
and First Man. By the six world wombs were Zuni ances- 
tors determined from the Nadir, Zenith, and four cardinal 
points. To Shipapu still are prayer-feathers lowered before 
the new houses at Shalako in Zuni. The eyes of Pueblenos 
as well as the movements of their dance rhythms turn down- 
ward as well as upward in ceremony and worship. How 
much are life germs determined by their own validity ; how 
much of a destined course in the pattern of plant or man is 
undetermined by Sky? 

Certainly much to thwart Sky is mentioned in New 
Mexico's history and in this book. I suppose Sky is deter- 
mining one way or the other. But I propose a second book 
for Dr. Calvin to write, "Man and Nature Against Sky." 
The over-grazing which is determining many developments 
in New Mexico today was not Sky-determined, though the 
Sky has made rebuttal to the argument. Storage dams are 
likely to determine other than what the Sky wills, if money 



68 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

and labor hold out. Fertilizers from our own potash will 
answer the impoverishment of aridity and the sun's too wel- 
come gaze. Emigrant trees and grasses may combat a na- 
tive Sky with equal determination. Sky-Water is drawn 
from earth or something neighbor to it. 

All this does not end a debate which Dr. Calvin's book 
could start. The chapter on "Forests" is to my mind most 
suggestively and effectively written; the chapter on "Mex- 
icanos" the least so. In the latter chapter, the author is 
too little acquainted with the educational, political, and eco- 
nomic progress of the native population as it fills the schools, 
tills the soil, elects the sheriffs and justices of the peace, 
operates service stations and grocery stores up the Rio 
Grande Valley to the State Capitol. 

It cannot be shown that the Sky in New Mexico had 
any more to do with the innate depravity of Billy the Kid 
than the Sky in Chicago contributed to the same callowness 
in Al Capone. In both cases, however, the scene was, if not 
determining, playing its part in shaping careers. There are 
few who have treated the New Mexican scene more fully 
or more intelligently than the author of this book. 

T. M. PEARCE. 
University of Neiv Mexico. 

Modern Hispanic America. Edited by A. Curtis Wilgus. 
(George Washington University Press, 1933; x-f630 pp., 
index.) 

This is the first volume of a new series, "Studies in 
Hispanic American Affairs," inaugurated by George Wash- 
ington University. It is not a textbook, as the name might 
suggest, but is a group of papers presented in a Seminar 
Conference by sixteen of the participants, gathered at the 
university in August, 1932, in its "Center of Inter-American 
Studies." 

Dr. A. Curtis Wilgus, director of the Center, acted as 
editor and himself contributed the introductory and the con- 
cluding papers. In the former he gives an excellent survey 



BOOK. RE VIEWS 69 

and history of the growing interest in Hispanic America evi- 
dent in our country in courses of study offered, textbooks, 
writings based on research, special periodicals, societies, and 
conferences. This survey is followed by three papers which 
were given by Dr. Mary W. Williams to supply the historic 
background of "Invasion and Occupation," "Political and 
Economic Administration," and "The Roman Church in the 
Indies." 

The attention of the seminar was centered upon the 
modern period, and in the remaining nineteen papers as 
many different subjects economic, cultural, and interna- 
tional are discussed. As is always the case in such a col- 
laboration, there is unevenness of quality and yet the re- 
sult as a whole is informative and stimulating. This was to 
be expected from a group which included such participants 
as J. A. Robertson, J. Fred Rippy, W. R. Manning, S. Guy 
Inman, Clarence F. Jones, N. A. N. Cleven, Cecil K. Jones. 
The reader who has little acquaintance with Hispanic Amer- 
ica will find in this book an excellent approach to the whole 
subject; while the best-informed readers will be well repaid 
by its perusal. 

The volume is indexed but there is no general bibliogra- 
phy with any of the papers. Six of the most important 
papers are, however, annotated. L. B. B. 



The Historical Society of New Mexico 

(INCORPORATED) 
Organized December 26, 1859 



PAST PRESIDENTS 
1859 COL. JOHN B. GRAYSON, U. S. A. 
1861 MAJ. JAMES L. DONALDSON, U. S. A. 
1863 HON. KIRBY BENEDICT 

adjourned sine die, Sept. 2S, 186S 



re-established Dec. 27, 1880 

1881 HON. WILLIAM G. RITCH 
1883 HON. L. BRADFORD PRINCE 
1923 HON. FRANK W. CLANCY 

1925 COL. RALPH E. TWITCHELL 

1926 PAUL A. F. WALTER 



OFFICERS FOR 1934-1935 
PAUL A. F. WALTER, President 

FRANCIS T. CHEETHAM, Vice-President 

COL. JOSE D. SENA, V ice-President 

LANSING B. BLOOM, Cor. Sec'y-Treas. 

Miss HESTER JONES, Recording Sec'y 



FELLOWS 

PERCY M. BALDWIN EDGAR L. HEWETT 

RALPH P. BIEBER FREDERICK W. HODGE 

WILLIAM C. BINKLEY ALFRED V. KIDDER 

LANSING B. BLOOM J. LLOYD MECHAM 

HERBERT E. BOLTON THEODOSIUS MEYER, 0. F. M. 

AURELIO M. ESPINOSA FRANCE V. SCHOLES 

CHARLES W. HACKETT ALFRED B. THOMAS 

GEORGE P. HAMMOND PAUL A. F. WALTER 



CONSTITUTION 

OF THE 

HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF NEW MEXICO 
(As amended Nov. 19, 1929) 

Article 1. Name. This Society shall be called the Historical Society 
of New Mexico. 

Article 2. Objects and Operation. The objects of the Society shall be, 
in general, the promotion of historical studies; and in particular, the 
discovery, collection, preservation, and publication of historical ma- 
terial, especially such as relates to New Mexico. 

Article 3. Membership. The Society shall consist of Members, Pel- 
lows, Life Members and Honorary Life Members. 

(a) Members. Persons recommended by the Executive Council 
and elected by the Society may become members. 

(b) Fellows. Members who show, by published work, special 
aptitude for historical investigation may become Fellows. Immedi- 
ately following the adoption of this Constitution, the Executive 
Council shall elect five Fellows, and the body thus created may there- 
after elect additional Fellows on the nomination of the Executive 
Council. The number of Fellows shall never exceed twenty-five. 

(c) Life Members. In addition to life members of the Historical 
Society of New Mexico at the date of the adoption hereof, such other 
benefactors of the Society as shall pay into its treasury at one time 
the sum of fifty dollars, or shall present to the Society an equivalent 
in books, manuscripts, portraits, or other acceptable material of an 
historic nature, may upon recommendation by the Executive Council 
and election by the Society, be classed as Life Members. 

(d) Honorary Life Members. Persons who have rendered emi- 
nent service to New Mexico and others who have, by published work, 
contributed to the historical literature of New Mexico or the South- 
west, may become Honorary Life Members upon being recommended 
by the Executive Council and elected by the Society. 

Article 4. Officers. The elective officers of the Society shall be a 
president, two vice-presidents, a corresponding secretary and treas- 
urer, and a recording secretary; and these five officers shall constitute 
the Executive Council witji full administrative powers. 

Officers shall qualify on January 1st following their election, and 
shall hold office for the term of two years and until their successors 
shall have been elected and qualified. 



Article 5. Elections. At the October meeting of each odd-numbered 
year, a nominating committee shall be named by the president of the 
Society and such committee shall make its report to the Society at 
the November meeting. Nominations may be made from the floor 
and the Society shall, in open meeting, proceed to elect its officers by 
ballot, those nominees receiving a majority of the votes cast for the 
respective offices to be declared elected. 

Article 6. Dues. Dues shall be $3.00 for each calendar year, and 
shall entitle members to receive bulletins as published and also the 
Historical Review. 

Article 7. Publications. All publications of the Society and the selec- 
tion and editing of matter for publication shall be under the direction 
and control of the Executive Council. 

Article 8. Meetings. Monthly meetings of the Society shall be held at 
the rooms of the Society on the third Tuesday of each month at 
eight P. M. The Executive Council shall meet at any time upon call 
of the President or of three of its members. 

Article 9. Quorums. Seven members of the Society and three mem- 
bers of the Executive Council, shall constitute quorums. 

Article 10. Amendments. Amendments to this constitution shall be- 
come operative after being recommended by the Executive Council 
and approved by two-thirds of the members present and voting at 
any regular monthly meeting; provided, that notice of the proposed 
amendment shall have been given at a regular meeting of the Society, 
at least four weeks prior to the meeting when such proposed amend 
ment is passed upon by the Society. 



Students and friends of Southwestern History are cordially in- 
vited to become members. Applications should be addressed to the 
corresponding secretary, Mr. Lansing B. Bloom, Santa Fe, N. Mex 



irwWwlw w **Vy y* MVM* w wi w w wu w iry traitn* wv IAJ ,IAI mi IHJ 



NEW MEXICO 
HISTORICAL REVIEW 



VOL. X 



APRIL, 1935 



No. 2 




PALACE OP THE GOVERNORS 



PUBLISHED QUARTERLY BY 

THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF NEW MEXICO 

AND 

THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO 






NEW MEXICO 
HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Editor Managing Editor 

LANSING B. BLOOM PAUL A. F. WALTER 

Associates 

PERCY M. BALDWIN E. DANA JOHNSON 

FRANK T. CHEETHAM THEODOSIUS MEYER, 0. F. M. 

VOL. X APRIL, 1935 No, 2 

' 

CONTENTS p a g e 

Civil Government and Society in New Mexico in the 

Seventeenth Century . . . France V. Scholes 71 

The Lineage of Don Diego de Vargas . J. M. Espinosa 112 

Forts Robidoux and Kit Carson . . . A. B. Reagan 121 

Buell's Expedition into Mexico . . M. L. Crimmins 133 

Old Roads and New Highways . . Maud D. Sullivan 143 

Eugene Manlove Rhodes, 1869-1934 . . L. B. Bloom 150 

A Blossom of Barren Lands . Eugene Manlove Rhodes 151 

The Governors of New Mexico . . Lansing B. Bloom 152 
Book Reviews: 

Lesser, Paivnee Ghost Dance Hand Game. 

D. D. Brand 158 
Gambrell, Mirabeau Buonaparte Lamar. F. M. 

Kercheville . 163 

Hilda Faunce, Desert Wife. A. E. W 165 

Gladys A. Reichard, Spider Woman. A. E. W. . 165 
Rufus Kay Wyllys, Pioneer Padre: the Life and 

Times of Eusebio Francisco Kino. L. B. B. . . . 167 
Estudios y Documentos para la Historia del Arte 

Colonial, Vol. I. L. B. B 169 

Notes and Comments: 

The Diego de Vargas Notes. L. B. B 170 

Governor Pile and the Archives. P. A. F. W. . . 171 

The Military Escort of 1834 172 

Possible Origin of "Luminaries." Lynn B. Mitchell 173 

Paul A. F. Walter. L. B. B. . 174 



Subscription to the quarterly is $3.00 a year in advance; single 
numbers (except Vol. I, 1, 2, and II, 2) may be had at $1.00 each. 
Volumes I-II can be supplied at $6.00 each; Vols. III-IX at $4.00 
each. 

Address business communications to Mr. P. A. F. Walter, State 
Museum, Santa Fe, N. M. ; manuscripts and editorial correspondence 
should be addressed to Mr. Bloom at the State University, Albu- 
querque, New Mexico. 

Entered as second-class matter at Santa Fe, New Mexico 
UNIVERSITY PHESS, ALBUQUERQUE, N. M. 



The Historical Society of New Mexico 

(INCORPORATED) 
Organized December 26, 1859 



PAST PRESIDENTS 
1859 COL. JOHN B. GRAYSON, U. S. A. 
1861 -MAJ. JAMES L. DONALDSON, U. S. A. 
1863 HON. KIRBY BENEDICT 

adjourned sine die, Sept. 5, 1863 



re-established Dee. 27, 1880 

1881 HON. WILLIAM G. HITCH 
1883 HON. L. BRADFORD PRINCE 
1923 HON. FRANK W. CLANCY 

1925 COL. RALPH E. TWITCHELL 

1926 PAUL A. F. WALTER 



OFFICERS FOR 1934-1935 

PAUL A. F. WALTER, President 

FRANCIS T. CHEETHAM, Vice-President 

COL. JOSE D. SENA, Vice-President 

LANSING B. BLOOM, Cor. Sec'y-Treas. 

Miss HESTER JONES, Recording Sec'y 



FELLOWS 

PERCY M. BALDWIN EDGAR L. HEWETT 

RALPH P. BIEBER FREDERICK W. HODGE 

WILLIAM C. BINKLEY ALFRED V. KIDDER 

LANSING B. BLOOM J. LLOYD MECHAM 

HERBERT E. BOLTON THEODOSIUS MEYER, O. F. M. 

AURELIO M. ESPINOSA FRANCE V. SCHOLES 

CHARLES W. HACKETT ALFRED B. THOMAS 

GEORGE P. HAMMOND PAUL A. F. WALTER 



CONSTITUTION 

OF THE 

HISTORICAL SOCIETY OP NEW MEXICO 
(As amended Nov. 19, 1929) 

Article 1. Name. This Society shall be called the Historical Society 
of New Mexico. 

Article 2. Objects and Operation. The objects of the Society shall be, 
in general, the promotion of historical studies; and in particular, the 
discovery, collection, preservation, and publication of historical ma- 
terial, especially such as relates to New Mexico. 

Article 3. Membership. The Society shall consist of Members, Fel- 
lows, Life Members and Honorary Life Members. 

(a) Members. Persons recommended by the Executive Council 
and elected by the Society may become members. 

(b) Fellows. Members who show, by published work, special 
aptitude for historical investigation may become Fellows. Immedi- 
ately following the adoption of this Constitution, the Executive 
Council shall elect five Fellows, and the body thus created may there- 
after elect additional Fellows on the nomination of the Executive 
Council. The number of Fellows shall never exceed twenty-five. 

(c) Life Members. In addition to life members of the Historical 
Society of New. Mexico at the date of the adoption hereof, such other 
benefactors of the Society as shall pay into its treasury at one time 
the sum of fifty dollars, or shall present to the Society an equivalent 
in books, manuscripts, portraits, or other acceptable material of an 
historic nature, may upon recommendation by the Executive Council 
and election by the Society, be classed as Life Members. 

(d) Honorary Life Members. Persons who have rendered emi- 
nent service to New Mexico and others who have, by published work, 
contributed to the historical literature of New Mexico or the South- 
west, may become Honorary Life Members upon being recommended 
by the Executive Council and elected by the Society. 

Article 4. Officers. The elective officers of the Society shall be a 
president, two vice-presidents, a corresponding secretary and treas- 
urer, and a recording secretary; and these five officers shall constitute 
the Executive Council with full administrative powers. 

Officers shall qualify on January 1st following their election, and 
shall hold office for the term of two years and until their successors 
shall have been elected and qualified. 



Article 5. Elections. At the October meeting of each odd-numbered 
year, a nominating committee shall be named by the president of the 
Society and such committee shall make its report to the Society at 
the November meeting. Nominations may be made from the floor 
and the Society shall, in open meeting, proceed to elect its officers by 
ballot, those nominees receiving a majority of the votes cast for the 
respective offices to be declared elected. 

Article 6. Dues. Dues shall be $3.00 for each calendar year, and 
shall entitle members to receive bulletins as published and also the 
Historical Review. 

Article 7. Publications. All publications of the Society and the selec- 
tion and editing of matter for publication shall be under the direction 
and control of the Executive Council. 

Article 8. Meetings. Monthly meetings of the Society shall be held at 
the rooms of the Society on the third Tuesday of each month at 
eight P. M. The Executive Council shall meet at any time upon call 
of the President or of three of its members. 

Article 9. Quorums. Seven members of the Society and three mem- 
bers of the Executive Council, shall constitute quorums. 

Article 10. Amendments. Amendments to this constitution shall be- 
come operative after being recommended by the Executive Council 
and approved by two-thirds of the members present and voting at 
any regular monthly meeting; provided, that notice of the proposed 
amendment shall have been given at a regular meeting o.f the Society, 
at least four weeks prior to the meeting when such proposed amend~ 
ment is passed upon by the Society. 



Students and friends of Southwestern History are cordially in- 
vited to become members. Applications should be addressed to the 
corresponding secretary, Mr. Lansing B. Bloom, Santa Fe, N. Mex. 




" l vt 



l0ut< 



DIEGO DE VARGAS COAT OF ARMS 



NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL 
REVIEW 

VOL. X APRIL, 1935 No. ^2 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT AND SOCIETY IN NEW 
MEXICO IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY 

By FRANCE V. SCHOLES 

THIS ESSAY will describe briefly the form and character 
of government in the province of New Mexico in the 
period preceding the Pueblo Revolt of 1680, the character of 
the non-aboriginal population, and the bases of provincial 
economics. 1 

A. NEW MEXICO AND NEW SPAIN 
New Mexico in the seventeenth century was the vast 
northland, extending from the Rio Colorado eastward to the 
Great Plains, and from the northern frontier of the prov- 
ince of New Biscay northward to the Strait of Anian. No 
attempt was made to define its limits, for there was no 
need ; and Spain was willing that the area comprised under 
the phrase, "the Kingdom and Provinces of New Mexico," 
should remain as indefinite as possible, for any delimitation 
of boundaries would have implied a limit on her claim to the 
entire trans-Mississippi country. Even to the southward, 
where New Mexico had her contacts with New Spain, there 
was no definite boundary set up between New Mexico and 



1. The materials on which this essay is based consist mostly of manuscript 
sources in the archives of Mexico and Spain which the author has investigated during 
recent years in preparation for his two projected studies: (1) Church and State in 
New Mexico in the Seventeenth Century; (2) History of New Mexico, 15S<-1682. 
These manuscript materials are so extensive that no attempt will be made here to cite 
them, except in cases where a single citation can be used to illustrate a particular 
point. Most of the essay consists of generalizations based on the whole range of 
sources. 

[71] 



72 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

New Biscay prior to 1680. The desert wastes of Chihuahua 
were an effective barrier to the rapid extension of settle- 
ment from either the north or the south, so that questions of 
jurisdictional limits of the two provinces were largely 
theoretical. 

Thus New Mexico may be thought of as Spain's claim 
to the north country an empire in itself, stretching for 
hundreds of miles in all directions. The New Mexicans 
themselves knew little about the greater part of this vast 
land, although exploring expeditions were sent out to the 
frontiers from time to time to test its possibilities. The 
area over which the provincial authorities exercised effec- 
tive jurisdiction was definitely limited, and comprised only 
a fraction of the total which bore the name of New Mexico. 
It extended from the pueblo of Taos on the north to the 
pueblo of Senecu, and later to the Manso-Suma area, on 
the south, 3 and from the Hopi towns of eastern Arizona on 
the west to the pueblo of Pecos on the east. Even within 
this limited area settlement was sparse, and there were 
great reaches entirely uninhabited. 

The province of New Mexico formed a part of the vice- 
royalty of New Spain. It had been the desire of Ofiate to be 
independent of all supervisory authority in the New World 
and to be subject directly to the king and council in Spain, 
but his efforts to this end were never crowned with success.' 
After the resignation of Onate, responsibility for the gov- 
ernment of New Mexico was assumed by the viceregal 
authorities of New Spain. Governors of the province were 
appointed by the viceroy who exercised a general super- 
vision over military and civil administration. The audiencia 
of Mexico became the court of appeal, and it actively advised 



2. The El Paso missions were founded and administered by New Mexican friars, 
under the protection and patronage of the governors of the province, but apparently 
the issue of actual legal jurisdiction over the El Paso area never became a practical 
problem until after the Pueblo Revolt when the Spanish refugees were settled 
near the Pass. Cf. E. Hughes, The Beginnings of Settlement in the El Paso District. 
(Berkeley, 1914), passim. 

3. G. P. Hammond, Don Juan de Onate and the Founding of New Mexico (Santa 
Fe. 1927), passim. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 73 

the viceroy on all matters of high policy concerning the 
province. In financial matters the viceroy and the royal 
officials of the central treasury in Mexico City had control. 
The measure of control which the viceregal authorities 
were able to maintain over local administration in New 
Mexico varied greatly from time to time, but at best it was 
ineffective, especially at the time of crisis. This was due 
mostly to the great distance some fifteen hundred miles 
which separated Mexico City from Santa Fe\ At least a 
third of the distance was semi-desert country, inhabited by 
hostile, nomadic tribes. The mission supply caravan usually 
took some six months to make the journey each way, and 
frequently remained another six months in the province, so 
that a year and a half was counted a normal round trip. It 
was possible, of course, to make the journey in much less 
time, and dispatches of mail were sometimes sent in a few 
weeks. But even with the greatest speed, many months 
elapsed before the provincial authorities could consult the 
viceroy and get a reply, or before aggrieved parties in New 
Mexico could file their complaints and get redress, for, in 
addition to the factor of distance, there were the inevitable 
delays in the processes of colonial administration to be 
reckoned with. To make matters worse, it was exceedingly 
difficult for an administrative officer in Mexico City to form 
an accurate judgment concerning 1 the trustworthiness of the 
reports on the basis of which he was obliged to make his 
decision. Such reports were always highly circumstantial, 
if not sometimes positively falsified. Moreover, the frankly 
expressed prejudices of the viceroy or his aids sometimes 
influenced their decisions on local New Mexican affairs, and 
if it is true that some of the governors of the province were 
merely the favorites of the viceroy, or had been granted 
office as a result of outright bribery, then justice was bound 
to be perverted. This state of affairs had an exceedingly 
unfortunate effect on provincial development, for it encour- 
aged arbitrary government and made possible the gravest 
sort of administrative abuses. If tardy justice was exacted 



74 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

in a few notorious cases, this could not offset the evil effects 
of abuses which had been allowed to go unpunished for 
years. 

B. THE PROVINCIAL GOVERNOR 

The contract by which Juan de Ofiate was granted 
authority to conquer and colonize New Mexico gave him and 
his heirs for two generations the title of Adelantado, Gov- 
ernor, and Captain General. He and his family also re- 
ceived certain important privileges and exemptions, admin- 
istrative and fiscal, of the sort usually granted to founders 
of new provinces. When Ofiate resigned his offices and 
titles in 1607, the viceroy appointed Juan Martinez de Mon- 
toya, one of Onate's captains, to act as governor ad interim 
pending the decision concerning the fate of the colony, but 
the cabildo of San Gabriel refused to accept the appointment 
and on its own responsibility named Onate's young son, Don 
Crist6bal, to govern." The Ofiates, father and son, were, 
therefore, in charge of the province until the winter of 
1609-1610 when Pedro de Peralta, a new appointee, arrived 
and assumed control. Administration of the province was 
based henceforth on general colonial legislation and policy, 
instead of on a special contract between the Crown and the 
local leader. The title of Adelantado was dropped, and 
Peralta and his successors had the usual rank and titles of 
Governor and Captain General. 

During the period from 1609 to 1680 twenty-three reg- 
ularly appointed governors ruled the province. The average 
term of office was thus slightly more than three years, which 
was the term provided by law. 6 The shortest was about six 
months and the longest exactly seven years. 6 Appointments 



4. Hammond, op. cit,. passim. 

5. Recopilaclon de las leyes de las Indias, lib. v. tit. i. ley x. The patent of 
appointment of Gov. Antonio de Otermin, appointed in 1677, stated: ". . . e tenido 
por vien de elijiros y nombraros como por la presente os elijo y nombro por ml 
*or. y capn. grenl. . . . por tiempo de tres (anos) y poco mas o menos," etc. Titulo de 
gor. y Capn. genl. 3 Feb., 1677. .Miscellaneous viceregal orders and decrees concern' 
ing New Mexico. 1673-1677. Archivo General y Ptiblico de la Naci6n, Mexico (to be 
cited hereafter as A. G. M.), Reales Cedulas y 6rdenes, Duplicados, Tomo 81. 

6. The shortest term was that of Juan Flores de Sierra y Valdez, spring to 
fafl, 1641 ; the longest was that of Juan de Eulate, Dec. 22, 1618, to Dec. 21, 1626. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 75 

were made in Mexico City, but the actual term of office began 
only when the new governor arrived and received the boston 
of office from his predecessor. Salary, which was two thou- 
sand pesos annually, began with the date of departure from 
Mexico City and ended with the date of transfer of author- 
ity to a successor in New Mexico. In the case of absence or 
death of a governor, control was assumed by the cabildo of 
Santa Fe or by a lieutenant appointed by the regular incum- 
bent. 7 

It was the governor's function to promote the general 
advancement of the province, to secure the administration 
of justice, to defend the province from internal revolt and 
from attack by outside enemies, especially the marauding 
nomads, to foster and protect the missions, and to protect 
the settled Pueblo Indians from abuse and exploitation. The 
governor was at once the political leader of the province, the 
commander-in-chief of its military establishment, its legis- 
lator on all matters of local provincial policy, and its most 
important judicial officer. His powers were wide enough to 
permit an honest and energetic man to maintain discipline 
and secure justice, or to make it possible for a self-seeking 
official to become a local tyrant. 8 



7. In 1641, Gov. Juan F16res de Sierra y Valdez, realizing that he was dying, 
appointed a well-known soldier, Francisco Gomez, to rule as lieutenant-governor in hit 
place. But the cabildo of Santa F6 refused to accept this arrangement, and assumed 
full authority itself. 

8. The powers which the governor exercised were defined in the general legis- 
lation on colonial administration and in the instruction given to each governor at the 
time of his appointment. The Recopilacidn and Sol6ranzo's commentaries (Politica 
Indiana) contain the essential general legislation. The "Ordenanzas . . . para los 
nuevos descubrimientos," 1573, (Col. doc. inedit. . . . de America y Oceania, XVI, 
142-187) should be consulted, and also Onate's contract in C. W. Hackett, Historical 
documents relating to New Mexico, Nueva Vizcaya and approaches thereto, to 1779 
(Wash. 1923), I, 225-255. The instructions issued to Peralta in 1609 and those given 
to Otermfn in 1677 have been preserved. They are practically identical so it is 
apparent that the governor's instructions followed a set formula which was varied 
only with regard to special problems arising from time to time. Peralta's instruction 
has been printed, Spanish text and English translation, by L. B. Bloom and I. L. 
Chaves, "Ynstruccion a Peralta," NEW MEX. HIST. REV., IV (1929), 178-187. Oter- 
min's instruction: "Ynstruccion de lo que a de guardar don Antonio Otermin . . .," in 
Miscellaneous viceregal orders and decrees concerning New Mexico. 167S-1677. 
A. G. M., Reales Cedulas y 6rdenes, Duplicados, Tomo 81. In 1621 special instruction* 



76 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

The obligation to promote the general welfare of the 
province implied a wide range of authority. The governor 
was empowered to issue necessary ordinances and decrees, 
general and special; to divide the province into lesser ad- 
ministrative districts; to appoint lesser officials; and to 
supervise the government of the Villa de Santa Fe and of 
the rural subdivisions or jurisdictions. 9 It is his duty to 
assist in every possible manner the growth and well being 
of the non-aboriginal community : to select suitable sites for 
settlements, taking care that the population was not unduly 
scattered ; to foster the growth of the Villa de Santa Fe and 
the maintenance there of an adequate soldier-encomendero 
citizenry; to supervise the assignment of lands and water 
rights outside the Villa de Santa Fe ; and to prevent the citi- 
zens from absenting themselves from the province without 
his license. 10 He was responsible also for the maintenance 
of public buildings, such as the Casa Real, strongholds and 
forts, and supply depots, and for maintenance of roads and 
communications, especially the Camino Real through the 
Rio Grande valley to El Paso and New Spain. Once during 
his term of office the governor was expected to make a for- 
mal visitation of his province in order to inquire into the 
state of the community, to correct abuses and to make any 
necessary changes in the local administration." Although 
the visitation had a certain value in giving the governor 



9. Cf. "Ordenanzaa . . . para los nuevos descubrimientos," and Onate's contract 
based on them. 

10. Instruction to Peralta. 

11. Recopilacidn, lib. v, tit. ii, leyes xv-xxi. 

were sent to Custodian Perea and Governor Eulate. During the years preceding 1621 
the civil and ecclesiastical authorities had filed a series of charges and counter-charges 
with the viceroy as the result of bitter controversy between the Church and State. 
The instructions were intended to bring peace to the two jurisdictions and dealt with 
many phases of general provincial policy. The first, dated Jan. 9, 1621, addressed to 
Custodian Perea, was in the form of a real provision, issued in the name of the 
Crown, in order to give it especial authority. It has been published in English trans- 
lation by L. B. Bloom in NEW MEX. HIST. REV., V (1930), 288-298. The second, dated 
Feb. 5, 1621, addressed to Governor Eulate, has also been published by Bloom, Spanish 
text and English translation, in NEW MEX. HIST. REV., Ill (1928), 357-380. The four 
sets of instructions will be cited individually as Instruction to Peralta, Instruction to 
Perea, etc. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 77 

knowledge of local affairs, it sometimes degenerated into a 
sort of inquisitorial process on the governor's part, or be- 
came an endless affair of charge and counter-charge on the 
part of aggrieved parties. On all important matters he was 
expected to secure the advice of the leaders of the clergy 
and the cabildo of Santa Fe." It was required of him also to 
make frequent reports to the viceroy on all matters of im- 
portance. 

The administration of justice in this new and strug- 
gling community was likely to be more an affair of adminis- 
tration than of law, and a practical executive was more 
effective than a man with a flare for legal technicality. This 
was true especially with respect to the relationships of the 
two systems of law, the civil and the ecclesiastical, for the 
delimitation of the spheres of action of the civil and ecclesi- 
astical jurisdictions was ever a fruitful source of contro- 
versy. The specific sphere of action of the governor as a 
judicial officer included such matters as (1) cases of mili- 
tary discipline and privilege under the military fuero; (2) 
cases of sedition including unauthorized departure from the 
province; (3) cases involving questions of encomienda and 
allocation of the revenues therefrom; (4) cases dealing with 
Indians in the Villa de Santa Fe. 18 The governor also had 
appellate jurisdiction in cases appealed from the magis- 
trates of the Villa de Santa Fe and in cases settled in the 
first instance by the alcaldes mayores of the rural sub- 
divisions. 14 

One of the principal duties of the governor was the 
organization of defense. This involved defense of the non- 
aboriginal population from possible Indian revolt, protec- 



12. Instruction to Eulate. 

13. This jurisdiction over Indians within the Villa de Santa F6 ia explicitly 
stated in the Instruction to Peralta.' 

14. The governor's instructions contain no references to judicial matters except 
the specific statement concerning jurisdiction over the Indians in the Villa de Santa 
Fe. The appellate jurisdiction of governors, corregidores, and alcaldes mayores (i.e., 
these alcaldes mayores such as we find in parts of New Spain proper, whose authority 
was often more or less co-equal with that of governors) with respect to cases coming 
from the villas is recognized by Sol6rzano (Politico, Indiana, lib. v, cap. i, ii) and 



78 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

tion of friars laboring in dangerous areas, and the most im- 
portant problem of finding a solution of the perennial 
Apache menace. He was responsible for the general direc- 
tion of all military campaigns, distribution of arms and 
ammunition, assignment of soldiers for escort and gar- 
rison duty, and the maintenance of discipline. During the 
early years of the seventeenth century the military phases 
of provincial administration were limited mostly to the pro- 
tection of friars at missions, and escort for the supply cara- 
van. During the second half of the century, however, the 
problem changed, for the growing danger from the Apaches 
became the most important phase of defense and in the 1670s 
it was the paramount provincial problem. 

The formal military establishment of the province was 
small and loosely organized, for prior to 1680 there was no 
regular presidio or paid garrison. Occasionally soldiers 
were sent out from New Spain on a salary for a stated term, 
but the core of the local military force was a group of pro- 
fessional soldier-citizens who made military service and par- 
ticipation in the political affairs of the province a life job. 
They were paid no regular salary by the Crown, 15 but they 
received encomiendas, the revenues from which were to 
be in lieu of salary. Most of them, moreover, supple- 
mented the income which they received from their encom- 
ienda by farming and stock raising on their own account. 



15. It appears that prior to 1631 encomenderos sometimes served as escort 
for the supply caravans, as well as for friars at dangerous missions. Cf. Instruction 
to Eulate. The treasury accounts indicate that payment was made in certain 
cases for escort duty for the caravans. A.G.I., Contaduria 726. After 1631 the 
supply caravan had its own special escort paid by the Crown. See terms of the 
1681 contract in F. V. Scholes, "The supply service of the New Mexico missions in 
the seventeenth century," NEW MEX. HIST. REV., V (1930), p. 111. In 1664 a new 
contract regulating the supply service was made and ex-Governor Manso, to whom 
the new contract was granted, agreed to pay the cost of the escort. Scholes, op. cit., 
p. 898. 



in the Recopilacion, lib. v, tit. xii, leyes xii, xxvi. For precedent with regard to the 
appelate jurisdiction of a governor over subordinate alcaldes mayores see Eecopila- 
ci6n, lib. v, tit. xii, ley xxvii, which provided for appeal from the alcaldes mayores of 
the Rio de la Plata to the governors of the same. Onate's contract, based on the 
''Ordenanzas . . . para los nuevos descubrimientos," provided specifically for such 
appellate jurisdiction over both the alcaldes ordinarios of villas and alcaldes mayorea. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 79 

The only paid military official, except the governor, was the 
armorer who received three hundred and fifty pesos a year. 
The number of these encomendero-soldiers was set at thirty- 
five. They formed the professional service and many of 
them attained the rank of captain or higher. They were to 
be ready at all times to answer a summons to do escort duty 
and to serve in small groups as local pueblo guards. In 
times of special crisis they assumed command of larger 
levies consisting of fifty or one hundred Spaniards and 
mestizos and a much larger force of Indian allies. Over 
these professional soldiers the governors exercised direct 
control and authority. They appointed all of the officers and 
they allocated the encomiendas from which the professionals 
derived a part of their income. It was possible, therefore, 
for the governors to build up a definite military faction 
favorable to their own interest. 

Financial administration was a very minor phase of 
the governor's activity. Onate had received permission to 
establish a branch treasury, regulate mining, etc. 18 As a 
matter of fact, very little revenue, if any at all, was derived 
from the province. There is no evidence that mining was 
successfully carried on, even on a minor scale, so that there 
were no fifths to be collected. There were no royal tributes, 
for all of the Indians were subject to encomienda. Tithes 
were paid by the non-aboriginal community but it does not 
appear that the Crown collected its share. The half-annate 
(media anata) was levied on the governor's salary, but it 
was collected in Mexico City. 17 Whether New Mexico was 
exempt from the alcabala, or sales tax, cannot be determined 
but there is no evidence to prove that it was collected on the 
primitive intra-provincial commerce. 

The obligation of the civil authorities to co-operate in 
the entire missionary program, both in the active teaching 



16. Cf. Onate's contract. 

17. The media anata was collected on Governor Samaniego's salary in 1652 and 
probably on the salary of all other governors during the remainder of the period 
prior to 1680. I am indebted to Prof. L. B. Bloom (who has made an intensive 
study of the materials in A.G.I., Contaduria) for information on this point. 



80 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

of the new faith and in the maintenance of mission disci- 
pline, was stated in numerous royal orders and decrees." 
There could be no doubt concerning the duty of the governor 
in this respect. It was expected that he would set a good 
example to the Indians, an example not only of good, moral 
living but also of respect and deference for the friars. It 
was his duty also to assist actively in the conversions, to 
exhort the Indians to accept the new faith, to aid in the 
building of churches, and to encourage the Indians to aid 
the friars and to honor and obey them. Above all, it was 
necessary that the civil authorities should support the friars 
not only in enforcing attendance at mass, but also in stamp- 
ing out concubinage and the practice of the old ceremonials. 

How inadequately some of the governors and other 
civil officers fulfilled all these obligations is indicated by 
even the most casual study of the documentary sources for 
the seventeenth century. They failed often to assist in the 
active program of conversion and teaching, but more impor- 
tant was the lack of co-operation in the maintenance of 
mission discipline. Several governors were accused of 
inciting the Indians to acts of disobedience and violence. 
Mendizabal and the clergy quarreled over the question of 
corporal punishment for infractions of discipline. On the 
highly important question of the old ceremonial dances the 
governors followed a vacillating policy. Some governors, 
like Eulate and Mendizabal, encouraged the Indians to per- 
form the old ritual. On the other hand, there were occasions 
when the Indians were severely punished for loyalty to the 
old ways, and more than once native priests were rounded 
up, whipped, and some of them hanged. It is not surprising 
that the Indians soon lost all respect for their new masters, 
both friars and soldiers, and came to mistrust the whole 
Spanish community and to react violently against the entire 
fund of Spanish culture. 

The governor's authority and influence over Indian 
relations were of the greatest importance. Spanish legisla- 



18. RecopilacMn. lib. i, tit. i, leyes ii, v-rvi. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 81 

tion on Indian affairs represented a compromise between 
the humanitarian principles of sixteenth century Spanish 
jurisprudence and the absolute need of the dominant Span- 
ish Creole minority in the New World for Indian labor. The 
Indians were obliged to pay tribute either to the Crown or 
to private individuals (encomenderos) . As hired servants 
and laborers they were indispensable for almost any colonial 
enterprise. The legislation on tribute and labor was detailed 
enough and was intended to protect the Indians from exploi- 
tation. Execution of these laws, especially in far-away 
provinces, only too often failed to measure up to the princi- 
ples of justice that inspired them. Even the most earnest 
administrator found it difficult to root out abuses, for the 
opposition of the non-aboriginal community, the class of 
vested interest, whose very existence depended on the en- 
comienda tributes or the hired labor of the Indians, was 
usually so great that reforms were seldom permanent. And 
disinterested provincial officials were rare. Many of the 
provincial governors, alcaldes mayores, and corregidores 
were themselves exploiters of the Indians, rather than their 
protectors. 

Almost without exception the governors of New Mex- 
ico were interested in using the Indians for their own profit, 
and instead of curbing abuses were often the worst offend- 
ers. The documentary sources are full of evidence dealing 
with the methods which they employed to exploit the 
Indians. A common practice was to require each pueblo to 
manufacture manias and paint them with various designs, 
and sometimes workshops for the same purpose were set up 
in Santa Fe itself where the Indians were pressed into serv- 
ice for long hours and under miserable conditions. Indians 
of those pueblos that were situated near the salt fields were 
used to cart or carry salt to centrally located depots. The 
eastern frontier pueblos were used as trading posts, and the 
Indians were sent out to the buffalo plains to trade with the 
Apaches for hides and slaves. Pifion was a prime luxury in 
Mexico and had a value there ten times the New Mexico 



82 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

price. The governors eagerly pressed groups of Indians 
into service to range over the mountains and gather large 
supplies of this delicacy. Indian artisans were employed to 
build wagons and carts for the transport of all these goods 
to the markets of New Spain. Usually the governors 
shipped out these accumulated stocks of goods, either at the 
end of their terms, or took advantage of the return journey 
of the mission supply service. Occasionally, however, they 
organized special caravans, and pressed Indians into serv- 
ice as servants and muleteers. It was sometimes charged 
that no provision was made for the immediate return of 
these Indians to New Mexico, or for their living while in 
New Spain, and that consequently many never returned, or 
had to undergo privation and hardship until they could join 
the next mission caravan on its way to New Mexico. 

Not only were these trading ventures in direct viola- 
tion of royal legislation which forbade the governors to 
engage in any sort of business or trade, 19 but there is ample 
evidence also that the Indians were often forced to labor 
without pay and that even when wages were paid they fell 
far short of the standard scale of pay or that the goods 
which were given in exchange (and all labor was paid in 
kind) were often valued far above their true worth. When 
Governor Mendizabal's residencia was being taken in 1661, 
the attorney for the Indians claimed that Mendizabal owed 
in balances due more than twenty-four hundred pesos to the 
Indians for various services, or an equivalent of more than 
nineteen thousand days of labor at the rate of one real a 
day. Mendizabal insisted that many of the claims were 
exaggerated or that they had already been paid, but even 
if the sum total were cut in half it would still be clear proof 
of the manner in which a governor could exploit Indians. 
When the complete residencia record was presented before 
the audiencia for final judgment, Mendizabal was found 
guilty on the general charge of illegal use of Indian labor.* 



19. Recopilacidn, lib. 6, tit. ii, ley xlvii. 

20. The residencia is in A. G. M., Tierras, Tomo 3268. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 83 

Actual enslavement of adult Pueblo Indians was rare, 
and was usually a punishment for certain crimes. There is 
direct and irrefutable evidence, however, that Governor 
Eulate sometimes gave written permission to soldiers to 
seize Indian orphans as house servants. The clergy insisted 
that these unfortunate children were subjected to perpetual 
servitude and they were hunted down, "as if they were 
branded slaves," if they fled from their masters. It may be 
doubted, however, whether the authorities regarded them as 
slaves. It is more likely that the permits or vales by which 
seizures were authorized were issued on the presumption 
that the master of such a seized orphan would teach and in- 
doctrinate him, and serve as a sort of guardian, and that in 
return for such protection and training the master had a 
claim on the orphan's services." Of course this might easily 
mean actual, if not legal slavery, for the same theory 
appears to have been the basis of the Apache slave system to 
be described below. Whether this practice of impressing 
Pueblo children as house servants was generally practiced 
throughout the country cannot be determined. It was a 
common practice during Eulate's administration, and 
Father Perea declared in 1633 that Governor Mora Ceballos 
permitted the seizure of boys and girls who had no need for 
guardianship." But this is all the evidence we have. It is 
sufficient, however, to indicate a certain trend, which might 
become permanent unless stopped by active denunciation 
and resistance. 

The capture of Apaches, especially boys and girls, to be 
used as house servants, was, however, a common practice, 
and the governors received their share of these spoils of 
frontier warfare. The relations of the Pueblos to the 
Apaches and Navahos during the seventeenth century alter- 
nated between peace and hostility just as they had in the 



21. The evidence on this point is in a miscellaneous group of letters, declarations, 
etc. in A. G. M. Inquisici6n, Tomo 356, ff. 257-317. A few specimen vales are in- 
eluded in the expedients 

22. Friar Estevan de Perea to the Holy Office, 2 Oct., 1632. A. G. M. Inquisi- 
ei6n, Tomo 304. 



84 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

past; but as the century advanced there was a definite in- 
crease in the amount of hostility, for instead of bringing 
peace to the nomads and the Pueblos the Spaniards were 
responsible for a sharpening of the old feuds. 

The Spaniards brought to New Mexico horses, fire- 
arms, and knives, and thus made possible that kind of guer- 
illa warfare which has ever since been inseparably con- 
nected with the name Apache. The governors and soldiers 
of the new Hispanic community saw in the Apaches and 
Navahos a source of profit and they were quick to take ad- 
vantage of the commercial possibilities of such frontier 
pueblos as the pueblo of Pecos and the Tompiro villages, 
which had traded with the Apaches long before the Span- 
iard arrived. Not content with the profits of trade in these 
frontier villages, the Spaniards sent expeditions to the 
buffalo plains to trade with the Apaches direct. But such 
expeditions had the habit of degenerating into hostilities 
during which captives were made on both sides, the Span- 
iards seizing young boys and girls as slaves, and the 
Apaches, horses and guns. From these simple beginnings 
was built up the long and sad story of the Apache tribes in 
their relations with the European. 

The Spaniards found these ventures extremely profit- 
able. Buffalo hides and Apache slaves found a ready sale 
not only in New Mexico, but also in New Spain, and the 
royal prohibitions against slave raids were usually futile 
in the face of a real profit. It was easy to argue that the 
Apaches thus captured were not being traded as slaves but 
that they were being deposited in the homes of Christian 
families where they would receive Christian teaching and 
save their souls. Such sophistry did not prevent the slave 
girls and boys from -having a value of thirty or forty pesos, 
or, more correctly, the value of one good mule. 23 What is 
most deplorable of all is the fact that the provincial gov- 



23. The prices are found in the records of MendizabaJ's residencia, A. G. M., 
Tierras, Tomo 3268. It is indicated that the Pueblos also learned the profit to be 
Grained from making captives of the nomads, in order to trade them to the Spaniards 
for horses, mules, and sheep. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 85 

ernors were probably the worst offenders. When Governor 
Eulate arrived in Mexico City at the end of his seven year 
term of office, he was arrested by the civil authorities there 
and one of the charges was that he had brought from New 
Mexico several Indian slaves. 24 Governor Rosas was ac- 
cused of complicity in the capture of friendly Apaches, 
some of whom were sold in New Spain as slaves and the 
others put to work in his own workship in Santa Fe. 25 At 
the time of his arrest by the Inquisition in 1662, Governor 
Mendizabal claimed that he owned, or had an interest in, 
some ninety Apache slaves. His enemies stated that on one 
occasion, having induced a group of Apache (Navaho) 
warriors to come to Jemez in peace and friendship, he not 
only ordered a treacherous attack on them during which 
fifteen were killed, but also executed a follow-up raid on 
the camp of the nomads nearby during which ten men and 
thirty women and children were captured. 28 Mendizabal's 
successor, Diego de Pefialosa, even sent several Apache boys 
and girls to Mexico City as gifts to his friends. 27 These 
examples could easily be multiplied but they are sufficient to 
indicate that the seizure of unconverted nomadic tribesmen 
to be used as personal servants was a common practice and 
that enslavement was actual, if not legal. 

These acts of treachery and violence sharpened the 
age-old hostility between the Apaches and the inhabitants 
of the settled areas. Inspired by a growing hatred and em- 
boldened by new methods of warfare made possible by the 
horse and new weapons, the nomads began an increasingly 
bitter war of attrition against the Hispano-Indian settle- 
ments. The Spaniards in turn seized upon these attacks as 
an excuse for new campaigns and to the vicious circle thus 
created there was no end. 



24. A. G. M., Reales Cedulas y 6rdenes, Duplicadas, Tomo 8. 

25. Petition of Juan Francisco de Salazar, 5 July, 1641, in Expediente sobre el 
levantamiento del Nuevo Mexico y pasajes con los religiosos de San Francisco de 
aquella provincia en el que se trata del proceder del Obispo Don Juan Palafox. 
(1640-1646), Archive General de Indias (to be cited hereaftr as A. G. I.), Patronato 
244, No. 7. 

26. A. G. M., Tirras, Tomos 3268, 3283, 3286. 

27. A. G. M., Tierras, Tomo 3283. 



86 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Thus the governor's power and influence were exten- 
sive and were easily expanded either by generous interpre- 
tations of instructions or by extra-legal action. All of the 
governors were jealous of their prerogatives and sensitive 
of their position as representatives of the Crown. They 
set the standard and tone of provincial administration. They 
came into contact with every provincial citizen of impor- 
tance, and the character of government easily took on a 
personal aspect. Very much depended, therefore, on the 
ability, character, and personality of the men who were 
appointed to the post. 

The governors who served in New Mexico prior to 1680 
were, with one exception, men who had had no previous ex- 
perience in New Mexican affairs. Many of them, however, 
had served the Crown in some naval, military, or adminis- 
trative capacity, as corregidores or alcaldes mayores in New 
Spain or Peru, as officers in the galleon service, as aides to 
the viceroy, or as garrison commanders. A few of them 
may have had formal university training, but most of them 
had been trained only in the rough and tumble of colonial 
administration. In making appointments the viceroys 
sometimes took advantage of the opportunity to reward a 
favorite and some of them may not have been adverse to 
accepting a bribe. In 1647 one of the New Mexican friars, 
writing a general complaint to the king, was quite explicit 
in his statement that some of the governors were mere 
creatures of the viceroy and owed their appointment to the 
purchase of the viceroy's favor." 

Present knowledge of the governors is confined mostly 
to a few individuals who incurred the wrath of the clergy, 
and the character of these men, as described in the friar 
complaints, is far from complimentary. Even if we dis- 
count heavily the denunciations of the friars there remains 
ample proof of the fact that some of them were arbitrary in 
their conduct of the government, openly immoral, crass, and 



28. Friar Andres Suarez to the king, 26 Oct., 1647. Enclosure in A. G. M., 
Realea C^dulas y 6rdenes, Principals, Tomo III, No. 103. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 87 

entirely unscrupulous. The most general complaint that can 
be laid up against them as a group was their eager and per- 
sistent desire to squeeze a profit out of their office. The sal- 
ary was fairly good, as compared with other official sal- 
aries in New Spain, but it was not the salary that made men 
accept an appointment in a province fifteen hundred miles 
from Mexico City. It was the opportunity for gain. Their 
profits from trade, stock-raising, and exploitation of Indian 
labor were, in some cases, far in excess of their salary. 

It must not be supposed, however, that there were no 
means of curbing the tyranny and greed of a self-seeking 
governor or of punishing him for malfeasance in office. 
Every governor was obliged to submit to a formal residencia 
at the end of his term of office. The residencia was required 
of all important administrators throughout Spanish Amer- 
ica and the Crown had laid down definite regulations con- 
cerning it. 89 That it did not achieve the end intended is only 
too well known, and New Mexico was no exception in this 
respect. Bribery was employed to thwart justice and more 
than one governor went free on that account. 30 On the other 
hand, in a few cases for which there is definite direct in- 
formation in any amount, it is clear that the residencia could 
be, and sometimes was, a serious matter. The most detailed 
residencia report that we have is for Bernardo Lopez de 
Mendizabal, who was governor from 1659 to 1661. Mendi- 
zabal's policies aroused the bitter opposition of the Church 
and of a considerable faction of the civil community, and 
very serious charges were brought against him during his 
residencia which was conducted by his successor, Diego de 
Penalosa Briceno, who did not hesitate to take advantage 
of Mendizabal's difficulties for his own personal profit. The 
residencia and the trial by the Inquisition in Mexico City, 



29. Recopilacidn, lib. v, tit. xv. 

30. The clergy accused Governor Luis de Rosas of accepting a bribe from Gov- 
ernor Francisco de Baeza. Petition of Juan Francisco de Salazar, 5 July, 1641, in 
Expediente sobre el levantamiento, etc. A. G. I., Patronato 244, No. 7. Friar Andres 
Suarez in his letter to the king, Oct. 26, 1647, accused the governor in office at that 
time of similar offense. See note 28 supra. 



88 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

to which he was subjected in 1663-1664, ruined Mendizabal 
financially and so undermined his already delicate health 
that he died before the Inquisition decided his case. 81 An- 
other means of checking arbitrary government was the 
power and influence of the cabildo of Santa Fe, for, although 
this group was frequently controlled by the governor, there 
are instances which indicate that the cabildo sometimes of- 
fered strenuous resistance to a governor and his policies. 88 
Most important, however, was the influence and authority of 
the Church. This consisted not only of such strictly eccle- 
siastical weapons as ex-communication and penance, but 
also of active opposition to certain policies of administra- 
tion. Moreover, the authority of the Inquisition, once it 
was established in New Mexico, became a weapon of first 
importance. 

In 1682 Governor Otermin faced the danger of open 
sedition among the discontented refugees who were living 
near El Paso after the tragic revolt of 1680. The attempted 
reconquest of 1681-1682 had failed, food was scarce, and 
there was real danger that the Indians of El Paso, aided by 
the Apaches and rebel Pueblos, might attack the Spanish 
settlements. Many of the soldiers wanted to abandon the 
area and move to New Biscay, and when Otermin refused 
to accept these proposals several of the soldiers fled to Mex- 
ico City. There they presented serious charges against 
Otermin and accused him of actions which, so they said, had 
directly provoked the Pueblo Revolt. In his own defense 
Otermin wrote a long letter to the viceroy, in which he de- 
clared that the governors of New Mexico had always been 
subjected to criticism, opposition, and even violence on the 
part of malcontents, lay or ecclesiastical, among the Span- 
ish community. For example, Peralta had been unjustly 
imprisoned by Friar Isidro Ordonez, prelate of the Fran- 
ciscans, in conspiracy with a faction of the soldiers. Oppo- 

31. A. G. M., Tierras, Tomos 3268, 3283, 3286; Inquisici6n, Tomos 587, 593, 594. 

32. The cabildo and Mendizabal were on very bad terms, and the procurator of 
the villa presented a bitter denunciation of Mendizabal before his judge of residencia. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 89 

sition to the policies of Sotelo Osorio had reduced him to the 
extremity of leading- his own horse to water ! Silva Nieto's 
own servants had turned against him and one of them later 
murdered him in Zacatecas. Mora Ceballos had been so 
persecuted that he had to take refuge in the Convent of 
Galisteo. Rosas had been murdered by a faction of the citi- 
zenry. Arguello had been sent out of New Mexico a pris- 
oner, but near Parral he had escaped, "leaving his property 
dissipated and destroyed." Against Guzman y Figueroa 
such serious charges were brought that he had left New 
Mexico before his term of office was ended. Ugarte y la 
Concha, "who was upright in justice," had been imprisoned 
and subjected to open insult. Samaniego, "a virtuous and 
exemplary gentleman," had been denounced in a bill of par- 
ticulars consisting of seventeen demandas. Manso had suf- 
fered undue severity in his residencia. Mendizabal and 
Penalosa had been tried by the Holy Office. During his 
first term of office Miranda had been deprived of office, ar- 
rested, imprisoned in the Casa de Cabildo, and subjected to 
an "iniquitous residencia." Villanueba had been utterly 
ruined financially, and departed from New Mexico "with 
only what he had on his back." Against Medrano such seri- 
ous charges had been made that "like a madman he fled the 
house in which he lived (at a time when there was) half a 
vara of snow (on the ground), a Cristo in his hands, lance 
and cloak on his shoulder, shouting that he was leaving for 
Mexico to seek justice from God and the King against a 
people abandoned by God." 88 

No doubt Otermin was greatly agitated when he wrote 
this letter, but we do know that Peralta was imprisoned on 
Friar Ordonez' authority, that Sotelo Osorio did incur the 
wrath of both the clergy and the soldier-encomenderos, that 
Rosas was murdered, and that both Mendizabal and Pena- 



33. A. G. I., Guadalajara 138. Testimonio de los autos fechos sobre la entrada y 
recuperacion de los Yndios Apostatas subleuados en la Prouincia de la Nueua Mexico; 
fulminados por Don Antonio de Otermfn Gouernador y Capitan General de dicha 
Prouincia. Ano de 1682, ff. 212v-319. The Otermin letter, dated at San Lorenzo. 
5 April, 1682, is in ff. 250v-256. 



90 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

losa were ruined by their New Mexico experience. Oter- 
min might also have added other items to his bill of particu- 
lars, viz., that Bernardino de Ceballos was excommunicated 
because he failed to co-operate with the clergy in executing 
an ecclesiastical sentence, that Eulate found his match in 
Friar Estevan de Perea, and that the clergy lodged bitter 
complaints with the viceroy concerning Baeza and his 
policies. 84 

But in many cases the governors had only themselves to 
blame for their difficulties, and it would be easy to be very 
severe in denunciation of the provincial governors in New 
Mexico prior to 1680. Proud and haughty, frequently 
greedy and crass, ruthless sometimes, some of them guilty of 
grave immorality, they brought to the administration of the 
province a spirit that was frequently inconsistent with peace 
and quiet and sometimes definitely detrimental to the prog- 
ress, not only of the Church and the missions, but also of the 
struggling lay community. But theirs was no easy task. 
Boldness in policy and forcefulness in action were required 
to govern a province like New Mexico. The governors had 
to make their own decisions and stand by them, for New 
Spain was far away. They dealt with turbulent men, real 
frontiersmen, and they had to match their wits with some 
of the keenest ecclesiastics who served in the missions of 
New Spain. With all their faults they kept the colony in- 
tact for eighty years, and when tragedy marched over the 
land in 1680, Otermin displayed true soldierly qualities and 
was able to make an orderly retreat from Santa Fe to the 
safety of the El Paso country. 

C. LESSER OFFICIALS 

The governor was assisted in the administration of 
provincial business by several lesser officials and by the ca- 
bildo of the Villa de Santa Fe. The most important of the 
lesser officials were the secretary of government and war, 



34. My Church and State in New Mexico in the Seventeenth Century will con- 
tain a detailed discussion of many of these incidents. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 91 

the lieutenant-governor, and the alcaldes mayores, all of 
whom were appointed by the governor and held office at his 
pleasure. 

The secretary of government and war was the notary 
who attested all official documents and papers issued in the 
governor's name. But he was more than a mere notary. He 
was an active adviser on all problems, and an energetic 
secretary could have a profound influence over administra- 
tion. Many governors probably welcomed the services of 
an able secretary who had had several years of experience 
in the province, for most of them knew nothing about their 
province before they arrived. The secretary was the man 
on whom they relied for advice and suggestion, and it was 
he who was the buffer between the colony on the one hand 
and the governor on the other. The post frequently went to 
a member of one of the older families or some well known 
soldier-citizen. 

Lieutenant governors were appointed from time to time 
to perform special duties, such as a visitation of the prov- 
ince in the name of the governor, to administer the province 
during the absence of the governor, or to assume control 
over a portion of the provincial area. From about 1660 
onward it was customary to divide the province into two 
major subdivisions or administrative districts. These were 
known as the Rio Arriba and the Rio Abajo, i. e., the 
upper and lower portions of the Rio Grande valley and the 
neighboring districts. This administrative innovation was 
the result, in part, of the increasing non-aboriginal popula- 
tion in the middle and lower portions of the valley, and, in 
part, of the need for a more active defensive policy in the 
lower area where the Apaches were especially active. The 
governor commanded the Rio Arriba, and the lieutenant- 
governor the Rio Abajo. 

The alcaldes mayores administered lesser rural dis- 
tricts or subdivisions called jurisdictions (jurisdicciones):* 
There were at least six, perhaps eight, of these units into 



85. The term alcaidia mayor was seldom used before 1680. 



92 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

which the entire provincial area, with the exception of the 
Villa de Santa Fe and its district, was subdivided. The 
alcaldes mayores were members of that soldier-citizen-en- 
comendero group that formed the core of the local military 
establishment. Their functions were of considerable im- 
portance for they were the men who came into direct daily 
contact with the Indian villages, the missions, and the estan- 
cias of the non-aboriginal population. Their most impor- 
tant duties were probably police and judicial, viz., to admin- 
ister petty justice, to adjust differences concerning lands 
and water rights, to assist the friars in the maintenance of 
mission discipline, to oversee the employment of Indians as 
house servants, farm laborers, and herdsmen by the Span- 
ish and caste ranchers, and to supervise the routine of 
pueblo life, working with and through the petty Indian mag- 
istrates and officials. 88 The character of local administration 
carried on by these men varied according to the policies and 
instructions of the governors who appointed them, for al- 
though there were certain cases in which alcaldes mayores 
resisted what they believed to be an evil and detrimental 
policy of the central provincial government, these men 
were obliged, in the main, to carry out the orders which 
came to them from Santa Fe. In certain instances, more- 
over, they were nothing more than tools of the governors, 
not only in exploitation of Indian labor, but also in an open 
and avowed policy of opposition to the friars and their 
work. None of them is more famous than Captain Nicolas 
de Aguilar, mestizo and ex-murderer from New Biscay, who 
was so thorough in his execution of Governor Mendizabal's 



36. The difference between the alcaldes mayores of New Mexico and those greater 
officials who administered the alcaldias mayores of New Spain proper were not so 
much a matter of function as of authority. The alcaldes mayores of New Spain 
proper were really provincial governors without the title, and from an administrative 
standpoint governors and alcaldes mayores were practically on the same level. In 
New Mexico they were subordinate officers, appointed by and responsible to the 
governor. But the functions of the alcaldes mayores in both New Mexico and New 
Spain were much the same. The authority to set up local administrative districts and 
to appoint their officers was granted originally to Onate, but there was probably little 
need for such local machinery until missionary enterprise had been extended over a 
considerable part of the Pueblo area. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 93 

policy of opposition to the Church that the friars named him 
Attila. 

Neither the lieutenant-governor nor the alcaldes may- 
ores received salary from the Crown. The alcaldes may ores 
may have received certain fees but the amount was no doubt 
very small. They had ample opportunity, however, to use 
Indian labor for their own profit. For, although we hear 
much less about the trading ventures of the alcaldes 
mayores than those of the governors, the daily contact of 
the alcaldes mayores with the pueblos gave them numerous 
opportunities to squeeze the Indian on their own account. 
They all had estancias of their own and it was an easy mat- 
ter to raise groups of laborers for their own fields and to 
tend their own herds. 87 

The Villa de Santa Fe was founded to take the place of 
the Villa de San Gabriel which had been provincial head- 
quarters during the Onate regime. There were probably 
two reasons for moving the capital to another site. First, 
San Gabriel, situated at the confluence of the Rio Chama 
and the Rio Grande, was too far north of most of the major 
Pueblo areas. Second, it was close to established pueblos, 
and the Indians had long ago taken up the better lands and 
water rights. The founding of a new villa had been pro- 
posed prior to the change in provincial administration that 
was brought about by Onate's resignation, and the most im- 
portant part of the instruction to Pedro de Peralta, who 
took over the administration of the province in 1609-1610, 
dealt with the establishment of the new villa and its govern- 
ment. The site that was chosen was more centrally located 
than that of San Gabriel. It was at the foot of the Sangre 
de Cristo range, at the point where the mountainous masses 
of northern New Mexico begin to break up into lesser 
ranges and give way to the open plains of the central part 
of the state. It was easy of access not only to the important 



37. There is not BO much direct evidence of abuse of authority by the alcaldes 
mayores in the seventeenth century as we have for the eighteenth century. For the 
eighteenth century complaints, see A. G. M., Historia, Tomo 25. 



94 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

group of pueblos in the valleys to the north, but also to the 
southern pueblos and to those which lay on the eastern and 
western frontiers. To this new site and the settlement 
which slowly grew up there was given the name of Santa 
Fe. Laying out of the villa and the sites for the principal 
buildings was probably done in the spring of 1610, 38 and the 
Spanish population 'of San Gabriel was transferred to it 
during the succeeding months as rapidly as buildings could 
be erected. From that time to the present Santa Fe has 
remained the capital of New Mexico. The Villa de San 
Gabriel was abandoned, and during the remainder of the 
period prior to the Pueblo Revolt of 1680 Santa Fe was 
probably the only organized community in the province with 
full local government. 39 

The government of the villa was in the hands of four 
regidores, or council-men, elected annually by the citizens, 
and two alcaldes ordinaries, or magistrates, elected by the 
regidores. They were assisted by an alguacil, or bailiff, 
and a notary elected by them. All elections were subject to 
the confirmation of the governor. The official and collective 
title for this group of local officers was "Cabildo, Justicia, y 
Regimiento de la Villa de Santa Fe." The cabildo had the 
authority to make ordinances for the government of the 
villa, subject to the governor's approval, to mark off the les- 
ser vecindades, or wards, to assign to the citizens house lots, 
lands for gardens, vineyards and pasturage, and the neces- 
sary water rights. The two alcaldes ordinaries had civil and 
criminal jurisdiction in all cases within the villa and its 



38. L. B. Bloom, "When was Santa Fe founded?" NEW MBX. HIST. RBV., IV 
(1929), 188-194. 

39. There is some indication that in the early 1630's an effort was made to 
found a new villa "la Villa de Nuestra Senora de la Piedad de Cerralvo." The ac- 
counts in A. G. L, Contaduria, legs. 729, 732, have records of payments to pobla- 
dores being sent out to this new settlement. In the papers of the Inquisition there is 
reference to one Diego de Santa Cruz, "alcalde ordinario de la Va. de Nra. Sra. de 
la Piedad de Seraluo que se comiensa a poblar," etc. (1631). A. G. M., Inquisici6n 
372, Exp. 16. But there is no evidence to indicate that the villa was actually estab- 
lished and maintained. Probably the plans never got beyond the election of officers 
and the sending out of a few paid pobladores. One of the pobladores sent out in 1631, 
Roque de Cassaus, was alcalde ordinario of the Villa de Santa F6 in 1639 and appears 
to have lived in Santa F from the year 1632. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 95 

jurisdiction, except that cases involving Indians came under 
the sole authority of the governor or his lieutenant. 40 

The cabildo had an influence which extended beyond the 
limits of the villa. It was spokesman of the entire com- 
munity both in pleas to the governor and in petitions to the 
viceroy and the king. On one occasion it assumed full 
authority for the government of the province on the death 
of the regular governor, 41 and on another occasion the vice- 
regal authorities gave it authority to act in certain matters 
when it was feared that the governor would not obey in- 
structions. 42 Moreover, the governor was instructed to seek 
its advice on all matters of importance, 43 so that it became 
a sort of advisory council for the entire province. The right 
to confirm all local elections gave the governor an opportu- 
nity, however, to secure the election of persons favorable to 
his interests. 

In general the cabildo represented the soldier-citizen 
group, which was the dominant class in the community. A 
few prominent families were able to maintain a noticeably 
frequent representation among the regidores and alcaldes 
ordinaries. The gachupin and Creole elements tried at first 
to maintain a fair measure of control, but before long mes- 
tizos were admitted to full participation. After all, the 
number of eligible persons was small, and probably most of 
the citizens of any consequence had a turn at office sooner 
or later. Thus the government of Santa Fe was the only 
form of self-government in the province, and for that reason 
it deserves more than passing notice. 



40. Instruction to Peralta. 

41. In 1641, after the death of Flores y Valdes. 

42. In 1660 Governor Manso fled his residencia and laid before the viceroy and 
audiencia serious charges against his successor, Mendizabal. The viceroy issued cer- 
tain orders which Manso was to take with him on his return to New Mexico, and 
fearing that Mendizabal might not execute them, the cabildo was instructed to exe- 
cute them. For documents on Manso's residencia, see A. G. M., Tierras, Tomo 3286. 

43. Instruction to Eulate. 



96 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

D. POPULATION AND SOCIETY 

The non-aboriginal population of New Mexico was a 
heterogeneous group made up of Spaniards, Creoles, castes, 
and Mexican Indians. The total number probably never ex- 
ceeded twenty-five hundred during the period from 1598 to 
1680, and the average was much less than that. During the 
first three or four decades after the founding of the province 
the total was probably less than one thousand, and at the 
time of the Pueblo Revolt it was between twenty-three and 
twenty-four hundred. 44 The most important center of non- 
aboriginal population was the Villa de Santa Fe ; but as the 
number of Spaniard and castes slowly increased, especially 
during the second half of the century, small hamlets were 
formed and more and more farmlands were occupied at 
points where water, labor, and land were available. The 
most important rural areas were the valleys north of Santa 
Fe and the middle Rio Grande valley between Santo 
Domingo and the Piro district. 

More important than the size of the population and its 
distribution was its character. Prior to 1680 New Mexico 
was not a colony in the real sense of the word. There was 
little to attract colonists, for the agricultural resources were 
limited, trade was mere barter, and minerals, except salt, 
were not being exploited. The raison d'etre of the province 
was the missions, and the non-aboriginal population was 
there mostly to sustain and defend them. The soldiers were 
the leaders of the community and gave it its character. If, 
in the end, these men founded local families which became 



44. Four hundred and one persons, including twenty-one friars, were reported 
killed or missing during the Pueblo Revolt. The refugees who were able to reach the 
El Paso country numbered 1946 persons. Of these 155 were able to bear arms. At 
least 500 were servants, and among these there must have been a number of Pueblos 
and Apaches. Adding the number of killed and missing to the number of refugees 
gives a total of about 2347, including servants. These statistics are in Autos tocantes 
al Alsamiento de los Indies de la Provincia de la Nueba Mexico. 1680-1681. A. G. M. f 
Provincias Internas, Tomo 37, Exp. 6. It is apparent from many manuscript sources 
that during the fifteen years preceding 1680 New Mexico suffered from the double 
menace of famine and Apache raids, so that the total of 2347 on the eve of the 
revolt in 1680 may represent a total population lower than that of 1665-1670. In 
any case, the maximum probably never exceeded 2500. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 97 

attached to the land for its own sake that was but a normal 
result of the passing of time ; but in the seventeenth century 
true colonists as distinguished from the soldier-citizens and 
and their breed were few. 

It is impossible to estimate the proportions of Span- 
iards, Creoles, and castes. In the beginning there was 
clearly a considerable number of Spanish born citizens and 
a sprinkling of foreigners such as Portuguese, Flemish, and 
French, but in time this group became a small minority. 
In 1680-1681, it is evident that more than eighty per cent 
perhaps ninety per cent of the population were natives of 
the province itself. 45 This fact itself illustrates clearly the 
lack of any considerable colonizing population. But in this 
majority of New Mexico born there were many who were of 
mixed blood. There is no way to determine the amount of 
mixture but there is reason to believe that it was consider- 
able. The reader of the contemporary documents cannot 
fail to notice the incidental statements and evidence indi- 
cating that mixing of blood was frequent, and that many a 
man of pure European blood married an Indian, a mestiza, 
or even a negro caste. This was inevitable in a community 
which not only lived with the Indians and was outnumbered 
by them and dependent upon them, but which received com- 
paratively few new colonists. Moreover, many of the col- 
onists were themselves mestizos. 

Social distinctions, insofar as they existed, were much 
simpler than those in New Spain. If there was any differ- 
ence between Spaniards and Creoles in the beginning, it 
was rapidly wiped out, for the Spaniard had no chance in 
a community which received few recruits from outside. 
Certainly no difference was made between Spaniards and 
Creoles with respect to the few local and military offices to 
which men could aspire. Such differences as may have 
existed were probably between persons of pure European 
blood and the half-castes. But the position of the half- 
castes in New Mexico was undoubtedly better than in the 



45. This is indicated by the muster rolls of 1681. 



98 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

more densely settled areas of New Spain. Life on the fron- 
tier put men on their own, and if a mestizo made a good sol- 
dier, he was a welcome member of the community. Many 
of them attained high military rank, and some became al- 
caldes mayores or members of the cabildo of Santa Fe. 

But despite the easy and free intermingling of classes 
and despite the fact also that no man could attain any great 
measure of wealth in New Mexico, there was clearly a fairly 
well defined local aristocracy based on family, service to 
the Crown, and worldly possessions. The contemporary 
documents bear unconscious witness to the prominence of a 
few families who were descended from the loyal associates 
of Onate, or from men who had migrated to the province 
early in its history. Loyal service to the Crown was their 
proudest boast and many of them enjoyed the rank of 
hidalgo that was granted to men who had served a term of 
years in the province. 4 * Sons followed fathers in the pro- 
fession of arms and as holders of local political and military 
office. These men formed the core of that small caste of 
professional soldier-citizens, that small standing military 
force ready to do escort for the friars or to lead hastily 
raised levies against the nomads. It was this group which 
set the standard for the rest, which upheld military tradi- 
tions on a far away frontier. They were true professional 
servants of the Crown. Their wealth was greater than that 
of families of lesser social standing; the best lands were 
theirs; they had greater opportunities to engage in trade; 
and they probably received the best encomiendas. In the 
main they tried to keep their blood pure, but in this respect 
they battled against heavy odds. 

A few of these families are worthy of especial notice. 
There was the Lucero de Godoy family, for example, con- 
sistent producer of soldiers and officials of rank. Another 
was the Gomez clan, fiercely loyal to civil authority in case 



46. The "Ordenanzas . . . para los nuevos descubrimientos," provided for grant 
of this privilege to first settlers in new areas and by cedula of July 8, 1602, it was 
specifically granted to soldiers who served for five years during the conquest and paci- 
cation of New Mexico. A. G. M. Reales Cedulag y drdenes. Duplicadas. Tomo 4, 
f. 47. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 99 

of conflict with the Church. Still another was the Domin- 
guez de Mendoza family which produced the most distin- 
guished soldier in New Mexico in the seventeenth century. 47 
Other families of prominence were the Marquez, Romero, 
Baca, and the Duran y Chavez lines. These names appear 
in the documents of the early seventeenth century, and in 
the muster-rolls formed in 1680-1681 subsequent to the 
Pueblo Revolt these same names are there. 

But this discussion of the prominence of a few fami- 
lies does not imply the existence of any considerable degree 
of social refinement. On the contrary, New Mexican life 
was characterized by a roughness, a lack of luxury and 
refinement, a crudeness, and a striking degree of ignorance 
that is apparent throughout all the documents. Moral 
laxity was widespread and a man's frailties were quickly 
known. Truth was not a jealously guarded virtue. Charges 
of false witness appear frequently in the contemporary doc- 
uments, and there is ample proof that they were often justi- 
fied. The influence of the Indians was apparent in many 
ways, but none more strikingly than in the prevalence of 
superstition in the practice of which they were apt teachers. 
Finally, the province received its quota of fugitive criminals 
and riff-raff, the off-scourings of the mining camps farther 
south. 

Formal education was practically non-existent. The 
youth of the better families entered the military service at 
an early age, and the rough Indian warfare became their 
school and preparation for life. Father Benavides waxed 
enthusiastic about the mission schools where "reading, writ- 
ing, singing and instrument playing" were taught. 48 What- 
ever may have been expected from these schools in the be- 



47. I refer here to Juan Dominguez de Mendoza, who served for some fifty years 
from about 1640 to 1690. He held every military rank open to a citizen of the prov- 
ince, and was frequently commander of the troops sent out to the frontiers against the 
Apaches. He was lieutenant-governor four times. In 1684 he was leader of the expe- 
dition which visited the Jumano country in central Texas. Servicios personates del 
Maestre de Campo Don Juan Domingues y Mendoza. Biblioteca Nacional, Madrid. 
Ms. 19258. 

48. Memorial (Ayer edit.), p. 22. 



100 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

ginning, they soon became little more than pious hopes. 
Father Perea, whose more than twenty years of service in 
the province as compared with the less than four years 
which Benavides served, was probably a more reliable wit- 
ness. In 1632 he wrote to the Holy Office deploring the gen- 
eral conditions of ignorance and the prevalence of super- 
stition. 4 " If the friars maintained schools, only a small 
group of children ever received instruction in them. A few 
Indians were taught to serve as interpreters, to assist at the 
altar, to sing in the choir, and the children from the more 
prominent families of the soldier-citizens received an ele- 
mentary training. Some indication of the illiteracy of the 
province may be gained by consulting the muster-rolls. In 
1681, when plans were being made to attempt the recovery 
of the province after the tragic events of 1680, the governor 
called for a general muster of available men. As each man 
passed muster, he testified concerning the country of his 
birth, how many horses and mules he could offer for the 
campaign, and the condition of his weapons. Those who 
could sign their own names did so, and in the case of those 
who could not, it was so stated. In one of these lists we 
find the names of one hundred and forty-seven persons able 
to bear arms, and of these one hundred and thirty-one were 
natives of New Mexico and sixteen were natives of Spain 
and Mexico. Eighty-five of the total could not sign their 
own names and of these eighty-two were natives of New 
Mexico. Only three out of the sixteen Spaniards and Mexi- 
cans were able to sign. 60 In the case of women the illiteracy 
was worse. Many women appeared before the agent of 
Inquisition during the years 1626 to 1680 and more than 
ninety per cent could not sign their depositions. In 1631, 
when thirty-three women testified, not one of them could 
sign. Frontier conditions these! 

49. Friar Estevan de Perea to the Holy Office. 10 Nov., 1631. A. G. M. In- 
quisicion, Tomo 372, Exp. 19. 

50. These muster-rolls are in Testimonio de autos originales, remitidos por dn. 
Antonio de Otermin Govr. y Capn. Gral. de las Provas. de la N. Mexico. . . . al 
Exmo. Sr. Conde de Paredes . . ., 1681, Mexico. Biblioteca Nacional, Legajos Series, 
Leg. 2, doc. 2. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 101 

Most of the non-aboriginal inhabitants of New Mexico 
lived and died in the province with few contacts with the 
outside world. A few soldiers were able to visit the mining 
camps of Parral and Santa Barbara, or, in rare cases, Mexico 
City itself, but for the great majority and this was true 
especially of the women the upland plains and mountains 
of New Mexico and its neighboring frontiers were the extent 
of their experience. For them the arrival of the mission 
supply caravan every three years was an event of impor- 
tance and it was eagerly awaited. New faces always 
appeared then ; and often a new governor or a new prelate. 
Even the soldiers of the caravan escort were looked upon 
as persons of some importance and several of them quickly 
found a prominent place in provincial life. 

Whatever of elegance and luxury many citizens knew 
was found in the life of Santa Fe, the capital of the prov- 
ince. Santa Fe was a sprawling town like hundreds of 
others on the frontier. In the center of the villa was the 
plaza, near which were built the important buildings. It 
was the center of town life. There the soldiers assembled 
on review; there the citizens came out to welcome a new 
governor or a new prelate; and there in the center of it 
were the gibbet and the whipping post. The most important 
was the Casa Real situated on the north side of the plaza. 
This building which still stands was a low, rambling struc- 
ture, unpretentious and plain. It was there that the gov- 
ernor and his retinue lived; there also were work-rooms, 
shops, and store-rooms for supplies. Nearby was the Casa 
de Cabildo which, according to report, was a ramshackle 
affair. It served the double purpose of meeting-house for 
the cabildo and local jail. One of the complaints made 
against Governor Mendizabal in his residencia in 1661 was 
that he neglected to provide the cabildo with better quarters, 
but perhaps he thought that the place was good enough, for 
it was reported that he said that the cabildo, his mule, and 
his negress were all one ! The other buildings of importance 
were ecclesiastical structures, the church, the convent, and 



102 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

the infirmary. Only one of these buildings still stands, the 
Church of San Miguel. The private dwellings of the citi- 
zens were one-story adobe and stone buildings of a few 
rooms. The streets if there were streets were probably 
none too wide and were deep with dust. 

The population of Santa Fe in the seventeenth century 
was never more than a few hundred. Besides the governor 
and the clergy the most important inhabitants were the 
professional encomendero-soldiers, for their obligations as 
encomenderos included not only military service but also 
formal citizenship in the Villa de Santa Fe. In short, the 
Indian tributes were used to assure a minimum population 
for the capital of the province as well as a standing military 
force. If many of these soldier-citizens also acquired estan- 
cias in the country, where they could supplement their en- 
comienda revenues by agriculture and stockraising, the 
obligation of formal citizenship was not removed. 61 In addi- 
tion to these citizens and their families, there were a few 
artisans, a few floaters who came and went with the mission 
supply caravans, now and then a few mining prospectors, 
and numerous house servants, slaves, and Indians. Santa 
Fe was a cross-section of the entire community from the 
highest to the lowest, from the best to the worst. 

The ordinary round of life must have been monotonous, 
broken now and then by the arrival of a new governor, the 
events of an Indian campaign, the hanging of a criminal at 
the gibbet, or the scandal caused by a brawl over a card 



51. This citizenship obligation is indicated in several incidental statements in the 
documents. For example, in 1636 Governor Baeza and Custodian Quiros disagreed over 
the obligations of the encomenderos to act as escort without pay for friars going to 
dangerous mission areas. The governor insisted that the sole obligation was to 
"assist" in the Villa of Santa Fe ". . . para q asistiesen en esta uilla de Sta fee 
donde abien de hazer besindad y no para otra ninguna cossa mas de les hordenare al 
goueror," etc. Auto, Sept. 27, 1636. Diferentes Autos de molestias Hechos a loa 
Vezos. de la nua. mexco. For Los Religiosos y la soberania Conque Vsen Jurion. A. 
G. M., Provincias Internas, Tomo 34, Exp. 1. Baeza was wrong in his insistence that 
the grants of encomienda did not imply an automatic obligation to do escort duty, but 
his statement about citizenship in Santa Fe was no doubt correct. Governor Men- 
dizabal, who governed the province from 1659 to 1661, sometimes summoned encomen- 
deros from the country to Santa Fe, much to their disgust, for such summons fre- 
quently interfered with management of their farms and herds. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 103 

table. The men spent much of their time in the saddle, 
either in some form of military activity or in managing 
their farms and herding their livestock. For the women the 
duties of childbearing and the home were a heavy burden, 
lightened only by the aid of Apache slaves or servants from 
the pueblos. For both men and women recreation and 
amusements were few. For the men there were the gam- 
bling tables, the rough sport of the plaza, or obliging amigas 
of whom there was apparently no lack. For the women 
there were the treasured associations of bosom friends, end- 
less gossip about some local scandal, or the consolation of 
an Indian servant who knew how to prepare potions and 
powders guaranteed to bring back the love of a wayward 
husband. The Casa Real, where the governor and his 
retinue lived, was the social center of the community. The 
soldiers spent many a long winter evening there in conver- 
sation with the governor, eagerly listening to his tales of 
other lands, of Peru, of New Granada, and of encounters 
with the buccaneers in the galleon service. From him they 
borrowed a few books, for in the lists of belongings of Gov- 
ernors Mendizabal and Penalosa we find such books as Don 
Quixote, Lebrija's grammar, and a few devotional works. 
Some of the governors tried to bring with them to New Mex- 
ico the trappings of position. Governor Mendizabal and his 
wife brought a carriage, a fine bed and bed hangings, gilded 
writing desks, silver plate, expensive clothes, linens, velvets, 
silks, cordovan boots, etc. Perhaps they had an eye for 
business, for they did not fail to avail themselves of the 
opportunity to make a neat profit by bartering some of this 
finery for goods or property of local New Mexican origin 
that would find a ready sale in New Spain. Even a battered 
writing desk was worth at least one Apache slave girl, per- 
haps two, in a land where the capture of one more Indian or 
so meant little effort. For both men and women the church 
and the convent offered another means of escape from the 
monotony of existence. In the pageantry of the mass and 
in the processions which now and then passed through the 



104 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

streets, the citizens saw a little of what in distant lands was 
the gorgeous splendor of the Church. The friars were the 
one really learned class in the community, and in private 
conversations with these men and in the sermons which 
they preached, the people heard the best standards of speech 
in the province. A friar was usually a welcome visitor in 
the home, for he, like the governor, had seen other places 
and other lands. Some of them brought the solace of 
medical skill and knowledge, and it is just that we should 
pause to note the name of one of these early ministers of 
mercy Friar Geronimo de Pedraza. 

Primitive Santa Fe! Venerable Santa Fe! A raw 
frontier community, but also an outpost for Spain and the 
Church. For all their vices and lack of refinement the citi- 
zens of that isolated community far away on the fringe of 
things were doing their duty blindly perhaps, but doing it. 
Material rewards came only to a few. For most men, sol- 
diers and friars alike, the only reward was knowledge of 
loyal service to king and the faith. 

The fundamental problems of political and religious 
experience were essentially the same in Santa Fe as in less 
isolated and more cultured centers. Heresy was just as 
great a sin there as in Mexico City, greater, perhaps, be- 
cause the influence of unorthodoxy might be more immedi- 
ate. The Inquisition could not afford to neglect even this 
northern outpost, and in 1626 the authority of the dread 
tribunal was established there. Likewise the basic problems 
of the proper relations between Church and State presented 
themselves in this struggling community with the same per- 
sistence as in Zacatecas, Guadalajara, Merida, or Puebla, 
but because the community was so small and unlettered the 
factional consequences of Church and State controversies 
cut through to the very foundations of society. From the 
Casa Real the governor thundered decrees against prelates 
and friars. On the doors of San Miguel were posted excom- 
munications against governor and lowly citizen, and from 
its pulpit were read edicts of the faith against heresy and 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 105 

apostasy. Long before witches were tried in Salem and men 
were punished for free thought in Boston, Santa Fe had 
its own witch problem, and men were dragged through its 
streets to do public penance for offending the Church. 

E. ECONOMIC PHASES OF PROVINCIAL LIFE 

The economic life of the province was based on agri- 
culture, stockraising, and a primitive commerce. 

Agriculture rested solidly on Indian foundations. The 
important crops were mostly the old Indian staples such as 
corn, beans, and, in certain areas, cotton. Although new 
cereals and new fruits were introduced by the Spaniards, 
they never took the place of the older staples. Wheat never 
took the place of corn. The Indian always regarded the 
new cereals as something foreign, and even as a sign of 
their submission to a foreign race. At the time of the 
Pueblo Revolt of 1680 some of the Indian leaders demanded 
that all foreign seeds and cereals be burned and that they 
plant only the good old native corn and beans. 62 The new 
fruits which were introduced were found mostly in the 
convent orchards and vineyards or on the estancias of some 
of the soldier-citizens. Friar Garcia de San Francisco has 
been given the honor of introducing the grape into New 
Mexico. 58 Probably the most important immediate contri- 
bution of the Spanish conquest to the cultivation of the soil 
was the introduction of the plow and methods of cultivation 
based on its use, rather than the introduction of new food 
stuffs. 

Stockraising was a phase of economic life made possible 
by the Spanish conquest, for the horse, the cow, the domesti- 
cated sheep, and the pig were introduced by the conquerors. 
At the missions and on the estancias of the Spaniards, where 



52. ". . . que el dho pope bajo en persona con todos los Capittanes de la gruerra 
y otros muchos Yndios pregonando por IOB pueblos que . . . quemassen las Semillas que 
Sembrauan los espanoles mandando se sembrasse mayz y frijol que eran Semillas de sua 
antiguos," etc. Declaration of Juan, Indian of the pueblo of Tesuque, Dec. 18, 1681. 
Autos pertenecientes a el alcamiento de los Yndios de la Proua. del nuebo Mexco 
. . . 1681-1682. A. G. M., Provincias Internas, Tomo 34, Exp. 2. 

63. Benavides, Memorial, (Ayer, edit.), note 8, p. 205. 



106 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

they worked as day laborers, the Pueblos learned the prin- 
ciples of breeding and herding. They slowly acquired a few 
animals of their own and were quick to see the advantages 
accruing from such possessions, although it is clear that the 
raising of stock never had such a profound effect on Pueblo 
life as it did on that of the Navahos. The Pueblos have al- 
ways remained true to the soil, although they have learned 
to use animals as adjunct to cultivation ; but for the Nava- 
hos the herding of sheep has, in recent years, become almost 
a tribal profession. In the seventeenth century the most 
important herds were owned by the mission friars and 
were tended by the Pueblo herdsmen. 

Both the cultivation of the soil and the breeding of 
stock raised definite problems of land and labor. At the 
time of the conquest the Pueblos were already in possession 
of much of the best land and the best water rights. The 
Spaniards in seeking sites for settlement and for farm land 
and range were forbidden to encroach upon the pueblos and 
their communal holdings. This was required, not only 
under the general policy of the Crown which had been 
evolved for the protection of aboriginal rights," but also in 
a specific instruction to the governor of the province. 55 The 
Spaniards found it impossible, however, to resist the temp- 
tation of good land, water, and accessible labor, and as the 
non-aboriginal population slowly increased and as the encom- 
endero families became more and more attached to the land 
as farmers and breeders of stock, the land question rapidly 
became a major provincial problem. There was land enough, 

54. RecopUacion, lib. iv, tit. xii, leyes ix, xii ; lib. vi, tit, iii, leyes xx-xxii. 

55. Instruction to Eulate, 1621 : "Assi mismo se a entendido que los encomerideros 
de esas Prouincias y otras personas tienen tambien sus estancias de los dichos gana- 
dos cerca de los pueblos y sementeras de los indios con que les hazen muchos Danes 
y para que no los Reciuan Dareis orden como se ponga Remedio en esto tratando de 
ello con mucho cuidado y aduertiendo que las estancias de ganado mayor 
an de estar apartadas por lo menos tres leguas de los pueblos y milpas : Y la 
Cauallada de los soldados Dareis orden que este apartada de los Dichos pueblos y 
milpas a lo menos tres leguas excepto lo muy forcoso que esto se Recogera de noche 
y se traera trabado de dia de forma que no haga dano y no prohiuireis que los 
Dichos indios guarden sus sementaras y milpas. y las de los rreligiossos antes 
admitireis las denunciaciones que hizieren en Razon de los Danos que se les ubieren 
causado haziendoles Justica breue y ssumariamente." 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 107 

and more, for all who needed it, except that many lands that 
might have been available and are available now could 
not be used then because they were exposed to the attacks of 
the Apaches. These nomads, sweeping down on exposed 
herds or cultivated fields, could easily drive off hundreds of 
cattle and stock or destroy corn and other grain before 
any defense could be organized. Lands had to be close in. 
Moreover, the estancieros liked to be near the missions in 
order to have a supply of Indian labor close at hand. 

The friars were quick to denounce any encroachment on 
the communal holdings of the Pueblos by the estancieros, 
and the land problem became a source of bitter controversy 
between the civil and ecclesiastical jurisdictions. There can 
be no doubt that the estancieros frequently violated both the 
spirit and the letter of the general legislation and the special 
instructions to the provincial governor on such matters, 
and that sometimes Indian lands were deliberately occupied, 
even with the consent and knowledge of the governors and 
the lesser provincial officials. 66 As a matter of fact, some 
of the governors themselves engaged in herding, 67 and it was 
natural that they should adopt the point of view of the lay 
community. On the other hand, the friars were not invul- 
nerable, for at each pueblo plots of land were set aside to 
be cultivated for the friar, and large herds of stock owned 
by the mission shared the pueblo range. The civil authori- 
ties could not be reconciled to the fact that the soldiers 
could not legally use the lands of the pueblos, whereas the 
friars had use of both cultivable land and range. In 1639 
the cabildo of Santa Fe addressed an appeal to the viceroy 
in which it was stated that the friars had more stock than 



56. Friar Estevan de Perea bitterly denounced the soldiers and the governor on 
this point in a letter to the Holy Office, 30 Oct., 1633. A. G. M., Inquisicion, Tomo 
380, f. 231. 

57. "Dizese Tambien que Vos el Dicho gouernador teneis en esas dichas prouin- 
cias algunas estancias de ganados mayores. y porque a la obligacion vro officio y 
leyes de estos Reinos no podeis tener esta grangeria ni otras estareis acluertido de 
ello para no contrauenir a lo assi Dispuesto por Derecho so lo pena del." Instruction 
to Eulate, 1621. Governor Mendizabal (1659-1661) acquired cattle, horses, and mules, 
which he grazed at the pueblo of Taos, or nearby. 



108 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

the citizens ; that they had horses in plenty although some 
of the soldiers had none; that each mission friar had one 
to two thousand sheep, whereas there were few laymen who 
had more than a hundred. 68 The friars always defended 
their use of lands both for cultivation and for range on three 
grounds: (1) that all of their food had to be raised on the 
spot and that they had the right to a certain amount of cul- 
tivable land and range on that account; (2) that in case of 
famine they frequently fed large numbers of Indians and 
Spaniards from their reserves of food and livestock; and 
(3) that only by exporting cattle and other livestock could 
they obtain the funds necessary for the purchase of those 
ecclesiastical ornaments, vestments, and other church fur- 
nishings not supplied by direct subvention from the Crown. 
They always asserted also that the complaints made by the 
laymen were greatly exaggerated. During the years from 
1659 to 1661 this question became a major issue between the 
governor and the clergy. The friars stated that the gov- 
ernor's policy on Indian labor and pueblo administration 
had deprived them of the necessary herdsmen, and that they 
had suffered a loss of more than six thousand head of stock 
at fourteen pueblos. At the mission of Santo Domingo (the 
ecclesiastical capital) alone the loss had been more than 
one thousand. 50 These figures indicate either a gross exag- 
geration on the part of the friars with respect to their losses, 
or that they actually possessed livestock in great quantity. 
It was the same old story that characterized the history 
of frontier missions everywhere. The clergy took the point 
of view that missionary enterprise came first, and that the 
lay community existed for the protection and support of the 
Church in the prosecution of its labors. There is much jus- 
tification for this point of view in New Mexico in the sev- 
enteenth century, for the religious motive was probably the 



58. Letter of the cabildo of Santa Fe to the viceroy, 21 Feb., 1639. Letters of 
Roque de Cassaus and others of Santa Fe, 1639. A. G. M. Provincias Internas, Tomo 
86, Exp. 5. 

59. Proceso contra Mendizabal in A. G. M., Inquisicion, Tomo 593 ; Residencia de 
Mendizabal, A. G. M., Tierras, Tomo 3268. 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 109 

primary factor in the decision to maintain the province in 
1608-1609. Nevertheless it was inevitable that the civil 
population should increase and in time acquire an impor- 
tance equal to or greater than that of the missions. This 
was merely the natural result of colonial expansion and even 
the Crown anticipated it in its general policies on mission 
administration. Although the friars were clearly within 
their rights in protesting against the illegal encroachment 
of the estancias on the pueblo lands, and were inspired by a 
genuine desire to protect the Indians, it is easy to under- 
stand why the estancieros were embittered when they saw 
the friars in possession of large herds grazing on the pueblo 
ranges. Lands and water rights were at the bottom of 
many a dispute between the Church and State. 

The commerce of New Mexico was mere barter, for no 
money circulated within the province. If standards of value 
were expressed in terms of pesos, that was a mere conven- 
ience, for all buying and selling was by trade and exchange. 
To say that a cow was worth four pesos merely meant that it 
was worth four cotton manias, for if there was any real unit 
of value that actually changed hands it was the mania. This 
was due, no doubt, to the fact that manias and corn were the 
articles of tribute paid to the encomenderos by the Indians. 
The corn was usually eaten, but the manias often became 
an article of trade. If silver found its way to New Mexico 
at all it was usually in the form either of plate or of bul- 
lion, and there was little of it in any form. Barter was the 
basis of commerce. An Apache slave was worth four oxen ; 
a horse was worth two leather jackets, etc. 

Intra-provincial commerce was necessarily limited to 
the exchange of a few products. The Pueblos traded among 
themselves in cotton, corn, hides, meat, and salt. The tur- 
quoise was also a standard article of inter-pueblo trade. 
The Apaches came to outlying pueblos, such as Pecos, to 
exchange buffalo hides, meat, lard, and an occasional Qui- 
vira slave for corn, manias, knives, and horses. Trade be- 
tween the Indians and the estancieros was limited usually 



110 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

to the exchange of a few agricultural products, or to the 
purchase of slaves with cattle, horses, and other livestock. 

Trade between New Mexico and New Spain was car- 
ried on even in the face of great difficulty. The main route 
of trade was between Parral and the Rio Grande, the same 
as that followed by the mission supply caravan. A lesser 
trade route was from the middle Rio Grande to Sonora by 
way of the Mimbres valley. The exports from New Mexico 
were limited to a few products such as salt, pifion, hides, 
mantas, livestock, and slaves. The imports were in part 
luxuries and in part certain necessities that New Mexico 
could not produce. Iron and hardware of all kinds, but es- 
pecially axes, hammers, saws, plow shares, keys, locks, 
wagon tires, nails, and crowbars, had to be imported from 
New Spain. Among the luxury goods were chocolate and 
sugar, the fine leathers, boots and shoes, lirrens, silks, vel- 
vets, and other articles of clothing. Guns, sabres, and pow- 
der and ball formed another group of imports, but these 
were usually furnished by the Crown. Both the friars and 
civil authorities imported paper and ink and a few books 
on law, grammar, and theology. The mission supply trains 
brought medicines and a few fancy groceries for the infirm- 
ary, and carpets, vestments, candelabra, vessels, and altar 
coverings for the service of the churches. 

Export and import involved an expenditure of consid- 
erable capital, so that only a few persons could afford to 
engage in it. Merchants of Zacatecas and Parral some- 
times "staked" a trader with a supply of goods to be taken 
to New Mexico to be exchanged for New Mexican products. 
Within New Mexico there were few private individuals who 
had the capital or the necessary means of transportation to 
undertake inter-provincial trading ventures. The friars and 
the governors were probably the most important exporters. 
The friars exported livestock to the mines of New Biscay, 
and used the proceeds in the purchase of vestments, organs, 
images, and other church accessories. The governors were 
able to use their official position to accumulate supplies of 



CIVIL GOVERNMENT IN NEW MEXICO 111 

hides, coarse textiles, salt, and pinon, and a goodly number 
of slaves to be resold in New Spain on their return. Some 
even had the foresight to import supplies of luxury goods at 
the time of their arrival in the province which they ex- 
changed for goods of local origin. Both the friars and the 
governors made use of the mission supply caravan and its 
military escort for the transportation of their goods and 
for protection of the trail herds. This early trade between 
New Mexico and the mines of New Spain met real needs and 
paid good profits. The Santa Fe trade was old long before 
the days of Young, Becknell, and Armijo. 



NOTES ON THE LINEAGE OF DON DIEGO DE 
VARGAS, RECONQUEROR OF NEW MEXICO 

By J. MANUEL ESPINOSA 

THE exploits of Don Diego de Vargas, governor of New 
Mexico during the critical years 1691-1697, and again 
in 1703-1704, are well known the prodigious story of how 
with a handful of men he reconquered and recolonized the 
region for Spain following the bloody Pueblo Indian up- 
rising of 1680, and its twelve succeeding years of Pueblo 
Independence, and planted there for all time the seeds of 
Spanish culture. The "De Vargas Fiesta" held each year 
at Santa Fe brings these heroic deeds to memory. But 
Vargas, the man, has remained little known. Something 
of his ancestry and early life is brought together here for 
the first time. The interesting lineage of Vargas is worth 
recording, for his background explains much of his own 
life. Persistent ransacking of the archives of Spain and 
Mexico will some day reveal a fuller story. 1 

The history of the Vargas family of Madrid, the one 
to which The Reconqueror was born, is much of the history 
of Spain, for it sent forth some of the greatest figures in the 
annals of the kingdom. The family genealogy was elabor- 
ately worked out and published by Don Diego's grandson, 
Diego Lopez de Zarate, in a work in two parts entitled Breve 
description genealogica de la ilustre quanta antiquissima 
casa de los Vargas de Madrid . . . (Madrid, 1740 ). 2 He 



1. I am especially indebted to Senor Jose Perez Balsera for having placed at 
my disposal a copy of his volume entitled Laudemus viros gloriosos et parentes 
nostros in generatione sua (Madrid, 1931), as well as other data. This book, a 
family genealogy privately printed by him for his children, is a mine of documentary 
material pertaining to the house of Vargas. It contains photostatic reproductions 
of many pertinent documents. Senor Balsera is a co-relative of Don Diego de Vargas, 
and now occupies the old ancestral home in Madrid. 

2. The complete title is as follows : Breve description genealogica de la ilustre 
quanta antiquissima casa de los Vargas de Madrid, cuyo posseedor actual, o legitimo 
tronco verdadero es Don Diego Joseph Lopez de Zarate Vargas Pimentel Zapata y 
Lujan Ponze de Leon Zepeda Alvarez Contreras y Salinas, Marques de Villanueva, 
y de la Nava de Varcinas, Capitan vivo de infanteria, agregado al estado mayor de 

112 



DON DIEGO DE VARGAS 113 

traces the family back to the noble Roman senator Lucius 
Barguntus. 8 

It is well established that Don Diego descended in 
direct male line from the eldest of the three Vargas broth- 
ers who served under King Alfonso VI in the conquest of 
Madrid and Toledo in the years 1080 to 1083. 4 Of this same 
family was the knight Juan de Vargas, wealthy landowner 
of Madrid at the turn of the eleventh century, the master of 
San Isidro Labrador, patron saint of Madrid. Most of his 
lands were in Torrelaguna and Madrid, and in Eraza, near 
Salamanca. It was in those fields between the present 
bridges of Toledo and Segovia, at Madrid, cultivated by him, 
that the saint performed the miracle of the spring, well 
known in Spanish tradition. The blue and white waves on 
Vargas* devise represent this miracle. 6 And among the 
other miracles for which San Isidro was canonized was the 
attested resuscitation of Don Juan's daughter Maria. 6 On 
the spot where San Isidro lived with his wife Santa Maria 
de la Cabeza, and where he kept his oxen, a shrine was built, 
contiguous to the ancestral Vargas home, formerly Don 
Juan's ranch house. The home and the chapel have re- 
mained in the family's possession to this day. 7 

During the Christian reconquest of Spain from the Sar- 
acen infidel, other Vargases equalled the valor of the three 



3. Of the house of Vargas, Soto writes in his Casas solariegas: "Among the 
families of the province of Castile, in the city of Madrid there is a very illustrious 
one named Vargas, for which praise is almost offense, its nobility is so great, and so 
ancient that it could almost be called immemorial if it were not for the histories that 
recall its memory." (Balsera, op. cit., 92.) 

4. Ibid. 

5. Ibid. Cf. also Vargas* device reproduced in Ralph E. Twitchell, The Spanish 
Archives of New Mexico (Cedar Rapids, 1914, 2 v.), I, 64. 

6. The Catholic Encyclopedia, VIII, 189. 

7. This experience was not the only claim of the Vargas family to the title of 
protector of saints. A century later, when Saint Francis of Assisi was travelling in 
Spain, probably in the winter of 1214-1215 (ibid., VI, 224), it is known that the place 
in Madrid where he was granted land on which to build a convent, near the Puerta 
de Moros in the old part of the city, was Vargas property. (Balsera, 1104.) 



la plaza de Cadiz, y Alferez en las reales guardias de infanteria espanola de BU Mages- 
tad. Dividida en dos partes. En la primcra se justifica la legitimidad del referido 
Marques de Vittanueva, y ser tronco de dicha casa de Vargas. En la segunda se da 
una sucinta recopilacion de varias noticias de las hazanas y empleos de diferentes 
cavatteros del apettido de Vargas. Madrid, 1740. 



114 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

brothers by memorable deeds in the decisive Battle of Las 
Navas de Tolosa in 1912, and at Jerez. 8 Then there was 
Garci Perez de Vargas, that famous captain who showed 
such valor in the conquest of Cordoba in 1236, Jaen in 1246, 
and in all Andalusia in the service of the Saint King Fer- 
dinand (Ferdinand III of Leon and Castile, 1198-1252), 
and who played such an important part in the capture of 
Sevilla in 1248 that his name was engraved in marble with 
those of Hercules, Julius Caesar, and Saint Ferdinand. This 
inscription, which may still be seen on one of the gateways 
to the city of Sevilla, reads: "Hercules built me Julius 
Caesar surrounded me with high walls and towers and the 
saint king conquered me with Garci Perez de Vargas."' 
Don Diego's paternal grandfather was Don Lorenzo 
de Vargas Zapata, knight of the Order of Santiago, bap- 
tized at Madrid on May 31, 1589. He fought in Italy as 
an officer in the Spanish army for fifty years. First in the 
galleys of Naples; in 1611 with the Marquis of Santa Cruz 
at the Battle of Querquenes, where he jumped to shore and 
fought valiantly in the front lines ; in 1612 helping burn the 
ships that were attacking the fortress of La Goleta, Tunis, 
and in other engagements while protecting the isles of Gozo 
and Malta from the Turks ; and in the Levant with Prince 
Filbert. Later he served at different times as governor and 
captain of war of the principate of Citra and Basilicata, the 
county of Molise, and Rijoles. In all of these posts he is 
said to have accredited himself in a manner worthy of his 
illustrious blood. 10 Don Lorenzo was the eldest of four chil- 
dren. His father, captain of infantry for a long time under 
Philip II and Philip III, was also a knight of the Order of 
Santiago, and his grandfather served as procurator of the 
famous military order." 



8. /bid., 113. 

9. "Official statement of the consecration of the Chapel of San Isidro on Pretfl 
de Santisteban Street as & place of public worship, Madrid, October 14, 1859," in 
Balsera, 113-114. 

10. Jose Antonio Alvarez y Baena, Hijos de Madrid ilustres en santidad, dig- 
nidad, armas, ciencias y artes (Madrid, 17789-91, 4 v.), Ill, 377. 

11. Ibid., II, 113. 



DON DIEGO DE VARGAS 115 

Among the contemporary relatives of Don Lorenzo's 
paternal grandfather, and those of the generation just pre- 
ceding, there were numbered a host of renowned Vargases : 
the Don Diego's and Don Francisco's, and Don Gutierre de 
Vargas. One Don Diego de Vargas, corregidor of Toro, 
Spain, served loyally under King John II of Castile (1406- 
1454) in the Battle of Olmedo. 12 His son, another Don 
Diego was regidor of Madrid in the time of the Catholic 
Kings; and a son of the latter, Don Diego de Vargas y 
Vivero, was a royal page of Charles V. 13 To Don Diego de 
Vargas y Vivero was born a Don Francisco de Vargas, who 
after taking part in the conquest of Granada served as al- 
calde of the Alcazar or Royal Fortress at Madrid, and for 
thirty years as regidor of the capital, after which he was 
succeeded by his son. 14 

Don Francisco de Vargas was held in such confidence 
as a councilor of the Catholic Kings and Charles V, that the 
statement "Averigiielo Vargas," or "Ask Vargas/' came to 
be a popular saying, and even the title of plays by the great 
dramatist Tirso de Molina and others. In 1520 he served 
as governor of the kingdom during one of the emperor's 
sojourns in Germany. He owned much property in Madrid, 
including the vast grounds of the Casa de Campo across the 
Manzanares River from the royal palace. These grounds 
were later purchased by the king as a country estate, and 
when asked one time at court why he did not remove the 
Vargas coat of arms from the house there, Philip II an- 
swered: "Leave them, for those of such loyal vassals look 
well on the royal house." 16 His son was Don Gutierre de 
Vargas, Bishop of Plasencia. 16 

Then there was the Licentiate Francisco de Vargas, at 
one time Spanish ambassador to Rome and Venice respec- 



12. Lopez de Zarate, op. cit., 7ff. 

13. Ibid. 

14. Documentos del archivo general de la villa de Madrid, interpretados y colec- 
cionados por D. Vicente Domingo Palacio (Madrid, 1909), quoted in Balsera, 50-51. 

15. Luis Ballesteros Robles, Diccionario biogrdfico Matritense (Madrid, 1912), 
650. 

16. Balsera, 53. 



116 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

lively. With his secretary Alonso Zorrilla he was one of 
the two principal lay doctors of theology and canon law at 
the Council of Trent. His principal activities in the council 
were during the period from 1562 to 1563, as indicated by 
his copious correspondence with Philip II, the archbishop 
of Granada, the bishop of Lerida, the Marquis of Pescara, 
and other notables during this period. 17 

Our Don Diego's paternal grandmother, Dona Antonia 
de Cepeda Venegas Ponce de Leon, the wife of Don Lor- 
enzo de Vargas Zapata, was of ancestry equal to that of her 
husband in nobility. She was born in Trinidad de los 
Mussos, Granada, to Captain Don Alonso Sanchez de 
Cepeda, of Granada, and Dona Juana Venegas Ponce de 
Leon, of Santa Fe de Bogota. Don Alonso was at that time 
governor and captain general of New Granada. 18 Through 
her father Dona Antonia was closely related to Santa 
Teresa de Jesus, the famous Spanish mystic and celebrated 
literary figure of the Golden Age of Spanish literature. 
Santa Teresa was paternal grand-niece of Don Alonso San- 
chez de Cepeda's great-grandfather, and Don Alonso's pa- 
ternal grandmother was the sister of the saint's paternal 
grandmother; in short, Dona Antonia and Santa Teresa 
were second cousins. 19 

On her mother's side Dona Antonia's ancestors came 
to America with the first conquerors. Her great-grand- 
father, Don Pedro Ponce de Leon, was governor of Vene- 
zuela from 1565 to 1569. 20 His daughter Juana married 
Marshall Hernan de Venegas, a Cordovan who had come to 
the New World with the men of Gonzalo Jimenez de Ques- 
ada. Venegas was one of the principal leaders in the con- 
quest of the Chibchas. In 1554 he was victorious as the 
leader of an expedition sent by Governor Luis Alonso de 



17. Encyclopedia universal ilustrada (Espasa), LXIV, 121; Balsera, op. cit., 61. 
The correspondence referred to, which is in the archives at Simancas and the Bib- 
lioteca Nacional in Madrid, is listed in Balsera, 52-58. 

18. Ibid. 

19. Cf. the genealogical chart compiled by Balsera, ibid., 135, and documents 
from the National Archive, Madrid, cited in this same work, 7-89. 

20. Ibid., 45-46. 



DON DIEGO DE VARGAS 117 

Lugo of New Granada to pacify the bellicose Panches and 
Pantayros, whose lands were believed to be rich in gold 
mines. On another occasion he was sent at the head of an 
army to aid La Gasca in Peru. In 1547 he was named by 
all the cabildos of New Granada as delegate to Spain for 
the purpose of bringing about the revocation or reform of 
the laws brought by Armendariz. He succeeded in obtain- 
ing practically all that he asked for, all of which increased 
his fame in New Granada. On his death he left his children 
the heirs to rich encomiendas in the vicinity of Guatavita, 
Sacheta, Chipasaque (now Junin), Tausa, Chuba, and Gach- 
oncepa. He is buried in the cathedral at Santa Fe de 
Bogota. 21 His daughter Juana was Dona Antonia's mother. 21 

The Reconqueror, Don Diego, last male descendant in 
the Vargas line, was son and heir of Captain Alonso de 
Vargas Zapata y Lujan, knight of the Order of Santiago, 
and his wife Dona Maria Margarita de Contreras y Arraiz, 
both of whom possessed many landed estates and ample for- 
tunes. Don Alonso was born in Luggera de la Puglia, in the 
kingdom of Naples. In his youth he served for eight years 
as a noble page to Queen Isabel, the wife of Philip IV, and 
later became a soldier, in the footsteps of many of his an- 
cestors. 23 On January 6, 1641, he married Dona Maria 
Margarita, who was seventeen years of age, in the Con- 
treras chapel at Madrid. Her family was of a famous Se- 
govian house, residing at Toledo. 24 

After serving for some time in Spain as captain of 
cavalry in the royal service, Don Alonso came to America, 
where he held a government position and where he died. 
Besides his military and diplomatic services he was a man 
of some intellectual attainments, and on his death he left 
written some twenty volumes of general information of the 



21. Encyclopedia universal ilustrada (Espasa), LXVII, 959; Diccionario his- 
pano-americano (Barcelona, n. d.), XXII, 819; Balsera, 46-47. 

22. Signatura 2,700, Santa F6 de Bogota, 1622, National Archive, Madrid, quoted 
in Balsera, 45. 

28. Alvarez y Baena, op. cit., I, 39 ; Lope?: de Zarate, op. cit., 12. 

24. Signatura 10, 641, ano 16 4, National Archive, Madrid, printed in Balsera, 
59, 61. Baptismal record of Dona Maria Margarita de Contreras y Arraiz; record of 
the marriage of Don Alonzo de Vargas with Dona Maria Margarita de Contreras. 



118 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

period and an interesting treatise on the tax levied on the 
people of Messina by the Duke of Osuna. 25 

In short, this was the house of Vargas. The blood of 
conquerors ran unmistakably in Don Diego's veins. Here 
was no "swineherd of Trujillo," but rather the elite of sev- 
enteenth century Spain. In culture and refinement, indeed 
on a number of other counts, Vargas the Reconqueror of 
New Mexico reminds one very much of Cortes the Con- 
queror of Mexico. Young Vargas could add little to the 
lustre of the family name, but he could at least try to live 
up to it, and this he did, even though his great wealth would 
have permitted a life of blissful leisure. His vast estate, the 
accumulation of centuries, included: the principal Vargas 
houses at Madrid, on Almendro Street, bordering those of 
the Count of Paredes, and an income of two thousand ducats 
rent from some houses on the same street ; other houses on 
the Plaza Mayor; the Vargas altar, next to the main altar 
in the church of San Francisco el Grande; 28 the patronage 
founded by Dona Ines Venegas Ponce de Leon for the pur- 
pose of marrying orphans and feeding students, with its 
revenues of alcabalas from the salt works of Ocana and its 
territory; the chaplaincy and patronage founded by Dona 
Aldonza de Lujan. His estate also included the Vargas 
palace and estate in Torrelaguna, including grain fields, 
olive orchards, and arable lands; pasture grounds at Los 
Garinos and vineyards in the town of Buytrago; two fields 
and enclosures in the region of Miraflores in the Sierra 
Choca and between Querica and Guadix; the estate in the 
city of Granada ; the crop lands in the neighborhood of Val 
de Prelagos, Salamanca, and Torre Mocha ; the estate in the 
region of Camarma de Esteduela, with their olive orchards 
and pigeon lofts ; the estate of the Vargas family in Mexico 



25. Alvarez y Baena. op. cit.+ I, 39. 

26. The Vargas altar was built in the thirteenth century. It is written that 
Saint Francis of Assisi selected the location where it was built in gratitude toward 
the Vargas family for a special favor. (Balsera, 104). The altar was improved in 
1459 and 1510. It had eleven tombs elaborately sculptured in marble, alabaster and 
jasper as well as the tombs of other descendants until the nineteenth century. (Ibid.) 
93, 99.) 



DON DIEGO DE VARGAS 119 

City, comprising- rents, houses, and revenues from the land. 27 
Vargas the Reconqueror was born at Madrid, Spain, on 
November 8, 1643, his full baptismal name being Diego 
Jose de Vargas Zapata y Lujan Ponce de Leon y Contreras. 28 
(He died at Bernalillo, New Mexico, in 1704, while attempt- 
ing to save the sacred chalice from the burning church 
which had been set fire to by hostile Indians.) 29 On May 5, 
1664, he married the wealthy Dona Beatriz Pimentel of 
Torrelaguna. 30 On February 19 of the following year was 
born their only child, a daughter, Maria Isabel. 81 Vargas 
came to America soon after, making his residence in New 
Spain. In Mexico City he left two sons and a daughter, "not 
by legitimate wife," born between the years 1680 and 1685. 
Strange as it may seem, despite his family and property con- 
nections in old Spain, these three Mexican born children are 
the only relatives Vargas mentions in his will, and he died 
owing four thousand pesos to the royal treasury. 32 

Prior to his appointment to the New Mexico post, Var- 
gas held a number of responsible government positions in 
New Spain. During the viceroyalty of the Marquis of Man- 



27. "Inventory of the Vargas estate, September 23, 1719," quoted in Balsera, 71 ; 
expediente of 1692 cited in Twitchell, Old Santa Fe, The Story of New Mexico's 
Ancient Capital (Santa Fe, 1925), 87-88, and his Spanish Archives of New Mexico, 
II, 133. 

28. Expediente de casamiento, no. 10,461, ano 16 '4, National Archive, Madrid, 
printed in Balsera, 65. (Contains the baptismal record of Vargas.) Later, for his 
services in New Mexico, he was rewarded with the title of Marquis of la Nava de 
Barcinas or Bracinas. 

29. Based on the inscription on the Vargas portrait in the family chapel at 
Madrid. It reads as follows : "El Senor Don Diego de Bargas Zapata Lujan Ponce 
de Leon, Marques de la Naba de Barcinas, del Orden de Santiago, Gobernador, Con- 
quistador, Pacificador, y Capitan General del Nuebo Mejico, perdio la Vida en Com- 
pana Rasa por libertar las Vases Sagradas en el Sitio de Bernalillo, ano de MDCCIV." 
The following is an English translation: "Senor Don Diego de Vargas Zapata Lujan 
Ponce de Leon, Marquis of La Nava de Barcinas, of the Order of Santiago, governor, 
conqueror, pacificator, and captain-general of New Mexico ; he lost his life in open 
battle while attempting to rescue the sacred vessels at the siege of Bernalillo, the year 
MDCCIV." (For a description of this portrait cf. my article in the Santa Fe New 
Mexican, September 1, 1934, I, 6.) 

30. Expediente de casamiento, no. 10,461, ano 1694, op. cit., Balsera, 71. (Repro- 
duction of Vargas' marriage certificate). 

31. Balsera, 65, 135. 

32. Twitchell, Spanish Archives of New Mexico, I, 304. See below, editorial 
comment on this paragraph. 



120 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

cera (1665-1673) he administered with credit the alcaldia 
mayor of Teutila, in the province of Oaxaca. And in the 
time of the archbishop viceroy Fray Payo Enriquez Afan de 
Rivera (1673-1680), he was named justicia mayor of the 
mining town of Tlalpujagua, in Michoacan. This mining 
camp had almost been lost in 1679, at which time the depu- 
ties and miners had all fled. Vargas also served as admin- 
istrator of the royal quicksilver supply during this admin- 
istration. He discharged these duties so meritoriously in 
the royal service that he was recommended to the viceroy 
of New Spain by King Charles II in a royal cedula of Feb- 
ruary 6, 1683, and thenceforward he was held in especially 
high esteem by all the viceroys. This was especially true in 
the case of the Count of Galve, who ruled during the criti- 
cal years of the reconquest." 



33. "Restauracion del Nuevo Mexico por Don Diego de Vargas Zapata," as- 
cribed to a religious of the province of Santo Evangelic, in the General Archive of 
the nation, Mexico City, Historia, tomo 8; cited in Irving A. Leonard, The Mercurio 
Volant e of Don Carlos de Sigiienza y Gdngora (Loe Angeles, 1932), 31. 



FORTS ROBIDOUX AND KIT CARSON IN 
NORTHEASTERN UTAH 

By ALBERT B. REAGAN 

FORT ROBIDOUX 

THE first year-long 1 abode of white men in Utah seems to 
have been Fort Robidoux, which was also known as 
Fort Winty or Fort Uintah. This fort was established at 
the Utah (Uintah) Indian village, near the present White- 
rocks, Uintah county, Utah, in the last days of 1831. Its 
owner was Antoine Robidoux, formerly of St. Louis, and 
this store was one of his chain trading posts out from Taos, 
New Mexico, it being a branch of the tradingpost on the 
Gunnison river, just below the Uncompahgre in western 
Colorado. The post here, as well as the one in Colorado, was 
on the trail from Taos to Fort Hall. The Utah fort was 
also on the trail from the upper Platte outposts to Utah 
Lake, in Utah. It was also located in a populous Indian 
region and was well patronized. However, the information 
sources concerning it are meagre, and are presented here- 
with so far as known. The Indians overwhelmed and com- 
pletely destroyed this fort in 1844, as will be mentioned 
later. 

THE ROBIDOUX INSCRIPTION 

While going 1 to establish this tradingpost Robidoux 
mostly followed the old Spanish trail of the Escalante Ex- 
pedition of 1776 into the region. Enroute he camped in 
West Water Canyon, just above the present Tom Larson 
ranch, over the mountains from the Uintah Basin, in Utah, 
east of Bitter creek and the present town of Dragon, about 
on the Utah-Colorado line. 1 While in this canyon he, or his 
guide, Denis Julien, carved the famous Robidoux inscription 
on a Book Cliff wall : "Antoine Robidoux pass ic 3-4 E, 13 



1. Another description gives it as twenty miles west of Fruita, Colorado, which 
ia apparently the same location. 

121 



122 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Novembre, 1831, pur etablire maison traitte a la ry vert ou 
wyte" (Antoine Robidoux passed this way November 13, 
1831, to establish a trading house on the Green or White 
River) . 

DENIS JULIEN 

It would probably not be out of place to add a note here 
about this Denis Julien. 

When Major J. W. Powell made his famous trips down 
the Colorado river in 1869 and 1872 he discovered that a 
"D. Julien" had preceded him and left his carvings on the 
canyon walls 43 years before, a man of mystery of whom 
search was made even at the Vatican in Rome, it being be- 
lieved that he had possibly been a missionary of the Cath- 
olic Church in these parts. 

On August 6, 1930, the writer found a carving on "In- 
scription Rock," east of the Uintah river, east of Mrs. Dan- 
iels' place, about halfway between Fort Duchesne and 
Whiterocks, near where the Robidoux fort of the early 
trapping days was located, which reads, "Denis Julien, 
1831." This led to investigations which brought out the 
following concerning this man of mystery. 

It is found that he either acted as guide for Robidoux 
or accompanied his trading expedition to the Uintah Basin 
in 1831, leading that same year to the establishing of Fort 
Robidoux (also called Fort Uintah or Winty, as previously 
noted), near the present Whiterocks. It would therefore 
seem that he made the carving on the rock near Mrs. 
Daniels' place sometime in December of that year (1831). 

The records of the St. Louis Cathedral as to births and 
deaths and baptisms give entries concerning this man's 
family as follows : 

Julien, Marie Jos., born May 5, 1793, daughter 
of Denis Julien and Cath. (Indian), baptized April 
15, 1798. Julien, Pierre Paschal, 18 mos. old, same 
parents, baptized October 25, 1801. Julien, Etienne, 
5 years old, same parents, baptized October 21, 



FORTS ROBIDOUX AND KIT CARSON 123 

1804. Julien, Paschal, 9 years old, son of Denis 
Julien and Cath. (Indian), buried Feb. 3, 1809. 

Denis Julien was one of many French Canadians of St. 
Louis and made a business of trapping and trading with 
the Indians. In 1807, he was granted a license to trade with 
the "Sioux and lowas" in the superintendency of Louisiana. 
This license was renewed in 1810, with Pierre Choteaux as 
surety. 

In 1800 Denis Julien and his brother Etienne 2 volun- 
teered "for service in Louisiana," in an artillery company 
organized by Gov. William Clark and captained by Benjamin 
OTallon. Next we find in the old papers on file in the St. 
Louis library an order for "358 barrels of lead" belonging to 
Denis Julien, which is being shipped by Antoine Busebois 
to William Clark, on Mr. Wilson's barge. We next find the 
Robidoux inscription near Fruita, Colorado, which Denis 
Julien probably carved for Robidoux, of the date of Novem- 
ber 13, 1831; and then his own inscription on "Inscription 
Rock," of the same year. His name appears twice on this 
rock, at one place with the name "Larva or Jarva," probably 
the name of another trapper. 

After 1831 there is no further notice of this man until 
he took a journey down the Green-Colorado river in 1836. 
Here he carved his name as "D. Julien" on the rock walls at 
five different places, as seen by Powell; one near the lower 
end of Cataract Canyon ; one on the east side of Labyrinth 
Canyon, about half way around "Bowknot Bend," of the 
date of "16 Mai" ; the Hell Roaring inscription, of the date 
of "3 Mai" ; one on the right wall of Stillwater Canyon, four 
miles above the mouth of Green river; and another in the 
upper end of Cataract Canyon, all dated "1836." The last 
inscription is dated "16 Mai, 1836," and it is supposed that 
he actually tried to navigate the dangerous rapids of Cata- 
ract Canyon and that he lost his life in those swirling 
waters. 



2. Probably the Stephen Julien who rendered such good service as guide to 
Maj. S. H. Long's expedition in 1820. 



124 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

We shall now have various accounts of trips to Fort 
Robidoux. 

THE KIT CARSON STORY 

The Carson story is here given with corrected dates 
as supplied by Miss Blanche Grant, since Carson was dic- 
tating from memory. 

We arrived at Taos in October 1832 [1833], disposed 
of [our] beaver for a good sum, and everything of moun- 
tain life was forgotten for the present. 

At Taos, I found Captain Lee [Stephen Louis Lee] of 
the U. S. A., a partner of Bent and St. Vrain. He purchased 
goods to trade with the trappers. I joined him, and in 
the latter part of the month of November we started for 
the mountains to find trappers. 

We followed the old Spanish trail to California till we 
struck White river, took down White river till we struck 
Green river, crossed Green river to Winty [Uintah], one of 
its tributaries. There we found Mr. Robidoux. He had a 
party of some twenty men that were trapping and trading.' 

The snow was now commencing to fall and we con- 
cluded to go into winter quarters. We found a place that 
answered every purpose on the mouth of the Winty. We 
passed a very pleasant winter and in March we heard of 
Mr. Fitzpatrick and Bridger being on Snake river. During 
the winter a California Indian of Robidoux's party ran off 
with six animals some of them worth two hundred dollars 
per head. Robidoux came to me and requested that I pur- 
sue him. I spoke to Captain Lee and he informed me that 
I might use my pleasure. There was a Ute village close by ; 
I got one of the Indians to accompany me. We were fur- 
nished with two fine animals and took the trail the runaway 
had taken down the river, his object being to make Califor- 
nia. 

When traveling about one hundred miles the animal of 
the Indian gave out. He would not accompany me further, 
but I was determined not to give up the chase. I continued 
in pursuit and in 30 miles I overtook the Indian with the 



3. Escalante and modern geographers considered the Uintah to be an affluent of 
the Duchesne, while all the intervening writers and explorers considered the Uintah 
the main stream and the Duchesne its affluent. This explains many of the points 
which have puzzled investigators. 



FORTS ROBIDOUX AND KIT CARSON 125 

horses. Seeing me by myself [he] showed fight. I was 
under the necessity of killing him, recovered the horses and 
returned on my way to our camp, and arrived in a few days 
without any trouble. 

Some trappers came to our camp and informed us that 
Fitzpatrick and Bridger were on Snake river encamped. 
In March [1834] we struck out for the purpose of finding 
their camp. In fifteen days we found their camp. 

Kit Carson and a Mr. Thompson passed the winter of 
1837-1838 at Fort Davy Crockett (Fort Misery, Fort de 
Misere), between sixty and sixty-five miles northeast . of 
Fort Robidoux, in Brown's Hole near our Whiterocks. At 
that time the place was owned by Messrs. Thompson, Gray, 
and Sinclair. Thomas J. Farnham and Dr. F. A. Wislizenus 
were also there in 1839, twenty men being at this fort at this 
time. 

THE VISIT OP WILLIAMS AND SAGE 

Mr. Robidoux was still doing business at Fort Uintah 
(Fort Robidoux) in 1842, as is shown by the journals of 
Joseph Williams and Rufus Sage next quoted, and Captain 
Fremont indicates Robidoux's presence in that region until 
the fort was destroyed. 

We are now [July 10, 1842] on the head of the Winty 
river, down which we pursued our journey towards Robe- 
deau's Fort. About two miles of our journey was almost 
impassable for the brush, and the logs and rocks. Then we 
got out of the mountains into a prairie and reached the fort 
about 2:00 o'clock. 

Starvation among the Indians 

We had to wait there for Robedeau about eighteen days, 
till he and his company and horsedrivers were ready to 
start with us to the United States. This delay was very 
disagreeable to me, on account of the wickedness of the 
people, and the drunkenness and swearing, and the de- 
bauchery of the men among the Indian women. They would 
buy and sell them to one another. One morning I heard a 
terrible fuss, because two of their women had run away the 



126 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

night before. I tried several times to preach to them; but 
with little, if any effect. 

Here I heard the mountain men tell of the miserable 
state of the Indian root-diggers. Numbers of them would 
be found dead from pure starvation ; having no guns to kill 
game with, and poor shelters to live in, and no clothing ex- 
cept some few skins. These creatures have been known, 
when pressed with hunger, to kill their children and eat 
them; and to gather up crickets and ants and dry them in 
the sun, and pound them into dust and make bread of the 
mixture to eat. These creatures when traveling in a hurry, 
will leave their lame and blind to perish in the wilderness. 
Here we have a striking example of the depravity of the 
heathen in their natural state. I was also told here, of a 
Frenchman, who lived with an Indian woman, and when 
one of his children became burdensome, he dug a grave and 
buried it alive ! At another time he took one of his children 
and tied it to a tree, and called it a "target" and shot and 
killed it. 

Trappers' Use of Squaws 

Mr. Rubedeau had collected several of the Indian 
squaws and young Indians, to take to New Mexico, and kept 
some of them for his own use! The Spaniards would buy 
them for wives. This place is equal to any I ever saw for 
wickedness. The French and the Spaniards are all Roman 
Catholics, but are as wicked men, I think, as ever lived. No 
one who has not, like me, witnessed it, can have any idea of 
their wickedness. Some of these people at the Fort are fat 
and dirty, and idle and greasy. 

July 27th we started from Rubedeau's Fort, over the 
Winty river, and next crossed Green and White rivers. Next 
night we lay on Sugar Creek, 4 the water of which was so 
bitter we could scarcely drink it. Here two of Rubedeau's 
squaws ran away, and we had to wait two days until he 
could send back to the Fort for another squaw, for company 
for him. 5 

The Sage journal is as follows : 8 



4. Bitter creek, about forty-five miles southeast of Ouray, Utah. 

5. Joseph Williams, Tour of Oregon. (1845). 

6. Rocky Mountain Life; or, Startling Scenes and Perilous Adventures in the 
Far West. By Rufus B. Sage, 1841-1844. See also J. Cecil Alter, Utah the Storied 
Domain, vol. 1 (1932). 



FORTS ROBIDOUX AND KIT CARSON 127 

A small party from a trading establishment on the 
waters of Green river, who had visited Taos for the pro- 
curement of a fresh supply of goods were about to return, 
and I availed myself of the occasion to make one of their 
number. 

On the 7th of October [1842] we were under way. Our 
party consisted of three Frenchmen and five Spaniards, 
under the direction of a man named Roubideau, formerly 
from St. Louis, Mo. Some eight pack mules, laden at the 
rate of two hundred and fifty pounds each, conveyed a 
quantity of goods; these headed by a guide, followed, in 
Indian file, and the remainder of the company, mounted on 
horseback, brought up the rear. 

Crossing the Del Norte, we soon after struck into a 
large trail bearing a westerly course; following which, on 
the 13th instant, we crossed the main ridge of the Rocky 
Mountains by a feasible pass at the southern extremity of 
the Sierra de Anahuac range, and found ourselves upon the 
waters of the Pacific. 

Six days subsequent, we reached Roubideau's Fort, at 
the forks of the Uintah, having passed several large streams 
in our course, as well as the two principal branches which 
unite to form the Colorado. This being the point of destina- 
tion, our journey here came to a temporary close. 

Roubideau's Fort is situated on the right bank of the 
Uintah . . . The trade of this post is conducted principally 
with the trapping parties frequenting the Big Bear, Green, 
Grand, and Colorado rivers, with their numerous tribu- 
taries, in search of fur-bearing game. 

A small business is also carried on with the Snake and 
Utah Indians living in the neighborhood of the establish- 
ment. The common articles of dealing are horses, with 
beaver, otter, deer, sheep, and elk skins, in barter for amu- 
nition, fire-arms, knives, tobacco, beads, awls, etc. 

The Utahs and Snakes afford some of the largest and 
best finished sheep and deer skins I ever beheld a single 
skin sometimes being amply sufficient for common sized 
pantaloons. These skins are dressed so neatly as frequently 
to attain a snowy whiteness, and possess the softness of 
velvet. 

They may be purchased for the trifling consideration of 
eight or ten charges of amunition each, or two or three awls, 
or any other thing of proportional value. Skins are very 



128 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

abundant in these parts, as the natives, owing to the scarcity 
of buffalo, subsist entirely upon small game, which is found 
in immense quantities. This trade is quite profitable. The 
articles procured so cheaply, when taken to Santa Fe and 
the neighboring towns, find a ready cash market at prices 
ranging from one to two dollars each . . . 

CAPTAIN JOHN C. FREMONT 

In 1844 and 1845, Captain John C. Fremont visited the 
Uintah Basin in which Fort Robidoux was located, according 
to U. S. Commissioner John R. Bartlett's Map of the West 
of 1850, 1851, 1852 and 1853 ; and his Map of the West also 
shows "Fremont's Route 1843" through Fort Uintah (Robi- 
doux). The maps, however, do not agree, as the route of 
1845 on the first map is the route of 1843 on the second. 
The route of 1843 seems, however, to have missed Fort Robi- 
doux, as it was down Beaver river the usual trappers' 
route to the mouth of Weber river. The route of 1844 shows 
him going eastward from Utah Lake by way of Fort Robi- 
doux on his way out of the region. Extracts from his jour- 
nal are presented herewith: 7 

Turning our faces once more eastward [after having 
spent three days at Utah Lake] on the morning of the 27 
[of May, 1844] we left the Utah Lake, and continued for two 
days to ascend the Spanish Fork . . . We descended by a 
narrow ravine, in which was a rapidly gathered little branch 
of the Uintah. 

The next day we descended along the river, and about 
noon reached a point where three forks came together . . . 
We camped at evening on another tributary to the Uintah, 
called the Duchesne Fork . . . the name it bears is probably 
that of some old French trapper. 

June 1. We left today the Duchesne Fork, and after 
traveling over a broken country for about sixteen miles, 
arrived at noon at another considerable branch, a river of 
great velocity, to which the trappers have improperly given 
the name Lake Fork. The name applied to it by the Indians 

7. Report of the Exploring Expedition to the Rocky Mountains in the year 1842, 
and to Oregon and North California in the years 184S-1844. By Brevet Captain J. C. 
Fremont. 



FORTS ROBIDOUX AND KIT CARSON 129 

signifies great swiftness, and is the same which they use to 
express the speed of a race horse . . . Continuing our route 
across a broken country of which the higher parts were 
rocky, and well timbered with cedar, and the lower parts 
covered with good grass, we reached, on the afternoon of the 
3d, the Uintah [Robidoux] Fort, a trading post belonging 
to a Mr. A. Roubideau, on the principal fork of the Uintah 
river. We found the stream nearly as rapid and difficult 
as the Lake Fork, divided into several channels, which were 
too broad to be bridged. With the aid of guides from the 
fort, we succeeded with great difficulty, in fording it, and 
camped near the fort, which is situated a short distance 
above the junction of the two branches which make the 
river . . . 

It was a motly garrison of Canadians and Spanish 
engages and hunters, with the usual number of Indian 
women. We obtained a small supply of sugar and coffee, 
with some dried meat and a cow, which was a very accept- 
able change from the pinali on which we had subsisted for 
some weeks past. I strengthened my party at this place 
by the addition of Auguste Archambeaux, an excellent voy- 
ageur and hunter, belonging to the class of Carson and 
Gody. 

On the morning of the 5th we left the fort and the 
Uintah river. (This fort was attacked and taken by a band 
of Utah Indians since we passed it ; and the men of the gar- 
rison killed, the women carried off. Mr. Robidoux, a trader 
of St. Louis, was absent, and so escaped the fate of the 
rest.) After marching 25 miles, we were again checked by 
another stream, called Ashley's Fork, where we were de- 
tained until noon the next day. 

Halting at Brown's Hole on June 7th, the Fremont 
party passed on eastward. 

Marcus A. Whitman, with Dr. Lovejoy, Oregon Protes- 
tant missionaries, spent a few miserable days in northern 
Utah, because of the terrible weather, part of which was 
at Fort Winte (Robidoux, or Uintah), about October 18-20, 
1842. 

Fort Robidoux (Fort Winty, or Uintah) is said by the 
Uintah Indians to have been on Big Tom's allotment, about 
a mile and a half east of the present Whiterocks post office 



130 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

and the Uintah Boarding school. An old dugout, near there, 
is also said to be where Kit Carson traded with the Indians 
when he visited the fort in 1833-34. John Harmes now owns 
(runs) Big Tom's allotment; while Ignacio Tom lives on it. 

FORT KIT CARSON 

In Kit Carson's account of his trip to what is now the 
Uintah Basin in northeastern Utah for the purpose of trad- 
ing with Fort Robidoux, near the present Whiterocks, he 
states : "The snow was now commencing to fall and we con- 
cluded to go into winter quarters [winter of 1832-33]. We 
found a place that answered every purpose on the mouth of 
the Winty . . ." It is therefore evident that his quarters for 
that winter were somewhere in the vicinity of Ouray (Utah) 
at the junction of Green, White and Winty (Uintah) rivers, 
the latter now being called the Duchesne in its lower course. 

We looked for this winter fort and found it, now re- 
duced to wall mounds, in the woods on the east side of 
Green river, about a mile opposite (southeast of) the mouth 
of the Duchesne, the then Winty river. 

The writer's attention was first called to this fort-build- 
ing by Wallace Stark and C. A. Broome of Ouray, Utah, the 
latter also stating that there are the remains in ground-plan 
mounds, of a similarly built fort-building, on the east side 
of Green river, some miles farther to the southward down 
the river. W. J. Willes, an employee of the Daly hotel at 
203 Broadway, Salt Lake City, also told the writer that when 
he was wrangling cattle on the range in these parts in 1873 
he saw the two forts above, and that they were reduced to 
wall mounds as they are now. Who occupied the south fort 
can not even be conjectured at this time. 

The fort-building which is here named "Fort Kit Car- 
son," is laid off in an approximately north-south direction. 
Its east and west walls are about 95 feet in length each, and 
the north and south walls 78 feet each. Outside the in- 
closure but connected with the fort wall were two bastions 
(towers) , which like the walls were made of earth (adobe) , 



FORTS ROBIDOUX AND KIT CARSON 131 

and judging from the mounds, must have been quite a bit 
higher than the fort. 

One of these towers abutted the southwest corner so 
that it controlled the south and west sides of the fort, its 
mound now being 22 feet in an east-west direction and 16 
feet in a north-south direction. The other bastion, whose 
mound is now 18 feet in an east-west direction and a little 
over 15 feet in a northeast-southwest direction, abuts the 
notheast corner of the fort so that it controlled the east and 
north sides of that edifice. 

Some distance south of the fort inclosure there are also 
the remains of a wall which conjecturally was constructed 
so as not to give room for ramming of the main wall in 
battering-ram fashion with pole ends, should the place be 
attacked. Within the inclosure there was a tier of rooms on 
both the east and west sides, with a plaza between. 

It would seem from records at hand that Kit Carson, 
during this winter (1832-33) occupied the same site as that 
of Sta. Serafina, which is given in Bulletin No. 870 of the 
United States Geological Survey as occupying this site. 

It might be well to add that Antoine Robideaux, who 
then had Fort Winte near the present Whiterocks in the 
Uintah Basin, Utah, at that time jointly occupied this fort 
with Kit Carson in the winter of 1832-33. 

After Kit Carson's time this same fort was occupied by 
the Hudson Bay people and exactly what happened during 
their occupancy is yet not clear. This much, however, is 
certain, that there was friction between it and the American 
Fur Company. At that time the Hudson Bay people had 
a boathouse at a landing on the island southwest of the 
mouth of the Duchesne River and across the river about due 
west of the fort, from a notice which was seen in some pub- 
lication, a record of which was not made at the time. There 
is also a record that there was an attempt to capture the 
horses belonging to this fort, presumably by the American 
Fur Company people some records seem to indicate that 
Robideaux's people were the ones who attempted to cap- 



132 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

ture the H. B. Company's horses, and the horses were run 
into the plaza to save them from falling into their hands. 

A further note on this fort location and troubles that 
arose over its occupancy by the Hudson Bay people is given 
by Harrison C. Dale: 8 

. . . The Hudson's Bay Company at a later period [later 
than Ashley's visit in 1825 and Robideaux's establishing 
Fort White in 1831] undertook to penetrate this country [of 
the Uintah]. Sir William Dummond Stewart in a letter to 
William L. Sublette, dated Head of Blue Fork, August 27, 
1838, writes, "The H. B. Company have established a fort 
on the Winty [Uinta] and Andy's people [the men in the 
employ of Andrew Drips, agent of the American Fur Com- 
pany] will be driven from there, if the government does not 
take some steps." Sublette Mss., Carton 12, Missouri His- 
torical Society. 

8. The Ashley Smith Explorations, and The Discovery of a Central Route to th 
Pacific, 1822-2-', (A. H. Clark Company), 152, footnote. 



COLONEL BUELL'S EXPEDITION INTO 
MEXICO IN 1880 

By COLONEL MARTIN L. CRIMMINS 

THE disruption of our Indian policy caused by the Civil 
War left an aftermath of murders and misery in our 
Southwest. 

The Mescalero Apaches had been rounded up by Colonel 
Kit Carson in 1863 and placed on the Bosque Redondo Res- 
ervation, near Fort Sumner in east central New Mexico. 
Then through the criminal stupidity of our State Depart- 
ment a more powerful, unfriendly tribe, the Navajoes, were 
put on the same reservation. It was like putting a bunch of 
cats in a cage and adding a pack of dogs. In 1864 the agent 
reported that sixty-four of the Navajos had been killed by 
the Apaches in two fights. 

By 1867, all the Mescal eros had left the reservation to 
go on the warpath in New Mexico, Texas, and Mexico. We 
caused what we planned to prevent. General John Pope, 
commanding the Department of the Missouri, reported by 
name twenty-two people killed and three thousand head of 
livestock stolen by Indians. 

In February 1871, La Paz and a small band of Mesca- 
leros came to Fort Stanton, New Mexico, and sued for peace 
and were put on the Mescalero Reservation nearby. 

In 1874, W. D. Crothers, their Indian agent, reported 
that white thieves were stealing Indian ponies. This was in 
the country soon to be made famous by Billy the Kid and 
his outlaws. A band of citizens attacked an Indian camp 
one night near the Pecos and killed the men, women, and 
children. The sale of bad liquor to the Indians by white 
traders kept trouble stirred up. 

Victorio, with his Warm Spring Apaches, was on the 
Ojo Caliente Reservation about sixty-five miles south of San 
Marcial and Fort Craig, New Mexico. In March' 1877, they 

133 



134 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

were disarmed and were being moved to San Carlos Res- 
ervation. 1 They soon broke loose and again went roaming. 
On March 15, 1879, S. A. Russell, the Indian agent on the 
Mescalero Reservation, found Victorio and his Warm 
Spring Apaches camped on his reservation. 

Shortly afterwards they went on the warpath and this 
time they were joined by about two hundred and fifty Mes- 
caleros. They left a trail of blood that, it is said, cost four 
hundred lives among the Americans and Mexicans. General 
Pope reported seventy-three citizens killed in this outbreak, 
with the name and date in most cases. W. W. Mills, in his 
Forty Years at El Paso wrote on September 24, 1880, as 
follows about Victorio: "Considering the number of his 
braves, he is the greatest commander, white or red, who ever 
roamed these plains. For more than a year he has out- 
maneuvered our officers with six times his number and all 
the appurtenances of war and when he has not out-gen- 
eraled them, he has whipped them." 

During this period the Military Department of Texas 
was divided into five sub-districts, one of which, the dis- 
trict of the Pecos, lay in "West Texas" and included Forts 
Concho, Davis, Stockton, and Griffin. It was commanded 
by Colonel B. H. Grierson (mentioned below) who in the 
summer of 1880 successfully repelled Victorio and his band, 
driving them from the Big Bend country back into Mexico. 
The stage was then set for the closing scene in the drama 
of the Apache chief Victorio. 2 

1. See John P. Clum, "Geronimo," in NEW MEX. HIST. REV., Ill, 1-40, for an 
account of this transfer. 

2. Carl C. Rister gives an excellent account of the Texan phase in the operation* 
of this summer in his chapter on "The Victorio War," in The Southwestern Frontier, 
1865-1881, but he barely alludes to the New Mexico phase, which is here described. 
On the other hand, as will be seen, Colonel Buell correctly represents Grierson as co- 
operating in the Big Bend country by keeping the Apache fugitives out of that part of 
the frontier. 

George Pearson Buell was a native of Indiana and served with distinction as a 
commissioned officer during the Civil Wan In 1866 he was appointed lieutenant 
colonel of the 29th Infantry, and in 1869 was transferred to the llth Infantry. In 
March. 1879, he was made colonel of the 15th Infantry, in which position he served 
until his death on May 31, 1883. 



COL. BUELL'S EXPEDITION INTO MEXICO 135 

The following report of Colonel Buell shows what steps 
were taken by our troops in New Mexico to apprehend Vic- 
torio and his Indians. I have not seen it published before, 
and it was in manuscript when I saw it in the Old Files 
Section of the Adjutant General's Office. 

Extracts from Report of Colonel George P. Buell, 15th 

Infantry, Commanding Post of Fort Stanton, 

New Mexico, Dated November 20, 1880: 

About September 15th, arrangements had been com- 
pleted with Colonel Terrazas and Chihuahua authorities for 
a movement into Mexico, as will be hereafter shown. In- 
structions were sent Captain Beyer, 8 at El Paso, to hold 
himself and command in readiness to move west on his back 
trail to the Eastern Potrillo Mountains, near the line, and 
there take up the Indian trail, making a night march the 
night of the 23rd September notifying him that Maney 4 
with his scouts would move south into Mexico from a point 
in the West Potrillo Mountains, and that the Cummings and 
Knight's Ranche commands would be concentrated at Pal- 
omas Lake 5 early the morning of the 24th, and that Gen- 
eral Carr's command e would be in the vicinity of Bocco 
Grando [Boca Grande] Pass the same day. Each 
column was furnished a number of citizen scouts, for the 



3. Charles D. Beyer was born in New York but enlisted from Louisiana in the 
regular army in 1858. He served with the 1st Infantry and at the close of the Civil 
War was 2nd lieutenant of the 81st U. S. colored Infantry. In June, 1867, he was 
commissioned captain in the 41st Infantry ; was transferred in November 1869 to the 
24th Infantry, and in January 1871 to 'the 9th Cavalry. He was dismissed from the 
service in 1884, and died in 1898. 

4. James Allison Maney was a native of Tennessee and graduated from the 
U. S. Military Academy in July 1873. Assigned to the 16th Infantry as 2nd lieu- 
tenant in June 1877, he was soon transferred to the 15th Infantry. His promotion to 
a first lieutenancy (23 Sept., 1885) was subsequent to the time of this expedition. 

5. Palomas is 12 miles south of Columbus, N. M., where the punitive expedition 
under General Pershing camped on March 15, 1916 their first in Mexico. 

6. Eugene Asa Carr was at this time colonel of the 6th Cavalry (commissioned 
29 April., 1879) and was not promoted to the rank of brigadier general until 19 
July 1892, but he was at this time a brevet brigadier general from his service in the 
Civil War. Born in New York, he graduated at West Point in September 1846. His 
first commission was as a 2nd lieutenant with the Mounted Rifles (1 July 1850) and 
his record until his retirement (15 Feb., 1893) was one of long and distinguished 
service. He received numerous citations for bravery during the Civil War. Somewhat 
after this expedition he was commanding officer of the Department of New Mexico 
(1888-1890) and his cavalry accoutrements are a prized possession of the Historical 
Society at Santa F6. 



136 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

purpose of communicating daily with me, and for the pur- 
pose of cutting any trails between the Rio Grande and the 
Bocco Grando Pass, should Victorio attempt to pass north by 
scattering his command while my whole command would be 
moving south. 

It should be understood that the only fear I had in 
making the move into Old Mexico was that Victorio would 
double on me, and slip North with his whole command, and 
turn up probably in the Black Range, 7 while my command 
would be in the Guzman 8 or Santa Maria Mountains, 9 in 
Old Mexico. This was the fear not only of the citizens, 
whose confidence I then had, but also of the officers of the 
9th Cavalry, who had already had an experience of a year 
with Victorio. Consequently, to prevent this from occur- 
ring without my knowledge, I employed a number of the 
best posted citizen scouts, to advance with each column, 
by which means I not only kept in daily communication with 
the whole command, but could detect early any attempt of 
Victorio to move North, by cutting his trails. 

An agreement was made, as I supposed, between Ter- 
razas, Carr, and myself, that Carr's command should be at 
Bocco Grando Pass the morning of the 24th of September, 
that the Cummings and Knight's Ranch command should be 
at Palomas Lake early the morning of the 24th, or before, 
and that Maney's and Beyer's command should be on the 
line, ready to make night marches into Mexico, the night of 
the 23rd, communicating with me by courier at Palomas 
Lake the morning of the 24th, thence moving towards the 
lower end of Guzman Lake, Beyer following the trail which 
was supposed led in that direction. 

The 19th of September, my supply-train was started 
from Cummings, under charge of Capt. Hartz, 10 15th In- 
fantry, on the west side of the Florida Mountains," via 
Cow and Curracilla Springs, to Lake Palomas, in Mexico 
Captain Hartz having orders to report at Cow Springs to 

7. The Black Range is 50 miles north of Deming, N. Mex. 

8. Guzman is 40 miles south of Columbus, N. Mex. 

9. Santa Maria is 60 miles south of Columbus. 

10. Wilson Tweed Hartz, a native of Pennsylvania, received several brevets for 
Civil War service. In 1866 he was assigned as a 2nd lieutenant to the 15th Infantry; 
was made a 1st lieutenant the next year, and captain from 23 August, 1877. He 
rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel before his retirement, 31 May 1900. 

11. The Florida Mountains are 10 miles southeast of Deming. 



COL. BUELL'S EXPEDITION INTO MEXICO 137 

Captain Theaker, 12 whose command, about 70 strong, had 
been ordered to move by that route. The supply-train was 
sent by this route on account of the water supply. The 15th 
Infantry command at Cummings, about 80 strong, was 
started the 20th of September, via the east side of the Flor- 
idas, under the command of Major Osborne, 13 15th Infantry; 
this command carried with it a water-wagon I had had con- 
structed, with a capacity of more than 400 gallons. About 
noon of the 21st, I left Cummings, via the east side of the 
Floridas, with the Cavalry command of Cummings, com- 
posed of 9th Cavalry Battalion, under Colonel Durley," 
numbering about 100, and the 4th Cavalry battalion, under 
Major Noyes, 15 numbering about 109. The evening of the 
23rd, I arrived with Cavalry command at lower end of the 
Floridas where it was supposed we would find tanks of 
water. Failing in this, it became necessary to make a 
night march, which brought me with the Cavalry to Polo- 
mas Lake about 6 o'clock the morning of the 23rd, ahead 
of time, finding Major Osborne already there with the In- 
fantry command. 

The morning of the 24th found every American com- 
mand in place, except, perhaps, General Carr's column, 
which should have been at Bocco Grando Pass, as I under- 
stood. His advance scouts, under Lieut. Mills, 18 of the 12th 



12. Hugh Albert Theaker served in the Civil War from Ohio as an officer of 
the 16th Infantry. Promoted to a captaincy in 1864, he was transferred in 1866 to 
the 34th Infantry, and in 1839 he was again assigned to the 16th Infantry, with which 
he was at this time. Before his retirement (11 Aug., 1898) he had risen to a 
colonelcy. 

13. Nathan Ward Osborne, native of Massachusetts, also served in the Civil 
War with distinction. He became a lieutenant colonel in 1882, and a colonel in 
1888. His death occurred 30 Jan., 1895. 

14. Nathan A. M. Dudley, native of Massachusetts, received several citations dur- 
ing the Civil War. He was later assigned to the Cavalry branch of the service and 
at this time was lieutenant colonel of the 9th Cavalry, stationed at Fort Cummings. 
N. Mex. He was retired on 20 August, 1889. 

15. Henry Erastus Noyes, native of Maine, entered West Point from Massa- 
chusetts and graduated in 1857. He was a 2nd lieutenant of the 2nd Dragoons in 
1861 and later served with the 2nd Cavalry, rising to the rank of captain (25 Jan., 
1865). He was made major, 4th Cavalry 14 June, 1879) the commission which he 
held at this time. He later rose to the rank of colonel and was retired 16 Nov., 1901. 

16. Stephen Crosby Mills, native of New York, entered West Point from Illi- 
nois, graduating in 1873. He was a 2nd lieutenant 12th Infantry from 30 June. 
1877. He became a 1st lieutenant in 1884, and by subsequent promotions rose to a 
colonelcy in 1903. In 1890 he received a brevet for gallantry in action against 
Indians in the San Andres Mountains, N. Mex. (7 Apr., 1880) and in the Las Animaa 
Mountains, N. Mex. (28 Apr., 1882.) 



138 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Infantry, reported to me the night of the 24th, on Carali- 
tas 17 River, south of Polomas Lake. Lieut. Mills, however, 
could not tell me the whereabouts of Gen. Carr and Com- 
mand. Scouts were sent, but failed to reach him, for 
reasons best known to himself. Gen. Carr failed to join me 
in Old Mexico. At Polomas Lake I received couriers from 
both Beyer and Maney, and found Capt. Theaker, of the 
Knight's Ranche command, and supply-train most prompt 
and on time. Through information received from my citi- 
zen scouts, it soon became evident that Victorio likewise had 
scouts watching our movements. It likewise became evi- 
dent that he was surprised with the knowledge that we had 
entered Mexico, as was afterwards shown by his signs and 
trails. Instead of attempting to move north between my 
columns, he changed the course of the band pursued by 
Beyer into the Candelaria Mountains, 18 and moved such 
portions of his band as were camped near Guzman into the 
Candelaria Mountains likewise. On approaching Guzman 
Lake, the 25th, my command was joined by Maney 's scouts. 
I delayed my command part of a day at Guzman Springs, 
and one whole day at Santa Maria Springs, waiting for 
Carr. 

Being fully satisfied, from information received by 
means of citizen scouts, that Victorio had fled with his 
whole command to the South and East, I started Captain 
Jack Crawford, chief of Scouts, from Santa Maria Springs, 
with three citizen scouts selected by himself, to proceed east- 
northeast, via Capt. Beyer's camp, far toward the Rio 
Grande, to cut any trails, fearing Victorio would attempt to 
turn Beyer's left flank, passing north near to and west of 
Paso del Norte. I also sent dispatches to El Paso, asking that 
the line of the Rio Grande might be watched closely, and 
likewise to Gen. Grierson, 19 who was watching a portion of 
the Rio Grande line, and who was prepared to aid me all he 
could under his orders, and that any information of Victo- 
rio's attempt to move in that direction might be furnished 
me promptly. From this point I also sent dispatches to 
Terrazas, believing we would get a fight with Victorio in 

17. Corralitos. 

18. The Candelaria Mountains are 60 miles south of El Paso. 

19. Benjamin H. Grierson, native of Pennsylvania, entered the Civil War from 
Illinois, receiving several citations for gallantry. On 28 July, 1866, he became colonel 
of the 10th Cavalry and so served until April, 1890. He was commanding officer for 
the Department of New Mexico 1886-1888, just prior to General Carr. 



COL. BUELL'S EXPEDITION INTO MEXICO 139 

the Candelaria Mountains, some sixty miles south of east, 
I also sent orders to Captain Beyer to send scouts forward, 
if possible, into the Candelaria Mountains by night, on the 
trail he was pursuing, and notifying him that I would enter 
the Candelaria Mountains the night of the 29th, with Cav- 
alry command and scouts, pursuing the Indian trail from 
Guzman and Santa Maria through the Santa Maria Moun- 
tains and across San Bias Plain. When Captain Beyer was 
about preparing to comply with these orders, his whole herd 
was stampeded by the carelessness of an inexperienced sen- 
tinel firing his gun in the night at an imaginary Indian, 
while the animals were all sleeping. This, of course, left 
his command afoot. He was at once ordered to cache his 
property, to send a sufficient number of men and scouts after 
the stampeded stock, and to carry out his original orders 
with the remainder of his command, on foot. The stock thus 
stampeded was afterwards recovered, with the exception of 
a few animals, and so likewise was the cached property. 
This accident, of course, broke down Captain Beyer's com- 
mand as an effective force, and it became necessary to send 
Lieut. Goodwin ^ back with a few men and scouts to gather 
up the scattered property, etc. 

The 28th, at Santa Maria Springs, I cut loose with the 
Cavalry and 30 Infantry volunteers, under Lieut. Cornish, 21 
and Thurston, 22 of the 15th and 16th Infantry, and the pack- 
train, with as many days' rations as it was possible to carry. 
Sending the Infantry column and supply-train, under the 
command of Major Osborne, up the Santa Maria River, via 
Ojo Caliente, 23 Carazal, 24 San Jose, 25 , to El Lucero, 26 I 

20. Millard Fillmore Goodwin, native of New York, was appointed to West Point 
from Arizona and graduated in 1867. He was 2nd lieutenant 9th Cavalry, from 14 
June, 1872 ; 1st lieutenant from 4 Apr., 1879 ; and regimental quartermaster from 1 
Jan., 1881 to 1 May, 1883. He resigned from the service the following August. 

21. George Anthony Cornish, native of Alabama, graduated from West Point in 
1869. He was 2nd lieutenant, 15th Infantry, from 13 June, 1873, and 1st lieutenant 
from 25 Jan., 1876 the commission held at this time. 

22. Walter Alonzo Thurston, native of Alabama, was in the class of 1875 at 
West Point and became a 2nd lieutenant, 16th Infantry, on 13 June, 1879, only a 
few months before this campaign. 

23. Ojo Caliente, 90 miles south of El Paso. 

24. Carrizal, where on June 21, 1916, Capt. Charles T. Boyd, 1st Lieut. Henry R. 
Adair, and six men of Troop C, 10 Cavalry, were killed, four were wounded and eight 
taken prisoners. Troop K lost four killed, one officer and six men wounded, fifteen, 
prisoners. 

25. San Jose de Patos. 

26. El Lucero, 50 miles southeast of Lake Santa Maria. 



140 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

marched with the Cavalry command east on the Indian trail, 
bivouacing toward morning on the eastern slope of the 
Santa Maria Mountains. During most of the day of the 
29th, my Cavalry Command bivouaced, and was hidden be- 
hind some small buttes in San Bias Plain, as shown in map. 
The night of the 29th, we marched into the north end of 
the Candelaria Mountains, expecting to meet the enemy, 
not yet having learned of his departure to the South and 
east. The day of the 30th, my command moved through the 
Candelaria Mountains to the south end, expecting to find 
sufficient water for the command. In this I was disap- 
pointed. From advance scouts sent into the mountains by 
Captain Beyer, I learned that the enemy's rear-guard had 
left a few nights previous. I found the Candelaria Moun- 
tains very sparcely provided with water, and very vulner- 
able had the enemy chosen to make fight there. Captain 
Beyer's command entered the Candelaria Mountains the 
morning of the 30th, and joined my command October 1st, 
at El Lucero, whence I was forced to move to obtain water 
for the command, which we had had very little of since leav- 
ing Santa Maria Springs, the 28th. At this point I received 
a communication from Terrazas that Victorio had gone 
toward the Pino Mountains southeast, and that his com- 
mand would be at the Boraccho, (which is a pass in the 
mountains) where there was a good spring of water, about 
the 5th or 6th of October Victorio having gotten out of the 
Candelaria Mountains before Terrazas got his troops in 
position, as was contemplated, we both, the Mexican and 
American troops, became the pursuers. 

At El Lucero, I learned through my citizen and Indian 
scouts the exact course of Victorio's trail, which was very 
distinct. The supply-train, under command of Major Os- 
borne, reported to me the 2nd of October at El Lucero. Not 
being able to get a good knowledge of the country south and 
east of Chihuahua ro,ad, and having such limited pack trans- 
portation, my best and only course was to move on the Chi- 
huahua road to Canta Recia, thus keeping my command to 
the north of yictorio. 

Up to this point and date, we had been unable to locate 
the enemy after his departure from the Candelaria Moun- 
tains, and it was feared he had scattered and was trying to 
slip north between the Baraccho Mountains and Grierson's 



COL. BUELL'S EXPEDITION INTO MEXICO 141 

right, which was near Quitman, 27 although Terrazas assured 
me that he would try and drive him into Grierson's lines. I 
therefore sent Lieut. Maney, who had a good pack-train, 
with his own scouts and such of Good win's scouts as were 
not with Goodwin hunting stampeded stock, and one com- 
pany of Cavalry under Lieut. Schaeffer, 28 to join Terrazas at 
the Baraccho, whilst I moved with the main command to 
the east of the Baraccho and down the Rio Grande Valley, 
keeping in daily communication with Lieut. Maney and Ter- 
razas. From Canta Recia I also sent a supply-train to Fort 
Bliss for more supplies. In the meantime, Captain Jack 
Crawford had rejoined me, and I sent him, with two good 
scouts of his own selection, to proceed not less than 100 miles 
down the Rio Grande, on the Old Mexican side, below Quit- 
man, in order that I might gain early information should 
Victorio attempt to turn Grierson's left and cross the Rio 
Grande, with a view of proceeding north into New Mexico. 
In the meantime, Terrazas and Maney had moved south into 
the Pino Mountains, but still could not locate Victorio, not- 
withstanding his works of defence could be found. The 
morning of October 9th, I ordered Colonel Dudley back 
toward Quitman with the 9th Cavalry battalion and one 
Hotchkis gun, whilst I proceeded myself from the camp on 
the Rio Grande to the Baraccho with the 4th Cavalry battal- 
ion (about 90 strong) and nine days' rations on pack-mules 
and one Hotchkis gun. At this time everyone seemed to be 
at a loss as to where Victorio had gone : in other words, he 
had scattered on us, and I sent Colonel Dudley to the rear, 
with orders to await my orders, so that, should I learn 
Victoifo had gone north, he would be more nearly in posi- 
tion to operate against him than I, and with this understand- 
ing Colonel Dudley went to the rear, and made camp near 
Quitman. 

The night of the 9th, about 10 or 11 o'clock, while en- 
camped in the Baraccho, I received information from Ter- 
razas, through Lieut. Maney, that it would be objectionable 
on the part of his Government for American troops to ad- 
vance farther into the interior. . 



27. Quitman, 80 miles below El Paso on the Rio Grande. Fort Quitman had 
been reoccupied after the Civil War but it had been abandoned in 1877. As here 
used, it was simply a place-name. 

28. Charles Melancthon Schaeffer, native of Pennsylvania, entered West Point 
from Illinois and graduated in 1874. He was a 2nd lieutenant, 15 Infantry, from 14 
June, 1878, and of the 9th Cavalry from 12 June, 1879. He resigned his commission 
81 July, 1883, but later he served with the Minnesota Volunteers in the Spanish- 
American War. He died 24 June, 1900. 



142 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Much as I regretted to give up the chase, I felt that I 
was in Mexico by the invitation of the Chihuahua or state 
authorities more than by any legal or proper right. I felt 
satisfied that Terrazas had received an intimation or order 
to forbid my advancing farther toward Chihuahua, and that 
he had sent this message to me in the most gentlemanly 
manner. I therefore commenced the withdrawal of my ad- 
vance the 10th day of October, and started back myself the 
10th, en route to the American side of the Rio Grande. . . , 
Very respectfully, 

Your obedient servant, 

(Signed) GEO. P. BUELL, 

Colonel 15th Infantry, 

Commanding 
Official extract copy. 

E. R. PLATT, 
A. A. General. 

It will be noted that in this official transcript from our 
War Department records there are two deletions. Perhaps 
Colonel Buell expressed himself too frankly for publication 
as to our troops being practically ordered out of Mexico at 
the very moment when Victorio had been run to earth. The 
facts are that on the very day (October 9) on which the 
"request" was transmitted by Terrazas to Buell, the Mexican 
troops fought the Apaches in the Tres Costillos Mountains. 
Victorio and eighty-six of his warriors were killed and 
eighty-nine squaws and children were captured. These 
prisoners were later exhibited in Mexico City, where most 
of them died. The chief Nane and fifty warriors got away 
and joined Geronimo but that is another story. 

As for Colonel Buell, within twenty-four hours after the 
withdrawal of our troops began, a courier overtook him with 
news of the Mexican success and the death of Victorio. 
While directing his warriors from an elevated position on 
the battlefield he had been shot by a Tarahumara Indian 
soldier at long rifle range. Thus died one of the greatest 
scourges of the Southwestern frontier. 29 



29. Rather curiously Richardson and Rister, The Greater Southwest, 824, say 
that Victorio was killed in 1883. Yet Rister, The Southwestern Frontier, 216, gives 
part of the above facts with citation to Raht, Romance of the Davis Mountains and 
the Big Bend Country. 



OLD ROADS AND NEW HIGHWAYS IN THE 
SOUTHWEST 1 

By MAUD DURLIN SULLIVAN 

THIS title should continue in a rather Thackeray ish man- 
ner, "in which a public library endeavors to revive a 
tradition for the community." It is not our purpose to pre- 
sent a series of historical facts in connection with each trail 
mentioned, nor to give the history of the trails themselves, 
but rather to show how the romance and adventure sur- 
rounding them were used to stimulate an interest in the 
whole subject of Southwest history. 

The Southwest is young. Its cities have been built by 
those hardy and determined Americans who have only 
recently written the final chapter to the story of their long 
and active lives. Our "Mayflower" was that first covered 
wagon which appeared over the mountain road, making its 
slow progress down toward "the Pass to the North," to the 
broad valley of the Rio Grande. Others came in great 
numbers in search of fortune, or health, or just an adven- 
ture. These knew little or nothing of the history so closely 
interwoven with Spain's great period of exploration, nor 
of that far older Indian civilization which archaeologists 
have revealed to us during the past twenty years. Nor does 
the present generation know much about them. 

A simple way of approaching the subject was to bring 
home to our people the history underlying the highways of 
the Southwest. To do this it was necessary to go back over 
the period of Spanish exploration and to bring to life those 
who had crossed the country before trails were in existence. 
Roads and trails are fascinating things in themselves. Aris- 
ing from man's need for communication and transportation, 
they generally followed some old well known path possibly 
first made by animals, and as time drove this need onward, 



1. A paper read before the American Library Association at Los Angeles, June 
1930, by Mrs. Sullivan, librarian of the El Paso Public Library. 

143 



144 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

and in different directions, the trails became traveled roads. 
The rough-going trails of these explorers and pioneers in 
time developed into the smooth broad highways of today. 

Our first venture was a course in Southwest history 
which was given to a group of business women. This work 
was followed by another venture of real importance, when 
El Paso celebrated its 50th birthday in 1922. The prepara- 
tion for this festival in which so many citizens took part 
taxed the resources of the library to the utmost, but it also 
served to introduce the subject in all its fascination to a 
much wider audience. 

Later several lectures were given under the auspices of 
scientific and literary societies. The problem of showing 
routes and locations of the early explorations so that persons 
in the audience could see them, led us to enlarge the map in 
Dr. Bolton's charming book, Spanish Borderlands. This 
map as finally completed measured four and one-half by 
seven feet. The journeys were outlined in bright colors, 
plainly visible in a medium size lecture hall. The amazing 
wanderings of Cabeza de Vaca and his companions across 
Texas always captivated an audience. There is no more 
thrilling tale of adventure in the annals of our history. 

In tracing the footsteps of these gallant adventurers, it 
had not occurred to us that anyone in the audience would 
dispute the various geographical points mentioned as hav- 
ing been visited by each explorer. At the first lecture when 
this map was used, there were several men in the audience 
who could scarcely wait for an opportunity to speak. One 
loyal Texas felt moved to protest that Cabeza de Vaca did 
not travel on the South side of the Rio Grande, but crossed 
Texas to the Pecos river; while a New Mexican asserted 
that this journey through Texas extended into New Mexico, 
and a long stop was made where the Governor's palace now 
stands ! 

Another theory was advanced in regard to the plants 
growing in that part of Texas indicated on the map where 
Cabeza de Vaca stopped because of the food value of the veg- 



OLD ROADS AND HIGHWAYS 145 

etation. There was quite a heated argument in regard to 
the botany of Texas, showing that this sojourn was impos- 
sible. 

Realizing that these differences might arise every time 
the map went visiting, a brief bibliography of authorities 
cited was compiled for the use of those who wished for more 
information. 

For motorists, the highway following the Rio Grande 
for many miles became the scene of many of these early 
journeys, as nearly all of them followed the river from 
some point near Fort Quitman. What we call the "Valley 
Road," winding through Ysleta (del Sur) and through all 
the small towns clustered along the river in El Paso county, 
is part of this main travelled road. 

Coronado seemed a more familiar name to many people. 
It was not difficult to interest them in reading about his 
journey across New Mexico. The tale of the Seven Cities 
and of that wonderful scouting trip to the Grand Canon, 
made by Lopez de Cardenas and his companions, added much 
to the pleasure of visiting these places. 

Onate's journey in 1598 gave an opportunity to add 
more color and romance to the story. Breaking a new trail 
from Santa Barbara, Chihuahua, instead of the usual route 
along the Conchos river, Onate led his company of Span- 
ish soldiers arid Indians over the dust and glare of Mexico's 
northern desert country, arriving at last on the shore of the 
Rio Grande near El Paso where they took possession of the 
land. The story goes that when they finally reached shade 
and coolness after their hard journey, they celebrated the 
event with a comedy arranged by Captain Farfan. The 
mention of this brought more difficulties. We were besought 
for the play which had been given, and many other questions 
were asked which it was impossible to answer. 

We found Ofiate an excellent guide for further motor 
trips of discovery as we followed his adventurous footsteps 
across New Mexico and Arizona. El Morro, that famed 
rock upon which the conquistadores wrote their names, be- 



146 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

came a definite objective for travelers after reading the 
story. Resting in its great shadow in 1605, Onate was the 
first to carve with his dagger his name and the discovery of 
the Sea of the South (The Gulf of California). 

In the usual descriptive material issued from various 
sources for the benefit of the motorist, there are few, if any, 
references to Count Juchereau de St. Denis, whose story is 
one of the most delightful romances. The long road called 
on some old maps El camino del rey, on others The Old San 
Antonio Road, crossing Texas from Natchitoches to Coa- 
huila, Mexico, was established partly through the energetic 
efforts of St. Denis to open a trade route for the French. 
Railroads and highways in Texas cross and recross this 
old road. St. Denis is described as good to look at, very 
brave and always ready for the most entrancing dangers. 
The story of his exploits would make excellent material for 
the novelists, and for the so-called fictional biographer. We 
found the account in Grace King's New Orleans, the place 
and the people, one of the best to interest the average reader. 

Travelers from El Paso to Santa Fe drive along the 
modern Old Spanish Trail part of the way, and also cross the 
path of the famous Jornada del Muerto, its name implying 
all the terrors experienced by those who traversed this bar- 
ren desert. Humboldt, writing in 1801, describes it as "30 
leagues in length, destitute of water." We hear of it often 
in descriptions of various journeys, and nowhere more viv- 
idly than when Doniphan led his famous company of Mis- 
sourians over its fateful path. 

There are no terrors now, at least not of the same kind, 
as one speeds across these desert highways. It is not, how- 
ever, difficult to visualize all that took place on this historic 
ground. The age-old hills and rugged bare mountains stand 
grey and silent in the brilliant sunlight, as they watch the 
procession of the years and man's endless struggle to con- 
quer nature. 

One of the most interesting accounts of early road 
building is given in the reports of the Secretary of War, 



OLD ROADS AND HIGHWAYS 147 

published in 1850, giving the reconnaissances of routes from 
San Antonio to El Paso, the project being to establish a 
permanent military road from the Gulf of Mexico to El 
Paso. To those who know the country it is fascinating to 
read of the day's findings as recorded in these reports. The 
distance travelled, the climate, every detail of the country is 
mentioned. We ride today, swiftly and in comfort over this 
road with no thought of the slow, arduous labor of that first 
trail blazing journey. 

When gold was discovered in California, the question of 
the day became "What is the best route to California?" It 
is frequently heard today. The well known trails were the 
Oregon Trail, and the Santa Fe. Little was said about the 
routes through the Southwest. There were four new roads 
into the Rio Grande Valley, three of which passed through 
El Paso, the Mexican town on the west side of the Rio 
Grande, known then as Paso del Norte. In 1888 it was given 
its present name of Juarez, after Mexico's great man, Beni- 
to Juarez. 

It was noted with some amusement how active the 
states of Arkansas and Texas were during this period in 
advertising the advantages of certain routes. No tourist 
travelogue or folder of today contains more alluring tales 
of "How sunshine spends the winter" than the articles which 
appeared in the newspapers of that day. From a note in 
Bieber's "Southwestern trails to California," we find this 
item taken from the Houston Democratic Telegraph and 
Texas Register of February 15, 1849: "These emigrants, 
therefore, may actually be digging in the gold mines of San 
Francisco or Los Angeles, before the emigrants left at St. 
Louis can commence their journey. The peach trees here 
are in blossom, the grass is springing up fresh upon the 
prairies, and the spring birds are singing merrily, while 
according to telegraph accounts, St. Louis' cold chilly win- 
ter still chains the rivers with icy bands and covers the 
Prairies with his snowy mantle." Not "Bigger and better" 
roads but "Warmer and safer" seems to have been the 
slogan. 



148 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

El Paso was the important halfway place on these dif- 
ferent southern routes, and was a veritable oasis in the 
desert. Here these emigrants rested before continuing their 
journey, and purchased supplies from Mexican and Mis- 
souri merchants. It was during this period that the Ameri- 
can city of El Paso had its real beginning. 2 

One route for cattle drivers from Austin to Fort Yuma 
followed the emigrant trail. The map of this route shows 
every water hole and the locations of forts; the two great 
needs for such journeys, water and protection from the In- 
dians. The opening chapter of Emerson Hough's Story of 
the Coivboy contains a fine description of the Long Trail of 
the cattle range. 

With the great increase in motoring during the past 
ten years there were more requests for books on early New 
Mexico history. Stopping at some Indian village or passing 
the ruins of an old fort, many of these travelers wished to 
learn something of an apparently unknown country. 

Using an automobile road map, places of interest on 
different routes to California were selected, and a few books 
were listed which would make the journey more profitable. 
As this way of reading became more popular, the scope of 
the motor travalogues was enlarged to include a wider field 
in the Southwest, as well as the roads close to the city. A 
small folder is distributed through the Automobile Club, 
hotels, and camps, mentioning briefly a few places of his- 
toric interest to visit, and that the library has material about 
them. 

In this agreeable method of presenting Southwest his- 
tory, incidents were selected here and there from different 
periods, or wherever a character or event suggested some 
central point for starting a new search for adventure. In 
recent years, the Southwest has frequently been the subject 
for study groups and various club programs. Our enlarged 
map is often loaned to these groups. 



2. Bartlett, Personal Narrative of Exploration, 1850-5S gave the population as 
about 21,000 in the Mexican town and 400 on the American side. 



OLD ROADS AND HIGHWAYS 149 

The Spanish conquerors have become familiar to all. 
Their helmeted faces appear on the facades of our new 
hotels and adorn the home of the much sought after Spanish 
type. 

Promoters of travel trips find it safer to consult the 
histories and maps in libraries before venturing on new 
and alluring tales. One is so likely to find here and there 
an argumentative tourist who knows. 

From some high point on one of these highways, you 
may look down on a wide stretch of desert and the green 
fields of irrigated land following the silver line of the river. 
While you watch the changing lights and the color on moun- 
tain and mesa, you may see in fancy, a group of conquista- 
dores with shining helmets and the flying pennants of Spain, 
riding slowly along one of those old unbroken trails. In 
sharp contrast you may vision the dark-robed friars, brav- 
est of all, carrying the faith to an unknown country. A 
long procession of shadowy figures follows : Indians, traders, 
adventurers, pack trains, covered wagons, and perhaps the 
galloping horse of some famed bad man, escaping the rough 
justice of the time. While you dream over old stories which 
seem so real against the unchanging background of moun- 
tain and river, a great scarlet plane from Mexico drifts into 
sight, one of today's adventurers blazing new trails across 
the blue of a Southwest sky. 



PAS6 FOR AQUf 

EUGENE MANLOVE RHODES 

1869-1934 



SUCH was the felicitous phrase selected by Gene Rhodes 
himself for his epitaph. It will be inscribed upon the 
monument which, it is hoped, will soon mark his last rest- 
ing place. 1 Of course the phrase is historically famous, for 
just 330 years ago it was carved on the face of Inscription 
Rock when Don Juan de Onate was returning from his 
journey to the Gulf of California, but it took on new mean- 
ing when Gene Rhodes used it as the title of one of his first 
stories of New Mexico life. And now it has added signifi- 
cance as an epitaph: "he passed this way." 

Shy and unassuming, lovably irascible at times, impa- 
tient of sham in any form, loyal in his friendships and gen- 
erous to a fault, Gene Rhodes saw life in its true values and 
he interpreted life with his intriguing lisp and a quizzical 
gleam in his eye. He was a delightful companion with whom 
to lounge and chat over a pipe before an open fire. Clean 
and wholesome in thought, interested and interesting, origi- 
nal and stimulating in ideas, he always called out the best in 
man or woman. 

Cowboy, student of life, master of prose, lover of ani- 
mals and children and all kindred spirits, seeker after truth 
and beauty, "he passed this way" and his memory will ever 
remain fresh and sweet in the hearts of those who knew him. 

Recently in our editorial browsing, we came across an 
early poem that was dated at Engle, New Mexico, and was 
first published in 1899. 2 Anyone who visits Rhodes Pass in 
the early summer will see along the trail the towering yuccas, 
"las velas del Senor" (the candles of the Lord) and per- 
haps he will see them as Gene Rhodes saw them. L. B. B. 



1. Any of our readers who wish to participate in this Rhodes memorial may 
send their checks to Mrs. Alice Corbin Henderson, Camino del Monte Sol, Santa Fe. 
The fund is now being collected with a view to placing the monument this summer. 

2. In The Land of Sunshine, XI (Oct., 1899), 261. 

150 




EUGENE MANLOVE RHODES 




Photo by U. S. Forest >Y/v/Y, 



THE YUCCA IN FLOWER 



A BLOSSOM OF BARREN LANDS 
By EUGENE M. RHODES 

A flower grows in old Cathay 
Whose blood-red petals ease our woes, 
It lulls our haunting care away 
And gives our weariness repose. 
When tortured heart and fevered brain 
Long for black slumber, dull and deep, 
The poppy's charm can ease our pain 
And bid us sleep. 

. 

And subtler Egypt's fabled bloom, 
The lotus of forgetful breath, 
Brings to remorse oblivion's doom 
And gives the shameful past to death. 
When bitter memories, fierce and fell, 
Scourge our dark hearts with wild regret 
for the flower whose languorous spell 
Bids us forget! 

But dearer, more divinely born, 
Amid the deserts desolate, 
The yucca blooms above its thorn 
Triumphant o'er an evil fate. 
Brave, stainlesss, waxen miracle, 
So may we with our fortunes cope, 
Who in life's burning deserts dwell. 
You bid us hope ! 



Engle, N. M. 



151 



THE GOVERNORS OF NEW MEXICO 
By LANSING B. BLOOM 

NEW MEXICO can show a longer line of governors than 
any other State in the Union. Beginning in 1598 and 
continuing over a span of 337 years to date, New Mexico has 
been successively a province of Spain ; a province, territory, 
and department under Mexico; and a territory and state of 
the United States. 

In view of the fact that the records at Santa Fe were 
destroyed in the Indian Rebellion of 1680, it is not surpris- 
ing that our knowledge of these governors has long re- 
mained incomplete. The list as compiled by Bancroft 1 had 
serious gaps and mistakes, yet his work was basic and it is 
still quoted as authoritative. Some of his errors may be 
found in the works of H. E. Bolton, 3 R. E. Twitchell, 3 B. M. 
Read, 4 and C. F. Coan, 6 and in the writings of other authors 
who have depended on the works just mentioned. 8 As one 
result of study begun in 1910 in the archival records in 
Santa Fe, Washington, and at other depositories in this 
country, a number of corrections as to various governors 
were established, 7 and in recent years archives which have 
been secured in Spain and in Mexico have yielded a mass of 



1. H. H. Bancroft, History of Arizona and New Mexico (1889), 253-254 and 
passim. He includes five who never served and omits eight who did, and many of 
the terms as shown are incorrect. 

2. H. E. Bolton, Guide to Materials for the History of the U. S. in the Principal 
Archives of Mexico (1913), 473-474, copies the Bancroft list without any change. 

8. R. E. Twitchell, Leading Facts of New Mexican History, 2 vola. (1911-1912), 
passim, also follows Bancroft. 

4. B. M. Read, Historia Jlustrada de Nuevo Mexico (1911) and Illustrated His- 
tory of New Mexico (1912), also depended upon Bancroft. 

5. C. F. Coan, A History of New Mexico, 8 vols. (1925) and A Shorter History 
of New Mexico, 2 vols. (1928). The latter is simply an abridged mimeographed edi- 
tion of the former; both follow Bancroft for the Spanish period, but in the later 
periods show some corrections due to research which had by then been done. 

6. As recent a work as that of C. W. Hackett, Pichardo's Treatise on the Limits 
of Louisiana and Texas, vol. II (1934) passim, quotes Bolton (who copied Ban- 
croft) as to the governors of New Mexico. 

7. Especially as to the Mexican period in "New Mexico under Mexican Admin- 
istration, 1821-1846," published in Old Santa Fe, vols. I-II (1913-1915), passim. 

152 



THE GOVERNORS OF NEW MEXICO 153 

detailed information. 8 This material was used for the re- 
vised list given to the Secretary of State and published in the 
New Mexico Blue Book of 1925-1926. Further revision was 
made in the four subsequent issues but even in the last one 
(1933-1934) the copy supplied was not very carefully fol- 
lowed; moreover that publication is not always available 
outside of New Mexico. It seems desirable, therefore, to 
give in our quarterly the complete list as it now stands. 

Does such a chronological record make dry reading? 
Possibly so, and yet even a glance will show that it is a 
perfect galaxy of great family names, distinguished in Spain 
and in the New World. Military titles are numerous of 
course, but three of the Spaniards were admirals before 
they came to New Mexico ! Some were of noble rank ; many 
were knights of the military orders of Santiago, Alcantara, 
and Calatrava. Some of them lay in prison for months, even 
years; others were haled before the Inquisition; at least 
three were assassinated. Glory and ignominy, romance and 
tragedy, lie thick upon the pages of our early history. 9 

The list as given is consecutive throughout except for 
the years 1846-1848 when military and civil rule were paral- 
lel but held by different men. When the term ad interim 
has been used, it indicates that the previous incumbent had 
died, resigned, or been removed from office. 

If all the men and women were included who served as 
temporary or "acting" governors during this third of a mil- 
lenium, the list would be interminably long and involved. 
For example, Cristobal de Onate was acting governor in 



8. During a year of research in Spain (1928-1929), with the aid of Mrs. Bloom, 
a wealth of detailed information was gathered. Some of this came from Simancas 
and Madrid, but most of it was found in Seville, especially in the financial records, 
the Seccidn de Contaduria of the Archivo General de Indias. This was particularly 
true for the 17th century, the period in which the archives at Santa Fe had so little. 
Later some details as to various governors turned up in the archive material secured 
in Mexico City in 1930, and again in the summer of 1934. 

Much of this material has been used in papers which have been published in 
the NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW, vols. I-IX (1926-1934), and in Bloom and Don- 
nelly, New Mexico History and Civics (1933). 

9. See, for example, the papers by F. V. Scholes and J. M. Espinoea in thia 
issue. 



154 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

1604-1605 when he was a youth of only sixteen years and 
while his father was on his famous journey to the Gulf of 
California ; but after Don Juan resigned, Don Crist6bal was 
elected by the colonists in CabUdo Abierto and served until 
the arrival of Peralta. Therefore he belongs in the list as 
shown. 

The term acting will be found in the list at only two 
places: in 1844 and in 1846. Late in 1843 the Mexican 
authorities closed New Mexico for some months against the 
commerce from the United States and Manuel Armijo lost 
interest in the governorship, resigning first the military, 
and then the civil, authority and going to his home in Albu- 
querque. In 1846 again, upon the approach of the invad- 
ing army under General S. W. Kearny, Manuel Armijo de- 
serted his post and fled the country. Vigil's proclamation as 
"gobernador politico y militar interino" 10 explains the includ- 
ing of his name in the list, brief as his tenure was. 

There have been countless other "acting" governors, 
and recent secretaries of state have included such names in 
the list." This is interesting as a matter of record, but in 
the list as here given it has seemed best to show only the 
names of those who have held the office when it was defi- 
nitely vacated by the preceding incumbent. 

GOVERNORS OF NEW MEXICO 
(List as revised by Lansing B. Bloom) 

UNDER SPANISH RULE, 1598-1822 
1598 1608 Don Juan de Ofiate, adelantado 
1608 1610 Don Cristobal de Ofiate, adelantado (governor ad interim 

by election of the colonists) 
1610 1614 Don Pedro de Peralta 
1614 1618 Admiral don Bernardino de Ceballos 
1618 1625 Don Juan de Eulate 
1625 1629 Admiral don Phelipe Sotelo Ossorio 
1629 1632 Capt. don Francisco Manuel de Silva Nieto 
1632 1635 Capt. don Francisco de la Mora y Ceballos 



10. Reproduced in facsimile by B. M. Read, Illustrated History of New Mexico, 
665. A translation of the text is given at pp. 430-431. 

11. See New Mexico Blue Book, last four issues (1926-1934). 



THE GOVERNORS OF NEW MEXICO 



155 



1635 1637 Capt. don Francisco Martinez de Baeza 

16371641 Capt. don Luis de Rosas 

1641 General don Juan Flores de Sierra y Valdes 

16411642 (1st Sergeant Francisco Gomez). The cabildo of Santa 

Fe was in actual control 

1642 1644 Capt. don Alonso Pacheco de Heredia 

1644 1647 Capt. don Fernando de Argiiello Carvajal 

1647 1649 Capt. don Luis de Guzman y Figueroa 

1649 1653 Capt. don Hernando de Ugarte y la Concha 

1653 1656 Don Juan de Samaniego y Xaca 

1656 1659 Capt. don Juan Mansso de Contreras 

1659 1661 Capt. don Bernardo Lopez de Mendizabal 

1661 1664 Capt. don Diego Dionisio de Penalosa BricefLo y Berdugo 

1664 1665 Capt. don Juan de Miranda 

16651668 Capt. don Fernando de Villanueva 

1668 1671 Capt. don Juan de Medrano y Mesia 

1671 1675 General don Juan Duran de Miranda (2nd time) 

1675 1677 Capt. don Juan Francisco de Trevino 

1677 1683 Capt. don Antonio de Otermin 

1683 1686 Capt. don Domingo Jironza Petriz de Cruzate 

1686 1689 Don Pedro Reneros de Posada 

1689 1691 Capt. don Domingo Jironza Petriz de Cruzate (2nd time) 

1691 1697 Don Diego de Vargas Zapata Lujan Ponce de Leon 

1697 1703 Don Pedro Rodriguez Cubero 

1703 1704 Don Diego de Vargas Zapata Lujan Ponce de Leon, 

Marques de la Nava Brazinas (2nd time) 

1704 1705 Capt. don Juan Paez Hurtado, ad interim 

1705 1707 Don Francisco Cuervo y Valdes, ad interim 

1707 1712 Admiral don Joseph Chacon Medina Salazar y Villa- 

sefior, Marques de las Pefiuelas 

1712 1715 Don Juan Ignacio Flores Mogollon 

1715 1717 Capt. don Phelix Martinez, ad interim 

1717 Capt. don Juan Paez Hurtado, ad interim 

1717 1722 Capt. don Antonio Valverde y Cossio, ad interim 

1722 1731 Don Juan Domingo de Bustamante 

1731 1736 Don Gervasio Cruzat y Gongora 

1736 1739 Don Henrique de Olavide y Michelena 

1739 1743 Don Caspar Domingo de Mendoza 

17431749 Don Joachin Codallos y Rabal 

17491754 Don Tomas Veles Cachupin 

1754 1760 Don Francisco Antonio Marin del Valle 

1760 Don Mateo Antonio de Mendoza, ad interim 

1760 1762 Don Manuel del Portillo y Urrisola, ad interim 

1762 1767 Don Tomas Veles Cachupin (2nd time) 



156 



NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 



1767 1778 Capt. don Pedro Fermin de Mendinueta 

1778 Don Francisco Trebol Navarro, ad interim 

1778 1788 Lieut.-Col. don Juan Bautista de Anza 

1788 1794 Don Fernando de la Concha 

17941805 Lieut-Col, don Fernando Chacon 

1805 1808 Col. don Joaquin del Real Alencaster 

1808 Don Alberto Maynez, ad interim 

1808 1814 Lieut-Col, don Jose Manrique, ad interim 

1814 1816 Don Alberto Maynez, ad interim 

1816 1818 Don. Pedro Maria de Allande, ad interim 

1818 1822 Capt. don Facundo Melgares, ad interim 

UNDER MEXICAN RULE 

1822 Francisco Xavier Chaves 

1822 1823 Col. Jos6 Antonio Viscarra 

18231825 Bartolome Baca 

18251827 Col. Antonio Narbona 

1827 1829 Manuel Armijo 

1829 1832 Jose Antonio Chaves 

18321833 Santiago Abreu 

1833 1835 Francisco Sarracino 

18351837 Col. Albino Perez 

18371844 Manuel Armijo (2nd time) 

1844 Mariano Chavez, acting 

1844 Felipe Sena, acting 

1844 1845 General Mariano Martinez de Lejanza 

1845 Jose Chavez y Castillo, ad interim 
18451846 Manuel Armijo (3rd time) 

1846 Juan Bautista Vigil y Alarid, acting 



UNDER UNITED STATES RULE 
Military 

1846 Gen. Stephen W. 18461847 

Kearny 18471848 

1846 1848 Col. Sterling Price 

Civil-Military 

18481849 Col. J. M. Washington 
18491851 Col. John Munroe 

Territorial Government 
1851 1852 James S. Calhoun 
1852 John Greiner, ad interim 

1852 1853 William Carr Lane 



Civil 

Charles Bent 
Donaciano Vigil 



THE GOVERNORS OF NEW MEXICO 



157 



1863 W. S. Messervy, ad interim 

1853 1856 David Meriwether 

1856 1857 W. W. H. Davis, ad interim 

1857 1861 Abraham Rencher 

1861 1866 Henry Connelly 

1866 W. F. M. Arny, ad interim 

18661869 Robert B. Mitchell 

18691871 William A. Pile 

18711875 Marsh Giddings 

1875 William G. Ritch, ad interim 

18751878 Samuel B. Axtell 

18781881 Lew Wallace 

18811885 Lionel A. Sheldon 

1885 1889 Edmund G. Ross 

18891893 L. Bradford Prince 

18931897 William T. Thornton 

18971906 Miguel A. Otero 

1906 1907 Herbert J. Hagerman 

1907 J. Wallace Raynolds, ad interim 

1907 1910 George Curry 

19101912 William J. Mills 



State Government 

19121917 William C. McDonald 

1917 Ezequiel Cabeza de Baca 

19171919 Washington E. Lindsey, ad interim 

19191921 Octaviano A. Larrazolo 

19211923 Merritt C. Mechem 

19231925 James F. Hinkle 

19251927 Arthur T. Hannett 

19271931 Richard C. Dillon 

1931 1933 Arthur Seligman 

[1933] -1935 Andrew Hockenhull, ad interim 

1935 Clyde Tingley 



BOOK REVIEWS 

The Pawnee Ghost Dance Hand Game A Study of 
Cultural Change, by Alexander Lesser. Columbia Univer- 
sity Contributions to Anthropology, volume xvi, Columbia 
University Press, N. Y., 1934, $4.00. x, 337 pp., biblio- 
graphy, no index, 3 plates and 13 figures in the text. 

In this recent "Contribution to Anthropology," the Boas 
school has added further to its studies in the content and 
technique of American ethnology. Dr. Lesser has made a 
seemingly careful and critical use of such authorities as 
Mooney, Culin, Murie and Densmore, to supplement study 
among the Pawnee in Oklahoma in 1930 and 1931. The 
result is the most comprehensive and up-to-date study of the 
Ghost Dance, in its ceremonial expression among the Paw- 
nee, available. 

The author, after briefly stating the nineteenth century 
history of the Pawnee in their relations with the American 
government, has ably developed the thesis that the Ghost 
Dance Hand Games "were the chief intellectual product of 
Pawnee culture in the last forty years" (pg. 329) . These 
games had their inception in the idealogy of the Ghost Dance 
"religion" that swept over most of the American tribes that 
had come to a cultural impasse by 1890. The Pawnee were 
led, almost forced, into adoption of the Ghost Dance religion 
by reason of the conditions arising from their pathetic his- 
tory of the past hundred years. 

When the United States acquired the Louisiana terri- 
tory in 1804, the Pawnee were the powerful and numerous 
people (about 9,000 souls) living in agricultural villages in 
the eastern and central portions of what became modern 
Kansas and Nebraska. The treaties of 1818 and 1825 estab- 
lished peace and friendship between the United States and 
the Pawnee bands. Thereafter the Pawnee considered them- 
selves allies of the American government giving early aid 
as scouts against other Plains Indians, and more recently in 

158 



BOOK REVIEWS 159 

the Great War in Europe. By the treaty of 1833 the Pawnee 
ceded some of their lands, but remained independent, under 
the protection of the American government, until 1857. 
During this period, 1833-57, they were reduced by war, 
famine and disease to a population of only about 4,000. De- 
spite promises of governmental protection, in return for 
their promise not to retaliate against enemy attacks, the 
raids of Sioux and other tribes became increasingly deadly 
to the Pawnee who were entirely surrounded by enemies. 
The push of alien tribes and the increasing migration of 
whites (movements to the mountain fur regions, Oregon, 
Utah, California, etc.) over their lands reduced the buffalo 
in an alarming fashion. Despite their agricultural economy, 
the Pawnee seasonally had to go on buffalo hunts to over- 
come an ever present food deficit; and the depletion of the 
bison was a major catastrophe. Cholera wiped out a fourth 
of the tribe in 1849, and smallpox and venereal diseases 
augumented the roll of the dead. 

By the treaty of 1857 the Pawnee became absolutely 
dependent wards of the government, which endeavored to 
"Americanize" them by turning the Pawnee into sedentary 
plough farmers. Untoward conditions, however, thwarted 
the sincere efforts of the Pawnee to become Americanized. 
Dishonesty and inefficiency of Indian agents, drouth and 
insect plagues that blasted crops, and the constant threat 
of Dakota and Cheyenne raids made a failure of all attempts 
to live on the isolated farms inherent in the White Man's 
agricultural economy on the plains. In 1873, wasted by 
famine and Dakota raids to a scant 2000 souls, the Pawnee 
began to trek southward to join their Caddoan relatives 
the Wichita in the Indian Territory of Oklahoma. By the 
spring of 1876 the entire tribe was settled on a reservation 
in northern Oklahoma. Here the necessity for adjustments 
to different climatic conditions was too much for their mal- 
nutritioned bodies, and deaths from malaria, pulmonary dis- 
eases, etc., advanced the preponderance of deaths over 
births, so that the tribe numbered only 1,521 in 1877. To 



160 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

the despair occasioned by their poor health and increasing 
death rate were added cultural losses by the abandonment of 
buffalo hunts (by 1878) , and the suppression of polygamy, 
time-honored mourning customs, medicine-men, dances, 
gambling, etc. Intemperance and the breakup of communal 
life added the finishing touches to the physical and moral 
collapse of a once virile culture. So was the stage set when 
the Ghost Dance cult arose in the West. 

The Ghost Dance cult of the Paiute Wavoka extended 
a hope and promise of the peaceful return of the good old 
pre-white days abundance of buffalo, a carefree life 
enriched by the old ceremonies, and the company of those 
who had gone before. Christian idealogy was incorporated 
to the extent of an insistence on peaceful relations with the 
whites, and the association of the Christ with the cult 
theology. Starting in Nevada in 1889, the cult was flourish- 
ing throughout much of the Plains area by 1892, by which 
time most of the Pawnees were involved. The Pawnee re- 
ceived their impetus directly from southern Oklahoma 
through the local prophet Frank White. The particular 
form of the cult, however, was derived from the Arapaho 
center to the north. Although consisting mainly of periodic 
dances, associated with vision-trances, the Ghost Dance cult 
was feared by the government agents because of the warlike 
turn that certain of the Dakota had given it. The opposition 
of the Indian agents was therefore directed against its overt 
manifestations. This was used, by interested whites, as a 
powerful argument with the Pawnee to accept the breakup 
of their reservation and the allotment of lands in severalty, 
as thus they would be American citizens, not subject to the 
authority of the agents. The Pawnee accepted this unham- 
pered citizenship and continued to dance. But the new life 
did not elevate the Pawnee in the manner expected by the 
government when making the allotments. Income from the 
sale of surplus tribal lands, the government annuity of 
$30,000, and rentals from lands leased to whites gave the 
Pawnee (now reduced to 759 souls) enough money to make 



BOOK REVIEWS 161 

their own working of the land unnecessary. This freedom 
of action, plus the desire for social gatherings not normally 
possible to a people scattered in isolated farmsteads, led 
to an increased emphasis on the Ghost Dance gatherings. 

The Ghost Dance cult soon became the most important 
item in the life of the Pawnee. Not only did it provide hope 
for a betterment of their life (which had become so hopeless 
that suicide among the young had become quite common), 
but also the old tribal rituals and ceremonies could be re- 
gained through visions. This was a very important fact, as 
tribal tradition had required that the rituals associated with 
bundles, societies and games should be handed down by oral 
instruction and example .which had not been possible due to 
the increased and early mortality of the learned, and the loss 
of necessary environmental conditions. The hysteria of the 
Ghost Dance, augmented by peyote drinking among many, 
allowed for the resurrection of many of the old ceremonies 
through vision revelation of the appropriate rituals. This 
revival of Pawnee aboriginal culture naturally was mani- 
fested in the most overt and remembered elements certain 
bundles, societies and games. The ancient guessing games 
were best remembered by the tribe, and thus the hand game 
gained an important part in the Ghost Dance ritual. 

Through an elaborate discussion of the Pawnee Ghost 
Dance Hand Game, the author has been able to trace the 
transformation of a cultural item from a gambling game 
played by men as a representation of warfare, to a sacred 
game played by both sexes as an expression or determination 
of faith. The old Pawnee hand game, first described fully 
in this work, was played between bands or with friendly 
tribes. It was part of the guessing game complex that pre- 
vailed in western and central aboriginal America. The hand 
game form consisted of hiding two counters in the hands of 
two individuals (four hand type) representing one side, 
band or tribe, the location of which counters had then to be 
guessed (according to certain rules) by a representative of 
the opposing side. Eight tally sticks were involved, and 



162 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

when all of these sticks (representing points) had been won 
by one side that particular game was over. Normally a 
series of games was played, with individual betting in each 
game. It was essentially a gambling game, with resultant 
gain or loss of material wealth. Variants of this game were 
played over much of western America. The idea of playing 
a hand game with the Ghost Dance originated with the Ar- 
apaho, but the game as resurrected among the Pawnee was 
essentially their old game in a somewhat altered form. 

The Ghost Dance was performed by the Pawnee as a 
visible prayer for the betterment of their lot. The hand 
game, as played with the Ghost Dance, completely lost its 
gambling nature and embodied a test or expression of the 
faith or "good fortune" of the participants. The sides were 
determined by spirit affiliations (crow or eagle) discovered 
in Ghost Dance visions. Incorporated in the ritual of the 
game were numerous items belonging to the fundamental 
Pawnee theology, e.g., complex smoke offerings of tobacco. 
The complicated smoke offerings expressed Pawnee cosmol- 
ogy, as in the clockwise circuit of the pipe (representing the 
movements of the stars around the North Star) . For the 
Christian, the cross typifies Christ; but for many this an- 
cient symbol represented the Morning Star. Numerous 
variants of the hand game arose, as different individuals 
received Ghost Dance revelations. The paraphernalia and 
ritual of each game were determined by the Ghost Dance 
vision. These "revealed" games belonged to the visionaries ; 
but there were also derived or modified variants developed 
by friends, relatives, or because of religion. One of the 
most interesting and singular results of the Ghost Dance 
Hand Games has been their use by Christian Pawnee congre- 
gations, such as the Baptist. The church hand games differ 
from the secular in eliminating Ghost Dances and songs 
from intervals between games, in substituting a prayer for 
the smoke offering, and in concluding with a grace instead 
of a consumption of corn and other food. 



BOOK REVIEWS 163 

Although the Ghost Dance is still popular, as a religio- 
social activity, it is no longer held as a four day ceremony. 
The meetings are normally in large frame buildings, some 
of them specially built for the dance. The part played by 
the Ghost Dance Hand Game in the life of the Pawnee seem- 
ingly has been so important that Lesser considers it to con- 
stitute the chief intellectual product of Pawnee culture in the 
last forty years. 

The reviewer does not feel competent to comment criti- 
cally upon the contents of this monograph. Nevertheless, he 
feels that Doctor Lesser is to be congratulated on having 
brought to general notice not only a chapter from the cul- 
tural history of a nearly forgotten people, but also the per- 
sisting influence of the Ghost Dance, which has left but few 
survivals among the tribes of the western United States. 
This book can be recommended to anyone interested in the 
Pawnee, the Ghost Dance, guessing games of the American 
Indian, or in the weird mixtures of Christianity and pagan- 
ism that crop up in so many parts of the New World and 
especially in the Southwest. 

DONALD D. BRAND. 
University of New Mexico. 

Mirabeau Buonaparte Lamar, Troubadour and Cru- 
sader. Herbert Pickens Gambrell. (Southwest Press, Dal- 
las, 1934; 317 pp., $2.00. Map and illustrations; index). 

"In writing history ... I conceive that the whole truth 
should be given ; and that the simple chronicling of events, 
without the . . . motives of the actors, is but the telling of 
half a truth, and falling short of the duty of the historian." 
These words taken from the writings of Lamar must have 
been constantly in the mind of the writer of the present 
biography for he certainly leaves nothing unsaid in regard 
to motives. The book is literally full of more or less impor- 
tant detail which, pieced together without too much diffi- 
culty, makes a very interesting and absorbing work. The 
book is not so much a story of the man, Lamar, as a chron- 
icle of the man's career and his times. 



164 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

The book begins with a very domestic scene (the birth 
of young Lamar) on a plantation in Georgia on the six- 
teenth day of August, 1798. Many rambling anecdotes and 
stories carry the life of Lamar from his early boyhood, 
through his school days, and early manhood. Many of these 
stories quoted from the writings of Lamar's friends give 
excellent sidelights on the character of the future president 
of Texas, a young man, modest, blue-eyed, kind, eloquent, 
with "a pleasant vein of satire in his nature . . . but always 
expressed in words and in a manner which plucked away its 
sting." Southern eloquence, not to say bombast, is not lack- 
ing in many of the anecdotes. 

Lamar decided about 1830 to leave Georgia and go to 
Texas and grow up with the country. He had heard strange 
tales from across the Sabine. "He had thought of writing 
a history of Texas ; he decided now to help make Texas his- 
tory," says the writer. The Texas revolution was near at 
hand, and Lamar determined that "in the event of a revo- 
lutionary struggle," he would make her destiny (that of 
Texas) his own for good or ill. 

The writer uses many absorbing pages to describe the 
struggle between Texas and Mexico. All the blood, and 
thunder, and butchery of the Texas Revolution fill the pages 
brim full. It is significant that the Mexicans always butcher 
the Texans while the Texans only slay or kill the Mexicans. 
These are merely evidences of old prejudices which would 
be much better forgiven and forgotten by both peoples con- 
cerned. 

Sam Houston, David G. Burnet, Rusk, the Mexican 
general Santa Anna, and many others stalk very life-like 
through the pages of the book. The reader gets the distinct 
impression that neither Houston nor Lamar is the real hero 
of the story, but rather that that place is reserved for 
Burnet. 

The writer carries the story of Lamar through the hec- 
tic days in Texas, through Nicaragua as an ambassador, to 
the death of Lamar on December 19, 1859. The adopted 
Texan is highly praised for his work for public education. 



BOOK REVIEWS 165 

The style used in the book is quite amateurish at times. 
Many awkward constructions are found. There are entire- 
ly too many sentences beginning with "and" ; while exclam- 
ation marks are used much too freely. A homespun and 
healthy humor adds savor and realism to the biography, as 
on one desperate occasion when Secretary of War Rusk of 
Texas, says that the Texans are "in a hell of a fix." He 
promptly sugested that they all go to the saloon, get a drink, 
and then fight their way out. Such was the spirit of the 
times. 

The work is well illustrated with pictures and maps. 
The rather extensive bibliography should have included 
the work of such men as Bancroft, Binkley, Coan, and 
Twitchell on the Southwest. 

To the person wishing to recapture the spirit of those 
stirring days of the Texas Revolution, the work is certainly 
worth while. As long as the author treats of events which 
transpired in Texas he is on sure ground ; the chapter on the 
New Mexico campaign is the least ably handled. However, 
the book is undoubtedly sound, for the most part, and al- 
ways absorbingly interesting. This cannot be said of all 
books in either History or Biography. 

F. M. KERCHEVILLE. 
University of New Mexico. 

Desert Wife, by Hilda Faunce. With illustrations by 
W. Langdon Kihn. (Boston, Little, Brown, and Company, 
1934. $3.00.) 

Spider Woman, by Gladys A. Reichard; a story of 
Navajo weavers and chanters. (N. Y., The Macmillan Com- 
pany, 1934. $3.50.) 

Among the books that have been written recently about 
the Navaho and his country, are Desert Wife by Hilda 
Faunce, and Spider Woman by Gladys A. Reichard. Both 
authors have lived among the Navahos and have written 
from first hand experience. 



166 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Desert Wife is the true story of a pioneer woman who 
left beautiful Oregon to establish a new home in the desert 
country of Arizona. The author writes of her experiences 
during the four year period of the World War. Because of 
the war, the Indians were required to enlist, and Ken, the 
author's husband, was forced to use common sense and give 
advice to prevent an uprising. If they were called to fight, 
Ken promised to accompany them. During this period, 
influenza and smallpox were prevalent. The author became 
a true friend ; she could give vaccine which made a sore to 
prevent the "sickness with the sores." "The book is not 
only an unforgettable account of a little-known people, but 
an exciting record of courage and endurance under condi- 
tions which will seem to the average reader almost unbear- 
able." 

Unlike Mrs. Faunce, Miss Reichard was not forced to 
live among the Navahos, but chose to do so for her own 
information and study. Miss Reichard is a doctor of phil- 
osophy in Barnard College in New York City, and is the 
author of Social Life of the Navajos. She wanted to learn 
particularly the art of weaving. She was fortunate to be 
with a family who accepted her as one of them. She lived 
in her own hogan near by, and in this way learned of their 
clan and kinship. Her determination to learn to weave 
won the respect and interest of Maria Antonia, who in turn 
was quite patient to teach her. 

"Spider Woman instructed the Navajo women how to 
weave on a loom which Spider Man told them how to make." 
From this old legend, Miss Reichard takes her title for a 
most interesting and informative book. In drawing upon 
her many experiences and knowledge of Navaho life, she 
has presented them as a sincere and an active people. She 
tells of the difficulty of gathering herbs for the dyes and of 
the process in making the dyes ; of the setting up of a loom 
and the art of weaving in the various patterns ; and of the 
ceremonies, such as a wedding, the War Dance, and the 
Shooting Chant. The book is illustrated with many photo- 
graphs. 



BOOK REVIEWS 167 

One cannot finish such a review without mentioning 
another book Traders to the Navajos by Frances Gillmor 
(reviewed in the January 1935 issue of NEW MEXICO HIS- 
TORICAL REVIEW) ; a story of the life of the Wether ills among 
the Navahos. For the reader who wishes information about 
the family life and each individual's part of the day's work, 
Spider Woman will yield most. For the reader who wants 
incidents about the Navaho in general, then either of the 
others will prove more helpful. All three books present 
interesting bits of the Navaho social life and incidents 
which might seem impossible to the average reader. 

A.E.W. 
Santa Fe. 

Pioneer Padre: the life and times of Eusebio Francisco 
Kino. By Rufus Kay Wyllys. (Dallas, The Southwest Press, 
1935; 230 pp., maps, illustrations, bibliog., index. $3.00.) 

Dr. Wyllys has given us a very sympathetic portrayal 
of Father Kino, the pioneer Jesuit missionary to the "upper 
Pima" country. It is evident that the author has made an 
extended and careful study of source materials and the 
results have enriched his pages at many points. His use of 
secondary sources also has been comprehensive, but appar- 
ently the Italian biography by Eugenia Ricci (published at 
Milan in 1930) was not consulted ; nor do we find listed Dean 
Lockwood's last book, Spanish Missions of the Middle South- 
west. Mange's Luz de Tierra Incognita is more available 
as volume X of the Publicaciones del Archivo General de la 
Nacion (Mexico, 1926) than in the old series of Documentos 
(1853-1857). 

Biography always tends to hyperbole. To suggest that 
Father Kino was "the greatest missionary in Spanish North 
America" will strike most readers as extravagant, but if 
we limit our thought to the vast northern frontier and ask 
who were the six outstanding missionaries, Kino would 
certainly be one of the six. As an indefatigable pioneer prob- 
ably he would rank first; judged by permanence and impor- 
tance of his work, he would doubtless yield priority to Fray 
Junipero Serra of California. 



168 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

The reviewer was curious to find how Dr. Wylls had 
treated the controversy between Father Kino and the Mexi- 
can savant Sigiienza y Gongora. In his chapter "A Comet 
and a Controversy" he has handled the matter very skill- 
fully, but at best the young missionary appears as a medie- 
val scholastic who was rather deficient in courtesy. Dr. 
Leonard in his Mercurio Volante gives the other side of the 
picture. 

A question of greater importance is raised by a para- 
graph on page 128. After a fight with the Apaches at the 
rancheria of Santa Cruz in March, 1698, we are given the 
strange spectacle of Father Kino himself taking the official 
tally of scalps to the authorities to ensure the correct pay- 
ment of the bounty due his Pimas. What was Father Kino's 
attitude toward the Apaches? Did he have any missionary 
interest in them? The reader may turn the pages of this 
book from first to last without finding any suggestion that 
the Jesuits of that time tried to evangelize them. Some fifty 
years before, the Franciscans in New Mexico were trying to 
work among the various Apache tribes, and Father Bena- 
vides speaks very plainly in his Memorial of the slaving 
activities of the Spaniards which were defeating the efforts 
of the missionaries. Probably herein is found the answer to 
the question. By the time of Father Kino relations between 
Spaniard and Apache were definitely hostile; the Apaches 
were not thought of as human beings with souls to be saved 
but as enemies to be fought off incessantly. "Scalp bounties" 
were to be a feature of the next two hundred years. 

Father Kino's missionary zeal was centered in Pimeria 
Alta, a region vast in extent and difficult in all conscience. 
Within his chosen field the record of his achievements is a 
most remarkable one and it is a satisfaction to have it in the 
form as here presented. 

Unfortunately the paper and binding are poor ; several 
illustrations are misplaced. The maps and decorations are 
excellent, proof-reading has been good. Peralta did not 
found Santa Fe in 1609 (p. 68).- L. B. B. 



BOOK REVIEWS 169 

Estudios y Documentos para la Historia del Arte 
Colonial, vol. I. (S. A. Casa Jacobo Peuser, Lda., Buenos 
Aires, 1934; large quarto, pp. xv-f!93, 45 plates, indices.) 

With this sumptuous volume the Institute of Historical 
Investigations which was inaugurated some years ago by 
the faculty of philosophy and letters at the University of 
Buenos Aires, Argentina, has begun to publish an important 
series of studies in the field of Hispanic colonial art. After 
an explanatory foreword by the general director of the 
Institute, D. Emilio Ravignani, comes the study of "Vice- 
regal Architecture" by Don Martin S. Noel (pp. 1-110), 
followed by the "Documentary Supplement" by Don Jose 
Torre Revello (pp. 113-180) . 

The range of the study is indicated by the general index. 
Sr. Noel begins with a brief statement regarding docu- 
mentary material related to his subject found in the Archivo 
General de Indias in Sevilla and in his notes gives valuable 
bibliographical information as to previous work in this field 
of research. He then evaluates the documents presented in 
the work of 1829 by Eugenio Llaguno y Amirola: Noticias 
de los arquitectos y arquitectura de Espana desde su res- 
tauracidn ... In two other chapters Sr. Noel discusses 
"Character of the Spanish architecture which influenced 
the viceregal arts" and "Creole reactions and other esthetic 
currents which exercised their influence on Hispanic- 
American architecture." 

Sr. Torre Revello presents his discussion of documen- 
tary material in three parts. "Religious architecture" illus- 
trated by the cathedrals of Panama and Concepci6n (Chile) 
and the church of Our Lady of the Forsaken (Lima) and 
that of Quillota (Chile). Under "Cities and plazas" he dis- 
cusses the cities of Panama and Quito, and the plaza mayor 
of Panama. For "civil architecture" he finds material in 
the various municipal buildings of San Martin de la Concha, 
Arequipa, and Valparaiso. His nineteen plates are taken 
directly from the archive, the twenty-five plates with the 
text of Sr. Noel are beautiful half-tone reproductions. 

L. B. B. 



NOTES AND COMMENTS 

The Diego de Vargas Notes. Dr. Jose Manuel Espinosa, 
now at Washington University, St. Louis, has made a real 
contribution to our knowledge of the Reconquistador. Some 
of his statements, however, seem to contradict facts as they 
are known from other sources. 

He states that Vargas came to America soon after Feb- 
ruary 19, 1665, and while Mancera was viceroy (1665-1673) 
that he was an alcalde mayor in Oaxaca. Under the next 
viceroy (1673-1680) he was a jmticia mayor and an admin- 
istrator of quicksilver. In the Archive in Seville (A.G.I., 
Mexico, 276) is a letter from Cadiz, dated January 1, 1673, 
in which "Don Diego de Vargas Qapata y Lujan" says that 
since his appointment as messenger (cappitan del Pliego del 
avisso que havia de yr a la Nueva Espana) he has been wait- 
ing for his dispatches for six months ready to sail. He has 
not only used up his salary but all his means and asks for 
money from the treasury with which to buy necessaries for 
his journey when the dispatches come. The Council at 
Madrid responded with two hundred pesos and a promise of 
reimbursement. 

Was this the later governor of New Mexico, or a Vargas 
of a collateral branch of the family? If the former, he might 
have reached New Spain in time to become an alcalde mayor 
during 1673. The above letter was signed, so a photostat 
copy should answer the question, as the governor's signa- 
ture is well known. 

Dr. Espinosa might have made fuller use of the will, 
which was published in full by Twitchell, Spanish Archives, 
I, 301-310. It reveals the interesting fact that Vargas' two 
sons were with him in New Mexico and he provided in his 
will for their return to Mexico City. Also there is another 
relative mentioned Don Antonio Maldonado Zapata. As 
for the debt of 4,000 pesos to the royal treasury, the will 
shows that this was merely two years' salary in advance 

170 



NOTES AND COMMENTS 171 

bit unusual, to meet unusual conditions. But it had 
always been customary to pay a new governor one year in 
advance; Vargas was under bond (as also was usual) to 
refund any unearned balance; he had served ten months 
of the twenty-four represented by the advance, and as he 
lay dying he made ample provision to cover the refund. 

The will shows further that Vargas did not die in 
open battle in a siege of Bernalillo, but rather of a fatal 
sickness ; nor was the church there burned, for he ordered a 
mass to be said "while the corpse is present in the church of 
this town of Bernalillo" before it should be borne to Santa 
Fe for burial. Vargas was able on April 7, 1704, to sign 
the long document with his witnesses ; but later on the same 
day a codicil was added which he was unable to sign ; and he 
passed away on the day following April 8. The date is 
established by a later document. (Spanish Archives, I, ar- 
chive 823.) 

Dr. Espinosa thinks it strange that in this will Vargas 
does not mention his family and property connections in old 
Spain, overlooking the fact that Vargas explicitly states : "I 
leave in full force and effect the testament made by me on 
the first of June of last year, 1703, in the City of Mexico . . ." 
In other words, the will made in Bernalillo was merely sup- 
plementary to another will made only ten months before. If 
Dr. Espinosa can find the latter, he will doubtless have mate- 
rial for additional notes of interest upon one of New Mex- 
ico's most famous governors. L. B. B. 

Governor Pile and the Archives. The Santa Fe New Mexi- 
can of March 4, 1886, carried the following item : 

When one Pile was governor of New Mexico along in 
the early sixties and Ira M. Bond, now the astute editor of 
the Albuquerque News was the Territorial Secretary, 1 a 
man named Eluterio Barela who resides at Cienegita, near 
Agua Fria, used to deliver wood at the gubernatorial palace. 
Pile as is well known dumped into the streets several cart- 



1. Ira M. Bond was Territorial librarian, not secretary, in 1869-1871 while Wil- 
liam A. Pile was governor. 



172 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

loads of ancient documents pertaining to the early history of 
New Mexico, and Barela, having more sense than the pig- 
headed Pile or his secretary at once realized the importance 
of getting hold of the archives. He dumped off his load of 
wood and Pile gave him permission to haul off two wagon 
loads of the old papers. Barela did this and a few years ago, 
when such a rumpus was kicked up about Pile's unpardon- 
able vandalism, he brought back and returned to the Libra- 
rian the bulk of them, but retained a share. Today he 
brought in and turned over to Judge Ellison 2 the remainder, 
numbering in all some 200 pages which he had saved from 
the wreck inaugurated by Pile. P. A. F. W. 

The Military Escort of 1834. Readers who are interested in 
the history of the Santa Fe Trail have perhaps read the 
paper on "Military Escorts" which we published eight years 
ago. (Vol. II, 175-193, 269-304) Recently Mr. Fred S. 
Perrine who contributed that paper wrote from Oregon City 
that he had come across further mention of the escort of 
1834 in Niles' Weekly Register of September 20, 1834. As 
will be seen, it is a passage from a letter which Captain 
Wharton wrote at about the time when he was preparing his 
longer official report: 

A captain of dragoons thus writes to his friend in Phil- 
adelphia, under date Fort Gibson, Aug. 4: 

I have very recently returned to this place after a very 
long, fatiguing and perilous march with my company to and 
from the boundary line between this country and the repub- 
lic of Mexico. It was not the trip I contemplated when I last 
wrote you, but one on which I was very unexpectedly sent 
with my company only the duty consisted in escorting the 
caravan of traders from the frontiers of Missouri to the 
extreme boundary of our country, on their journey to Santa 
Fe, in Mexico. I have not time to state all our privations, 
fatigues, &c. in detail I will therefore simply say, that we 
met the two dreaded enemies of the traders, the Camanches 
and the Pawnee Mahaws. With the first we were on the eve 
of a fight, both parties having formed the line, and the word 
of command "charge," being on my very tongue's end, when 
the Indians fired their guns in the air, some dismounted 

2. Samuel Ellison was the Territorial librarian from 1880 to 1889. 



NOTES AND COMMENTS 173 

from their horses, and others threw their bows and arrows 
on the ground, while they begged for peace, and assured us 
of their friendship. This was while we were with the 
traders, who had about 100 wagons of merchandise along. 
After we had parted with the caravan, and were returning, 
we met the Pawnees. We had prepared for battle, but the 
Indians ran up and offered their hands we had a council, 
and smoked the pipe of peace with them. Subsequently we 
met the Kansas and Little Ossages, whom we knew to be 
friendly, for we had with us one of the latter tribe as a 
guide. In their company we marched several days, our 
encampments at night not being more than 400 yards apart. 
We were absent 68 days, our last flour having been issued 
the day before we got here; our sugar had given out long 
before. Our horses on reaching here were quite broken 
down. The rest of our regiment is absent in a different 
direction, on very hard service. So you will perceive that 
we "bold dragoons" have not an easy time of it. 

Possible Origin of "Luminarios." It is an old Spanish cus- 
tom in New Mexico to decorate houses with luminarios on 
Christmas Eve and on the eve of Saints' days. 

Luminarios are made by partly filling grocers' paper 
bags with sand, and inserting a candle in the sand. The 
luminarios are placed on the tops of walls around the flat 
roofs and, when lighted at night, produce a very pleasing 
effect. Many citizens of Albuquerque, not of Spanish ex- 
traction, have adopted the custom of displaying luminarios 
on Christmas Eve. Members of the faculty and residents in 
fraternity houses are acquiring the habit of using this type 
of decoration on the eve of Homecoming day. 

That the roots of this custom lie buried in antiquity is 
strongly suspected. W. Warde Fowler in his Social Life at 
Rome (Macmillan, 1910) pp. 267-268, says: "We must look 
upon the lighting of streets as quite an exceptional event 
[in ancient Rome]. This happened, for example, on the 
night of the famous fifth of December, 63 B.C., when Cicero 
returned to his house after the execution of the conspira- 
tors: people placed lamps and torches at their doors, and 
women showed lights from the roofs of the houses/' 



174 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Information of this practice through the intervening 
centuries should be assembled. LYNN B. MITCHELL. 

Paid A. F. Walter. As the forms for this issue are 
closed, it is a pleasure to report that our colleague has 
escaped from the surgeons at Johns Hopkins and is back 
safe and sound at his. home in Santa Fe. Now if he will 
stay away from his bank for a month or more, and refrain 
from heavy drinking, an inordinate use of tobacco, and the 
excitement of such games as poker, chuza, and monte, a 
rapid convalescence may be expected. 

Speaking seriously, a three-hour operation with the 
necessity of a blood-transfusion would seem to suggest the 
wisdom of being moderate in the demands upon one's 
strength until it has been fully re-established. Mr. Walter's 
many friends in this country and abroad will hope that he 
show the proper discretion, and that he may be spared for 
many years yet of the valued service which he has so long 
given. L. B. B. 






. 



ww wire tntimnf .wiwini M* imwv w wwiro tAiim mi miAn* m* vy 



NEW MEXICO 
HISTORICAL REVIEW 



VOL, X 



JULY, 1935 



No. 3 




PALACE OF THE GOVERNORS 



PUBLISHED QUARTERLY BY 

THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF NEW MEXICO 

AND 

THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO 



M A* MM fUt A/I fUlfUl fUMM A* fUMl* A* A* *j| AA A* AA AA AAIAA AJ9 M 



NEW MEXICO 
HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Editor Managing Editor 

LANSING B. BLOOM PAUL A. F, WALTER 

Associates 

PERCY M. BALDWIN E. DANA JOHNSON 

FRANK T. CHEETHAM THEODOSIUS MEYER, 0. F. M. 

VOL. X JULY, 1935 No. 3 

CONTENTS 

Page 

The Spanish Military Chapels in Santa Fe and the 

Reredos of our Lady of Light. A. von Wuthenau 175 

The First Decade of the Inquisition in New Mexico 

France V. Scholes 195 

A Trade-Invoice of 1638 . L. B. Bloom 242 



Subscription to the quarterly is $3.00 a year in advance; single 
numbers (except Vol. I, 1, 2, and II, 2) may be had at $1.00 each. 
Volumes I-II can be supplied at $6.00 each; Vols. III-IX at $4.00 
each. 

Address business communications to Mr. P. A. F. Walter, State 
Museum, Santa Fe, N. M.; manuscripts and editorial correspondence 
should be addressed to Mr. Bloom at the State University, Albu- 
querque, New Mexico. 



Entered as second-class matter at Santa Fe, New Mexico 
UNIVERSITY PRESS, ALBUQUKRQUB, N. M. 



The Historical Society of New Mexico 

(INCORPORATED) 
Organized December 26, 1859 



PAST PRESIDENTS 
1859 COL. JOHN B. GRAYSON, U. S. A. 
1861 MAJ. JAMES L. DONALDSON, U. S. A. 
1863 HON. KIRBY BENEDICT 

adjourned sine die, Sept. 23, 1863 



re-established Dec. 27, 1880 

1881 HON. WILLIAM G. RITCH 
1883 HON. L. BRADFORD PRINCE 
1923 HON. FRANK W. CLANCY 

1925 COL. RALPH E. TWITCHELL 

1926 PAUL A. F. WALTER 



OFFICERS FOR 1934-1935 

PAUL A. F. WALTER, President 

FRANCIS T. CHEETHAM, V ice-President 

COL. Joss D. SENA, Vice-President 

LANSING B. BLOOM, Cor. Sec'y-Treas. 

Miss HESTER JONES, Recording Sec'y 

FELLOWS 

PERCY M. BALDWIN EDGAR L. HEWETT 

RALPH P. BIEBER FREDERICK W. HODGE 

WILLIAM C. BINKLEY ALFRED V. KDDDER 

LANSING B. BLOOM J. LLOYD MECHAM 

HERBERT E. BOLTON THEODOSIUS MEYER, 0. F. M. 

AURELIO M. ESPINOSA FRANCE V. SCHOLES 

CHARLES W. HACKETT ALFRED B. THOMAS 

GEORGE P. HAMMOND PAUL A. F. WALTER 



CONSTITUTION 

OF THE 

HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF NEW MEXICO 
(As amended Nov. 19, 1929) 

Article 1. Name. This Society shall be called the Historical Society 
of New Mexico. 

Article 2. Objects and Operation. The objects of the Society shall be, 
in general, the promotion of historical studies; and in particular, the 
discovery, collection, preservation, and publication of historical ma- 
terial, especially such as relates to New Mexico. 

Article 3. Membership. The Society shall consist of Members, Fel- 
lows, Life Members and Honorary Life Members. 

(a) Members. Persons recommended by the Executive Council 
and elected by the Society may become members. 

(b) Fellows. Members who show, by published work, special 
aptitude for historical investigation may become Fellows. Immedi- 
ately following the adoption of this Constitution, the Executive 
Council shall elect five Fellows, and the body thus created may there- 
after elect additional Fellows on the nomination of the Executive 
Council. The number of Fellows shall never exceed twenty-five. 

(c) Life Members. In addition to life members of the Historical 
Society of New Mexico at the date of the adoption hereof, such other 
benefactors of the Society as shall pay into its treasury at one time 
the sum of fifty dollars, or shall present to the Society an equivalent 
in books, manuscripts, portraits, or other acceptable material of an 
historic nature, may upon recommendation by the Executive Council 
and election by the Society, be classed as Life Members. 

(d) Honorary Life Members. Persons who have rendered emi- 
nent service to New Mexico and others who have, by published work, 
contributed to the historical literature of New Mexico or the South- 
west, may become Honorary Life Members upon being recommended 
by the Executive Council and elected by the Society. 

Article 4. Officers. The elective officers of the Society shall be a 
president, two vice-presidents, a corresponding secretary and treas- 
urer, and a recording secretary; and these five officers shall constitute 
the Executive Council with full administrative powers. 

Officers shall qualify on January 1st following their election, and 
shall hold office for the term of two years and until their successors 
shall have been elected and qualified. 



Article 5. Elections. At the October meeting of each odd-numbered 
year, a nominating committee shall be named by the president of the 
Society and such committee shall make its report to the Society at 
the November meeting. Nominations may be made from the floor 
and the Society shall, in open meeting, proceed to elect its officers by 
ballot, those nominees receiving a majority of the votes cast for the 
respective offices to be declared elected. 

Article 6. Dues. Dues shall be $3.00 for each calendar year, and 
shall entitle members to receive bulletins as published and also the 
Historical Review. 

Article 7. Publications. All publications of the Society and the selec- 
tion and editing of matter for publication shall be under the direction 
and control of the Executive Council. 

Article 8. Meetings. Monthly meetings of the Society shall be held at 
the rooms of the Society on the third Tuesday of each month at 
eight P. M. The Executive Council shall meet at any time upon call 
of the President or of three of its members. 

Article 9. Quorums. Seven members of the Society and three mem- 
bers of the Executive Council, shall constitute quorums. 

Article 10. Amendments. Amendments to this constitution shall be- 
come operative after being recommended by the Executive Council 
and approved by two-thirds of the members present and voting at 
any regular monthly meeting; provided, that notice of the proposed 
amendment shall have been given at a regular meeting of the Society, 
at least four weeks prior to the meeting when such proposed amend 
ment is passed upon by the Society. 



Students and friends of Southwestern History are cordially in- 
vited to become members. Applications should be addressed to the 
corresponding secretary, Mr. Lansing B. Bloom, Santa Fe, N. Mex 



f 




Photo by T. Harmon Parkhurst 
CARVED STONE REREDOS AT SANTA FE AS IT Is TODAY 



NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL 
REVIEW 

VOL. X JULY, 1935 No. 3 



THE SPANISH MILITARY CHAPELS IN SANTA F 
AND THE REREDOS OF OUR LADY OF LIGHT L 

By A. VON WUTHENAU 

NOBODY who is not intimately acquainted with the history 
and teachings of the Catholic Church will be able to 
understand the full significance and the entire inner struc- 
ture of Spanish Colonial history in America. So insepar- 
ably were the powers of the Crown of Spain and the power 
of the Catholic Church tied together, so strongly did one 
influence the other, that even the most casual student will 
soon notice how difficult it is to explain truthfully the hap- 
penings of that fascinatingly interesting time of Spanish 
domination on the American Continent, without continu- 
ously taking into consideration this dualism and close rela- 
tionship of ecclesiastical and secular power. 

One of the most striking features of this development 
were the many military or frontier chapels erected by the 
Spaniards all over the Colonial Empire. Even where only 
a handful of Spanish soldiers or soldier-settlers were sta- 
tioned, they had to have not only a priest but if possible also 
a chapel for their own spiritual needs. To go and hear holy 
mass on Sundays and to comply with other requirements of 
a Catholic life, was as natural to these rough frontiersmen 
and fighters for the King of Spain as it might be now for an 



1. The notes for this paper are principally from research work done recently 
in the Archives of Santa Fe, and the Manuscript Departments of the Huntington 
Library in Pasadena and of the Bancroft and Boiton Libraries in Berkeley (Univer- 
sity of California.) 

175 



176 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

American to go to a drugstore or to a movie or do something 
likewise familiar to him. 

Santa Fe was, of course, no exception. The most out- 
standing military chapel ever erected there was the one on 
the south side of the plaza, made famous by its big stone 
carved reredos of Our Lady of Light, which was donated by 
Governor Francisco Antonio Marin del Valle in 1761. How- 
ever, long before Governor del Valle arrived it was an old 
tradition in Santa Fe to have a military chapel, and if 
Twitchell is correct in his quotation * also to dedicate this 
place of worship to "Our Lady of Light." The first church 
ever to be used in Santa Fe was probably a military chapel 
connected with, or rather placed in, the southeast tower of 
the Palace. It is very unlikely that the hermita of San 
Miguel a provisionary structure for the Tlaxcalan In- 
dians in the barrio de Analco was built before the Span- 
iards themselves had a place of worship. Of course, the 
tower-chapel in the Palace was much too small to serve both 
soldiers and Indians, a fact which must have led to the 
building of San Miguel. When Fray Benavides arrived 
later (1625), the number of settlers had so multiplied that 
neither of the two chapels was sufficient to meet the increas- 
ing demands and so he set out to build his parroquia, at that 
time the third place of worship in Santa Fe. 

The tower-chapel, however, interests us most not only 
because it originated the tradition of a military chapel dedi- 
cated to Our Lady of Light, but also because it was the only 
one which was not destroyed during the Indian rebellion of 
1680. In the report of Otermin it is expressly mentioned 
that the Indians did not succeed in burning down the heavy 
door of the "hermita de Nuestra Senora de la Luz" in the 



2. R. E. Twitchell, Old Santa Fe (1925), page 54. The veneration of "Our Lady 
of Light," (see ill., page 182) was introduced into Mexico only in 1732 (shrine in 
Cathedral of Leon, State of Guanajuato). The title of "Our Lady of Light," given 
to the blessed Virgin, was however much older. It was used already by St. Thomas 
of Canterbury and also by St. Francis Xavier, who apparently enrolled himself and his 
companions in a confraternity of Our Lady of Light before setting out for the Indies 
(1540). See William J. Walsh, The apparition* and shrines of Heaven's bright 
Queen, (New York 1904) Vol. Ill, page 239 ff. 



SPANISH MILITARY CHAPELS IN SANTA Ffi 177 

tower of the Palace. Otermin later evacuated the Palace, 
unmolested, leaving 1 the entire structure intact for the thir- 
teen years of occupation by the rebellious Indians. When 
the Spaniards came back 8 they clearly recognized the Palace 
building, on top of and around which, the Indians had 
erected their pueblo, in spite of the many alterations carried 
out by the rebels which notably included a big wall around 
the whole pueblo. One of the most interesting Indian "adap- 
tations," however, was the simple procedure by which they 
had turned the round tower-chapel into a kiva. The big 
entrance door (which they had not managed to burn down) 
was walled up, the interior cleared of everything which had 
been in it, a hole made in the roof, a ladder put down that 
hole, and ready was the kiva. 

No wonder that under this perfect disguise the former 
chapel not only escaped the sharp eyes of de Vargas who 
had, of course, never seen the pre-rebellion Santa Fe, but 
also escaped recognition by the few old timers whom he had 
with him, on his second entrance into Santa Fe on Decem- 
ber 16th, 1693. De Vargas, camping outside of the town 4 
in order to find out what the Indians really had in their 
minds, was immediately concerned about having at least a 
provisionary chapel prepared for the winter. This led to 
the well known inspection trip of de Vargas of Dec. 18th and 
to his order for roofing the San Miguel Chapel, an order 
which the Indians refused to carry out owing to the severely 
cold weather and snowfall in the mountains which made 
difficult the cutting and hauling down of timber. There is 
no reason to see in this refusal already a sign of rebellion 



3. All the following items are based on the de Vargas Journal 1693/4. I wish to 
acknowledge gratefully the help given me by Prof. H. E. Bolton in Berkeley, Cal., in 
letting me use his privately owned complete transcript of the Journal (Nuevo Mexico 
Restauracion Quaderno 3, Mexico City). The pages subsequently quoted de V. J. Tr. 
are the pages of that transcript. 

4. Probably somewhere in the direction of what are now the Garita hills to the 
north. It is unlikely that the site of the 1693 camp was exactly the same as in 1692, 
since it took de Vargas such a long time to find "a more protected place" in the "out- 
lets and slopes" near the villa. De Vargas speaks constantly of descending (bajar) 
to the city which he could have done only from a northerly direction. See de V. J. 
Tr., pages 120, 127, 130, 235, and Twitchell, Old Santa Fe, page 124. 



178 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

on the part of the Indians, because it really was very cold 
during that December in Santa Fe. Only two days later the 
Indians themselves, through their chief by the name of 
Joseph, 5 proposed to de Vargas to open the walled up door 
of the former tower chapel, which had become part of their 
estufa. De Vargas describes in detail 6 how he went down 
through the roof of the kiva to find out the possibility of 
turning it into a chapel (of course without knowing that it 
had already been one) , how he decided to follow the sugges- 
tion of the Indians, and how he gave orders to have the 
changes executed. 

The subsequent story of the de Vargas journal 
describing the opening of the kiva door is so interesting and 
colorful and gives such a good insight into the character and 
wit of de Vargas and his relationship with the padres that 
I would rather let de Vargas speak for himself : 7 

They opened the door on that day [Dec. 20th], white- 
washed the interior and built the foundation for the altar. 
Then I also made them open a door from the inside of the 
estufa into an adjoining house to give a sacristy and living 
quarters to the Missionary priest, and although they argued 
against it I persuaded them, so that they also opened that 
particular door in the back. They white-washed two nice 
rooms and built a fireplace in one of them. After having 
seen it, the padre thought it very good, but I thought it even 
better (le parecio bien y a mi mejor), because I recognized 
that if the treachery that we expected on the part of the In- 
dians should become true, I could easily have made an open- 
ing so that my soldiers could enter the said fortress of the 
Indians. Then I sent word to the Very Rev. Father Custo- 
dio that the estufa was all prepared for a chapel. But when 
the appointed Father Guardian came down to inspect it he 
said that one could not celebrate mass in the estufa because 
it had served as a place for their idolatry and diabolical 
meetings and dances and finally that this was a prohibited 
place for reasons of his own ; to which I replied that I did 
not want to have any controversy with him and that I could 

5. de V. J. Tr., page 127. 

6. de V. J. Tr., page 128. 

7. de V. J. Tr., page 237. 



SPANISH MILITARY CHAPELS IN SANTA FE 179 

have another place arranged as I had done before 8 . . . but 
that there was only one thing I had to say to him and that 
was the fact that the principal cathedrals of Spain had been 
previously mosques of the Moors. This reasoning was so 
convincing that I had my proposition accepted and had the 
estufa rearranged and made ready. Nevertheless there 
was yet another one of the Fathers who objected, saying 
that to make churches out of the mosques the Moors had 
first been driven out of them. To this I replied that there 
was a great difference, because the Indians who lived next 
to the chapel were Christians and as such they had been ab- 
solved by the Church for their apostasy and had attended 
holy mass and the sermon and had had their children bap- 
tized in 1692 during my first happy conquest. So I ceased 
the conversation and as I said before, I did not further dis- 
cuss nor insist on arguing about the subject because there 
was no reason to waste time nor embarrass the father, as 
I was only interested in preparing the defense and war of 
resistance, which I was expecting according to the rumors. 

It is well known how only a few days later the fight 
with the Indians began and how the whole pueblo fortress 
was stormed by the Spaniards. Less well known seems to 
be the fact that the two recently opened doors of the estufa 
actually did play an important part in the storming of the 
pueblo, 9 and that the very same kiva-chapel about which the 
delightful dispute with the fathers arose, was afterwards 
incorporated into the de Vargas church. 10 De Vargas was 
wise enough to keep the fortress-like character into which 
the Indians had turned the old Santa Fe. Behind high walls 
all the Spaniards and the newly built church were safe for 
the next years. 



8 Here de Vargas refers to a. "castiUa que abian dado a un Vezino aUdndose un 
tiro de mosquete de dha Villa." This was the torredn house which de Vargas had 
refused to occupy, although it had been prepared for him, preferring to turn the 
torreon into a. provisionally chapel and to share the fate with the rest of his 
companions in the cold, open camp. See de V. J. Tr., page 235, and Twitchell, Old 
Santa Fe, page 124. 

9. Original de Vargas Journal, page 119, Ritch Collection No. 25, Huntington 
Library, Pasadena. 

10. The church is mentioned in the de Vargas grant to Capt. Juan Luis Lujan 
(father of Pedro Lujan) from March 17th, 1695, who held land north of the palace. 
Santa Fe Arch., 1,758 ; see also Twitchell, Old Santa Fe. page 93, note 207. 



180 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Unfortunately Governor Cubero, after having put de 
Vargas into jail, destroyed all the Indian additions, probably 
under the pretext of having the Palace and city of Santa Fe 
brought back to its pre-rebellion appearance. Luckily, the 
de Vargas church, in which the bones of Father Juan de 
Jesus, a martyr from Jemez, were buried so solemnly in 
1694 ll and which later in 1704 became the resting place for 
the body of de Vargas himself, escaped the reforming fury 
of Cubero. Until San Miguel (1709-10)" and the Parroquia 
(1711-1714) were rebuilt, it was probably used as the par- 
ish church. 38 In 1715 it was already called "the old church of 
St. Francis" and it must have been destroyed shortly after 
that, as not being in conformity with the famous city regu- 
lations of 1715 when the plaza and all the streets leading to 
it were restored to their original state. In 1732 "oldtimers" 
had to be called in to testify as to the location of the church. 
At that time its foundations were still discernible." Probably 
in a few years nothing more was visible and one of the most 
interesting and glamorous places in the history of New 
Mexico had disappeared. Now motor-cars are rolling over 



11. "Accomodaron dhos huessos y calavera en una caja de zedro con su llave pon- 
iendoles en una funda de Damasco mandarin de dos colores carmesi y amarillo y asi 
mesmo en otra de bretana nueba con una colonia negra y quedaron en el quarto donde 
yo duermo que insinue al dho Rdo P. Vize Custodio se pasarian el siquente dia [Aug. 
11, 1694] a trasladarlos a la Capilla y parroquia de esta dha Villa . ." ... "y pas- 
aron a trasladar y enterrar los huessos y calavera puesta en la dha caxa cerada y cla- 
Tada a la capttla qua sirve de Farroquia deste presidio. Lo qual hizieron a el lado de el 
evangelio en el altar mayor asistiendo yo dho Gov. y Cap. n Gen. con el concurso de 
Soldados y vezinos que se hallavan en esta dha Villa . . ." (Italics ours.) "habido 
selebradolas exequias funerales y misa de cuerpo presente con la solemnidad toda que 
Bse puso en este pais . . ." de V. J. Tr., Vol. 1694-6, pages 277, 313. 

12. The architect was Flores de Vergera. See "Testimonio del gasto de Capilla 
del Glorioso.San Miguel echo por Flores de Vergera y los demas que en el se con- 
tiene" from October 1709, Ritch collection No. 48, Huntington Library, Pasadena. At 
that time Agustin Flores was mayordomo "de la hermandad del Glorioso Archangel 
San Miguel en el Barrio [de Analco]." 

13. Santa Fe Archives, I, No. 8. 

The name would indicate that it was perhaps used for some time by the members 
of the third order of St. Francis. It is generally believed that the penitente movement 
originated from that church. If they or any one else ever removed the body of 
de Vargas is uncertain. At least I do not know of any document which would 
indicate that the body was transferred from its first burial place to the Parroquia. 

14. The church protruded 7 varas into the plaza (See Santa Fe Arch,, I, No. 8) 
and up to 3% varas towards the next house to the place of Juan Lucero de Godoy 
(which formerly belonged to Diego de Arias). Santo Fe Arch., I, 758. 



SPANISH MILITARY CHAPELS IN SANTA FE 181 

this very spot, the occupants having not the faintest idea 
that they are driving over the burying places of the great 
re-conqueror of New Mexico, de Vargas, and of a Catholic 
martyr priest. 

But life went on in Santa Fe. The garrison still existed 
and the soldiers had to have their place of worship. It is 
quite possible and even likely that Governor Valverde y Cos- 
sio had already built the next military chapel between 1717 
and 1719, this time on the south side of the plaza just oppo- 
site the Palace. At least Twitchell seems to have thought 
so. 18 Thus the tradition of the soldier chapel was probably 
continued until the builder of the largest military church in 
Santa Fe, Governor Marin del Valle, arrived in 1754. All 
this happened in spite of the fact that from the second quar- 
ter of the 18th century on, more and more trouble was 
brewing between the governors and the clergy in New 
Mexico. 

The close relationship between the Catholic Church and 
the secular power, which was on the one side the secret for 
the extraordinary successes of the Spaniards in America, 
was bound to become on the other side, especially if falling 
into the hands of inadequate people, the source of endless 
friction and detrimental consequences. Constantly hundreds 
of little and also many big problems had to be settled be- 
tween the two powers, which called for an intelligent and 
benevolent handling on both sides. And both sides were 
certainly not always intelligent and benevolent. In the re- 
moteness and isolation of New Mexico as in many other 
sections of the Colonial Empire, in which neither governor 
nor priest could be controlled very effectively by a higher 
authority, human relations got more and more important 
and usually more intense. In one case there might be a 
foolish and tyrannical governor (and many documentary 
evidences for such cases exist) and a highly understanding 



15. Twitchell, Old Santa Ft, page 50, 154. 

Concurring F. W. Hodge, reprint of Fray Benavides' Memorial, note 30. Unfor- 
tunately I am not yet able to find any documentary proof for the statement that 
Gov. Valverde built the castrense at his private cost. 



182 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

and most intelligent clergyman ; in another case a well edu- 
cated and far-seeing governor might have to deal with a 
simple and primitive padre, who, perhaps in spite of his 
religious zeal, was quite ignorant with regard to the political 
necessities of the secular power. Yet in these and other 
cases the respective representatives were most likely to 
insist firmly on their own point of view, which as soon as 
it came to a show-down they would try to convey in long 
and imploring letters to their respective higher authorities, 
in Mexico or Spain. 

In the midst of this especially quarrelsome time between 
the governors of New Mexico and the Franciscan friars, who 
since the first conquest controlled all the churches in that 
province, Don Francisco Antonio Marin del Valle was sent 
out to Santa Fe to rule New Mexico for the crown of Spain. 
It is only natural that the newly appointed governor should 
have tried to get as much information as possible about the 
conditions in this remote section of the country before he 
started out on his long trip to Santa Fe to take over his 
office on the 1st of August 1754. His chief sources of knowl- 
edge were without doubt the accounts of former governors 
or officials from Santa Fe or their reports in the chancery of 
the viceroy in Mexico City. The picture thus gained was 
very likely to be one-sided and preconceived as far as the 
fight with the padres was concerned. The Franciscans on 
the other hand had done everything they could for the last 
twenty years to accuse the governors in the most violent 
terms. In many letters and reports to the Father Provin- 
cials in Mexico City they complained over and over again 
about the inefficient management, bad conduct, and many 
other evils of their worldly rulers. The Father Provincials 
slowly had gathered a great deal of material against the gov- 
ernors of New Mexico which they intended to use eventually 
before the viceroy. 16 The governors knew of this activity of 



16. "Noticias lamentables acaecidas en la Nueva Mexico, y atrasos que cada 
dia se experimental*, asi en lo espiritual como en lo temporal. Escritos por el Rev. 
Padre Juan Sans de Lezaun 1760" ; and "Informe del Padre Rdo Provincial Fr. Pedro 
Serrano al Exmo Sr Virrey Marquis de Cruillas sobre la custodia de el Nuevo Mexico 




Courtesy Liturgical Arts Society 



OUR LADY OF LIGHT 
Stone Panel, Formerly Part of Reredos 




Courtesy W. B. Stephens, Mexico City 

NUESTRA SENOKA DE LA Luz 

Frontispiece (actual size) of the Cofradia Constitution, 
published in Mexico City, 1766 



CONSTITUCIONES ! 

DE LA CONGREGACIOK 

DE NUESTRA SESORA 

DELA 

LUZ, 

%figid*eii la VilkdeSaattFee Capital 

defi Proviscia de la JNaeva Mexico, 

yaprobada del limp. Se&or D, Pedro 

Tamaron Obi fpo de Durango . 

I A ftis expenlas las da a 1 publico 

F RANG IS CO A NTO N I O 

Marin del Va!!e ? Govemtdor,Capitaa 

general que fiie de dichaProvincia^Her- 

maao mayor de fu Congreiacioa. 

DEDICANSEf ' J 

A la tnifm Empemtriz Soberana. gw 

'JWE^AS^EN u& 

coa las liceocits neoaC&rias, pot D* m& 
5 4^2^igs,y Ontiveros, ea la x * 
calle de It PtTsat% ano d? 



Courtesy W. B. Stephens, Mexico City 

TITLE-PAGE OF THE COFRADIA CONSTITUTION, DRAFTED IN 
SANTA FE, 1760 



SPANISH MILITARY CHAPELS IN SANTA FE 183 

the friars, which only the more infuriated them and finally 
led to the issuing of regulations by Governor Cachupin 
allowing no one to report directly to Mexico without his 
knowledge. 17 It is easy to understand that under such cir- 
cumstances Governor del Valle was not very favorably 
impressed with the conditions he was about to find in New 
Mexico and, since he probably had no affiliations with the 
Franciscan college in Mexico (where he could have heard the 
other side of the conflict) , he was incensed against the Fran- 
ciscans even before he put his foot on New Mexico soil. To 
make matters worse, he apparently had been careless enough 
already in Mexico City to utter derogatory remarks about 
the clergy of his province, thus destroying from the very 
outset any feeling of confidence on the part of the friars 
with whom it was his official duty to co-operate harmoni- 
ously. After Marin del Valle' s arrival in Santa Fe it took, 
however, two years before he could find a case against one 
of the friars (in Galisteo) which gave him the opportunity 
to file a complaint with the viceroy (1756) . M 

Yet those turbulent times, loaded with personal con- 
flicts between priests and governor, 19 produced and this is 
not only ironical but significant in the sense of my former 
remarks about Spain and the Catholic Church the most 
extraordinary piece of ecclesiastical art that has been pre- 
served within the boundaries of the United States from 
Spanish Colonial times. The big carved stone reredos 



17. The regulations were issued in 1750 and were upheld by his successors, Gov. 
Marin del Valle and acting Gov. Mendoza. Boyce Tr., pagre 117. 

18. See (Bolton Guide 1913) Provincias Intemas Vol. 102, second part, Bancroft 
Library transcript, page 91. 

19. How violent these clashes sometimes had been in those days is vividly illus- 
trated by the Report of Fr. Andres Varo from 1751. He apparently had mentioned 
in a sermon at El Paso, in the presence of the Governor (Cachupin) that "the King 
of Spain was the right arm of the Pope," whereupon the Governor and Captain Gen- 
eral jumped up in the middle of the sermon and yelled at him "You lie, you lie, Father, 
first comes the King of Spain and then the Pope !" Boyce Tr., page 108. 



ano de 1761." Manuscripts Bancroft Library, Berkeley, Cal. The following translations 
are based on Boyce, Marjorie Gray, "Franciscan complaints against the Gov. Officials 
of New Mexico, 1760-1790." M.A. Thesis (1924) University of California. The pages 
subsequently quoted are from the Boyce Translation. 



184 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

erected in 1761 in the military chapel of Santa Fe, capti- 
vating in its quiet and serene beauty and fascinating 
through its intricate but harmonious blending of Spanish 
and Indian motives of decoration, carries the name of pre- 
cisely the same Francisco Marin del Valle who, as governor 
of New Mexico from 1754 to 1761, seems to have been 
always in trouble with his ecclesiastical counterplayers. 

Unfortunately very little is known about the life of 
del Valle. Except for some samples of his neat and culti- 
vated signature and a few rather short but precise reports, 
which show perhaps a slightly bureaucratic inclination, 
hardly anything is left to explain the mind of one Francisco 
Antonio Marin del Valle who seems to have been just another 
titleholder on that long list of "Gobernadores y Capitanes 
Generates" of New Mexico of the 18th century. In contrast 
to this lack of historical evidence stands the fact that he and 
his wife, Dona Maria Martinez de Ugarte, gave the immense 
stone carved altarpiece to Santa Fe, which, as far as artistic 
and historical value is concerned, outshines every other relic 
that has come to us from those times. 

How the stone retablo happened to be erected in Santa 
Fe was for long a great puzzle. Fortunately there are two 
documents of the 18th century which actually mention the 
Castrense and the reredos. One is the report or journal of 
Bishop Pedro Tamar6n of Durango, 20 who visited Santa Fe 
in 1760, to the King of Spain ; the other one is a recently 
found copy of the constitution of a religious society founded 
by Governor Marin del Valle in Santa Fe under the aus- 
pices of the above mentioned bishop. 21 

The visit of Bishop Tamaron, as the visit of any bishop 
in those early days, was an event of tremendous importance 
in the life of Santa Fe, especially with regard to the church 



20. Informe del obispo Pedro Tamaron, Durango 1765 Manuscript, Bancroft 
Library, Berkeley, Cal. The manuscript is a very good 19th century copy. It was 
sold to Bancroft out of the Ramirez collection in London in 1881. 

21. Mr. W. B. Stephens of Mexico City discovered this little book and very kindly 
sent a complete photostat copy to Henry R. Wagner of San Marino, Calif. Mr. Wag- 
ner presented it to the Historical Society of N. Mex. The title-page and frontispiece 
arc reproduced herewith. 



SPANISH MILITARY CHAPELS IN SANTA Ffi 185 

organizations. Since the incident of 1730 (when Bishop 
Crespo had been refused entrance to several Franciscan 
Missions, on the ground that they had to obey only their 
Provincial in Mexico) the bishops of Durango were prob- 
ably not inclined to look with much favor on the representa- 
tives of the Seraphic Order in New Mexico. Yet the visit of 
Bishop Elizacochea in 1737 seems to have been quite har- 
monious and Bishop Tamar6n as far as we can judge from 
his report was certainly not prejudiced against the Fran- 
ciscan Friars when he came to New Mexico. On the other 
hand one can easily recognize that he liked the activities of 
Governor Marin del Valle, and was obviously impressed by 
the honorf ul and markedly courteous and cordial reception 
given him by del Valle. 

The first to come and greet the bishop in Albuquerque 
was, however, not the governor (how delicate !) but the Rev. 
Vicar Santiago de Roybal, the only secular priest and the 
juez ecclesidstico of the province, stationed in Santa Fe and 
probably a good friend of del Valle. In Sandia a detachment 
of twenty soldiers and a captain met the bishop to act as his 
escort. In Santo Domingo the governor himself appeared, 
welcomed the bishop, put his own carriage at the disposal of 
the prelate, and left again on horseback for Santa Fe. The 
night before entering the capital, Tamaron spent at Los 
Alamos where, on the special command of the governor, a 
good supper had been prepared for him. The next day, and 
these are the words of Tamaron himself, 22 

"a short distance from Santa Fe the Governor, with an in- 
numerable and distinguished following, came out to greet 
me, descended from his horse and entered with me into my 
carriage. This reception was a markedly choice one. We 
proceeded between vast crowds of people towards the city 
and the entrance into Santa Fe was carried out with the 
same solemnity which the Roman Ceremonial prescribes for 
Cathedrals. After this function the Governor established 
me in his own Palace, moved himself to another house and 
also provided me with meals during my entire stay, all of 

22. Pedro Tamaron, Informe, page 138. 



186 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

which I accepted. Exactly the same thing had happened in 
El Paso where I had to accept a similar offer of the Captain. 
They both had made these arrangements, as I heard, in 
accordance with the custom practiced between their prede- 
cessors and my predecessors, also with regard to letting me 
have all the mules and horses that I needed on my trip." 

Governor del Valle seems to have been very fond of 
impressive ceremonies. Only a year before (1759) he had 
arranged and this was a nice move on his part towards the 
padres for the transfer of the bodies of two Franciscan 
friars of the 17th century to Santa Fe and their solemn 
burial in the apse of the Parroquia. 23 Now he had even 
bigger plans to celebrate the presence of Bishop Tamaron, 
by the building of a large new church and the founding of a 
religious society of Our Lady of Light in Santa Fe. The 
constitutions of this society which, as already said, were 
recently found in Mexico City, and which are an excellent 
example of the strange mixture of State power and religious 
ideas, throw added light on the procedure which took place 
during those days in Santa Fe. After a dedication to Our 
Blessed Virgin, the constitutions stipulate in fifteen chap- 
ters and forty-seven paragraphs, the aims of the congrega- 
tion, its members, officers, institutions, assemblies, fiestas, 
etc. 24 An especially elaborate system had been worked out 



23. It is a strange coincidence that these graves are now located with the del 
Valle reredos in the same backroom behind the present cathedral of Santa Fe. 

24. See Illus. page 190. 

"Constitutions of the congregation of Our Lady of Light erected in the villa 
of Santa F6, capital of the province of New Mexico, and approved by the Most Illus- 
trious Senor D. Pedro Tamar6n, Bishop of Durango. At his expense, published by 
D. Francisco Antonio Marin del Valle, former Governor and Captain General of the 
said Province, President of his congregation. Devoting themselves to the same 
Sovereign Empress. Printed in Mexico with the necessary licenses by D. Phelipe de 
Zuniga, y Ontiveros, in the street de la Palma, 1766." The general outline of the 
constitution is as follows: 

Part 1. Dedication to the Blessed Virgin. 
Part 2. The Constitution, addressed to the bishop: 
Chapter I. General rules of congregation. 
Chapter II. The defunct members of the congregation. 
Chapter III. The assembly places. 
Chapter IV. The order of procedure during assemblies, and the seating, to be 

observed. 

Chapter V. The duties and pre-eminences of the president (Hermano Mayor). 
Chapter VI. The duties and pre-eminences of the councilors. 
Chapter VII. The secretary of the Congregation. 



SPANISH MILITARY CHAPELS IN SANTA FE 187 

for the election of its officers under the strictest considera- 
tion of the, even in Santa Fe, severe Spanish etiquette. 

On June 3rd the constitutiones were approved by the 
bishop and on June 5th the first junta or assembly of the 
congregation was convoked during which Governor Marin 
del Valle was elected Hermano Mayor or, as we should now 
say, first president of the society. The result of the election 
was received with applause by the assembly and graciously 
welcomed by the bishop because as is noted expressly by 
the constitutions 

"it is well known how zealously and fervently the said Gov- 
ernor was serving 1 Our most blessed Lady of Light by foster- 
ing the building of her Church and planning the construction 
of the big reredos of white stone as the main altar, in which 
he would place the picture of Our most blessed Lady of 
Light." 25 

In his journal the bishop also refers to the Castrense 
Church with the following words : 

"A very fine church was being built in the Plaza, dedi- 
cated to Our Lady of Light. It measures thirty varas in 

25. "por tener conocido el gran zelo y fervor con que dicho Senor Governador 
esta sirviendo a la madre Santissima de la Luz, promoviendo la fabrica de su Iglesia, y 
disponiendo la construccion de un gran Colateral de piedra bianco, para el altar 
mayor, y colocar en el la Imagen de la, Madre Santissima de la Luz. . ." Constituciones, 
part 4. (Italics ours.) 

Chapter VIII. The bookkeeper. 

Chapter IX. The Treasurer. 

Chapter X. The Fiesta of the Congregation, and its deputy ; on May 21st, if 

possible with oct.ava. 
Chapter XI. The deputy of the sick. 
Chapter XII. The deputy of the blessed souls. 
Chapter XIII. The deputies of the assemblies. 
Chapter XIV. The servant of the congregation. 
Chapter XV. Final petition to Bishop Tamaron, with names of those 

subscribing. 

Part 3 The approval by Tamaron, June 3rd, 1760. 
Part 4. First Junta, June 5th, 1760. 

Election of del Valle as Hermano Mayor and other officers 
Minutes signed : 

Pedro Obispo de Durango. 

Francisco Antonio Marin del Valle. 

Br. Santiago Roybal. 

Juan Joseph Moreno. 

Phelipe Tafoya. 

Juan Francisco de Arroniz. 

Bartholome Fernandez de la. Pedrera. 



188 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

length and nine in width and has a transept. Eight leagues 
from here they had discovered a vein of very white stone, 
from which they were fetching the necessary [material] 
for a reredos, to be placed behind the main altar, which was 
almost completely carved. After they had completed the 
altar as well as the church it was solemnly dedicated and I 
was informed that all the decorations were now completed. 
The chief promoter of this church was the same Governor 
Francisco Marin del Valle who also founded a religious soci- 
ety while I was in Santa Fe. I assisted at the first assembly 
of the society and personally approved its constitutions."" 

After these two statements it is safe to say that, if not 
all, at least a great part of the reredos was actually made of 
native stone of New Mexico and that the panel of Our Lady 
of Light, now also kept in the back room behind the Cathed- 
ral, was originally in the center of the retablo. We know 
now that the Castrense was at least a very substantially re- 
built church if not an entirely new structure, it was already 
well under way in May 1760, and probably was finished a 



26. "En la Plaza se fabricaba una muy buena Iglesia, dedicada a la Madre Senora 
de la Luz que tiene treinta varas de largo, y neuve de ancho con su Cruzero, se habia 
descubierto ocho leguas de alii una Beta de piedra mui blanca, de donde so condujo la 
necessaria para un retablo, llenase la testera del altar mayor, que estaba ya casi 
labrado, el qual despues se concluyo, y la Iglesia tambien, se celebro la dedicacion, y Be 
me aviso estan todo bien adornado, el principal fomento de esta Iglesia fue el mismo 
Gobernador D. Francisco Marin del Valle Quien dispuso juntamente la fundacion de 
ana cofradia cual se instituyo estando yo alii, asisti a la primera junta, y todo lo 
aprobe". Pedro Tamar6n, Informe, page 184. 

Bernardo de Miera y Pacheco. 

Juan Phelipe de Rivera. 

Francisco Guerrero. Miguel de Aliri. 

Manuel Bernardo Garvizu. Thoribio Hortiz. 

Before me: 

Juan Buptista de Ugarte, 
Not[ario] Gl. (General) y de Visita. 

Part 5. Notification, June 6th, 1760, of two officials who could not be present at 
the first junta. Signed: Carlos Fernandez, Lucas May a; Before me: Ber- 
nardo de Miera y Pacheco, sec'y of the Congregation. 

Part 6. Diligencia, June 7th, 1760, by the Hermano Mayor, directing that the 
above records be copied in a book with the names of the members, and that 
a record of attendance be kept. 
Part 7. Licencia del ordinario (Mexico City, June 7th, 1766), 

"el Sr. Dr. D. Joseph Becerra Moreno, Abogado de esta Real Audiencia, y de 
pressos del Santo Officio de la Inquisicion, Canon igo" etc., for the printing 
of this book of constitutions. 



SPANISH MILITARY CHAPELS IN SANTA FE 189 

year later. The dedication most likely took place in May 
1761 about the time when del Valle introduced his successor, 
Gov. Manuel de Portillo y Urrisola (May 13th 1761) . 

The style of the retablo has always been, and still re- 
mains, difficult to explain. Parts of it, especially the struc- 
ture of the framework, would be attributed, if found in 
Europe, to the 16th century ; if found in Mexico, to the 17th 
century ; but in Santa Fe apparently it was made as late as 
the 18th century although in the spirit of former times. 
Judged from the point of view of art it has a great deal of 
resemblance to some of the work of the Zacatecas school 
of stone carving, 27 and, seen in this light, the letters of two 
Franciscan friars which were incorporated into a report of 
the Father Provincial Pedro Serrano to the viceroy in 1761, 
deserve to be mentioned. 

On January 15th, 1760, Father Sans de Lezaun writes :* 

"The hatred with which he [the Governor Marin del Valle] 
has persecuted the poor Missionaries of this, my province, 
has been such that they from the wtstodia have not only 
experienced nothing but troubles, injuries and slights, but 
also he [del Valle] said in clear terms to the fathers Lezaun 
and Abadiano in Chihuahua that he had already determined 
to hand over the missions del Norte to the province of 
Zacatecas and place for their prelate the Father Fr. Miguel 
Gonzales, native of said province, and to choose for it the 
necessary religious and that afterwards he would give them 
directions. Because for this and yet for much more, he had 
as Vice-Patron the necessary powers." 

Further on the provincial, Father Serrano, cites a letter 
of Father Abadiano of May 2nd, 1760, in which he writes of 

"the great anxieties in which he found himself ; surrounded 
by dangers and without food, he had come down to Chihua- 
hua in order to return to said Mission, even to give in it his 
life. The Governor obstructed his designs in Chihuahua, 
urging the Father Custodio of Zacatecas for Religious for 
the missions del Norte; remaining firm in his opinion that 
none of the religious of this Province of the Holy Gospel 
should return; these iniquitous projects and slights, Sr. 

27. Notably to the north portal of the Cathedral of Zacatecas. 

28. Boyce Tr., pages 120-122. 



190 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Excellency, were, since this Governor had negotiated or 
tempted (tratado o tentado) the minds of the Jesuit fathers 
by various colloquies, in order to introduce said Jesuit 
fathers into our Missions" ; 

and later on he cites another letter of Fray Abadiano in 
which the Franciscan is warning that 

"the Governor, thinking to introduce said Jesuit fathers 
into our Missions, ordered the Father Benitq Renaldini, 
Visitador of the Missions of the Sacred Company, to be 
called, who was staying in the Mission of Coyachie. Having 
prepared this Project, the Father answered that this could 
not be considered as the Franciscan Fathers were in posses- 
sion and had failed in nothing, as they were very well 
informed." 

These letters show not only that Marin del Valle had 
been in Chihuahua and possibly in Zacatecas early in 1760 
but that he had frightened the poor Franciscans beyond 
reason by his proposal to introduce Jesuits into New Mexico. 
That del Valle was strongly in favor of the Jesuits per- 
haps even educated by them is rather obvious. The fact 
that St. Ignatius is one of the Saints on the reredos ; that the 
veneration of Our Lady of Light was originally introduced 
into Mexico by Jesuit fathers; and finally that the name of 
his wife was Maria Ignacia, all point in the same direction. 

It is easy to understand on the other hand why the 
Franciscans, whose order had been founded by St. Francis 
against "the arrogance of wealth and against the arrogance 
of academic learning," did not like the development of a big 
new secular church in Santa Fe. They really bore the main 
brunt of labor for the pacification and Christianization in 
the whole province, and nobody seemed to show very much 
understanding or appreciation of the extremely difficult task 
they had to cope with. Even the bishops were perhaps not 
always understanding enough. It was a very different thing, 
for instance, to decree theoretically that every padre had to 
learn as soon as possible the many different languages of the 
Indians and to execute that decree practically under the 
most adverse circumstances. Bishop Tamaron, who cer- 
tainly was not just a prince of the church in silk robes but a 







Photo by the late Chas. F. Lummis 
(Ayer edition, Benavides' Memorial) 



THE REREDOS IN THE OLD CATHEDRAL, WITHOUT LOWER 
CENTRAL PANEL 



SPANISH MILITARY CHAPELS IN SANTA Ffi 191 

very practical far-seeing man, knew this very well, and his 
criticism of the padres in this respect is a moderate one. 
He had the most enormous diocese to rule including many 
Jesuit Missions in Sonora and Arizona and it is astonish- 
ing to see the remarkable energy with which he succeeded 
in visiting personally even the remotest places of his district 
(for instance, Truchas and Trampas, on his way to Picuris) . 
When he came to Santa Fe he had to act, no doubt, as paci- 
fier between the governor and the padres. Was it, perhaps, 
due to his influence that the image of Our Lady of Light was 
placed between St. Ignatius and one of the outstanding 
American saints of the Seraphic Order, St. Francis Solano? 

Be that as it may, shortly after his visit the New Mili- 
tary Chapel of Our Lady of Light was standing, and it 
played an important part in the life of the Capital, at least 
as long as a Royal Spanish garrison was stationed in Santa 
Fe. 

The subsequent story of this church is a sad one. It is 
the story of the decline and breaking up of the Mexican 
colonial Empire, the decadence of Spanish power in Amer- 
ica. The church saw its last big days in the time of the 
Mexican Republic. During the first governorship of Manuel 
Armijo (1827-1829), he went regularly with the whole gar- 
rison force of Santa Fe in full uniform to attend services 
there. In 1832 however the building was already in very 
bad repair and the following fourteen years of neglect, 
caused by the political turmoil of those days, did the rest of 
the damage, letting the chapel fall into the miserable state in 
which Lieut. J. W. Abert of the U. S. Engineer corps found 
it in 1847. Abert belonged to that small group of an ex- 
tremely cultivated avant garde of the American Army which 
did such excellent work in preserving for posterity a genuine 
picture of the territory they had just conquered. He writes 
with regard to the Castrense :* 



29. Report of Lieut. J. W. Abert to Col. J. J. Abert, Chief of the corps of topo- 
graphical engineers in Emery, Abert, Cook, Notes of a Military Reconnaissance from 
Fort Leavenworth to San Diego in California, 30th Congress 1st Session Ex. Doc. 
No. 41. 



192 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

"This morning [October 6th, 1846] I visited the Capilla 
de los Soldados or Military Chapel. I was told that this 
Chapel was in use some fourteen years ago and was the rich- 
est church in New Mexico. It was dedicated to Nuestra 
Senora de la Luz (Our Lady of Light) ; in the Facade above 
the door, there is a large rectangular slab of free stone elab- 
orately carved. It represents Our Lady of Light in the 
act of rescuing a human being from the jaws of Satan, 
whilst angels are crowning her; the whole is executed in 
basso relievo. 30 One here finds human bones and skulls scat- 
tered about the church ; these belonged to wealthy individ- 
uals who could afford to purchase the privilege of being de- 
posited beneath the floor of the building in which so many 
orisons would be offered to Heaven, hoping that these 
prayers would procure absolution for their sins. But a few 
years ago the roof of the church fell in; no more prayers 
have since been offered there, and the wealthy have not even 
found a quiet resting place. October 7th. Again I visited 
the ruins of the Military chapel in the plaza, in order to 
make a sketch of a large tablet that stands back of the altar. 
This is a beautiful piece of art, and represents the principal 
Mexican Saints. Above all is Santa Maria, then St. Jago 
riding over the turbaned heads of his enemies ; on the right 
is St. Juan de Pomesan, the background ornamented with 
an aqueduct ; under him is St. Francis Xavier, baptizing the 
Indians; and in the background conical huts, such as are 
built by the rudest tribes. On the left is San Jose, and below 
him St. Francis de Santa Fe, standing on two globes. At 
the bottom of the tablet are two elliptical spaces, containing 
the following inscription : 

[here a drawing of inscription is shown] 
which we deciphered as follows: A devotion de Senor Dn 
Fco Anton Marin del Voile, gobemador y capitan general de 
este reino. Y de su esposa Dna Maria Ignacia Martinez de 
Ugarte Ano Christiano 1761. The church was doubtless 
erected many years previous." 

30. At what time the stone slab of Our Lady of Light was taken out of the 
reredos and the wooden figure of San Juan Capistrano (now in the lower center of 
the reredos, see ill. frontispiece) was put in its place is not known. The whole frame 
of the center niche in which the wooden statue is now placed, is obviously not in its 
original place. 

After 1859 the stone panel of Our Lady of Light was used for some time above 
one of the doors of the Loretto Convent, until it joined the fate of the reredos and 
was put away in the back room of the Cathedral. 



SPANISH MILITARY CHAPELS IN SANTA Ffi 193 

Except for a few mistakes in the iconography of the 
Saints, 31 and for a wrong interpretation of the feelings of the 
dead, who, if they had been real Catholics, certainly did 
not expect to get absolved from their sins by the prayers 
offered in the church, Abert's description of the Castrense 
and the reredos is a very good and valuable one. 

From 1846 on, the Stars and Stripes were flying over 
Santa Fe. The domination of Spanish culture and custom, 
and with it the fate of the old Spanish Military Chapel, 
seemed doomed. When in 1851 Chief Justice Grafton Baker 
ordered the Castrense to be turned into a courtroom, little 
hope was left for the future of the once glorious old build- 
ing. However, once more Spanish pride was to flare up and 
with the gallant help of a U. S. Army officer remain 
victorious. Donaciano Vigil, one of the most interesting and 
manly figures of the last Spanish or Mexican days in Santa 
Fe, had courage and sense enough to protest against turn- 
ing the place, where several members of his own family had 
been buried, into a profane building. Some careless and 
provocative remarks of Grafton Baker had incensed the 
Spanish population to such an extent that it came to a riot. 3 * 
On the advice of Col. Sumner, then commanding officer of 
the U. S. Army, Baker finally gave in and turned the chapel 
over to the new head of the Catholic Church in New Mexico, 
who, following the decision of the Pope, had come into his 
new diocese under the protection of the American govern- 
ment. 

Bishop Lamy repaired the Castrense as well as he could 
and himself used it for nearly eight years. Then, however, 
the difficult upkeep of the church and the pressing need of 
bringing a modern educational institution to Santa Fe made 
the bishop sacrifice the old building of the Castrense. In 
1859 before the property was exchanged to Simon Delgado 
for the site of the future St. Michael's college, Lamy had the 
reredos carefully removed to the Parroquia. There it was 

31. Confounding St. Francis Xavier with St. Francis Solano, and St. Ignatius 
with a "St Francis de Santa Fe" who does not exist. 

32. Twitchell, Leading Facts of N. M. History, II, p. 330, note 257. 



194 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

put up at the back wall of the apse behind the main altar, 
and was in continuous use for over twenty years in the prin- 
cipal church of the city. 

But once the construction of the modern Cathedral got 
sufficiently advanced, this important remnant of the last 
Spanish Military chapel was separated first by a canvas and 
then, probably in 1894 (six years after Lamy's death) , by a 
wall from the rest of the church. Unfortunately, the Graf- 
ton Bakers had definitely triumphed over the Donaciano 
Vigils! 88 

The time of Spanish soldiers in Santa Fe is gone ; New 
Mexico has joined the Union of the U. S. of America. Yet 
Spanish language, Spanish custom, and Spanish culture, 
are still alive in New Mexico and there is no logical reason 
why they should be disregarded and wiped out forever. Oi: 
the contrary an old tradition like that of the Spaniard 
should be more than welcome to a new country. And ye r 
there is the old reredos of Santa Fe, one of the most charm- 
ing and significant relics of Spanish cultural achievements 
still definitely hidden away in a back room behind the pres 
ent Cathedral of Santa Fe, and beside it is a badly neglected 
stone panel representing Our Lady of Light. The Virgil 
is still graciously smiling and willing to save souls from tb 
mouth of the Dragon, and she is waiting for the day whei 
understanding and appreciative hands will give her back t< 
a congregation who once said their prayers in front of her 
and who will build her a shrine and offer her the place o 
honor she deserves. 



33. Apparently it was the wish of Archbishop Lamy to use the reredos in the 
New Cathedral. Rev. James H. Defour, S.J., who was a close friend of Lamy and 
published at the prelate's special order a Historical Sketch of the Catholic Church in 
N. M. (San Francisco, 1887), speaks of the reredos as a "rare monument and 
worthy of the utmost care." And later on he states, "Behind the altar of the old 
Cathedral are two treasures [meaning the reredos and the graves of the two friars 
transferred to the Parroquia by Governor Marin del Valle in 1759] that ought to be 
recorded here, and will be kept most sacredly in the new." 



THE FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 
IN NEW MEXICO 

By FRANCE V. SCHOLES 

A. ESTABLISHING THE JURISDICTION OF THE INQUISITION 
IN NEW MEXICO 

DURING the first quarter of the seventeenth century an 
evil tradition of rivalry and controversy between 
Church and State was created which troubled the history of 
New Mexico during the entire period of Spanish domination. 
In the seventeenth century this rivalry was the warp on 
which was woven the political history of the province. Dur- 
ing the years 1639-1641 it nearly resulted in civil war. From 
1659 to 1664 it caused such factional bitterness that the 
colony never fully recovered, and the events of these years 
were a factor in the general decline of the province prior to 
the Pueblo Revolt of 1680. During the eighteenth century 
there were frequent controversies between the civil and 
ecclesiastical jurisdictions, but the results were not so dis- 
astrous as those of the preceding century. 

The beginnings of embittered relations between the 
clergy and the civil authorities may be traced to the deser- 
tion of the colony by many of the soldiers and friars 
in 1601. A considerable number of the colonists had 
been sadly disappointed by the failure to discover easily 
exploitable wealth in New Mexico, and had been discon- 
tented from the beginning. Onate's arbitrary actions had 
fanned these flames of discontent. In 1601, when Ofiate 
was absent from San Gabriel, the malcontents decided to 
desert. Although there appears to be no evidence that the 
Franciscan missionaries were leaders in this movement 
prior to 1601, yet when the plans to desert were openly dis- 
cussed most of the friars were in agreement with the dis- 
contented soldiers. In sermons and in private conversations 

[195] 



196 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

they urged the necessity of returning to New Spain, and 
even the Father Commissary, Friar Juan de Escalona, was 
in sympathy with them. Like the soldiers they condemned 
Onate's conduct of the colony, and most of them left with 
the deserting soldiers. Although this incident cannot be 
considered a true Church-State controversy, yet the friars 
by word and deed assumed the role that they were always to 
play: the role of defenders of the Indians against abuse 
and oppression and of active critics of arbitrary govern- 
ment. 1 

The first violent breach of relations between Church 
and State occurred during the administration of Governor 
Pedro de Peralta (1610-1614). Friar Isidro Ordonez, who 
was prelate in charge of the missions, engaged in a long 
quarrel with Peralta, a quarrel characterized by incidents 
which scandalized the struggling colony and split it into two 
factions. In 1613 Ordonez falsely alleged authority from 
the Inquisition and procured the arrest and imprisonment of 
the governor. After several months Peralta was finally 
released when his successor, Admiral Bernardino de 
Ceballos, arrived in the spring of 1614 2 . At first Ceballos 
maintained a friendly co-operation with the clergy, but 
within a year difficulties arose which apparently continued 
to disturb the relations of the two jurisdictions, civil and 
ecclesiastical, during the remainder of his term of office. In 
1617 he aroused the wrath of the friars by refusing to aid 
in the execution of an ecclesiastical sentence, and it appears 
that the friars punished him by declaring him excommuni- 
cate and forcing him to do public penance. 8 

1. For the details, see G. P. Hammond, Don Juan de Onate and the Founding of 
New Mexico (Santa Fe, 1927), passim. 

2. The most important source for the Peralta incident is: Relacion Verdadera 
q el p predicador fro. Pran co Perez guerta de la orden de S 1 Fran co guardian del 
conuento de galisteo higo al R mo Comiss Gen 1 de la dha orden de la nueba esp* de las 
cosas succedidas en el nuebo Mex co por los encuentros que tubieron don Pedro de Per- 
alta g: or de la dha prou* y fr. ysidro ordonez Comiss de los frailes de la dha orden de 
gt F F CO q residen en ella. Archive General y Publico, Mexico (to be cited hereafter as 
A. G. M.), Inquisicion, Tomo 316. 

8. This incident is described in Diferentes Autos de molestias Hechos a los vez 00 
de la nu mex co Por los Religiosos y la soberania Conque Vsen Juri on . A. G. M. 
Provincias Internas, Tomo 34, Exp. 1. 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 197 

These events created a definite hostility between the 
two jurisdictions, civil and ecclesiastical, and the feeling of 
bitterness was carried over into the administration of 
Ceballos' successor, Juan de Eulate (1618-1625). Eulate 
was an arrogant, outspoken person, self confident, and in- 
spired by a lofty opinion of his position as the king's repre- 
sentative, so that it is not surprising that he rapidly became 
involved in differences with the Church. The friars 
denounced him on numerous charges: (1) that he denied 
that the Father Custodian possessed any jurisdiction over 
laymen; (2) that he professed a willingness to arrest and 
judge clergy, even execute them; (3) that he expressed 
contempt for ecclesiastical censures; (4) that he was guilty 
of heretical statements concerning the Trinity and priestly 
celibacy ; (5) that he refused to co-operate in the missionary 
program; (6) that he subjected the Indians to abuse and 
exploitation; (7) that he was guilty of personal immorality. 
The leader of the Church in this new controversy between 
the two jurisdictions was the able Friar Esteban de Perea, 
founder of the Sandia mission and since 1617 the custodian 
of the entire province. 4 

Both factions sent circumstantial reports to the viceroy 
concerning the state of affairs in New Mexico, and after due 



4. The sources for the Eulate controversy are: 

(a) Declarations, letters, and decrees, 1621-1625, concerning: the differences be- 
tween Gov. Juan de Eulate and the New Mexican friars. A. G. M., Inquisicion, Tomo 
856, ff. 257-317. These papers consist of more than thirty sworn declarations made 
by friars and laymen of the province. Some of them were made in 1621 after Perea 
had publicly denounced certain heresies and errors current in New Mexico. The 
others were made in 1626 after Friar Alonso de Benavides, the first commissary of the 
Inquisition, had arrived. The 1621 declarations were made mostly by friars and are 
the most important of the entire series. Those made in 1626 were mostly by laymen 
or were ratifications of testimony given by the friars in 1621. In most cases the 
lay declarations merely confirm certain points in the friar declarations. This set of 
papers will be cited as Declarations, letters, and decrees. 

(b) Letters of Friar Esteban de Perea and other friars of New Mexico, 1622. 
A. G. M., Inquisicion, Tomo 486, if. 45-51. These documents consist in part of letters 
and petitions written by Perea to his successor, Friar Miguel de Chavarria, or to the 
Holy Office, and in part of a sort of "round robin" request for the appointment of an 
agent, or commissary, of the Inquisition for New Mexico. To be cited as Letters of 
Perea. 



198 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

consideration the viceroy in 1621 despatched two orders, one 
to Perea and one to Eulate, in which he attempted to define 
the respective authority of the Church and the State in New 
Mexico and establish peace between them. 5 But these instruc- 
tions failed to create the harmony which the viceroy had 
hoped for, and in 1622 Perea, who was thoroughly convinced 
that drastic measures were necessary, made an appeal to the 
tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition in Mexico City. 8 

This appeal had the desired effect. Friar Alonso de 
Benavides, who had had long experience in affairs of the 
Holy Office, was appointed local commissary or agent of the 
Inquisition in New Mexico. About the same time Benavides 
was also elected custodian of the New Mexico missions, so 
that it is reasonable to assume that his double election was 
due to co-operation between the Franciscan Order and the 
Holy Office. After considerable delay Benavides finally set 
out for New Mexico in the spring of 1625, accompanied by 
a band of new friar recruits and by a new governor, Felipe 
de Sotelo Osorio. The caravan reached New Mexico in 
December, 1625, and on January 24, 1626, Benavides was 
formally received in Santa Fe as prelate and commissary of 
the Holy Office. On the following day, January 25, the first 
edict of the faith was read in the Santa Fe church in the 
presence of the new governor and the assembled citizens.' 

Perea's moment had arrived. The appointment of a 
commissary of the Inquisition for New Mexico had been 
due, in considerable measure, to his long struggle against 
heresy and error. For years he had waited for this triumph- 
ant moment, and it was fitting that he should have been the 
first person to make formal declarations before Father Ben- 
avides. On January 26, the day following the reading of the 



5. The order sent to Perea has been published in English translation by L. B. 
Bloom in NEW MBX. HIST. REV., (1930), 288-298. The order to Eulate has also been 
published by Bloom in NEW MBX. HIST. REV., Ill (1928), 357-380. 

6. Letters of Perea. 

7. The documents on the reading of the edict of the faith are in Declarations, 
letters, and decrees, A. G. M., Inquisicidn, Tomo 356, ff. 291, 292. 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 199 

edict, he made a long statement in which he reviewed the 
history of the past few years. He also presented a decree 
against heresy which he had published on August 18, 1621, 
and the sworn statements of friars made at that time, which 
he had held in safe keeping ever since. 8 

During the succeeding six months Benavides busily 
gathered evidence. More than thirty persons, friars and 
laymen, made declarations, some of them coming freely to 
offer information, others being summoned. In these declar- 
ations the old charges against Eulate were revived and sup- 
ported by a greater weight of evidence. At the same time 
denunciations of certain private individuals, citizens and 
wives of citizens of Santa Fe, were also made. The most in- 
teresting of these dealt with the current practice of super- 
stition and the use of love potions and philters. (See section 
E). Just at the end of the summer denunciations were 
made concerning certain statements of the new governor, 
Sotelo Osorio, which were potentially serious, but did not 
result in any difficulties. (See section B) . 

Early in September the caravan was ready to return to 
New Spain. Letters from Benavides transmitting all of the 
sworn declarations were sent to the Holy Office. Eulate, the 
retiring governor, and Father Perea, who was going to re- 
port in person to his superior prelates in Mexico City con- 
cerning the New Mexico situation, were members of the 
party. Perea was triumphant, and he probably looked for- 
ward with certainty to the arrest and trial of Eulate by the 
Inquisition on the arrival of the caravan in Mexico City. 
Eulate had lost none of his old fire and petulance, and one of 
his last acts within the jurisdiction of New Mexico was to 
affirm an old boast that the king was his chieftain and that 
he would serve him even against the pope. 9 



8. Declaration of Friar Esteban de Perea, January 26, 1626. Declarations, let- 
ters, and decrees. 

9. Even up to the point of leaving New Mexico Perea and Eulate kept up the 
quarrel. At Alamillo, while waiting for the caravan to form, a group of friars and 
citizens, including Eulate and Perea, got into a discussion of the authority of the 



200 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

There is no record that Eulate was tried by the Inquisi- 
tion. But he did not escape all punishment, for soon after 
his arrival in Mexico City he was arrested and tried by the 
civil authorities on the charge of having used sixteen of the 
king's wagons to bring cargo from New Mexico free of 
freight and of having brought Indians to be sold as slaves. 
The trial record has not been found, but it appears that 
Eulate was fined and ordered to pay the expenses of sending 
the Indians back to New Mexico in the first mission 
caravan. 10 

Meantime Perea was telling his story to his superior 
prelates and to the Holy Office. It must have been a convinc- 
ing story, for at the next election of a custodian, on Septem- 
ber 25, 1627, he was re-elected to succeed Benavides, whose 
term was expiring." The Holy Office would probably have 
appointed him its agent, but first it had to have the formal 
proof of his genealogy and limpieza de sangre. Perea was a 
native of Spain, so the Suprema was requested to furnish 
the necessary information. The reports were not received 
prior to Perea's departure for New Mexico in September, 
1628, so that his appointment under the Inquisition was de- 
layed until 1630. In 1629 the old warrior was back in New 
Mexico urging onward the expansion of the missions. His 
triumph was complete. 



10. On May 5 Juan de Vertis posted bond for Eulate who had been arrested and 
confined to his house. On June 2 Vertis and a certain Ladron de Peralta gave bond 
to guarantee fulfillment of sentence, the details of which were not stated, and the 
return of the Indians to New Mexico. A. G. M., Reales Cedulas y 6rdenes, Duplicados. 
Tomo 8, ft. 84, 36. 

11. Custodies de Nuevo Mexico. Biblioteca Nacional, Mexico, Legajo Series, 
Leg. 9, doc. 8. 

custodian to punish a governor for cause. Perea defended such authority, saying, 
"spiritualis homo judicabat omnia." Eulate immediately denied such complete author- 
ity in the prelate, and the two of them launched forth into a lively exchange of 
argument in which Eulate stated that he would do whatever the king ordered, even 
if ordered to do what Bourbon had done. (Eulate was referring to the sack of Rome 
by the troops of the Duke of Bourbon in 1527.) In reply to these remarks Perea 
said: "It appears, Your Lordship, that these words are heretical propositions." Bena- 
vides to the Holy Office. Senecu, Sept. 8, 1626, and enclosure. Declarations, letters, 
and decrees. 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 201 

B. GOVERNOR SOTELO OSORIO AND HIS COMMUNITY 

The establishment of the authority of the Inquisition in 
New Mexico in 1626 was the direct result of the long and 
bitter quarrel between Eulate and Perea. It was expected 
that the Inquisition would become a powerful weapon in the 
hands of the Church in dealing with hostile civil authorities, 
and Benavides did use his authority as the local representa- 
tive to build up the case against Eulate in the spring and 
summer of 1626. But during the succeeding years there 
were only two or three instances in which the Inquisition 
was used as a means of investigating or denouncing the con- 
duct of civil officers, and none of these were of any conse- 
quence. Most of the existing documentary records of the 
investigations carried on by Benavides and Perea during the 
years 1626-1634 are valuable, not in relation to the major 
issue between the civil and ecclesiastical jurisdictions, but 
for the evidence they contain concerning social conditions 
in New Mexico during those years. The life of the non- 
aboriginal community is laid bare in some of its most sordid 
aspects. This essay will deal, therefore, mostly with the 
character of provincial life and society as revealed in the 
investigations of Benavides and Perea as agents of the Holy 
Office. 

During the period prior to the return of Perea as cus- 
todian in 1629, Benavides used his authority as local repre- 
sentative of the Inquisition sparing^. It was not because he 
had no personal interest in the problems of heresy and error, 
for his earlier career in Espanola and New Spain disproves 
that, but he was so busy with the details of mission business 
that he had little time left for anything else. During the 
summer of 1626 certain persons gave evidence concerning 
the local practices of superstition, but he made no effort to 
investigate them, and it was left to Perea to do so years 
later. The existing evidence indicates that Benavides ex- 
amined only ten witnesses between the autumn of 1626 and 
the spring of 1629, and that seven of these probably made 
their declarations of their own free will. Although most 



202 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

of these declarations deal with the conduct of Governor 
Sotelo Osorio and indicate that some of his statements and 
actions were hostile to the Church, they are also interesting 
for the information they contain concerning certain inci- 
dents of Santa Fe life in those early days. 

The evidence in the Inquisition papers portrays Gover- 
nor Sotelo Osorio as a braggart who had little sense of 
humor and an exaggerated opinion of his own importance. 
These qualities quickly made him unpopular with many of 
the soldier-citizens of Santa Fe, rough and ready frontiers- 
men, who were quick to resent any attitude of superiority 
on the part of others. The ten witnesses who testified before 
Benavides in 1627 and 1628 were, with one exception, sol- 
diers of the villa, members of those leading families that 
were already beginning to achieve some local importance 
and to monopolize the few honors. and local offices that the 
government of the province and the villa afforded. Some of 
the incidents which they related seem now to have come out 
of comic opera, but they show how trivial matters roused 
the passions of these rough men, proud and sensitive of 
their privileges. Minor incidents took on major importance, 
and rumor traveled speedily from house to house. They 
indicate also how the events of the preceding years and the 
establishment of the authority of the Holy Office in New 
Mexico had made them over-suspicious and ready to sus- 
pect word or deed that seemed to hint of error and heresy. 
A resume of the evidence follows. 15 

1. On a certain winter evening late in 1627 the gover- 
nor and some of the soldier-citizens of Santa Fe were gam- 
bling at the home of Alferez Diego de Montoya. During the 
course of the play the governor took exception to certain 



12. The evidence here summarized is found mostly in Declarations concerning 
the conduct of Gov. Felipe de Sotelo Osorio, 1627-1628. A. G. M., Inquisition, Tomo 
363, Exp. 1. This set of papers contains the sworn declarations of eight witnesses 
who testified before Benavides at that time. (The other two witnesses of the ten 
who testified during these years, prior to the return of Perea, gave testimony con- 
cerning matters of an entirely different nature and will be considered later.) Notes 
are used only in case the statements in the text are based on materials other than 
these papers listed here. 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 203 

acts or words of Captain Alonso Baca. Word followed word. 
The governor finally warned Baca not to get too churlish, 
and boasted that he was accustomed to fighting. Had he not 
quarreled with all the bravest men of Spain? More than 
that, he was ready to "contend" with the saints if opportu- 
nity offered, with St. George, St. Dionisius, St. Leo, St. 
Damian, even with St. Peter and St. Paul ! Finally, with an 
oath, he jumped to his feet, drew his sword half out of its 
scabbard, kicked over the candles and gambling table, and 
stalked out of the house. All to the great scandal of those 
present ! 

2. On another occasion this time in the Casa Real 
the governor made similar remarks, boasting that he was 
even more valiant than St. George and St. Dionisius. 

3. One Sunday in June, 1628, the governor arrived late 
at mass, and took his place just as the Sanctus bell was being 
rung. After mass, with the citizenry assembled in the 
church yard, he began to upbraid some of the soldiers for 
lack of courtesy in not rising when he had entered the 
church. Capt. Pedro Lucero de Godoy, thinking that these 
remarks were directed at him, tried to explain, saying that 
he could not rise during the Sanctus. To which the gover- 
nor, enraged, replied : "I swore to Christ the other day that 
you (people) must rise even if they are elevating the Host!" 
As a result of these shocking remarks "the land is so scan- 
dalized . . . that it talks about nothing else." "He must be a 
heretic, since he demands that people leave off adoring God 
in order to adore him." 

4. Of more fundamental importance were the reports of 
certain incidents illustrating Sotelo's attitude toward the 
clergy and ecclesiastical privilege and immunity. During 
the summer of 1626 testimony had been received concerning 
the instructions that Sotelo had given a soldier who had 
been ordered to capture a certain fugitive mulatto servant. 
The soldier had asked what he should do if the servant fled 
to the asylum of a church, and Sotelo was reputed to have 



204 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

ordered that he should be seized even if clinging- to the cru- 
cifix itself. 13 Nothing 1 appears to have come of this early 
incident, although Benavides did report it in a special letter 
to the Holy Office, and cited it as an example of lack of re- 
spect for the Church and its immunities." Then in 1627- 
1628 other incidents occurred which once again created the 
possibility of controversy. It was reported that in a dis- 
cussion concerning the right of asylum in churches, the gov- 
ernor had declared, "with depreciation of ecclesiastical cen- 
sures, that a mere church meant nothing to him" ; and that 
later, during the same discussion, he had "sworn to Christ 
that he had rather deal with the Devil in hell than with those 
of the habit" (the friars) . There was some friction concern- 
ing certain powder houses and fortifications that Sotelo had 
ordered built, for the friars asserted that the church and 
convent would be menaced by the proximity of these strong- 
holds. Sotelo, on his part, was said to have boasted that 
for cause he would turn the guns on the church and convent 
and demolish them." It was also reported that he seldom 
went to mass, and that he had made fun of excommunica- 
tions by saying that if he were excommunicated he would 
force absolution within two hours. And another witness 
stated that Sotelo had described an incident that had oc- 



13. Declaration of Diego de Santa Cruz, August 8, 1626. Declarations, letters, 
and decrees. 

14. "Despues de auer cerrado el Pliego se ofrecio la causa que ua con esta 
contra el gou p que al presente es Don Felipe Sotelo ossorio ; siento que pide muy 
grande Remedio el poco caso que en es (sic) tierra se tiene de las coeas de la iglesia 
y BUS inmunidades, por lo que los gouernadores, an introdusido no auer otra autoridad 
juridica sobre la suya aunque sea en lo ecclesiastico, la diu* magestad concede a 
Vs su diu gracia y espiritu para ampara de su sancta fe." Benavides to the Holy 
Office, August 5, 1626. Ibid. 

15. "A Don Phelipe Sotelo Osorio le Capitularon gravemente porque solo hi?o dos 
torreones o Cubos para segurar la polbora para la defensa de la Villa. . ." Gov. An- 
tonio de Otermfn to the viceroy, San Lorenzo, April 5, 1682. Testimonio de los autos 
fechos sobre la entrada . . . de la Provincia de Nueua Mexico'. Archive General de 
Indias, Guadalajara 138. " Caspar de arratia . . . dixo que por descargo de su 
conciencia declaraua en este S tribunal como por el mes de mayo passado estando 
este declarante en la uilla de S ta fe en casa de Capa n lope Romero y con Sevastian 
goncales y jeronimo moran uesinos desta uilla de S** fe estaua alii tambien don 
felipe de sotelo ossorio, gou or actual que es destas prouia" el qual tratando acerca de 
un fuerte que estaua hasiendo dixo que ya ueia que el dicho estaua en perjuisio del 
de la iglesia por estar tan arrimada a ella y tambien por no ser el sitio aproposito 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 205 

curred in Mexico, when a certain governor, finding that his 
soldiers were friends of the friars, had executed the soldiers 
and had packed off the friars, including a Commissary of 
the Holy Office, to another part of New Spain. Moral: let 
the soldiers of New Mexico be on his side! 

5. There were also the usual rumors of moral laxness, 
for a certain friar informed another friar that an Indian 
woman had confessed carnal relations with the governor, 
and the second friar reported this information to Father 
Benavides. 

6. It was said to be known publicly that Sotelo had sent 
one of his agents to the pueblo of San Juan to bring an 
Indian woman versed in magic and black art to Santa Fe to 
try to save the life of a soldier who had been bewitched." 

In short, Sotelo was profane, blasphemous, lacking in 
respect for the clergy and the mass, immoral, and suspect 
in the faith ! But Father Benavides does not appear to have 
taken these charges very seriously, or to have been active 
in investigating them. Only three witnesses seem to have 
been formally summoned ; the others made their sworn dec- 
larations of their own accord. The reader of this testimony 
quickly senses an atmosphere of personal animosity that 
may have inspired it, and it may be doubted whether the 
soldiers were religious zealots who had been shocked by 
Sotelo's profanity and lack of respect for the cloth. Sotelo 



16. This bewitched soldier was Juan Diego Bellido whose case is described in 
Section E. 

de la defensa de la uilla por estar en cubierto con el dicho con to y iglesia acerca 
de lo qual corria pleyto conmigo, pero que el no lo hasia sino por salirse con la suya 
y que se entendiera la mano poderosa que tenia y que el se estendiera con los frailes 
y que si le descomulgassen que el haria que lo absoluiese dentro de dos horas 
menospreciando las sensuras y que a el que no sela atreuerian los frailes y que si se le 
atreuiessen que el haria que lo absoluiesen y dixo q'n aquella occasion muchas racones 
en descredito delos religiosos ministros desta iglesia de que quedaron todos escanda- 
lisados por tener alos religiosos por sieruos de dios y en otra ocasion le oyo desir 
este declarante que en offreciendose ocasion auia de derribar y arrasar con el fuerte 
la iglesia y con to y quanto auia dentro y que si se enojaba que a frailes y todo auia 
de matar." Declaration of Caspar de Arratia, July 2, 1628. Declarations concerning 
the conduct of Gov. Felipe de Sotelo Osorio, 1627-1628. A. G. M., Inquisition Tomo 
363, Exp. 1. 



206 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

had insulted them and hurt their pride, and denunciation of 
his foibles was a means of retaliation. 17 Perhaps Benavides 
realized this and did not press the case on that account. The 
investigation was apparently in abeyance when Father 
Perea returned in the spring of 1629, and there is no evi- 
dence that the charges ever resulted in formal trial of Sotelo 
by the Inquisition. The chief interest in these declarations 
consists of the glimpses of Santa Fe life which they uncon- 
sciously reflect and preserve for us although three centuries 
have passed by. 

C. A CASE OF BIGAMY 

With the arrival of Father Perea and his band of thirty 
friars in the spring of 1629, Benavides was relieved of his 
custodianship. He remained in the province until the fol- 
lowing autumn, when the supply caravan departed on the 
return journey to New Spain, and during the intervening 
months he assisted Perea in getting under way the new mis- 
sionary projects made possible by such a large addition to 
the corps of friars. He continued, also, to exercise the func- 
tions of local representative of the Inquisition, for Perea 
did not receive his appointment under the Inquisition until 
about the end of 1630, or early in 1631. During the summer 
of 1629 two men denounced themselves before Benavides 
on charges which made positive action by the Holy Office 
necessary. He took the men with him to Mexico when the 
caravan departed in the autumn, and in March, 1630, they 
came up for trial by the Tribunal of the Inquisition in 
Mexico City. 

The first case involved a certain Diego de Vera Per- 
domo, native of Laguna in the Isle of Teneriffe. 18 From 



17. Otermfn in his letter to the viceroy, April 5, 1682, (see note 15 supra) 
stated that Sotelo aroused resentment because he punished thieves and those guilty 
of immorality, "y por auer obrado justicia en azotar ladrones sacandolos con los 
hurtos al pescuezo castigar amancebamientos y otros pecados publicos y le con- 
sumieron su hazienda y lo pusieron en estremo de lleuar en persona su caballo de 
diestro a darle agua al Rio." 

18. Pleito y Causa Criminal contra Diego de Vera Perdomo, natural de la Isla 
de Teneriffe. Denunciase el Mismo por casado dos veces. 1629-1630. A. G. M., 
Inquisicion, Tomo 495, ff. 89-103. 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 207 

Teneriffe Vera moved to the Isle of Canary where he mar- 
ried and became the father of two sons. Leaving his family 
behind in the Canaries, he later migrated to New Spain in 
search of fortune and made his way finally to New Mexico. 
There he married a second time without knowing whether 
his first wife was living or dead, and two sons blessed this 
second marriage. But after several years his conscience 
got the better of him, and on July 19, 1629, he appeared be- 
fore Father Benavides and denounced himself as a bigamist. 
Benavides induced Vera to accompany him to Mexico City 
in order to present himself before the Holy Office, and on 
March 30, 1630, Vera appeared before that tribunal and 
stated his case. He threw himself on the mercy of the 
court, promised not to return to New Mexico, and asked per- 
mission to return to the Canaries in order to determine 
whether his first wife was still living. At the same time 
Benavides presented a certificate in Vera's behalf in which 
he stated that Vera and his wife in Santa Fe had always 
lived good Christian lives and had set a good example to the 
Indians of their encomienda. 

The case was clear. The tribunal acted promptly, found 
Vera guilty of bigamy, and in formal sentence forbade him 
to return to his second wife, under pain of major excommuni- 
cation and two hundred lashes. The case record closes with 
a petition, written in Benavides' handwriting, but signed by 
Vera, in which Vera begged permission to leave for Spain in 
the company of Benavides in order to go to the Canaries in 
search of his first wife. Three years later Father Perea 
wrote to the Holy Office asking for information concerning 
the disposition of the case, for the wife in Santa Fe was still 
in ignorance concerning the fate of her husband and the 
status of her marriage ! 19 



19. "... de aqui lleuo el p e fr. Al de benauides un soldado llamado diego de 
nera, natural de la canaria y con un secreto publico se dice q. por casado dos ueces y 
no a avido mas nueuas de el y la pobre muger me a ynportunado le auise si es asi 
que es casado dos ueces y ella es libre para poder deponder de si, o no, suplico a V. 
S* si es pusible se me auise dello pa q. la desengane o lo que en esto mas fuere 
seruido o lo que conbiene hacerse." Perea to the Holy Office, December 6, 1633. Del 
Comiss del nueuo Mex co con una ynformon contra Joan Anton Mulato Por casado 
dos veses. A. G. M., Inquisici6n, Tomo 380. 



208 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

D. A PACT WITH THE DEVIL 

The second case is more interesting. It concerned one 
Luis de Rivera, a cow puncher in the cattle country of the 
province of New Biscay. 20 In 1628 he was employed as a 
muleteer in the caravan that brought Father Perea and 
his thirty friars to New Mexico. On July 22 and 23, 1629, 
two friars who had arrived with Perea denounced Rivera 
to Father Benavides and accused him of a pact with the 
Devil. Coincident with the denunciation of the friars, 
Rivera appeared of his own volition and denounced himself. 
A fourth witness, one of the majordomos of the caravan, 
was later summoned by the tribunal of the Inquisition in 
Mexico City. The details of the case, as stated in these four 
depositions and as related to the tribunal by Rivera during 
the course of his trial, are most interesting and present a 
curious sidelight on the frontier life of New Spain in those 
days. 

Rivera was born in Seville, and as a boy he had been 
in the service of an Inquisitor of Seville. At the age of 
thirteen he went to Mexico in the company of a Governor 
of New Biscay, and during the succeeding ten years he 
worked as a cowman in that province. During his first year 
in this new home, while still a mere youth of thirteen or 
fourteen, he had been subjected to influences which had an 
evil effect on his subsequent life and conduct. In the first 
place, an Indian initiated him into the practice of supersti- 
tion by giving him an herb which, if used on the occasion of 
a day's fasting, was said to have the power of attracting to 
its possessor women with whom the possessor desired carnal 
relations. Rivera accepted the herb, but a few days later 
threw it away, "seeing that it had no effect." During the 
same year he met a negro slave who introduced him into the 



20. Pleito criminal a Lufs de Rivera, por tener pacto con el demonic, y haberle 
ofrecido el alma en una cedula que hizo con su sangre. 1629-1630. A. G. M., Inqui- 
sicion, Tomo 366. The entire description of this case in the text above is derived 
from this document which contains the complete trial record. I have not thought it 
necessary, therefore, to use notes except in one or two instances, and then only for 
purpose of explanation. 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 209 

lore of deraonology. The negro, like many cowmen on the 
frontier, believed that the Devil was a potent factor in their 
lives, and that with his favor they could the more easily 
round up cattle, come off successful in a bull fight, or even 
catch a mustang on foot. For this reason many of them, 
including the negro, had a figure of the Devil stamped 
(tattooed?) on the sole of the foot. The negro also pos- 
sessed a book of a few pages in which he had painted rude 
pictures of demons. He offered to sell it to Rivera, assuring 
him that if he would draw blood from his nose, and with the 
blood sign his name at the bottom of one of these rude pic- 
tures, making a pact with the Devil and offering him his 
soul, the Devil would always aid him. Rivera, child that he 
was, paid the price (a peso and a half) and, drawing his 
blood, signed the document. For a week or so he kept the 
book, keeping it with him during the day and under his pil- 
low at night, but he soon began to fear that his action might 
involve some sin, and finally tore up the book. He feared to 
confess his acts, however, so the secret was sealed within 
his breast for years. 

During the succeeding years Rivera gradually grew 
lax in the practice of his religion. He seldom went to mass, 
and he let years pass by without communing. He became 
addicted to oaths, and on one occasion denied God altogether. 
Moreover, during these years his secret weighed heavily on 
his conscience, and although he never called upon the Devil 
nor talked with him, the Devil tormented his soul ! Finally, 
in 1628 he hired out as a muleteer in the New Mexico supply 
caravan. On the way northward in the valley of Santa 
Barbara the mules and cattle stampeded, resulting in con- 
siderable loss. Rumor flew from mouth to mouth. Only 
the presence of an excommunicate or of the Devil himself 
could have caused the stampede! Poor Rivera! His self 
control was shattered in the face of such rumors, and he con- 
fessed his secret to one of the friars. 

Such was the situation when the caravan arrived in 
New Mexico in 1629. Two friars who knew some of the 



210 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

facts in the case denounced Rivera to Father Benavides. 
One of them accused him of actually speaking- and convers- 
ing with the Devil, and the other even testified that Rivera 
had confessed that he had more than once called upon the 
Devil for aid, especially in rounding up cattle. At the same 
time Rivera denounced himself. Benavides induced him to 
return to Mexico with the caravan in order to appear before 
the Inquisition and beg mercy of that tribunal. Then for 
some reason before the caravan reached Mexico City, Bena- 
vides ordered Rivera's arrest, so the poor fellow was already 
in irons when he arrived. He was delivered to the Inquisi- 
tion on March 13, 1630, and confined in its jail. A few days 
later he was transferred to the public jail of the city. 

The progress of the trial was fairly rapid, for Rivera 
had already confessed his guilt. The details of the trial are 
interesting mostly because of the efforts of the examining 
attorneys to magnify the guilt of the defendant by means of 
fine spun distinctions and by reading into Rivera's confessed 
actions interpretations and intentions which they did not 
warrant. 

The first audience before the Inquisition was on March 
20, 1630. The regular procedure of a first audience was fol- 
lowed, and Rivera was required to give statements con- 
cerning his ancestry, his education, his religious training, 
and a brief story of his life. At the end of the audience he 
was given the first admonition in the usual form. He was 
told that it was not the custom of the Holy Office to arrest 
persons without sufficient information and cause, and that 
he should search his conscience and truthfully state any acts 
or words of which he might feel guilty. In Rivera's case 
this was a mere formality, for he had already confessed. 
The second and third admonitions were given on March 21 
and June 12 respectively. 

During these audiences the examiners propounded ques- 
tions cleverly phrased in order to make Rivera's guilt appear 
as serious as possible. For example, he was asked whether 
he believed that the herb which he had received from the 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 211 

Indian had power in itself to accomplish the pretended end, 
or if it was by means of an intervening pact with the Devil. 
To which Rivera cleverly, probably honestly, replied that 
when the incident occurred he was a mere youth of thir- 
teen or fourteen, ignorant of the world and such matters. 
He was asked also with what spirit or intent he had made 
his bargain with the Devil. Was it with the thought of 
regarding him more powerful than God, and, in making the 
agreement, did he consciously cut himself off from need of 
and belief in the Catholic Church and its ministers ? Again 
he answered skillfully, for, although he admitted that the 
negro had deceived him, he also insisted that he had made 
the pact with a full understanding that God was all-power- 
ful and that the Devil was his creature. He had in no man- 
ner cut himself off from the Church. On the contrary, even 
during the time when the book was in his possession, he had 
continued to commend himself to the Virgin, and to repeat 
the Pater Noster and Ave Maria before going to bed ! 

Formal accusation was presented by the attorney on 
June 12, and on the same day Rivera replied to the charges 
article by article. The accusation reviewed the essential 
facts concerning the possession of the herb received from 
the Indian and the bloodpact with the Devil. By these acts, 
so the accusation declared, Rivera had cut himself off from 
the Church and had become guilty of apostasy, for his very 
acts declared and made manifest his evil intent and indicated 
that he was "truly apostate from our Holy Catholic Faith, 
giving over to the Devil his soul, redeemed with the blood of 
Our Saviour and Redeemer, Jesus Christ ; adoring him (the 
Devil) and regarding him more powerful than God. . . . 
attributing to him and giving to him de facto the adoration 
and worship owed to God alone." He had become the serv- 
ant and slave of the Devil, having, on two or three occasions, 
denied God and the saints. The accusation closed with 
a petition by the attorney asking the Inquisitor to declare 
the charges proved and Rivera relaxed to the secular arm. 
He also asked that, in case the charges were not declared to 



212 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

have been proved, Rivera should be put to torment until he 
confessed the truth. 

In his replies to the articles of the accusation Rivera 
once more admitted the truth of the general charges, but 
he denied, as he had already done, that by his acts he had 
knowingly and wilfully cut himself off from the Church. 
His acts had been the results of ignorance, not of conscious 
intent to sin. He threw himself on the mercy of the court 
and offered to submit to such acts of penance as it might 
prescribe. 

On the same day that the accusation was presented the 
tribunal appointed an attorney to defend and advise Rivera 
during the remainder of the trial. On the following day a 
resume of evidence given by the three witnesses (the two 
friars and the majordomo of the caravan) was read, and 
Rivera replied to their accusations one by one. 21 The only 
point of importance in this phase of the process was Rivera's 
denial of the statements made by the two friars that he had 
actually talked with the Devil and called upon him for aid. 

A pause of a few weeks now occurred in the trial during 
which the judges studied the evidence. There was no doubt 
that Rivera had been guilty of acts of superstition. The cru- 
cial point was Rivera's purpose and intent. Had he re- 
garded the Devil more powerful than God? Had he delib- 
erately cut himself off from the Church? On July 9 the 
board of qualifiers (calificadores), having examined the evi- 
dence, gave their opinion and probably saved Rivera from 



21. The "publication of the witnesses" was part of the normal procedure of 
any trial before the tribunal. Defendants were kept in ignorance of the exact nature 
of the evidence against them, not only until after their arrest and imprisonment, but 
also until after the preliminary audiences, the presentation of the accusation or 
indictment, and the taking of the defendant's replies thereto. Then, finally, occurred 
the "publication of the witnesses," that is, the reading to the defendant of a resume 
of the declaration of each of the witnesses. Even then the names of the witnesses 
were not revealed, although the defendant was often able to identify them by the 
character of the evidence. Following the reading of the evidence the defendant had 
an opportunity to deny or affirm the charges and to make such comments as he 
wished. This usually revealed no important details, for the defendant had already 
answered the most important charges in the answers to the indictment. 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 213 

severe punishment. 22 The board agreed (1) that the denial 
of God was heretical blasphemy; (2) that the use of the 
herb could be suspected of heresy; (3) that signing in the 
little book was an implicit pact with the Devil. But it also 
stated that these acts did not necessarily imply that Rivera 
had cut himself off from the faith or that he believed the 
Devil more powerful than God. On the contrary, the quali- 
fiers agreed with Rivera's own defense that it was possible 
for him to ask the aid of the Devil and at the same time 
preserve a true belief in God ; for "although it was a very 
grave and suspect sin in the matter of the faith, yet it does 
not immediately follow that he denied the faith, especially 
because his tender age could not give him full appreciation 
(of his act) ." 

The opinion of the qualifying board cleared the ques- 
tion of its uncertainties, and the court proceeded to pass sen- 
tence. On July 19 the panel of the Inquisition voted, found 
Rivera guilty, and drew up formal sentence which was pro- 
nounced the same day. It found him guilty of heresy and 
apostasy, of having made an implicit pact with the Devil, of 
having denied God twice, of having sworn many times in 
anger, and "of other crimes." These actions constituted 
grave offenses against the faith, worthy of severe punish- 
ment; but the court, "for just causes," moderated the pun- 
ishment and decreed as follows: (1) that Rivera should ab- 
jure his errors; (2) that for two months he should be con- 
fined to the Jesuit convent (the Casa Profesa) in Mexico 
City, and that during that time he should duly confess his 
sins; (3) that, under pain of being punished more severely, 



22. The calificadores were a board of selected theologians and jurists who ad- 
vised the tribunal on articles of faith and canon law. Ordinarily they were sum- 
moned prior to the arrest of the accused party for the purpose of advising the 
tribunal whether the charges and propositions contained in the evidence already 
received by the tribunal would, if proved legally, contitute actual heresy or some 
violation or denial of the faith and practice of the Church. If the board advised 
that the charges and propositions were heretical or otherwise dangerous, the tribunal 
would then order the arrest and imprisonment of the accused person. In the case 
of Rivera this normal procedure was not followed because Benavides brought Rivera 
to New Mexico before presenting the evidence. The board gave its opinion after 
the arrest and accusation, but before sentence. 



214 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

he should not return to Guadiana (Durango), the scene of 
his guilt; and (4) that for a year he must fast on Fridays, 
and confess and commune at least once a month. 

On the following day, July 20, in the presence of the 
tribunal, Rivera's attorney, and other witnesses, Rivera ab- 
jured all heresy and promised henceforth to hold true to the 
faith, to denounce heretics, and to receive with patience the 
penitence and censures imposed upon him. The same day 
he was delivered to the Casa Profesa to begin his period of 
seclusion. 

E. SUPERSTITION AND WITCHCRAFT 

For a j^ear following the departure of Benavides in 
the autumn of 1629 there was no legal representative of the 
Inquisition in New Mexico. Perea's appointment had prob- 
ably been decided upon as early as 1627 but the Holy Office 
had been obliged to wait until it received formal reports 
from Spain certifying Perea's generalogy and limpieza de 
sangre. In the autumn of 1630, these reports having been 
received, the Holy Office sent Perea his formal appointment 
as Commissary of the Holy Office of the Inquisition for New 
Mexico. It was received not later than mid- January, 163 1. 28 



23. The Suprema sent two reports. One contained the original testimony or 
depositions given by witnesses called by the Inquisitor of Evora, and the second was 
a letter from the Inquisition of Llerena in which the results of its investigations 
were summarized. These reports indicated that Perea was born of Portuguese 
parents in Villanueva del Fresno. His genealogy was regarded as generally satis- 
factory, except that two or three witnesses stated that there had been a rumor that 
one of Perea's maternal ancestors belonged to a family of new Christians. The pa- 
ternal line was clean and it was stated that one of Perea's brothers was a "friar of 
great reputation" in the College of St. Basil in Seville. The two reports are con- 
tained in the following expedientes : (1) Carta de los senores del contenido con el 
testimonio de la Ynquisicion de Llerena de las ynformaciones de Fray Esteban de 
Perea. 1629-1630. A. G. M., Inquisicion, Tomo 268, Exp. 5. ff. 1, 2; (2) Documents 
concerning the genealogy and limpieza. de sangre of Friar Esteban de Perea trans- 
mitted by the Inquisition of Evora. 1628. A. G. M., Inquisici6n, Tomo 365, Exp. 
1112. The Evora report was sent to Mexico in the 1628 fleet and was reecived late 
that year or early in 1629. The Llerena report, dated March 8, 1629, was trans- 
mitted by the Suprema on July 1, 1630, and was received in Mexico on October 28. 
Perea's appointment was sent out sometime in the autumn of 1630 and was probably 
received at about the turn of the year 1630-1631 for on January 19, 1631, a witness 
appeared before Perea, "Comiss del S to off ," and gave testimony concerning certain 
affairs of importance to the Inquisition. Declaration of Capt. Diepro de Santa Cruz. 
Jan. 19, 1631. Inquisicion 372, Exp. 16. (See note 26 infra.) 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 215 

A few weeks prior to the receipt of this appointment Perea 
was relieved of the office of custodian, his triennium having 
expired, and his place was taken by Friar Juan de Salas 
who had already served with distinction many years as a 
mission friar. 84 

Perea held the office of local commissary or agent of the 
Inquisition until his death in 1638 or 1639, and it was a 
fitting crown for his long career. His appointment was 
formally celebrated in New Mexico by publication of the 
edict of the faith in Santa Fe on March 23, 1631. The event 
took place in the church of San Miguel with due ceremony 
in the presence of the governor, cabildo, and general assem- 
bly of the citizens.* During the succeeding three or four 
years Perea followed up such clues of error, blasphemy, or 
superstition as came to his attention, and dispatched the 
sworn declarations periodically to the tribunal in Mexico 
City. Although these investigations did not result in the 
trial of any of the accused persons by the tribunal, the evi- 
dence is worthy of analysis and study, because of the illum- 
inating, if unedifying, picture of New Mexican life which 
it reveals. 

Frontier existence has always been characterized by 
the most curious admixture of conflicting and contradictory 
elements : hardy fortitude and petty jealousy, religious fer- 
vor and superstition ; high vision and base ignorance. These 
conditions have always obtained in new frontier communi- 
ties stationed on the outpost and fringe of settled civiliza- 
tion, at once the protection and menace of the older and more 
cultured centers. New Mexico was no exception. New 
Mexico was far away on the frontier, cut off from the body 
of New Spain by hundreds of miles of desert country and by 
hostile tribes. Life was hard and rude; refinements were 



24. Father Salas was founder of the Isleta mission and in 1629-1630 he had 
been leader of the friars sent to the Jumano country. He served as custodian untfl 
1632 or 1633 when he was succeeded by Friar Juan de Gongora. He served a second 
term from 1638 to 1641. 

25. Testim de la publicon de los edictos en Nueuo Mex co , 1631. A. G. M., In- 
quisici6n 372, Exp. 19. (See note 26 infra,) 



216 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

few; famine frequently threatened when the Apaches did 
not, and the two together meant possible disaster. These 
factors developed in the soldiers and colonists qualities of 
courage and zeal worthy of the highest praise. On the other 
hand, the isolation and poverty of the province meant that 
these qualities were often earned at the expense of others 
cultural in character. The very isolation of the province 
tended to make New Mexico a haven for social outcasts 
from the mining camps of Zacatecas, Santa Barbara, and 
Parral. Moreover the small non-aboriginal community, 
heterogeneous in character, comprised of friar and soldier, 
outcast and the ignorant, was forced to live in the midst of 
an Indian population from which it could and did learn 
much that was good and with which it fused its blood, but 
from which it also borrowed the Indian's superstition and 
view of life. This fusion of the non-material elements of 
culture is one of the most significant phases of colonial life 
throughout Spanish America. It is also one that is difficult 
adequately to assess or define. 

The direct documentary evidence of such fusion in New 
Mexico is not extensive, but shot through all the Inquisition 
papers there are incidental statements of much value. Fortu- 
nately for the student of social life and customs, the first 
activities of Father Perea as agent of the Inquisition dur- 
ing the years 1631 and 1632 were related almost entirely to 
the practice of superstition and the influence of Indian cus- 
toms on the white and half-caste population. In a series of 
some fifty sworn declarations of evidence made at the time 
there is revealed a rather shocking state of affairs. Many 
of the soldier-citizens were unfaithful to their wives, and 
these unfortunate women, in a frantic effort to win back 
the affection and loyalty of their husbands, resorted to the 
practice of superstition and the use of love-potions, knowl- 
edge of which they gained from Indian servants. The 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 217 

declarations also reveal a fairly general belief that two 
women, mother and daughter, were witches. 28 

These conditions had been reported to Benavides as 
early as 1626, 27 and again in 1628, 28 and he had been con- 
cerned enough to make some rather pointed comment about 
them in a letter to the Holy Office, although he 
had not made any active investigation. 28 Perea also had 
knowledge of them prior to 1631. The reading of 
the edict of the faith in March, 1631, which meant 
the revival in formal manner of the authority and 
activity of the Inquisition, appears, however, to have 
aroused certain fears. "I have noticed," Perea stated, "that 
before the anathema was read to this simple folk they did 
not have that fear concerning the use of these powders and 
herbs which they now so truly show. Their hearts are 
agitated, and they are afraid." 80 An interesting comment- 
ary, indeed, on the influence of the Inquisition, and of Perea, 
too, on "this simple folk" ! Because of Benavides' sparing 
use of his authority as commissary subsequent to 1626 and 
his failure to investigate the evidence of superstition and 



26. The results of Perea's investigations are found in three expedientes : 

(a) Del Padre Fray Esteban de Perea Comisario del Nuevo Mexico, a visa de 
los pliegos que tiene remitidos a este Santo Oficio y de nuebo embia algunas denunci- 
aciones. 1631-1632. A. G. M., Irwjuisicion, Tomo 304, ff. 180-198. To be cited as 
Inquisicidn 804. 

(b), (c) Del comis del nuevo Mexico fr. estevan de Perea avisa ha Remitido 
Vnos despachos con Thome Dominguez Vez de Mex co y testim de la lectura de los 
edictos y lo que resulto dellos. 1631. A. G. M., Inquisicion, Tomo 372, Exps. 16, 19. 
These two expedientes, although in separate parts of volume 872 of the Inquisition 
papers, are part and parcel of the same investigation. The title is taken from 
expediente 19, for expediente 16 is without title. They will be cited as Inquisici6n 
872, Exp. 16, and Inquisici6n 872, Exp. 19. 

27. Declarations, letters and decrees, ff. 310-317. 

28. Declarations of Pedro Marquez and Bartolome Romero, September 26 and 
October 2, 1628. Inquisicion 304. 

29. "El mismo Remedio conuiene para las hechiseras que como estos indios 
naturales desta tierra son tan grandes hechiseros pegase el dano facilmente en estas 
mugeres espanolas que son de poco talento por uiuir aca tan apartadas de policia y 
las indias denunciadas Villafuerte y la dona ynes solo en el nombre lo son que en lo 
demas son mas ladinas que las espanolas, y siendo V. S a seruido conuenia para atajar 
aemejante dano haser en ellas algnn castigo para exemplo y mayormente que se sabe 
publicamente que an ensanado este off a las hijas y a otras espanolas muchachas 
ignorantes." Benavides to the Holy Office, January 29, 1626. Declarations, letters 
and decrees. 

80. Perea to the Holy Office, November 10, 1631. Inquisicidn 372, Exp. 19. 



218 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

witchcraft, the people had forgotten the excitement and 
anxiety caused by the establishment of Inquisitorial juris- 
diction in the province. But the reassertion of such juris- 
diction in 1631 had aroused their fears. And the stern 
Perea was commissary now ! Moreover there were probably 
many persons who recalled that their fellow-citizen, Diego 
de Vera, who had denounced himself on charges of bigamy 
and had accompanied Benavides to Mexico City, had never 
returned. Nor had there been any news of his fate. Truly 
their hearts were agitated! Within less than a week fol- 
lowing the reading of the edict nine persons testified, some 
of them making their declarations on their own initiative. 
During the succeeding months Perea took further testimony 
as opportunity offered. In the end fifty persons testified 
concerning the prevalent practice of superstition, and more 
than half of them did so of their own accord. 

Much of the evidence dealt with the preparation and 
use of herbs, powders, and other concoctions for the pur- 
pose of winning back a husband's love. Some of the details 
may be described. 81 There were ways not only of attracting 
and keeping a man's affections, but also of making him lose 
interest in his mistress. For example, make a paste of cer- 
tain herbs, or of maize ; then put the paste in the husband's 
food, or use it to anoint the body of either the husband or 
the wife, or both, and the husband's love will be renewed. 
Anointing the body may be more effective if done during 
sexual intercourse. More drastic measures involved the 
use of certain kinds of worms, which, if fried, or mashed up 
and cooked in gruel, would be equally effective. Other recipes 
made use of urine, either of the husband or his mistress, or 
of dirt soiled by human excrement. Potions of milk and pow- 
ders of various kinds also had their use. The documents 
reveal a fairly common knowledge of such formulae and the 
direct dependence on the Indians, especially Indian house- 



si. The details given in the text have been taken at random from the three 
expedientes listed in note 26. For a selection of passages which illustrate fully the 
statements in the text, see the appendix. 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 219 

servants, as the source of such knowledge. The amount of 
actual practice of such superstitions is, of course, impossible 
to determine. Several wives admitted that they had given 
these formulae a trial, but most of them also admitted that 
they had had no effect. As one poor woman said, she left 
"to God the remedy." Perhaps the most striking fact about 
this entire body of testimony is the easy and sure reference 
to sexual infidelities. Wives admitted their husbands' 
faults ; fathers knew the failings of their daughters-in-law ; 
even the sins of the dead were not spared. 

One phase in this general belief in the powers of cer- 
tain herbs should be interesting to the ethnologist and bot- 
anist, for it relates to the special properties attributed to 
the peyote plant. The peyote is a cactus-like herb whose 
properties had long been known by the Mexican Indians. 
For them it was a sacred plant which had its own body of 
legend and even its own deity. Modern students of medical 
botany have stated that when used in moderate doses it has 
a stimulating effect akin to that of strychnine, and that it 
has been used to give strength to persons undergoing ex- 
hausting physical labor. In larger doses it creates a sort 
of drunken delirium followed by stupor." 

The references to the use of peyote in the sworn declar- 
ations of 1631-1632 are not numerous, but they are of some 
interest. In the first place, it was recommended as a potion 
to give a bewitched person for it would enable such a person 
to have a vision in which the identity of the sorcerer would 
be revealed, following which the health of the bewitched 
person would be restored. 83 It was also stated that in the 
visions induced by taking peyote a person could tell just 
what persons might be on the way from New Spain to New 
Mexico. 84 But the most interesting statements were those at- 
tributed to a certain mulatto, named Juan Anton. A friend 
of his had said that peyote was good for a broken arm, and 



32. Galindo y Villa, Geograffa de la republica mexicana (Mexico, 1927), II, 
pp. 131-134. 

S3. Declaration of Ana Cadimo, March 25, 1631. Inquisicion 372. Ezp. 16. 
34. Ibid 



220 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Juan Anton, agreeing-, said that it had other important 
uses, and he proceeded to relate an incident that had oc- 
curred in New Spain. Certain of his belongings had been 
stolen, and he had not been able to recover them. So he 
took a big dose of peyote, and in the stupor which it induced 
an old man and an old woman appeared and asked him 
what was his trouble. He told them, and they said he should 
not worry any more, for if he went to a certain place he 
would find his belongings. After awakening he went to the 
place indicated and found the things that had been stolen. 88 

Many more incidents similar to these might have been 
revealed if Perea's investigations had been continued. Nor 
was peyote, probably, the only plant believed to have healing 
or diabolical powers. One of the declarants told how her 
Indian servant made a drink of some herbs to cure her of 
certain ills. She stated that before giving her the potion 
the Indian had performed certain ceremonies and had seen 
visions in the liquid. 88 

More serious than the use of potions and the faith in 
the magic powers of certain plants was the belief in witch- 
craft and sorcery and the denunciation of two women as 
practicing witches. These two unfortunate creatures were 
Beatriz de los Angeles, a Mexican Indian of recognized abil- 
ity and intelligence, and her mestiza daughter, Juana de la 
Cruz. Both of them were adept in the use of herbs and had 
been the tutors of some of their friends in the preparation 
of love-philters. But the most serious charge against them 
was the practice of sorcery. Benavides had been informed 
of Juana's malevolent powers in 1626, and again in 1628 
sweeping denunciations of both women, mother and daugh- 
ter, were received, but he had not pressed an investigation 
on either occasion. In 1631, following the reading of the 
edict and the revival of Inquisitorial authority, the old 



35. Declarations of Jusepe de la Cruz and Luis Pacheco, May 25 and Septem- 
ber 21, 1632. Inquigici6n 304. 

86. Declaration of Ana Cadimo, March 25, 1631. Inquisicion 372, Exp. 16. 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 221 

charges were renewed and related in considerable detail by 
numerous witnesses. 

It was stated that Beatriz, in order to try out her dia- 
bolical powers, had experimented on two Indian servants, 
both of whom became ill and died. Finding that her meth- 
ods were effective, she then used them to avenge herself on 
her paramour, Diego Bellido, who had quarreled with her 
and beaten her. The declarations contain a deal of evidence 
concerning the methods she used, but the general opinion 
was that she gave him a drink of milk, or perhaps of atole, 91 
that soon afterwards he became seriously ill with violent 
intestinal pains, and, after lingering for two or three weeks, 
died. Before his death he related these circumstances to 
several acquaintances, and he also told how one of the In- 
dian servants upon whom Beatriz had experimented told 
him that Beatriz had bewitched them both (the servant and 
Bellido) . Both of them died, and the community was con- 
vinced ! It was also related that another of Beatriz' servants 
had told how she had known that Beatriz had concocted 
fatal hechizos, not only for Bellido, but also for an Indian 
woman, and that she had put them in some little idols which 
she buried in her hearth. The servant, hoping to save the 
lives of Bellido and the Indian woman, had tried to dig up 
the idols, but succeeded in unearthing only the one in which 
the hechizo intended for the Indian woman had been put. 
The Indian woman recovered from her illness, but Bellido 
died! Moreover it was reported that after Bellido's death 
a certain Juan Maesse had found a clay figurine, supposed to 
resemble Bellido, hanging from a tree on Beatriz' estancia, 
but when Juan Maesse was called upon to testify he denied 
all this and said that the supposed figurine was merely a 
lizard! Felipa, one of the Indian servants whom Beatriz 
bewitched in order to test her powers, said that Beatriz 
had bewitched still a fourth victim, one Francisco Balon. 
In this case she put the fatal hecMzo in a panocha or titbit, 
which she gave to Balon to eat. Francisco Balon died ! 



37. Atole is a thin gruel. 



222 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Like mother, like daughter. Juana de la Cruz, Beatriz' 
daughter, was suspect even before her mother was, but 
her victims were not so numerous. The outstanding charge 
against her was that, although married to a certain Juan 
Griego Bernal, she was unfaithful to him and gave her af- 
fections to Hernando Marquez Zambrano. She and Mar- 
quez quarreled ; he beat her, and she had revenge by bewitch- 
ing him. For one day she gave him a cup of milk, thick 
with cream, to drink, and soon afterward he fell ill and 
died. Bewitched, of course ! It was also believed that Juana 
had the evil eye, and numerous stories were told to prove it. 
Several children whom she fondled became ill. One died; 
another was saved by being smoked with a burnt bit of 
Juana's clothing; and in another case a sort of firemark 
(fuego, arestin) appeared on the child's face. 

Finally, it was reported that both Beatriz and Juana 
could transport themselves in magic fashion over long dis- 
tances. Juana was said to use this power to travel around 
at night visiting her paramours to see whether they were 
faithful to her. Some persons said she travelled in an egg. 
Beatriz, on one occasion, had transported herself in some 
magic fashion from La Canada, north of Santa Fe to Senecu, 
a distance of about one hundred and seventy-five miles in 
order to visit a sick woman, Maria Granillo, who was being 
treated by Father Geronimo Pedraza, the friar-physician. 
In company with other spirits (brujas) she had played a 
game with Maria, bouncing her in and out of bed! It is a 
pleasure to report that Maria finally recovered. 88 

It is indeed an unedifying picture of New Mexican life 
that these stories reveal. To the everlasting credit of 
Father Perea, this welter of evidence, confession, and ru- 
mor did not greatly agitate or excite him. He showed a 
healthy skepticism and contempt regarding it all. These 
were not the errors and heresies against which he had 
fought in the days of Eulate. Denial of ecclesiastical au- 



88. Extensive excerpts from the evidence dealing with the cases of Beatriz and 
Juana are given in the appendix. 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 223 

thority and immunity, lack of respect for the Church and 
the clergy, expressed doubt or disbelief concerning funda- 
mental articles of Faith those were the errors against 
which he had fought and which had prompted his appeal 
for the establishment of the Inquisition in New Mexico. He 
found it difficult to get greatly excited about "herbs and 
powders." 

Moreover he had a lively doubt concerning the relia- 
bility of some of the persons who had testified, for Perea 
had few illusions concerning the people with whom he was 
dealing. Some twenty years of experience had given him 
close familiarity with their strength and weaknesses. Many 
of them he had baptized, confirmed, confessed, and married. 
He knew the laggard from the thrifty, the evil citizen from 
the man of good repute. In his letters and reports to the 
Inquisition he freely expressed his opinions of the commun- 
ity in general and of the individuals who testified or con- 
cerning whom the testimony dealt. One of his letters con- 
tained a striking characterization of provincial life. He 
mourned the fact that it was 

"so difficult, in this new land and among this peo- 
ple, [reared] from childhood subject to [the in- 
fluence of] the customs of these Indians, [and] 
without discipline and schools, to distinguish truth 
from falsehood; for falsehood is so ordinary a 
thing in their mouths, even [in the mouths of] 
those who blossom out as captains and royal offii- 
cials that there is no insult to the most honorable of 
them in saying these things." 39 

The population contained 

"so many mestizos, mulattos, and zambohigos, and 
others [who are] worse, and [also] foreigners; so 
dangerous and of [such] little moral strength that 
I am sometimes embarrassed [in making these in- 
vestigations] ."" 



39. Perea to the Holy Office, November 10, 1631. Inquisicion 372, Exp. 19. 

40. Ibid. 



224 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Such conditions made it necessary for him to send with 
the collected testimony short statements concerning the 
character of the declarants, as well as of the persons whom 
they accused, and in a few swift and direct phrases he ex- 
pressed his approval or disapproval of them." 

Thus, although Perea collected the available evidence 
concerning prevailing conditions, he probably did not con- 
sider it of vital importance, and he had a lively doubt and 
skepticism concerning much of it. And he was especially 
skeptical with regard to the tales and rumors concerning 
Beatriz de los Angeles and Juana de la Cruz. He stated that 
he had known Beatriz for many years, and that although 
she was an Indian, she was intelligent (ladina) and quite 
Hispanicized (espanolada). She was the widow of a Span- 
iard, Alferez Juan de la Cruz, and had gained social position 
by her marriage. With regard to Juana, well, she was a 
mestiza, and had been reared among Indians. Perea frankly 
stated that both mother and daughter had formerly enjoyed 
a good reputation, at least until some four or five years prior 
to 1631 when the denunciations were made. He admitted, 
however, that according to report they were generally re- 
garded as witches. 42 On the other hand, he did not hesitate 



41. A few examples of his characterizations follow: 

"Ana Cadimo . . . es mestica y muger simple de buena opinion" 

"Juana Sanchez . . . es mulata y a estado siempre en buena opinion." 

"Francisca Cadimo . . . es una pobrecilla mestica simple." 

"Diego de Moraga es hombre q. a bibido mucho tp desonestam te con mugercillas 
aunq. agora mui quieto y casado." 

"dona beatriz de Pedraca . . . es mujer liuiana y de desonesta opinion." 

Antonio Baca: "este testigo aunq. es sargento mayor esta en opinion de q. 
hable mucho y poca verdad y yo lo conosco mas a de ueinte anos desde nino q. era 
y siempre a ydo creciendo en la mala opinion de verdad." 

"Juana de los Reyes mulata . . . es y a sido muger de mui loable opinion y fama 
y siempre a sido al parecer mui buena Xpiana" 

"Catalina perea . . . es mugercilla de demasiada mala opinion de desonesta q. 
la just" a tenido bien q. hacer pa refrenar sus solturas y es mestica o castica." 

"Francisco Marq. es un hombre de poca opinion de verdad y mas amugerado q. 
hombre." 

"bernadina moran q. declare es otra pobrecilla mestica y mulata hija de uno q. 
si es mas q. yndio lo q. mas tiene es de mulata aunq. yndia parece." 

Inquisicion 372, Exp. 16, and Inquisicion 372, Exp. 19. 

42. (a) ". . . estas dos dona beatriz de los angeles Y juana de la cruz la 
m e es yndia ladina mexicana mui espanolada y q. la conozco casado con el alferes Ju 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 225 

to characterize several of their accusers as themselves 
shameless and wanton. He was outspoken concerning the 
female members of the Griego-Bernal family, sisters-inlaw 
of Juana/ 3 for it was true that they had a hearty personal 
dislike for her and denounced her, and yet were themselves 
guilty of immorality and of superstitious practices. 

The incidents which have been related above, including 
the case of Luis de Rivera, may appear, at first, to be trivial 
and not deserving of such detailed description. But no stu- 
dent who has made a study of society in New Spain can 
doubt that one of the significant phases of colonial life was 
the prevalence of superstition and the widespread belief in 
demons and sorcerers. The contact of European and ab- 
original peoples and modes of life was not a one-sided affair, 
with the Indian alone being changed and his manner of life 
transformed. Too little study has been devoted to the influ- 
ence of the Indian on the European, and to his contribution 
to colonial life. His contribution was more than the flesh 
and blood which he fused with the flesh and blood of his 
conqueror; more than the labor exploited by his new mas- 
ters, whether on the farms or in the mines, or in erecting 
public buildings and thousands of churches. The Indian 
made his imprint also on the non-material elements of 



43. "Maria bfrr.al q. dodara es de desonesta opinion y mucho mestica e 
castica hija de griego y de mestica ; y es . cunada de la juana de la cruz." Tnqui- 
sieion 372, Exp. 19. 

de la cruz ueinte y tantos anos a y biuda agora q. bibio dos leguas de este conbento 
muchos anos y sienpre decir era muger de gran caridad y buena Xptiana: y agora 
de cuatro a cinco anos a esta p le suena publicam te lo q. della y de su hija Ju a de la 
cruz ua actuado." Inquisicion 372, Exp. 19. 

(b) "Esta Juana de la crus es mestica hija de dona beatris de log Angeles 
yndia mexicana mui ladina y espanolada y del alferes Ju de la cruz y al fin jente 
criada entre indios y hija de yndia ... y en esta uilla casi todos las tienen a madre 
y a hija en opinion de hechiceras." Inquisici6n 372, Exp. 16 

(c) "estas dos declarantes Ana de bustillos y dona catalina de bustillos son 
hermanas y cstan en opinion de mui buenas Xpianas y asi las conosco mas a de 
ueinte anos y en la misma opinion tuue siempre a la dona beatris de los Angeles q. 
aunq. es yndia mexicana se trata a lo espanol mas a de ueinte a s q. la conosco aunq. 
de poca aca se dicen tantas cosas como se le ponen q. entonces no se auia descubierto 
ning" y como la facilidad en el ablar y poca uerdad es aqui tanto no se q. desir q. 
la ordinaria murmuracion y mentira es lo q. mas luce." Tbid. 



226 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

colonial culture, even on the intellectual and moral qualities 
of colonial society and its view of life. Throughout the 
length and breadth of New Spain Indian influences were 
powerful and readily discernible. The incidents that have 
been described in this chapter are an example of what was 
taking place everywhere. Benavides found similar condi- 
tions in the Santa Barbara Valley in New Biscay when he 
took testimony there in 1626,* 4 and the Inquisition records 
are full of this sort of thing for the whole of Mexico. Not 
only do they contain numerous cases dealing specifically 
with sorcery and superstition, but shot through the trial 
records of persons accused on other charges there is a vast 
amount of incidental evidence that is equally illuminating. 
Here are the materials for another chapter in the history of 
witchcraft, demonology, and superstition in America, and 
it will be interesting to compare the record of Mexico and 
the Mexican Inquisition with the record of Salem. To the 
glory of Perea, he had a sense of proportion and a healthy 
skepticism, at least concerning conditions that did not en- 
danger the essential rights of the Church as a corporate in- 
stitution or the honor of its ministers. And it may be noted 
in leaving the subject that Beatriz and Juana were never 
tried. 

F. THREE MINOR INVESTIGATIONS 

There are three minor investigations which were 
made by Perea between 1631 and 1635 that deserve passing 
notice. One dealt with a case of denial of ecclesiastical 
immunity, and the other two were cases of bigamy. 

The first investigation concerned Caspar Perez, citizen 
of Santa Fe. Perez was a Fleming who had enlisted for 
service in New Mexico as armorer to the soldiers. He had 
married a daughter of one of the first settlers of the province 
and in 1630-1631 he held the office of procurator or attorney 
for the Villa de Santa Fe. Thus he had acquired a certain 



44. A. G. M., Inqmsici6n, Tomo 356. ff. 318-370. 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 227 

social and politico-military prominence which gave him a 
noticeable measure of self esteem with which he combined no 
great respect for the clergy. 

According to Perea he was noted for the violence of his 
speech and actions, 45 and this reputation was justified by 
remarks ascribed to him by persons who testified before 
Perea in 163 1.' 6 One of the witnesses, Friar Tomas de San 
Diego, described a conversation which took place in the pres- 
ence of himself and the governor and cabildo of Santa Fe in 
which Perez made certain strong and suspect statements. 
Perez stated that as procurator of the Cabildo he intended to 
present petitions to the governor complaining of the friars 
and their actions. Father San Diego promptly met the chal- 
lenge implied in this statement by reminding Perez that he 
had no authority to present complaints concerning clergy 
before a civil judge, for only the custodian had jurisdiction 
over them. Whereupon Perez replied firmly that he fully in- 
tended to present the charges, "because the governor was 
absolutely the judge of the friars and could punish them and 
hang them." To this serious charge the friar added 
a statement that it was the general opinion of the villa that 
Perez had no fear of God, for he made no distinction between 
work days and feast days. After all, he was a Fleming, 
and that was enough to make him suspect in the faith. 47 

Whether Perez ever made such formal complaints to the 
governor is not known. But he gave vent to his displeasure 
at Father San Diego by petitioning the Father Custodian, 
Friar Juan de Salas, to remove Father San Diego from his 
post as guardian of the Santa Fe convent. Salas asked 



45. "El dicho gaspar peres es flamenco, y le conosco en esta tierra mas a de 
ueinte anos la opinion q. tiene es de mui precipitado en el hablar como furioso q. 
se enboracha de colera y los q. lo an acompanado a mexico desde aqui dicen q. 
tambien con vino se enbriaga no es nada conpuesto en lo de dios." Inquisicion 
372, Exp. 19. 

46. Five witnesses were questioned concerning the actions of Perez, two of 
them friars and three laymen. The friars and one of the laymen gave definite tes- 
timony, but two of the laymen refused to make definite charges or accusations. 
Perea, commenting on these two witnesses, stated that one of them, Antonio Baca, 
had a reputation for not telling the truth, and that the other, Matias Romero, was 
Perez' brother-in-law. Inquisici6n 872, Exp. 19. 

47. Declaration of Friar Tomas de San Dieg-o. March 23, 1631. Ibid. 



228 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Perez what caused him to make such a request. Was not 
Father San Diego an exemplary friar who taught his flock 
and administered the sacraments in a satisfactory manner? 
To which Perez replied that the friar was a good man but he 
preached "crazy and drunken things." 48 

There the story ends. Perea sent the testimony to the 
Holy Office, but there is no evidence that the tribunal ever 
took action. 

The second case involved a mulatto named Juan Anton 41 
who had migrated from New Biscay to New Mexico, and in 
Santa Fe had married a Mexican Indian named Ana Maria. 
In the summer of 1633 two soldiers, Tome Dominguez de 
Mendoza and Hernan Martin, who had recently made a trip 
to Mexico City and return, informed Father Perea that 
when they had been in Cuencame in New Biscay they had 
learned that Juan Anton was married to a negress of that 
town, a slave. Both witnesses said they had seen this 
woman, and Hernan Martin stated that she had four or five 
children of whom Juan Anton was said to be the father. 

Juan Anton heard that his crime was known, and fled 
from the province. When Father Perea transmitted the two 
sworn declarations to the Holy Office, he informed the tri- 
bunal that he had instructed the bearer of the dispatch, 
Tome Dominguez de Mendoza, one of the two witnesses, to 
learn what he could about Juan Anton when he passed 
through Cuencame and Parral on his way to Mexico City. 
The Holy Office, having received the papers, instructed 
Perea on June 30, 1634, to present formal proof of Juan 
Anton's marriage in Santa Fe to Ana Maria, the Indian. 
The following February Perea complied with this order and 
transmitted all the substantiating papers. The records end 
at this point. 



48. Declaration of Friar Juan de Salas, March 26, 1631. Ibid. 

49. Del Comiss del Nueuo Mex co con una ynform on contra Juan Anton Mulatoo 
por casado dos veces. A. G. M., Inquisicion, Tomo 380, ff. 348-357. 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 229 

The facts of the last investigation may be stated 
briefly. 50 Juan Lopez, native of Cartagena, an ex-soldier of 
the Havana garrison, enlisted in Zacatecas in 1633 with ten 
other soldiers for a year's service in New Mexico. On the 
way to New Mexico in the autumn of 1633, the new recruits 
were told by their leader, Sargento Mayor Francisco Gomez, 
that at the end of their year of service the married men 
would return, but that bachelors would be expected to remain 
in New Mexico and marry. Juan Lopez was reported to 
have said that he would return to New Spain because he was 
married to a woman in Havana, and he was said to have 
repeated these statements after his arrival in Santa Fe. But 
he shortly made the acquaintance of a Santa Fe girl, Ines 
de Zamora, daughter of Alferez Diego de Montoya, and on 
February 27, 1634, they were married. About a month later 
Governor Mora Ceballos appeared before Father Perea and 
testified that there were rumors that Lopez was guilty of 
bigamy. Perea summoned several of Lopez' soldier associ- 
ates who deposed that prior to Lopez' marriage they had 
reminded him of his former statements, and that he had said 
they had been made in jest, for he was really not married. 
These declarations, together with formal proof of Lopez' 
marriage in Santa Fe, were dispatched by Perea to the 
Holy Office in Mexico City. No formal action appears to 
have been taken by that tribunal. 



50. Ynforma 0n del matrim de Joan Lopz Soldado, con Ynes de Zamora en el 
nueuo Mex' . A G. M.. Inquisicion. Tomo 380. ff. 238-247. 



230 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

APPENDIX 

I. HERBS, POWDERS, POTIONS, ETC. 

(a) ". . . Fran c * cadimo . . . dice y denuncia de si mesma q. abra 
ocho anos poco mas o menos q. estando en su casa q. era la de Ju 
lopes olguin en la qual estaba tambien dona beatris de los anjeles y 
estando la dicha dona beatris de los anjeles con otra muxer q. no save 
quien era en la cosina de la dicha casa y iendo esta declarante a 
entrar oio q. la dona beatris de los anjeles estaba diciendo q. tomando 
una rrais blanca i traiendola en la boca con una piedresilla i mascando 
la rrais i untandose los pechos con ella i quando pasase su amigp tiran- 
dole de secreto aq'lla piedresilla aria q. la quisiese mucho i no la 
dexaria . . . i. q. esta declarante procure aq'lla yerba i la allo atada en 
un trapillo en la misma casa i la masco i le unto con ella el cuerpo i 
tomo una piedresilla i la traia en la boca i la tiro a un ombre con 
quien tenia amistad pero q. no le aprobecho." Declaration of Fran- 
cica Cadimo, June 23, 1631. Inquisicion 372, Exp. 19. 

(b) "... Juana de la cruz . . . dixo . . . como abra quatro a s poco 
mas o menos que estando en casa de su suegro Juan griego el uiexo 
con sus cunadas desta declarante catalina uernal mujer de Juan duran 
y Juana bernal mujer de diego de moraga estando alii tamuien con 
ellas vna yndia de nacion teguas llamada ana criada de esta declarante 
les dixo la dicha yndia a todas tres quereis que os de vnos poluos para 
que vuestros maridos os quieran mas y que todas respondieron que si 
para uer en que paraua aquel enbuste y que la yndia les dio los dichos 
poluos a todas tres que heran unos poluos blancos que dixo que hech- 
andolos en la comida a sus maridos los querian mas pero que ellas no 
se los dieron a sus maridos sino que los hecharon en vnos ojaldros y se 
los comieron ellas." Declaration of Juana de la Cruz, June 29, 1631. 
Ibid. 

(c) "Juana Sanches, mulata, muxer del capitan Ju gomes . . . 
dice mas esta declarante q. abra 5 o 6 anos poco mas o menos q. le 
dixo a una india teguas del pueblo de S. Ju q. le diese algunas ierbas 

alguna otra Cosa p a q. su marido no la maltratase por q. la aporreaba 

1 p' q. dexase la manseba y mala amistad q. tenia i lo quiciese a ella y 
q. la india le dio unas raises amarillas y dos granos de maises asul con 
las puntas del corasonito blancas bueltos asia dentro y q. este mais le 
mascase y con el untase el pecho y corason a su marido i q. tubiese las 
ierbas en la mano q do llegase su marido a ella y q. tambien mascase las 
dichas ierbas i untase pecho i corason a su marido q. con eso la queria 
Men i aborreseria a su manseba y q. lo hiso dos veses i q. no aprovecho. 
dice mas esta declarante q. abra sinco o seis anos poco mas o menos q. 
su ermana Ju* de los rreies le dixo si sabia alguna cosa de ierbas o 
raises o otra cosa q. diese a su marido p* q. dexase a su manceba y la 
quisiese a ella y q. esta declarante le dixo q. una india le avia dado 
aquellas raices y granos de mais p* untar a su propio marido i q. 
hiziese ella lo mesmo i le dio la dicha rais i mais i lo hiso la dicha su 
hermana y q. no le aprovecho antes rino a esta declarante porq. se 
los avia dado." Declaration of Juana Sanchez, June 22, 1631. Inquisi- 
cion 372, Exp. 16. 

(d) "Ju* de los reies mulata muxer de Albarp garcia mulato . . . 
dice y denuncia . . . q. estando esta decalrante mui triste viendo q. su 
marido andaba amansebado y q. no asia caso della y viendola asi una 
hermana q. tiene llamada Ju' Sanches muxer del capitan Ju gomes le 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 231 

dixo a esta declarante q. ella tenia una ierba q. le a via dado una India 
q. era bueno para tales ocasiones y se la dio a esta declarante con tres 
o quatro granos de mais los quales granos tenian el corason buelto asia 
arriba q. eran buenos para tales ocasiones i q. lo moliese y lo echase en 
dos veses en la comida i q. le untase tambien con el el pecho q. con eso 
la q'rria mucho y se olbidaria de sus vicios q. ella lo hiso i se lo dio una 
ves en la comida y q'iendole ella a untar el pecho una ves lo sintio su 
marido q. estaba dispierto y aparto la mano y lo dexo y como no tubo 
efecto lo dexo a dios q. lo remediase y q. p* el mesmo efecto auia traido 
quatro o sinco dias la ierba consigo en el pecho . . . dice mas esta 
declarante q. tambien le dixo la dicha india q. se chupase los dos dedos 
grandes de la mano q. llaman del corason y despues de chuparlos 
aq'lla saliba se la hechase a su marido en la comida y q. la q'rria bien 
y aborreseria la manseba i q. lo hiso esta declarante una bes i no 
quiso hacerlo mas por q. le dio asco i q. no tubieron efecto ninguno 
estas diligencias q. hizo." Declaration of Juana de los Reyes, June 21, 
1631. Ibid. 

(e) "Dice mas esta declarante q. abra 4 dias q. m* viuda de 
gaspar de aratia le dixo a esta declarante q. una india criada de m* 
vernal viuda de Ju gomes barragan le dijo q. su ama la dicha maria 
vernal asia lo mesmo proq. enbiaba a espiar donde se proveia fran* 
gomes de torres con quien estaba amansebada a sus criadas i luego 
iba ella i quitaba la susiedad de ensima y cojia aq'lla tierra mojada 
y se la daba en la comida al dicho fran co gomes de torres porq. la 
quisiese y olbidase a su mujer y q. tambien le avia dado o puesto una 
ierba entre los aforros de la cuera para q. la quisiese y no la dexase." 
Declaration of Petronilla de Samora, March 25, 1631. Ibid. 

(f ) "Dice mas esta declarante q. en aquel dia una india curiada 
de al gutierrez estando esta declarante en casa del capitan Ju gomes 
le dixo a esta declarante q. tomase los orines de su marido i se los 
enbiase q. con ellos aria ella un mescla q. puesta en el marco de la 
puerta de la manseba de su marido seria causa p* q. la aborresiese 
y dexase y no entrase mas alia." Declaration of Maria de la Vega 
Marquez, June 22, 1631. Ibid. 

(g) "beatris de pedrasa . . . dice q. abra dos anos i medio poco 
mas o menos q. vieniendo de mex co su marido de esta declarante y 
estando ella temorosa no la maltratase por q. aviendola dexado en una 
estancia f uera de esta villa q do se iba a mex co ella le bolbio a esta villa 
en casa de su m e y hermanas y estando asi temerosa en su casa con 
su marido el qual tambien estaba melancolico y triste por lo dicho 
entro en su casa esta declarante a visitarla Ju a Sanches mulata muxer 
del capitan Ju gomes y viendo triste a esta declarante la dixo q. si 
q'ria q. la daria una ierba q. mascndola y untandola a su marido los 
pechos quando se acostase y untandose asi mesmo los pechos i teniendo 
un grano de mais en la voca toda la noche y por la manana mascar 
el grano de mais i tragarlo q. asiendo esto tres noches y despues de 
averlo untado bolbiendo las espaldas a su marido con estas cosas se le 
bplberia el corason y no le acordaria de nada i q. la q'rria y trataria 
bien porq. asi lo avia ella hecho con su hermana Ju" de Los rreies 
muxer del capitan albaro garcia q. le avia dado tambien la ierba y la 
traia siempre en el seno y q. esta es la verdad." Declaration of Beatris 
de Pedrasa, June 21, 1632. Ibid. 



232 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

(h) "dice mas esta declarante q. abra dies o dose anos poco mas 
o menos q. estando ella en su casa la entro a visitar dona beatris delos 
angeles india ladina mexicana espanolada muxer del alferez Ju de la 
cms i. q. viendo a esta declarante triste por q. su marido la maltrata 
le dixo q. tomase unos gusanos q. llaman gallinas siegas q. viuen en 
el estiercol y q. los tostase: los echase en la comida a su marido i q. 
con eso la q'rria mucho i no le andaria aporreando i q esta declarante 
se los echo en la comida a su marido i q. no le aprovecho." Declaration 
of Juana Sanchez, June 22, 1631. Ibid. 

II. PEYOTB 

(a) ". . . ana cadimo . . . dice y denuncia de si mesma q. un afio 
a poco mas o menos q. diciendole los indios y una india mexicana lla- 
mada fran c * muxer de domingo Sombrerero indio mexicano q. estaba 
enechisada y q. tomase el peiote i con el veria a quien le avia enechi- 
sado y hecho mal, q. viendolo sanaria luego y veria tambien el echiso 
y donde estaba y q. la dicha india mexicana se ofresio a darselo si lo 
tubiera pero porq. no lo tenia ella dixo a esta declarante q. buscase un 
indio q. se lo diese y asi busco un indio biexo de san marcos de nacion 
q'res el qual tomo lio i dio a vever con un poco de agua a esta declar- 
ante y q. de oido no hiso efecto ni en la salud ni en lo demas q. desian y 
q. por no saver q. avia descomunion no se avia acusado antes. Dice 
mas esta declarante q. abra dos o tres afios q. una india tegua del 
pueblo de S. ildefonso llamada fran ca laphitana le dio a vever otras 
ierbas desechas en un Jumate de agua dos noches pero q. prim q. la 
india se lo diese a vever asia algunas seremonias i conjures y contaba y 
daba a entender con los modos y visajes q. hacia q. veia algunos 
viciones en el agua i q. a lo q. veia en el agua a eso asia la musica y 
ablaba y luego se lo daba a Sever a esta declarante diciendole q. con 
aq'llo sanaria y q. no sabe otra cosa mas de q. agora dos anos esta 
mesma india mexicana se desia publicam tc en esta villa q. avia tornado 
el peiote p a ver quien venia de tierra de pas i q. esta es la verdad." 
Declaration of Ana Cadimo, March 25, 1631. Ibid. 

(b) ". . . Luis Pacheco soldado y vesino de la Villa de Santa Fee 
. . . declare para descargo de su conciencia que a dies de diciembre del 
ano pasado de 1631 estando en las estancias de las guertas en casa de 
Juan Anton mulato marido de Ana mexicana ladina, y estando pre- 
sente Jusepe indio ladino de nacion queres interprete o naguatato del 
padre Fray Christobal de Quiros guardian del pueblo de San Felipe, 
abiendo un criado deste declarante caido i quebradose un braso y 
estandole cosiendo una bilma que ponelle, dixo el dicho declarante: si 
tubieramos aqui un poco de peiote era mui bueno para esto, i que 
respondio el dicho Juan Anton el peiote no solo es bueno para esto sino 
para hallar cosas hurtadas, que estando yo en las minas de mapimi en 
la nueya espafia aviendole a una criada mia y a un indio hurtadole un 
faldellin i otro rropa i al indio unas f resadas i andandolo a buscar i no 
lo hallando, tome seis o siete cabesas o raises de peiote i molido lo 
bebi, i despues me meti en un aposento i se me aparecio un biexo i una 
biexa i me pregunto que pena tenia, i le respondi que havian jurtado 
aquella rropa y me respondio no tengas pena anda ve a tal parte que 
alii la hallaras y fui yo i el indio a quien abian hurtado las fresadas i 
hallamos a un indio que tenia la ropa i se la quitamos." Declaration of 
Luis Pacheco, September 21, 1632. Inquisicion 304. 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 233 

III. WITCHCRAFT 

(a) ". . . m* nufiez muger de fran co marques soldado y moradores 
del pueblo de n r * S* del socorRo de la prouincia de los piros . . . dise 
y denuncia que abra cuatro u cinco a 8 que estando su her 00 desta 
declarante diego uellido muy enfermo de la enfermedad que murio le 
dijo Vna y mas beses a esta declarante que entendia que su mal hera 
hechiso por que ninguna medecina le aprouechaua Y que le parecia que 
le prosedia de que estando vna bes en la estancia de dona beatris de los 
anjeles Yndia ladina mexicana muy espanolada Y uiuda del alferes 
Juan de la cruz con quien el dicho diego uellido Andaua amanseuado. Y 
auiendole el proReado por algunas cosas Y estando de partida para irse 
a la V tt de S ta fe ella le dio de almorsar Vn poco de atole y leche Yauien- 
dole comido se partio luego Y que apenas auia andado una legua poco 
mas o menos se sentio con tan gran dolor de uariga que parecia que 
peros se la comia y sintiendose tal se boluio otra ues a la estancia Y se 
reconcilio con ella i yso las amistades con lo qual ella le dio luego a 
beuer vn caxete de aseite y suuio a cauallo y se partio otra ues Y a 
poco trecho de camino se apeo a proueerse y lo que hecho en la camara 
fueron muchos gusanos colorados uiuos con lo qual descanso Y que 
dentro de alii algunos dias Boluio otra ues a la estancia de la dicha 
dona ueatris de los anjeles, en la qual allo muy enfermo muy al cauo 
a vn criado della que se llamaua antonuelo muy podrido Y comida la 
canpanilla que si comia algo se aogaua con ello y lo hechaua por las 
narises. Y que le dixo el dicho diego uellido que porque no se con- 
f esaua y ponia uien con dios que algun dia auia de hamaneser haogado. 
A lo qual le respondio el indio Que por que no se confesaua el que 
tamuien estaua de la misma enfermedad enfermo que quien a el le 
tenia asi a la muerte enechisado la tenia tamuien enechisado a el 
dicho diego uellido Y que de alii algunos dias boluiendo otra ues a la 
estancia el dicho diego uellido le dijo vna criada de la dicha dona 
ueatris de los anjeles llamada felepilla Y muy ladina en castellano, 
senor conp e mucha lastima le tengo de uerle enhechisado. Y que le 
respondio el dicho diego uellido como lo sauia a lo qual respondio la 
dicha felipilla que ella lo sauia muy bien que su senora dona beatris 
de los anjeles lo auia enhechisado Y que esto se lo dixo dos ueses por 
muy cierto. Y que ella auia uisto a su senora traer al Cuello vna 
figura de uaro del mismo modo y figura del mismo diego uellido por 
que la quisiese y boluiese a su amistad y por que el no quiso boluer a 
su amistad hella lo enehechiso y despues desto pocos dias comenso a 
enfermar el dicho diego uellido y a enchirse todo el cuerpo de llagas y 
la garganta asta comerse la canpanilla ni mas ni menos como estaua 
el indio que se lo auia dicho y dentro de pocos dias sin uastar medecina 
ninguna uino a morir dello. Y dise mas este declarante que tamuien 
oyo decir a dofia M* de archuleta que pancho Valon yndio ladino mexi- 
cano herero auia muerto henechisado que lo enechiso la dicha dona 
ueatris delos Anjeles en vna panocha que la auia dado a comer por 
que tamuien el dicho pancho ualon auia andado amanseuado con ella Y 
que el dicho pancho ualon estando enfermo de la enfermedad que 
murio se lo auia dicho asi a la dicha dona m a de archuleta. Declaration 
of Maria Nunez, October 14, 1631. Inquisicion 372, Exp. 19. 

(b) ". . . y dixo mas la dicha declarante q. el mesmo diego 
bellido le dixo q. un criado dela dicha dona beatris de los anjeles 
llamado antonuelo le dixo q. su ama lo avia hechisado q. era la dicha 
dona beatris y q. tambien avia enechisado al dicho criado p* probar el 



234 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

echiso si tenia efecto y q. otra criada de la dicha dona beatris de los 
anjeles llamada filipilla le dixo al dicho diego vellido q. su ama la dicha 
dona beatris lo avia echisado y puesto los echisos en unos idolos y 
enterradolos en un fog'on el un echiso del dicho diego vellido y otro de 
una india i q. q'riendo ella desenterrar los idolos de los echisos sintio 
q. venia su ama y por darle priesa por sacar el echiso de diego bellido 
fue siempre enfermando mas asta q. murio y dixo mas esta declarante 
q. el dicho diego vellido le dixo q. su echiso, avia echado la dicha dona 
beatris de los angeles en un ormiguero por lo qual el se iba comiendo de 
llagas." Declaration of Catalina de Bustillos, March 26, 1631. Inqui- 
sicion 372, Exp. 16. 

(c) "... catalina vernal muxer de Ju duran Soldado y vesinos 
de esta villa . . . dixo mas esta declarante q. abra tres o 4 anos q. 
estando enf ermo en esta villa her do Sambrano lo fue esta declarante a 
visitar y le conto el mesmo enfermo a esta declarante y a otros q. 
presentes estaban q. era fran co marq. y su muxer y P marq z q. temia 
q. le avian dado algun bocadp en un caxete de leche por q. estando en 
la canada en casa de Ju griego estando alii ju* de la crus muxer de 
Ju griego el moso con la qual tenia amistad sospechosa el dicho her de 
Sambrano y por siertas Causas la avia aporreado y ya q. el estaba 
ensillando su caballo p* venirse a esta Villa la dicha ju* de la crus le 
llamo q. fuese a merendar i le dio a comer un caxete de leche con 
mucha nata y asi como lo comio se sintio luego malo de dolor de 
estomago q. viniendose a esta villa por el camino vino vabiando i se 
echo luego en la cama de la cual nunca mas se lebanto porq. siempre 
fue enpeorando asta q. murio y q. no sabe otra cosa." Declaration of 
Catalina Bernal, March 25, 1631. Ibid. 

(d) ". . . Juliana de bustillos muxer de bias de miranda soldado 
a la qual preguntado si save o presume la causa por q. a sido llamado 
dixo q. presume sera p a saver de ella lo q. oio desir a catalina vernal 
muxer de Ju duran lo qual paso anci q. abra un ano poco mas o menos 
q. un dia por la manana entro la dicha catalina vernal en casa de esta 
declarante la qual estaba con sus primas dona m* de archuleta y dona 
lucia de archuleta i q. a todas tres les dijo la dicha Catalina vernal 
sin q. nadie se lo preguntase como estando ella acostada en una mesma 
cama con su hermana Ju a vernal muxer de diego de moraga i con su 
cuiiada Ju* de la crus muxer de su her 00 Ju griego todas tres en una 
cama la Ju* de la cruz en medio i q. no savia q. hora de la noche la 
dicha ju* de la crus las desperto diciendoles manitas dormis q. dis- 
pertando ellas le dixeron de donde bienes q. respondio la dicha Ju* de 
la crus vengo de la canada q. es seis leguas de aqui de ver a hernando 
hi jo de hernan martin q. me dixeron q. estaba con otra i fui a ver si 
era assi i lo allo dormido i solo i le tento todo el cuerpo i sin desper- 
tarlo de avia buelto le pregunto la dicha catalina vernal pues como 
fuiste a la qual respondio la dicha Ju a de la crus fui en un huebo." 
Declaration of Juliana de Bustillos, June 23, 1632. Inquisicion 372, 
Exp. 19. 

(e) "... catalina vernal muxer de Ju duran Soldado y vesinos 
de esta villa . . . fue la dicha si save o a oido desir q. alguna persona 
q. estaba en su compania por modo de hechisos auia ido de noche sobre 
un huebo aser a alguna persona q. quisiese bien dixo q. no lo sabe 
ni a oido desir tal cosa fuele dicho mas q. en esta S to offi ai informa- 
sion de q. en su mesma casa estando esta declarante acostada con 
otra muxer en una mesma cama la otra dexando a esta declarante en 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 235 

la cama se avia ido cabellera en un huebo a ver a sierto hombre q. 
q'ria bien y q. aviendolo visto y dexandolo durmiendo se bolbio otra 
ves a la cama con esta declarante la qual viendola llegar tan fria le 
dixo de donde venia y tan elada i. q., le avia respondido q. de la 
Canada benia de ver a un hombre q. q'ria bien i q. esta declarante le 
avia dicho q. como avia ido y buelto tan presto q. le avia respondido 
q. avia ido cabaUera en un huebo todo lo qual disc esta declarante q. 
no lo sabe i q. es mentira Salbo q. lo q. dicen de esta q. f ue caballera en 
un huebo nunca tal supo sino q. no save a quales ni q. personas oio 
desir q. la dicha dona beatris de Los angeles avia ido metida en un 
huebo desde esta villa asta el pueblo de Senecu q. ai 50 leguas donde 
estaba la dicha dona m a granillo enferma y q. alii la dicha dona beatris 
y otras bruxas jugaron con la enferma dona m* granillo a la pelota y 
q. desde entonses fue mexorando la dicha dona m a enferma y q. esta 
no save con fundamento p* poderlo afirmar sino q. lo tiene por quentp 
y mentira." Declaration of Catalina Bernal, March 25, 1631. Inquisi- 
cion 372, Exp. 16. 

(f) ". . . Capitan Bartolome Romero alcalde ordinario de la 
villa de Santa Fee . . . dixo, que abra tiempo de seis meses que pario 
su muger y del parto ha quedado sin salud, y por dicho de quien lo 
entiende es bocado que le an dado, y tiene sospecha este declarante que 
ha sido por mano y orden de Juana de la Crus muger de Juan Griego 
vesina de la Villa de Santa Fee por aver prometido vengarse del dicho 
Capitan Bartolome Romero por ciertas cosas que entre los dos pasaron 
y que se persuade es por mano de la dicha juana de la Crus por aver 
prometido vengarse del, y por la publica vos y fama que ay de que 
dicha y su madre son hechiseras y an enhechisado a algunas personas 
. . . y avra cosa de un mes que viniendo este deolarante por la misma 
estancia que ya es de Juan Maesse que la tiene a su cargo, y la dicha 
dona Beatris vive en la villa de Santa Fee, dixo el dicho Juan Maesse 
en la dicha villa a este declarante por lo que se trata publicamente de 
que la dicha dona Beatris es hechisera que en un arbol de la dicha 
estancia hallo colgada una figura de barro retrato mui parecido al 
dicho Diego Bellido defunto y que sabe le tenia alii enechisado por 
averselo dicho Andres de Villavicipsa vesino de la dicha Villa a quien 
lo dixo Felipa india ladina, que dicho estava enhechisada de la dicha 
dona Beatris y que la dicha Felipa la avia visto sahumar la dicha 
figura de barro del dicho Diego Bellido y la dicha Felipa murio del 
mismo hechiso, siendo muger de Diego de Santiago vesino desta villa, y 
estas cosas todas las sabe tambien la muger del dicho Andres de 
Villaviciosa y Francisco Marques y Juan Duran y su muger, y asi 
mismo dise este declarante que tiene a su muger en el pueblo de 
Senecu a donde la esta curando el padre Fray Jeronimo de Pedrasa y 
que yendo a verla avra quinse dias supo como estando la dicha su 
muger durmiendo en compania de su madre y de su abuela, comenzo 
a gritar y acudiendo con candela encendida a verla su madre y abuela 
la hallaron en el suelo fuera de la cama y dixo como no sabia quien 
la cogio y la alzo en el aire y la dexo caer en el suelo fuera de la cama 
y su madre y su abuela que dormian en el mismo aposento no vieron a 
nadie y sospecha este declarante que por lo pasado es algun hechiso de 
la dicha dona Beatris y su hija Juana de la Crus que prometio ven- 
garse del, asi mismo dise este declarante que viniendo agora quatro o 
sinco dias ha por la estancia del Capitan Alonso Varela que esta en la 
sienaga, hablo este declarante con dona Catalina muger del dicho 
Capitan Alonso Varela la qual tratando del mal de la muger deste 



236 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

declarante y de la sospecha que se tiene de que es echiso de la dicha 
dona Beatris dixo a este declarante la dicha dona Catalina como la 
dicha dona Beatris al tiempo que Pancho Balon indio mexicano her- 
rero se quiso casar con Ines india ladina criada de la dicha dona Cata- 
lina que la dicha dona Beatris le embio a desir a la india Ines que no 
se casase con el dicho Pancho Balon por que si se casava que no lo avia 
de gosar y al fin se hiso el casamiento y asi como se casaron luego el 
dicho Pancho Balon estubo malo y no vivio un aiio y la dicha india 
Ines tambien esta medio tullida y que asi entiende que la dicha dona 
Beatris la enechiso y mato a su marido como se lo embio a desir." 
Declaration of Captain Bartolome Romero, September 26, 1628, 
Inquisicion 304. 

(g) ". . . isabel de cabanillos muxer de diego martin Soldado . . . 
Y dice mas esta declarante q. despues q. murio el dicho diego vellido 
oio desir a lucia de mantoia muxer de diego de texeda q. se f ue a vivir 
a aq'lla estancia i q. Ju maese Soldado q. se fue a vivir a la dicha 
estancia Tambien con ella hallo colgado de un arbol con una trenza 
de pita una figura de hombre hecha de barro q. se parecia al dicho 
diego vellido i q. gritaba la dicha figura i q. la cojio el dicho Ju maese 
y la hecho en el rrio." Declaration of Isabel de Cabanillos, June 22, 
1631. Inquisicion 372, Exp. 19. 

(h) ". . . el alferes Pedro Marques vezino de la villa de Santa 
Fee . . . juro y dixo . . . que una india ladina Felipa le dixo a este 
declarante siendo viva como la dicha dona Beatris tenia enhechisado al 
dicho Diego Bellido en una figura de barro muy parecida al dicho 
Diego Bellido con unas espinas metidas por todas las coyunturas por 
que penara mas y el dicho Diego Bellido avia dicho a este declarante 
como esta mesma india Felipa y otro indio avian muerto tambien 
enhechisados por la dicha dona Beatris, y todo esto es publica vos y 
fama, y la dicha Felipa difunta dixo a este declarante como tanbien 
quierian enhechisar a otra india llamada Catalina que esta en servicio 
deste declarante y que la dicha Felipa le quito y escondio la figura a 
medio hazer que la iba haziendo la dicha dona Beatris y que por eso no 
la acabo de enechisar." Declaration of Pedro Marques, Oct. 2, 1628. 
Inquisicion 304. 

(i) "Sarjento Ju maese de edad de 28 anos poco mas o menos al 
qual preguntado si saue o presume la causa para q. a sido llamado 
dixo q. le parece q. sera p* saver del de una figura q. hallo colgada en 
un alamo en su estancia de los tiguas lo qual paso ansi q. abra 3 anos 
poco mas o menos y estando en su estancia de los tiguas morada q. avia 
sido de dona beatris delos anjeles india Mex ca un dia sobre tarde 
viniendo un pastor suio q. se llamaba gasparillo con el ganado a en- 
serrarlo al corral, traxo en un palillo una lagartixa seca colgada por el 
cuello con una trensa de pita y se la dio a su muxer de este declarante 
y ella se la dio a el y ella y el pastorcillo le dixeron q. la auia allado 
colgada en un alamo y q. era lagartija seca y no figura de hombre ni 
con ninguna mescla como se a publicado." Declaration of Juan Maese, 
June 24, 1631. Inquisicion 372, Exp. 19. 

(j) " petronilla de samora muxer del capitan p lucero de go- 
doi . . . dice mas esta declarante q. abra 3, anos poco mas o menos q. es- 
tando en casa de Sebastian gonsales Soldado donde estaban tres hijos 
de Ju griego maria vernal yiuda isabel bernal muxer de sevastian gon- 
sales Ju* vernal muxer de diego de moraga y todas tres le dixeron a esta 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 237 

declarante q. Ju* dela cms cunada de ella y muxer de su her 00 Ju 
griego era hechisera y q. avia puesto no sabe q. en el rostro a un hi jo 
de Sebastian gonsales peq'nito conq. le hiso criar fuego o arestin y q. 
estubo enfermo el nino todo un ano pero tambien dice esta declarante 
q. en aq'lla ocasion q. se lo dixeron estavan rrenidos los tres her 008 
con su cunada Ju a dela cms." Declaration of Petronilla de Samora, 
March 25, 1631. Inquisicion 372, Exp. 16. 

(k) ". . . m a de archuleta . . . viuda del alferes Ju marques . . . 
y dixo mas esta declarante q. estando malo en la cama fran 00 balon 
herrero mexicano yendole esta declarante a visitar le dixo el dicho 
fran co balon q. dona beatris delos angeles india mexicana ladina viuda 
del alferes Ju dela crus por selos de otra le avia dado bocado en una 
panocha de q. estaba enfermo y q. aunq. es verdad q. mejoraba algo i 
se lebantaba volbio a rrecaer asta dello murio." Declaration of Maria 
de Archuleta, March 25, 1631. Ibid. 

(1) ". . . Catalina Vernal muger de Ju duran vesinos desta V* 
y ella hija de Ju griego y de pasquala bernal ya difunta Vesinos desta 
Villa de edad que dijo ser de quinse a 8 la qual por descargo de su 
conciencia declara y denuncia que abra tiempo de dos meses y en este 
inbierno que estando esta declarante en su casa llego alii a ablar con 
ella porque bibia alii tanbien una cunada suya llamada Ju* de la Cruz, 
hija de Ju de la cruz ya difunto Catalan de nacion y de dona beatris 
india natural de la nueua espana que hoy bibe y la dicha ju* de la 
Cruz es muger de Ju griego el moso her desta declarante la qual 
dicha ju" de la Cruz en el tiempo y lugar ariba rreferido dijo a esta 
declarante tratando de irse a bafiar al temascal las dos que no fuesen 
sino que alii se queria bafiar en una hartesa, y no queriendo esta 
declarante se bano sola la dicha ju* de la Cruz en presencia desta 
declarante y saco de su propia camisa, en un poco de gamusa un ata- 
dijo con una yerua la qual masco y con ella se unto todo su cuerpo sin 
quedar cosa y preguntandole esta declarante que para que hacia 
aquello la respondio la dicha Ju* de la Cruz, que era para que la 
quisiesen los hombres y que asi untada despues que se seco la yerba 
en el cuerpo se bolbio a bestir y Rogo a esta declarante que no dijese 
nada a nadie y en ptra ocasion la misma Ju* de la Cruz mostro a esta 
declarante una Rais que traia consigo y le dijo que asi la mascaba y 
se untaba con ella las partes bajas y las caderas y en las espaldas, 
que se moririan los honbres por ella. asi mismo le dijo que en otra 
ocasion auia puesto en la boca un grano de maiz auiendole quitado 
primero el corazon y asi mismo una piedresita y que yendo un hombre 
descuidado por la calle dijo que saco la piedresita de la boca y se la 
tiro sin que el la biese y luego al punto bolbio el honbre a tratar con 
ella de su amistad. en otra ocasion le dio a esta declarante una yerba 
echa polbos y se los hico echar a esta declarante en dos tortillas y 
despues que esta declarante las hico se las pidio la dicha Ju* de la 
Cruz y le dijo estas en tu nombre ban aunque no le dijo a quien y ella 
las envio a un honbre el qual aquella propia noche bino a buscar a esta 
declarante y la dicha Ju* de la Cruz la hic.o salir a ablar con el aunque 
dice que la despidio y di las tortillas y que en otra ocasion esta declar- 
ante comio de un pan que auia echo la dicha Ju* de la cruz pensando 
que era bueno y luego comenso a tener grandes ansias y lo que quedo 
del pan enbio esta declarante a sus hermanas y todas Rabiaban y la 
dicha Ju* de la Cruz rrino a esta declarante porque lo auia Comido que 
lo auia echo para darlo a un hombre para haserlo Rabiar y le dio por 



238 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

rremedio que bebiese agua caliente la mas caliente que pudiese sufrir, 
y asi lo hic.o y quedo buena y sus hermanas lo mismo y antes del agua 
rabiaba y asi mismo dijo a esta declarante la dicha Ju* de la cruz 
como tenia una yerua que hacia Rabiar y otra para matar y que hasta 
entonces no la auia dado a nadie para matar pero que andaua para 
darla a uno porque aun no le queria mal y que ella se la daria como 
beria, asi mismo dijo la dicha Ju" de la cruz a esta declarante que se 
queria quitar asi propia la porqueria que tenia en el dedo mayor de 
en medio entre la una y en el dedo mayor del pie y en la boca del 
estomago y en las espaldas y en la frente entre las dos sejas y en la 
olla de la garganta, y que aquello todo junto trayendolo consigo en 
la faxa del faldedin y echandolo en la comida a un hombre se moriria 
por ella y queriendolo baser delante desta declarante no se lo quiso 
consentir diciendole que no le ensenase aquellas cosas que era mucha- 
cha y que como tal los haria alguna ues y lo castigarian asi mismo 
le dijo al otro dia luego que se caso declarante que la auia bisto aquella 
noche estar con su marido disiendole todo lo que le auia pasado con 
el, y disiendole esta declarante que como lo auia bisto pues estaua el 
aposento a escuras a lo qual le respondio la dicha Ju* de la cruz 
nosotros quando andamos asi no auemos menester candela, todo lo 
bemos y esta declarante no le pregunto mas, asi mismo le dijo como 
para baser dormir a la g te de casa que no era menester mas que sacar 
un poco de tierra de las sepulturas y que la pusiesen atada en un pano 
y debajo de la cabesera a uno y que luego se dormiria y que ella se 
podia lebantar luego y andar por la casa y irse por ai sin que la 
sintiera y que ella iria amansando a su marido de tal manera que 
aunque delante del hiciese alguna cosa que no lo uiese ni le rrinera 
que ella sauia el Remedio y aconsejo a esta declarante que buscase 
fuera de la casa unos gusanillos largos que crian en el canpo y que 
los tostase en un comal y se los diese a ueber en el atole a su marido 
y que le haria el mismo efeto y lo amansaria y esta declarante no 
quiso otra ues bido esta declarante que la dicha Ju* de la cruz cogio 
una hormiga y la partio por medio y luego la soplo y la hico caer y 
preguntandole esta declarante quera aquello le Respondio calla que 
no saues tu que es esto asi dijo a esta declarante que tenia una 
Raiz que q do la mascaba se ponia a pensar y que luego se le ponia en 
la cabesa al honbre o la muger que la queria mal y en sauiendo que 
la queria mas lo auia de matar con una yerua y todas estas cosas dise 
esta declarante que las saue por uiuir dentro de casa con dicha Ju a de 
la crus su cufiada y auerselas bisto haser en la forma que tiene dicho 
y que los hacia y decia estando en su entero juicio y no saue esta 
declarante que otra persona pueda declarar en esto mas 
que una india ladina llamada ana de nacion teguas que 
disiendole esta declarante lo que le a susedido quando comio 
el pan le dijo la dicha india dejame no me digas nada que esta ai la 
santa inquisision no nos castiguen a nosotros castiguenla ella a solos 
otra ues bido esta declarante que por auer tenido la dicha ju* de la 
cruz a dos muchachos en los brasos en diferentes tienpos al uno mato 
y el otro bibio por auerle saumado esta declarante con Ropa quemada 
de la dicha Ju* de la cruz y que esto le parese a esta declarante seria 
mal de ojo de la dicha Ju* de la cruz." Declaration of Catalina Bernal, 
May 26, 1626. Declarations, letters and decrees.. 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 239 

IV. NATIVE CEREMONIALS 

(a) ". . . Fray Pedro Zambrano predicador y guardian del 
conbento de Santa Crus del pueblo de Galisteo . . . dize y denuncia que 
a beynte y siete de febrero deste presente afio estando en su conbento 
del Pueblo de Galisteo llego el capitan Alvaro Garcia y le dixo a este 
declarante como estando comiendo en su casa en la villa de Santa 
Fee destas provincias, un hijo suyo llamado Diego Garcia le dixo, 
serior, en los teguas en el Pueblo de San Juan abido una junta de 
yndios e yndias en la qual an entrado segun e savido y es publico 
ya en toda esta villa, Pedro de la Cruz y Jeronimo Pacheco soldados 
mestizos, que en la qual junta jugaban al juego destos naturales que 
llaman el patole sobre una criatura, y acavado el juego la lababan y 
bevian el agua de la dicha criatura, y despues desto a una yndia des- 
nuda la soplaban por detras por donde se suelen probeer y bevian un 
agua que no se save lo que es; y reprehendiendole el dicho Alvaro 
Garcia a su hijo no dixese tales cosas, le respondio que era publico esto 
en toda la villa, y que el hijo de Juan Griego, Lazaro lo avia dicho en 
la villa y dice mas este declarante que preguntando esto mismo a 
algunos vezinos de la villa le respondieron que dias a que se rugia entre 
los soldados espafioles." Declaration of Fray Pedro Zambrano, March 
5, 1632. Inquisicion 304. 

(b) "... Capitan Alvaro Garcia Olgado, vezino de la Villa de 
Santa Fee de edad de cinquenta y cinco afios poco mas o menos, 
preguntado si save o presume la causa por que a sido llamado dixo 
que presume que sera para saver del ciertas cosas de ydolatria que se 
avian dibulgado lo qual dize que pasa asi ; que abra veinte y cinco dias 
que un hijo suyo llamado Diego Garcia le dixo como publicamente se 
dezia que en el Pueblo de San Juan o en el de Santa Clara de la 
nacion de los Teguas se avia hecho una ydolatria entre muchos indios 
estando presentes tambien dos espanoles mestizos, el uno llamado 
Pedro de la Cruz y el otro Geronimo Pacheco soldados, pero despues de 
oydo esto bajo a su estancia de la provincia de los tiguas el dicho 
Capitan Alvaro Garcia en la qual se encontro con un amigo suyo 
llamado el Capitan Alonso Martin Barba y preguntandole que sabia 
desta materia como persona que vivia junto a aquellos pueblos, le 
hablo con mas claridad que su hijo lo avia hecho, diziendo que el mismo 
Pedro de la Cruz le avia dicho que el y Geronimo Pacheco se habian 
hallado en aquel acto de la ydolatria de los indios, la qual ydolatria 
fue que estando jugando los indios con unas canuelas a los Patoles que 
llaman, dentro de la estufa y ellos dos alii presentes, se asomo una 
yndia a la boca de la estufa con una criatura en las manos, y que 
dixo, jugadores alia ba esta criatura, y que uno de los jugadores la 
tomo y la puso en el mismo lugar donde jugayan debajo del petate que 
estava puesto en el techo de la estufa donde tiravan las canuelas, y que 
tirando las dichas cafiuelas al petate caian despues juntas sobre la 
criatura y tomandolas las echaron en un cajete de agua que alii tenian 
y las labaron y hizieron beber gran parte de aquella agua a la cria- 
tura y que despues le soplaron a la criatura que era hembra por su 
natura y dandosela a la madre le dixeron que se llamava tal nombre." 
Declaration of Alvaro Garcia Olgado, March 17, 1632. Ibid. 

(c) "... Diego Garcia soldado de la milicia deste Reino y 
vezino de la Villa de Santa Fe . . . Dize y denunzia que abra quinze 
dias poco mas o menos que yendo un savado a misa de Nuestra Senora 
en compaiiia de su suegro el alferes Sevastian Gonzales ya que 



240 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

llegayan cerca de la Yglesia bieron junto a ella a Geronimo Pacheco 
mestizo y soldado el qual asi como sintio a este declarante y su com- 
pania que yban hasia la yglesia se escondio y metio dentro del com- 
bento y se escondio de tal manera que aunque este declarante y los 
demas se dierpn mucha prisa a entrar y a mirar por el no le pudieron 
descubrir ni pillar, y en esta ocasion dixo el alferes Sebastian Gonzales, 
este mozo Geronimo Pacheco anda huyendo del Governador y esta 
retraido por que dizen que le cogieron en el pueblo de San Juan ydola- 
trando con los indios en compania tambien de Pedro de la Cruz mestizo 
y soldado, del qual Pedro de la Cruz dize este declarante que le dixo 
Luisillo yndio Tegua interprete del pueblo de Santa Clara que era 
verdad que a Pedro de la Cruz lo avian cogido en el Pueblo de San 
Juan ydolatrando con los indios y que tenia una criatura muerta alii en 
la estufa, y que yban llegando y ofreciendo al Demonio algodon y otras 
cosas, y luego llegavan a la criatura y le tiravan con unos frisoles en 
la via por donde escrementa, y luego con unas canuelas que llaman 
Patoles con que juegan los indios tiravan y davan en el petate que 
estava en el techo de la estufa y caian sobre el cuerpo de la criatura 
difunta sin caer ninguna en el suelo, y luego lavaban la criatura con 
un agua que tenian en un cajete y bebian aquella agua. 

Dize mas este declarante que abra tres anos pocp mas o menos 
que le dixeron su hermano Juan Garcia y el Capitan Bartolome 
Romero que pasando entrambos por el pueblo de la alameda bieron 
que estavan todos los indios dentro de la Yglesia y entre ellos Diego de 
Santiago mulato mestizo y que bieron que sobre el altar en que se 
dize la misa estava un yndio en pie hablando a grandes boces como 
que predicava pero tan flaco que parecia que no se podia tener y se 
estava caiendo para un lado y para otro por lo qual estavan a sus lados 
dos indios que le tenian y que preguntando los dichos Juan Garcia y 
Bartolome Romero al dicho Diego de Santiago que que era aquello que 
dezia aquel yndio, respondio que eran cosas de Dios y no le pudieron 
hazer decir mas, y que alii supieron que aquel indio que predicava avia 
ayunado tres dias sin comer. 

Dize mas este declarante que abra veinte dias poco mas o menos 
que le dixo Damian de Lara soldado que abra tres o quatro anos que 
pasando por el pueblo de la alameda hallo los indios juntos en la plaza 
y con ellos a Diego de Santiago mulato y mestizo, el qual Diego de 
Santiago le dixo a Damian de Lara, ben i aca bereis que bonito es 
esto que hazen estos indios, y que fue con el y bio que yba un indio 
delante dando boces como predicando y todo el pueblo tras del y el 
mismo Diego de Santiago con ellos, y que los indios y las indias yban 
cogiendo las pajuelas del suelo por donde pasava aquel indio." Declar- 
ation of Diego Garcia, March 14, 1632. Ibid. 

(d) ". . . Pedro de la Crus soldado y vesino de la villa de Santa 
Fee . . . dixo que abra ocho meses que yendo en compania de Geronimo 
Pacheco mestizo y soldado a recojer yeguas, de buelta entrarpn en 
una estufa del pueblo de San Juan a calentarse y que estando los indios 
jugando a los patoles, estando este dicho declarante recostado, dice que 
una india traxo una criatura y que se lebanto un indio de los que 
estaban jugando que era fiscal llamado pindas i tomo la criatura y 
se sento con ella teniendola en los brasos mientras truxeron un cajete 
de agua, en el qual hecharon los patoles i los lavaron i labados los 
sacaron i poniendo la criatura en un petate tomando cada uno su 
canuela o patole todos juntos a la par tiraron asia arriba los patoles 
como quando juegan y caieron algunos sobre la criatura y tomando 



FIRST DECADE OF THE INQUISITION 241 

cada uno en la boca una poca de agua se la hechaban a la criatura en 
la boca i despues soplaban todos a la criatura la cabesa manos i pies 
y que preguntando este dicho declarante a los indios que por que asian 
aquello respondieron que era para ponelle nombre en su lengua y 
que asi lo solian aser en la jentilidad i que con esto se salieron el 
dicho declarante i el dicho Geronimo Pacheco." Declaration of Pedro 
de la Cruz, September 14, 1632. Ibid. 

(e) ". . . Diego de Santiago mulato mestizo morador en el 
Pueblo del Socorro de edad de veinte y cinco anos poco mas o menos, 
preguntado si save o presume la causa por que a sido llamado dixo que 
presume sera para saver del lo que paso en unos mitotes y bailes que 
hizieron los indios del Pueblo de la alameda estando el presente, el 
qual dize que abra tres anos poco mas o menos que estando el y Juan 
Garcia soldado y mulato en el Pueblo de la alameda desta nacion de los 
tiguas, toda una noche estuvieron los indios haziendo mitotes en la 
estufa y que ellos entraron en la estufa a prima noche y los bieron 
bailar por buen rato y dejandolos bailando se fueron a dormir y que 
bolyieron por la maiiana y los hallaron tambien bailando y luego 
salieron bailando de la estufa, y fueron al rededor de todo el pueblo y 
junto a una esquina se pusieron todos en ylera y todos cogieron pajas 
y tierra y en esto un yndio de entre ellos con una flecha en la mano 
y paso por todos tocandoles con la fiecha en el pecho, y al cabo tiro 
la flecha asia el Poniente tras de lo qual todos los indios arojaron la 
tierra y pajas que en las manos tenian hazia alia, y que no hizieron otra 
cosa mas ni bio mas. Dize mas este declarante que pocos dias despues 
biniendo el recogiendo yeguas llego al pueblo de San Bartolome desta 
misma nacion y hallo que en la misma Yglesia estavan todos los indios 
en grandes mitotes, y que lin indio Capitan del Pueblo de la alameda 
llamado el tanaboro, estava en pie chupando un sigarro y que otro 
indio estava detras del teniendolo y el estava hablando a los indios en 
boz baja y no save este declarante que rezia y preguntado a este dec- 
larante si acaso el llamo a otro soldado que fuese a ber aquello que ha- 
zian los indios dize que no, y que quando el llego al dicho pueblo de San 
Bartolome estava apartado del lugar en que hazian el mitote Fran- 
cisco Garcia soldado, sentado comiendo y que despues desto llego el 
Capitan Bartolome Romero que benia de hacia la yilla de Santa Fee 
y biendo que hazian mitote en la Yglecia f ue alia y biendo a aquel Capi- 
tan que estava en pie chupando y hablando a los indios, llego y le dio 
de bofetadas diziendo que para que hazia aquello en la Yglecia y quit- 
ando de alii el indio se fue su biaje." Declaration of Diego de San- 
tiago, April 6, 1632. Ibid. 



A TRADE-INVOICE OF 1638 
For Goods Shipped by Governor Rosas from Santa Fe 

RECENTLY documents of great interest to the early history 
of New Mexico have been found in Parral, State of 
Chihuahua, Mexico, by Sr. Jose G. Rocha, editor of a news- 
paper in that old city the state capital during the War of 
1846. On a visit to Santa Fe in April, Sr. Rocha very kindly 
gave to the editor transcripts of several of these old records, 
one of which has to do with the capture and trial of the mur- 
derer of Luis de Rosas, governor of New Mexico from 1637 
to 1641. 

Another, the one which is here translated, has to do 
with a shipment of goods from Santa Fe to Parral in 1639 
on the personal account of Governor Rosas, there to be dis- 
posed of at retail. The invoice of this shipment gives insight 
into the kind of goods which were being produced in New 
Mexico in the seventeenth century, and the accompanying 
papers show how they were handled in the trade which had 
already developed with Nueva Vizcaya to the south. The 
caravans which arrived from the south every three years 
were operated primarily for the bringing of supplies to the 
missions of this region, and instead of allowing the oxcarts 
to return empty, successive governors took advantage of 
them for such trade ventures as this one of Rosas. 

It would be interesting, for example, to know by whom, 
and under what conditions, nineteen pieces of sayal, each a 
hundred varas in length, were produced. Possibly the wool 
was prepared and the weaving done in the various pueblos, 
but more probably an obraje, or workshop, was operated in 
Santa Fe with weavers secured from the pueblos under the 
encomienda system. T TD T> 

Li. JD. >. 

In the real of San Joseph del Parral, Nueva Vizcaya, 
on the 25th day of the month of January, 1640, before me 
the present clerk and witnesses and in the presence of Cap- 
tain Francisco de Escovar Trevino, alcalde mayor and war 

[242] 



A TRADE-INVOICE OF 1638 243 

captain of this real and its jurisdiction for His Majesty, 
there appeared as party of the first part Alf erez Miguel de 
Vertiz, citizen of this said real in the name and with the 
authority which he holds from Captain Luis de Rosas, gov- 
ernor and captain general of the Provinces of New Mexico, 
given him in the Villa of Santa Fe on the 27th day of the 
month of September of the past year 1639 before Francisco 
de Anaya Almazan, notary public ; and as party of the sec- 
ond part Enrique Lopez, merchant residing in said real, 
whom I certify that I know, and in that manner and form 
which are according to law : 

and they said that inasmuch as the said Don Luis de 
Rosas had delivered to him [Vertiz] a quantity of various 
fabrics of New Mexico for him to bring to this real and that 
here the said Enrique Lopez should sell it at retail, formal 
written receipt for which had been given before the said 
notary, Francisco de Anaya Almazan ; and he [Lopez] has 
been selling [the goods] in accord with the said order and 
the proceeds therefrom have been remitted to the said Don 
Luis de Rosas and what he has not been able to dispose of 
under the said authority he has delivered to the said Miguel 
de Bertis (Vertiz) and they have made and adjusted the said 
accounts of debit and credit to their mutual satisfaction, of 
which they declared themselves to be content and entirely 
satisfied; and as to the delivery of the said goods and 
satisfaction therefor, the first to the second and the second 
to the first under the said authority, they give and grant, 
up to the present day, a letter of payment and release in 
ample form so that there may be no asking nor demanding 
anything now or at any future time nor in any manner, and 
if they should make or attempt anything of the above said, 
they wish and consent that they be not heard, in law nor out 
of law, and to the same end let this writing and letter of 
payment and release be approved and ratified ; and to this 
end the said Alferez Miguel de Vertiz by virtue of the said 
authority obligates the person and goods of the said Captain 
Don Luis de Rosas on his part, and the said Enrique Lopez 
obligates his person and effects, had or to be had; and they 
give complete power to all and whatever justices of His 
Majesty wherever found to compel and require them by all 
rigor of the law and social action as if there should be a spe- 
cific sentence of a competent judge given against them and 
each of them, assented to and not appealed from, and pro- 



244 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

nounced upon a matter adjudged ; and each of them in so far 
as he was affected renounced all laws in his favor and de- 
fense in ample form and they gave a letter of payment and 
release, the first to the second and the second to the first, up 
to the day of this date and the delivery of this writing as 
stated. 

And for the greater protection and security of the said 
Enrique Lopez, the said Miguel de Vertiz delivered to him 
a copy of the writing which he had supplied in New Mexico 
in favor of the said Don Luis de Rosas and another of the 
authority under which they have made and adjusted the 
accounts and received the effects which remained over ; and 
they did [all this] in the manner stated and signed their 
names together with the said Senor Alcalde Mayor who, for 
its greater validation, interposed his authority and judicial 
decree under the law, the witnesses being Captain Francisco 
de Montalban and Captain Domingo Reynoso and Captain 
Melchor de Torreblanca, [all] pertaining to this Real. 
(signed) Don Francisco de Escovar Trebino 

Miguel de Vertiz 
Miguel Lopez 
before me : Lorenzo Libran, notary public 



In the Villa of Santa Fe, New Mexico, on the 6th day of the 
month of October, 1638, before me the present notary pub- 
lic and witnesses there appeared the Adjutant Enrique 
Lopes, resident in this Villa, and said that among the mer- 
chandise which he is taking for the Senor Governor and 
Captain General Don Luis de Roc.as to New Spain he is tak- 
ing the following: 

Nineteen pieces of sayal containing 1,900 varas* 

also: five bales of buffalo hides, painted (cueros de civola, 
pintados), containing 122 hides 

also: two bales containing 92 shammy skins (queros de 

gamugas) 
also: 12 doublets (jubones), and jackets (queras) which go 

with the said bales 
also: another bale containing 100 shammies and 2 jackets 



1. A van was about thirty-three inches, or a short yard. Sayal was a coarse 
woolen cloth, then in common use as a cheap dress-goods. 



A TRADE-INVOICE OF 1638 245 

also : two large boxes (cajones) of candles (belas) contain- 
ing 900 

also: a bale containing 24 cushions (cojimllos), 12 doublets 
(soletos) and 6 shammies 

also : another bale containing 32 doublets (coletos) 

also: a box No 1, containing 12 hangings (reposteros) 2 

also: another No. 2, with 11 hangings 

also : another No. 3, with 13 hangings 

also: another No. 4, with 63 small blankets (mantas)* 

also: another No. 5, with 63 small blankets and 6 drapes 
(antepuestas) 

also: another No. 6, with 13 hangings 

also: another No. 7, with 68 blankets 

also : another No. 8, with 68 blankets 

also: another No. 9, with 33 drapes 

also: another No. 10, with 30 blankets 

also: another No. 11, with 60 blankets 

also : another No. 12, with 60 blankets 

also: another No. 13, with 64 [blankets] 

also: another No. 14, with 11 hangings 

also: No. 15, with 7 drapes, 8 overskirts (faldellines), 19 
large doublets and 2 small ones 

All of which the above said [Lopez] is taking to sell at 
retail and to account for with payment therefor at the prices 
at which he may sell them for which, dead or living, he 
makes the present [invoice] and obligates himself in due 
form with his person and effects. He authorizes the officials 
of His Majesty to require the same of him and he renounces 
all laws in his favor and in general, and he gave it and 
signed, witnesses being the Captains Pedro Lucero de Godoy 
and Francisco de Madrid, [signed] Enrique Lopes [before 
me] Francisco de Anaya Almazan, notary public. Of which 
receipt and delivery as made in my presence, I give faith. 



2. The word repostero as here used was not a confection but a square piece of 
woven stuff, sometimes with the coat of arms of the prince or lord, which was used 
as a covering for the loads on pack-animals, and also as a hanging in antechambers 
or over balconies. 

3. The word mania has various meanings. Most commonly it meant a woolen 
shawl or blanket, but it might also indicate a domestic cotton shirting, or a kind of 
tapestry. 



246 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

The which said blankets were painted [in colors?] More- 
over there were delivered 36 f anegas of pinones in baskets : 
Francisco de Anaya Almazan, notary public, plus: nine 
shammies, two hides which he received later in Senecu 
and twelve baskets (gicaras; jicaras), witnesses being 
Sebastian Gongales and Francisco Gomes, of which said 
delivery I give faith : Francisco de Anaya Almazan, notary 
public. 

[The above] agrees with its original which passed 
before me and remains in my hands, of which I give faith : 
Francisco de Anaya Almazan, notary public. 

[This copy] is certain and truthful and agrees with its 
original from which I made this copy, in testimony whereof 
I gave the present [certification] in the Real of San Joseph 
del Parral, Nueva Vizcaya, on the 24th day of January, 1640, 
and the Sr. Alcalde Mayor for its validation interposed his 
authority and signed it, the witnesses to see it drawn, cor- 
rected, and collated being Juan de Artiaga and Pablo 
Munoz, [both] present in this Real. 

In testimony of truth I affixed my accustomed signature 
Don Francisco de Escovar Trebifio: [before me] Lorenzo 
Libran, notary public. 



In the Villa of Santa Fe, New Mexico, on the 27th day 
of the month of September, 1639, before me the notary pub- 
lic and witnesses there appeared the Senor Captain Don 
Luis de Roc.as of the Council of War of His Majesty in the 
States of Flanders, Governor, Justicia Mayor and Captain 
General of these said Provinces for the King Our lord, whom 
on my faith I know and he said that he was giving and he 
gave all his power complete and what under the law is requi- 
site and necessary to Alferez Miguel de Bertis who is pres- 
ent so that, for his Lordship and in his name representing 
his own person, he may receive and collect from Enrique 
Lopes the quantity of his goods which the said Enrique 
Lopes has, as will appear by the acknowledgment in writing 
which the said Enrique Lopes made and delivered before the 
notary public in this Villa of Santa Fe, the which, for the 
said object, he delivers to him with this power [of attor- 
ney] ; and to effect the said collection, before officials of his 
Majesty he may make petitions, requisitions, citations and 
presentations, arrests, sales and closing of accounts and all 
other acts, statements and proceedings which may be neces- 



A TRADE-INVOICE OF 1638 247 

sary until the said collection has had due effect, upon receipt 
of which he may give and deliver the letters of payment 
and conclusion as may be proper as if the said Senor Gov- 
ernor were giving them and for the said object he gives him 
this said power with free and general administration and 
exemption in form and faculty to bring suit, to take oath, 
and to substitute and, had and received the said goods or the 
maravedis 4 which the said Enrique Lopes may have secured 
for them under the obligation which the said Enrique Lopes 
has made to sell them at retail in his store in Parral, and 
those which he may not have been able to sell he may dis- 
charge by returning them. And the said Alf erez Miguel de 
Bertis, as to what maravedis there may be, may hold it in 
charge until the said Senor Governor Don Luis de Roc.as 
may order differently, and as to merchandise, he may dis- 
pose of it by sale in his store, for the which the said Senor 
Governor declares himself content with what the said 
Miguel de Bertis may be able to get in maravedis for the said 
goods, and so likewise in the accounts of the said Enrique 
Lopes, receipt is to be given him [Bertis] for what he would 
seem to have given by two letters of his, since it was with 
authority of the said Senor Governor, the which two letters 
are delivered to the said Miguel de Bertis for this effect, 
together with a memorandum of certain things which the 
said Enrique Lopes remitted to these Provinces for the use 
of the house of the said Senor Governor, which are to be 
included in his accounts, all that may appear and proves 
actually to be in the hands of Juan de Agreda ; 

for all of which he gives him [Bertis] this complete 
authority, and he delivered and signed it, witnesses being 
Captain Pedro Lu^ero de Godoy and the Adjutant Pedro de 
Montoya and Alonso Rodriguez Sisneros, citizens and resi- 
dents in this said Villa. 

[signed] Don Luis de Ro$as [before me] Francisco de 
Anaya Almazan, notary public. It agrees with its original 
which passed before me and remains in my power, of which 
I give faith. Francisco de Anaya Almazan, notary public. 

Also the Senor Governor Don Luis de Roc.as gave power 
and authority to the said Alferez Miguel de Bertis in order 



4. The maravedi was a small Spanish coin, similar to the English farthing. It 
varied greatly in value, according to locality and period. The thought indicated 
here is that the goods which were sent to Parral would be disposed of in small 
amounts, and the receipts would be in small money. 



248 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

to receive from the said Enrique Lopes a boy of the Napaize 
nation called Antonio Le6n, aged thirteen to fourteen years, 
which boy belongs to the said Senor Governor Don Luis de 
Ro$as who sent him with Matias Romero to be taught the 
Christian doctrine and that he should be served of him until 
the Senor Governor might order otherwise. And the title 
to said boy remains in the power of the Senor Governor and, 
after receiving him, the said Miguel de Bertis may hold him 
in his power until his Lordship may order otherwise. And 
he signed it in the said month and year, witnesses being the 
said Don Luis de Rogas, [and] Francisco de Anaya Al- 
mazan. It agrees with its original, of which I give faith, 
Francisco de Anaya Almazan, notary public. It is certain 
and true and accords with the original from which I took 
this copy, in testimony of which I gave the present [docu- 
ment] in the Real de San Joseph del Parral on the 24th day 
of the month of January, 1640, and the Senor Alcalde Mayor 
for its validation interposed his authority and signed it, 
witnesses being Juan de Artiaga and Pedro Cortes, belong- 
ing in this Real. 

In testimony of truth I affixed my accustomed signa- 
ture: Don Francisco de Escovar Trebino. [before me] 
Lorenzo Libran, notary public. 






mi W wire wwmi tra m*mi muniiiry mi mi 



NEW MEXICO 
HISTORICAL REVIEW 



VOL. X 



OCTOBER, 1935 



No. 4 




PAX, ACE OF THE GOVERNORS 



PUBLISHED QUARTERLY BY 

THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF NEW MEXICO 

AND 

THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO 






NEW MEXICO 
HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Editor Managing Editor 

LANSING B. BLOOM PAUL A; F. WALTER 

Associates 

PERCY M. BALDWIN E. DANA JOHNSON 

FRANK T. CHEETHAM THEODOSIUS MEYER, 0. F. M. 

VOL. X OCTOBER, 1935 No. 4 

CONTENTS 

Onate a Marauder? G. P. Hammond 249 

Bourke on the Southwest, VII .... L. B. Bloom 271 
Kit Carson, Catholic . . . Father Claudius Antony 323 
Reviews : 

Richardson & Rister, The Greater Southwest 

P. A. F. W 337 

Thomas, After Coronado: Spanish Exploration 
Northeast of New Mexico, 1696-1727, L. B. B. . 339 
Otero, My Life on the Frontier, 1864-1882 

P. A. F. W 340 

Notes : 

The Frederick Webb Hodge Anniversary Publica- 
tion Fund 346 

Subscription to the quarterly is $3.00 a year in advance; single 
numbers (except Vol. I, 1, 2, and II, 2) may be had at $1.00 each. 
Volumes I-II can be supplied at $6.00 each; Vols. III-X at $4.00 
each. 

Address business communications to Mr. P. A. F. Walter, State 
Museum, Santa Fe, N. M. ; manuscripts and editorial correspondence 
should be addressed to Mr. Bloom at the State University, Albu- 
querque, New Mexico. 

Entered as second-class matter at Santa Fe, New Mexico 
UNIVERSITY PRESS, ALBUQUERQUE, N. M. 



The Historical Society of New Mexico 

(INCORPORATED) 
Organized December 26, 1859 



PAST PRESIDENTS 
1859 COL. JOHN B. GRAYSON, U. S. A. 
1861 MAJ. JAMES L. DONALDSON, U. S. A. 
1863 HON. KIRBY BENEDICT 

adjourned sine die, Sept. 23, 186S 



re-established Dec. 27, 18 SO 

1881 HON. WILLIAM G. RITCH 
1883 HON. L. BRADFORD PRINCE 
1923 HON. FRANK W. CLANCY 

1925 COL. RALPH E. TWITCHELL 

1926 PAUL A. F. WALTER 



OFFICERS FOR 1934-1935 

PAUL A. F. WALTER, President 

FRANCIS T. CHEETHAM, Vice-President 

COL. JOSE D. SENA, Vice-President 

LANSING B. BLOOM, Cor. Sec'y-Treas. 

Miss HESTER JONES, Recording Sec'y 



FELLOWS 

PERCY M. BALDWIN EDGAR L. HEWETT 

RALPH P. BIEBER FREDERICK W. HODGE 

WILLIAM C. BINKLEY ALFRED V. KIDDER 

LANSING B. BLOOM J. LLOYD MECHAM 

HERBERT E. BOLTON THEODOSIUS MEYER, O. F. M. 

AURELIO M. ESPINOSA FRANCE V. SCHOLES 

CHARLES W. HACKETT ALFRED B. THOMAS 

GEORGE P. HAMMOND PAUL A. F. WALTER 



CONSTITUTION 

OF THE 

HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF NEW MEXICO 
(As amended Nov. 19, 1929) 

Article 1. Name. This Society shall be called the Historical Society 
of New Mexico. 

Article 2. Objects and Operation. The objects of the Society shall be, 
in general, the promotion of historical studies; and in particular, the 
discovery, collection, preservation, and publication of historical ma- 
terial, especially such as relates to New Mexico. 

Article 3. Membership. The Society shall consist of Members, Fel- 
lows, Life Members and Honorary Life Members. 

(a) Members. Persons recommended by the Executive Council 
and elected by the Society may become members. 

(b) Fellows. Members who show, by published work, special 
aptitude for historical investigation may become Fellows. Immedi- 
ately following the adoption of this Constitution, the Executive 
Council shall elect five Fellows, and the body thus created may there- 
after elect additional Fellows on the nomination of the Executive 
Council. The number of Fellows shall never exceed twenty-five. 

(c) Life Members. In addition to life members of the Historical 
Society of New Mexico at the date of the adoption hereof, such other 
benefactors of the Society as shall pay into its treasury at one time 
the sum of fifty dollars, or shall present to the Society an equivalent 
in books, manuscripts, portraits, or other acceptable material of an 
historic nature, may upon recommendation by the Executive Council 
and election by the Society, be classed as Life Members. 

(d) Honorary Life Members. Persons who have rendered emi- 
nent service to New Mexico and others who have, by published work, 
contributed to the historical literature of New Mexico or the South- 
west, may become Honorary Life Members upon being recommended 
by the Executive Council and elected by the Society. 

Article 4. Officers. The elective officers of the Society shall be a 
president, two vice-presidents, a corresponding secretary and treas- 
urer, and a recording secretary; and these five officers shall constitute 
the Executive Council with full administrative powers. 

Officers shall qualify on January 1st following their election, and 
shall hold office for the term of two years and until their successors 
shall have been elected and qualified. 



Article 5. Elections. At the October meeting of each odd-numbered 
year, a nominating committee shall be named by the president of the 
Society and such committee shall make its report to the Society at 
the November meeting. Nominations may be made from the floor 
and the Society shall, in open meeting, proceed to elect its officers by 
ballot, those nominees receiving a majority of the votes cast for the 
respective offices to be declared elected. 

Article 6. Dues. Dues shall be $3.00 for each calendar year, and 
shall entitle members to receive bulletins as published and also the 
Historical Review. 

Article 7. Publications. All publications of the Society and the selec- 
tion and editing of matter for publication shall be under the direction 
and control of the Executive Council. 

Article 8. Meetings. Monthly meetings of the Society shall be held at 
the rooms of the Society on the third Tuesday of each month at 
eight P. M. The Executive Council shall meet at any time upon call 
of the President or of three of its members. 

Article 9. Quorums. Seven members of the Society and three mem- 
bers of the Executive Council, shall constitute quorums. 

Article 10. Amendments. Amendments to this constitution shall be- 
come operative after being recommended by the Executive Council 
and approved by two-thirds of the members present and voting at 
any regular monthly meeting; provided, that notice of the proposed 
amendment shall have been given at a regular meeting of the Society, 
at least four weeks prior to the meeting when such proposed amend 
ment is passed upon by the Society. 



Students and friends of Southwestern History are cordially in- 
vited to become members. Applications should be addressed to the 
corresponding secretary, Mr. Lansing B. Bloom, Santa Fe, N. Mex 



NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL 
REVIEW 

VOL. X OCTOBER, 1935 No. 4 

ONATE A MARAUDER? 

By GEORGE P. HAMMOND 

NEW light continues to be shed upon many phases of 
American history as the veil shadowing the past is 
pushed back, now here, now there, by students burrowing 
in archives at home and abroad. New Mexico, a truly 
pioneer American commonwealth, is one of the regions in 
which this is especially true. For a period of two and a 
half centuries it was a province of Spain, or of her daughter, 
Mexico. Spain, in this Indian land, introduced new ideals 
of government, of religion, of a social order, and New Mex- 
ico began to assume those strikingly individual character- 
istics which were later to make it unique among the states 
of the American union. 

The influence of Spain in New Mexico has, for nearly a 
century now, been enriched by contact with an Anglo- 
Saxon race, bringing the fruits of its peculiar qualities, 
spiritual as well as materialistic. In this manner the Indian, 
Spanish, Mexican, and Anglo-Saxon civilizations have been 
fused in the crucible that we call the state of New Mexico. 
Here, the aim has been not to destroy, but to preserve the 
best of the various culture contacts that are New Mexico's 
special characteristic. Today, as never before, we are con- 
scious of the heritage that is ours. To learn more about it 
is a matter of pride to the citizens of the state and of the 
nation, for an ever-increasing number recognize its rich 
historical lore. 

Few episodes in the history of the Southwest are as 
interesting as the founding of Spain's border colonies. First 

249 



250 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

among these in the sixteenth century was Nuevo Mexico. 
As the name implies, this Pueblo land was conceived of as 
"another Mexico," a land of wealth as fabulous as that 
which Cortes and the Spanish conquerors had found in 
Mexico, or as Pizarro and his lieutenants had found in Peru. 
This land of settled Indians had been heard of by Cabeza de 
Vaca during his wanderings in Texas and northern Mexico, 
and his stories, widely heralded upon his return to civiliza- 
tion, proved the mainspring of the great Coronado expedi- 
tion, which, it was certain, would add new glory and wealthy 
provinces to Spain's expanding empire. Coronado suc- 
ceeded in finding the pueblos and the settled Indians of 
Cabeza de Vaca's stories, but they contained none of the 
treasure the conquerors needed, and the new land was soon 
forgotten. Forty years later, however, Pueblo land was 
again heard of, as the mining frontier had pushed north, 
and thereupon Captain Francisco Sanchez Chamuscado and 
Father Agustin Rodriguez entered New Mexico from Chi- 
huahua, 1581-1582, and the survivors of their party came 
back with great hopes of having found a province as rich in 
material resources as in souls to be saved. They were 
immediately followed by Don Antonio Espejo and Father 
Bernardino Beltran, whose travels covered most of the 
Pueblo country, and whose dreams were not dimmed one 
whit thereby. The boom was still gathering momentum. 

Philip II of Spain and his Council of the Indies, ever 
ready to listen to such reports as came from this long hoped- 
for "New" Mexico, ordered that the conquest and settlement 
of the land be undertaken and that an individual of standing 
and wealth be awarded a contract for the purpose. Mex- 
ico's most prominent men sought the honor. Espejo applied, 
but failed to win. Juan Bautista de Lomas y Colmenares, 
reputed to be one of the richest men in New Galicia, was 
given a contract by the viceroy of Mexico in 1589, but he 
did not secure the approval of the home government. Most 
prominent of the remaining candidates was Don Juan de 
Onate, another wealthy son of New Galicia, and, in 1595, 



ORATE A MARAUDER? 251 

he attained the long-sought honor and received a contract for 
the conquest, becoming first governor and captain general 
of New Mexico. 

Onate' s tribulations began at once. A change of vice- 
roys took place shortly after the signing of his contract, 
and, while he was busy with fife and drum enlisting men, 
others sought to undermine his position. With the nucleus 
of his army, Onate meanwhile proceeded to the New Galicia 
frontier, recruiting busily all the while, confident of suc- 
cess. The new viceroy, however, growing uneasy or 
suspicious owing to the charges Onate's enemies circulated, 
requested the crown to suspend him till the truth could be 
learned. This step led to two years of delays, Onate in the 
meantime striving to keep his army together, for the king 
did order his suspension, the news of which reached the 
army at the Rio de las Nazas on September 9, 1596. 

What should now be done? Could Onate hope to keep 
his forces together, while his friends brought pressure to 
bear upon the government? To disband meant disaster, 
obviously, for it would mean that the investment of every 
captain and soldier was lost. For Onate this step was 
unthinkable, and therefore he set to work to keep up the 
enthusiasm of his men, concealing from them the truth of 
their situation. For over a year he carried on thus, and, 
somehow or other, he succeeded in supplying his soldier- 
colonists with food and in leading them into New Mexico 
early in 1598. Up till the present time we have known but 
very little of how he managed to do this. So powerful was 
he that criticism of his behavior apparently did not go very 
far. After he got to New Mexico, for example, he main- 
tained a strict censorship, and the folks back home got only 
the rosy-colored reports which he permitted to be sent, until 
the desertion of the colony in 1601. 

Now, however, from the archives of Guadalajara, 
comes documentary proof of Onate's conduct during his two 
years of waiting on the frontier, documents which brand 
him as a "marauder," and throw entirely new light on his 



252 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

activities while he and his army marked time, awaiting the 
king's permission to go to New Mexico. 1 It is true that the 
finger of suspicion was usually pointed at conquerors like 
Ofiate, but not till the present has any definite information 
regarding his high-handed acts come to light. In particular, 
Onate was charged with sending his soldiers and captains 
to round up and seize whatever oxen, horses, equipment, or 
Indians they could find; and they were charged, further- 
more, with having invaded the estates of the wealthy Juan 
Bautista de Lomas y Colmenares, erstwhile candidate for 
Onate's governorship. It is to be noted, moreover, that this 
raid took place in October, 1596, just a month after Onate 
had received the order of suspension, prohibiting him from 
continuing his expedition. It is apparent that he was in 
desperate straits. Likewise, it may not have been entirely 
accidental that it was the property of Juan Bautista de 
Lomas which was seized by Onate's soldiers. 

The accompanying document is intensely interesting, 
for it provides enough details to give us an insight into what 
took place. It is the criminal complaint of Juan Bautista de 
Lomas which he brought before the judge of Nieves against 
Onate and his captains, together with the hearings which 
the judge conducted in the case. Both Lomas and Onate 
were influential men, among the foremost in Mexico. Under 
the circumstances, it is probably not strange that the case 
was finally referred to the viceroy in Mexico City, where 
it was apparently pigeon-holed, for at present we know 
nothing further about the matter. 

Finally, what shall we say to the question, was Onate 
a marauder? We may safely suggest that he was not any 
more lawless than other frontier governors, probably much 
less. This isolated document is after all the first real proof 



1. This document, recently brought to light in the archives of Guadalajara by 
Luis Paez Brotchie, is from the records of the royal audiencia of the same city. It 
was read before the Jalisco section of the "Sociedad Mexicana de Geografia y 
Estadistica," in August, 1933, and published in the Boletin of the Jalisco branch of this 
society, in December, 1934. I am indebted to Mr. Lansing B. Bloom for a copy 
of this bulletin, given to him in Mexico City this summer by Lie. Vito Alessio Robles. 



OtfATE A MARAUDER? 253 

against him of a practice which was very common in all the 
outlying provinces. 

DOCUMENTARY SECTION 

"At sunrise October 14, 1596, six soldiers and a cap- 
tain, armed with guns and coats of mail, invaded some 
charcoal fields 2 which Don Juan Bautista de Lomas, the 
rich owner of the mines of Nuestra Senora de las Nieves, 
Zacatecas, possessed, about eight leagues from his estate, 
for the purpose of extracting silver, and which were inhab- 
ited by more than thirty persons. The soldiers came, point- 
ing their guns at the people, even at the Spanish mayor- 
domo, and with force and violence robbed the place of all 
there was, 150 oxen, twenty horses, a large quantity of 
axes and adzes, equipment and other things, in all amount- 
ing to more than 6,000 pesos in value. They opened a chest 
of the mayordomo's and took away what it contained. They 
took Clara and Maria, the wives of Juan Bonifacio and 
Juan Martin, married Indians, and manacled them. From 
Gabriel, an Indian cartwright, they seized a boy of ten 
years, named Gabriel Melchor, and manacled him also. 
Likewise they despoiled Lomas' cartwright of more than 
twenty mules from those that had been allotted to the 
foundry, more than thirty horses from the pastures where 
they kept the small stock, five or six slaves, and a large 
number of mares, young bulls, and cows from the cattle 
ranches. 

"The following day D. Juan Bautista presented his 
complaint before the judge and justicia mayor of Nieves, 
Captain D. Juan de Herrera, criminally charging D. Juan 
de Onate, 'who claims to be governor of the provinces of 
New Mexico/ and all his captains and soldiers, with depop- 
ulating, destroying, and wasting his estates, depriving him 
of the means of mining silver, whereby his majesty is seri- 



2. "Unas haciendas de hacer carbon," meaning the places where the Indians 
gathered wood and burned it to produce charcoal. 



254 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

ously defrauded of his royal fifths. 8 All this was done with 
but little fear of God and great disregard for the royal 
ordinances of the king, our lord, of which they were warned, 
and by which he is ordered not to approach my estates, says 
the complainant, nor to permit any of his captains or sol- 
diers to approach or cross them. Likewise he charged that 
Onate had said that he would send a captain and soldiers to 
kill him, and that it was a well-known and notorious fact 
that a certain D. Juan de Morales came with soldiers to 
threaten him if he should even claim his rights. 

"The judge opened the verbal process, naming Juan de 
Vargas, versed in the Tarascan and Mexican languages, as 
interpreter to examine the Indian witnesses. 

"The first to come was Gabriel Clemente, native of 
Tula, a carpenter, residing in Lomas' charcoal fields, who 
said six soldiers came about eight o'clock in the morning and 
he saw them descend a little hill and they went straight to 
where the Spaniard 4 was and asked him to give them some- 
thing to eat ; and, after they had eaten, one of the soldiers 
left the others and came to the house of this witness and 
seized a boy of his named Gabriel Melchor and put him on 
the horse together with an older son of his named Gaspar ; 
this witness, when he saw Gabriel Melchor on horseback 
and that he wanted to get down, seized him by the arm and 
pulled him from the horse to the ground, and the boy began 
to run down an arroyo, the soldier after him with the gun in 
his hands, threatening him. In the meantime, the other boy 
named Gaspar fled, and also hid; but the soldier seized 
Gabriel and put him back on the horse again. This witness, 
because he defended them, was thrown to the ground and 
kicked and pummeled. After the soldier finished with him, 
this witness got up and began to flee. The witness appeared 
to be more than fifty years of age. 



3. The quinto, or royal fifth, was a twenty per cent tax which the crown 
collected on newly mined ores and other precious metals. 

4. The mayordomo. 



ORATE A MARAUDER? 255 

"Juan Bonifacio, native of Chilchota, province of 
Miehoacan, said that, being in the forest cutting wood for 
making charcoal, they came to call him, saying that some 
soldiers were running off with his wife by force; and thus 
he came to see what was going on. When he arrived at the 
rancho, he did not find her because they had taken her away. 
The witness appeared to be about twenty-five years old. 

"Miguel Angel, captain of the carts to the charcoal 
fields, said that, while preparing the yoke-straps to yoke 
the oxen to the charcoal carts, he saw six soldiers coming on 
horseback, who went to the house of Juan Martin, a married 
Indian; they dismounted, went inside, and tried to seize 
Clara, wife of this Indian, but the woman rushed out and 
fled. Then he went to help at the place where Juanes de 
Artiaga, the mayordomo, was. At this moment a soldier 
came and seized the said Joannes by the collar band and 
threatened him, saying that he should keep still and not 
defend the Indian woman, for he vowed to God that he 
would take her away and that he would kill him if he 
defended her. With this threat the mayordomo made no 
further effort at resistance, and thus the soldiers seized the 
woman and put her on a horse to take her away. While this 
was going on with the said Clara, another Indian woman, 
named Maria, married to Juan Bonifacio, an Indian, seek- 
ing to hide, fled from her house, but a soldier went after 
her and seized her and likewise compelled her to mount a 
horse, and they carried off both women. This witness 
appeared to be about twenty years old. 

"Diego Juarez, Indian, native of Mexico, who works in 
the cattle business, said that the soldier whom they called 
captain told the mayordomo to give them an Indian woman 
from those on the rancho, to serve them. He replied, how- 
ever, that he had no Indian woman, for those who were 
there were married, and that if he wished to see it, he would 
show him the book in which they were so recorded, and that 
he kept a regular account of this. To this the captain re- 
plied that, although they might be married, he must give 



256 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

them up, and should the Indians, their husbands, follow 
them, there on the road they would kill them. And thus he 
ordered one of the soldiers to seize the Indian woman named 
Clara; and the woman, when she saw they were going to 
seize her, fled to Juanes for aid; and thus she stayed with 
him a little while recovering, until a soldier seized her and 
commanded : 'Go and bring your clothes/ The woman took 
out some clothes wrapped in a blanket. Then the captain 
asked the woman if she had any more clothes. She said yes, 
but that they were in the hands of Juan de Artiaga. Where- 
upon the captain required Artiaga to give them up at once, 
but he replied that he had no clothes belonging to Clara. In 
response to this the captain ordered a soldier to take the 
key from Juanes and open the chest to see what was within 
and to take the clothing. So the soldier opened the chest 
and took out the clothes of Clara, the Indian woman, and 
of Juan de Artiaga. Afterwards the captain told another 
soldier to go for another Indian woman in another house 
and to bring her so that she might go along. This woman, 
named Maria, was married to Juan Bonifacio. When this 
woman realized what was going on, before the soldier got to 
her house, she fled and ran through a cornfield next to her 
house. But another soldier who saw her go, seized her, 
and they placed her on the back of a horse and took her 
away together with the other Indian woman, Clara, and 
with Gabriel, the boy. This witness also saw how they took 
from Juan de Artiaga a little bell with which they sounded 
the call to prayers. They went with the two Indian women 
and boy and, after they had gone, the said Juanes told this 
witness and other Indian men who were there that they 
should be witnesses as to how they had also taken the oxen 
and raided the pens." This is what he knows, which, being 
read to him and explained by the interpreter, he said he 
affirmed and approved. He said he was thirty years of age, 
more or less. 



5. "Como tambien llevaban los bueyes y los chiqueros." 



OftATE A MARAUDER? 257 

"Juan Martin, Indian, native of the pueblo of Uruapa, 
said that while in the forest cutting wood an Indian came 
from the rancho and said : 'We are going to the ranch be- 
cause some soldiers are running off with your wife/ So 
this witness stopped cutting wood and went to the rancho. 
When he got there he did not find the Indian woman, Clara, 
his wife, and asking about her they replied that some sol- 
diers had carried her away, and also Maria, wife of Juan 
Bonifacio, and Gabriel Melchor, son of Gabriel, the carpen- 
ter. They also told this witness how they had carried off 
the axes and the comal 8 which this witness had in his house, 
and he knows that, some days after this, after the soldiers 
had been there, many horses were missing from the rancho 
and the charcoal fields but that he did not know who had 
taken them. The witness appeared to be more than twenty 
years old. 

"On the same day, month, and year [Oct. 15, 1596], 
in the mines of Nieves, before the justicia mayor, Juan 
Bautista de Lomas in this same case presented and had 
sworn as a witness Domingo Hernandez d'Estrada, inhabi- 
tant of these mines, who took oath and swore by God and 
Holy Mary and the sign of the Cross, in legal manner, and 
on these he promised to tell the truth. Being asked as to the 
facts of the said complaint, he said that what he knew was 
that yesterday, Monday, before prayers, while standing at 
the house of Juan Bautista de Lomas talking with him, he 
saw four Indians coming from the charcoal fields which 
Juan de Lomas possessed in the Sancta Catarina mountains, 
about eight leagues from this real; and they told how six 
soldiers had come to the rancho yesterday, in the morning, 
and by force and violence had carried off two married In- 
dian women and a boy and that they had abused the mayor- 
domo and had taken everything he had in the said rancho, 
and thus it remained deserted. Moreover, Juan Bautista 
de Lomas said that there was nothing for him to do but to 



6. The comal was a flat slab of stone on which the tortillas were baked. It is 
derived from the Mexican Indian word camatlL 



258 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

seek justice before God and the king for the insults and rob- 
beries which the soldiers had caused him and were still per- 
petrating, and that there had actually come to pass that 
which he had been warned of two or three days earlier, 
namely, that they were going to plunder his charcoal fields. 
This witness knew for certain that Juan Bautista de Lomas 
had suffered much loss and damage to his mining property 
when the soldiers carried off the women and the boy from 
his rancho, because, lacking people in the charcoal fields for 
making charcoal, necessarily the benefit to his estate from 
extracting silver must stop, from which great loss to his 
majesty results from the decrease of the royal fifths, for 
the hacienda is very large and one of the best in this entire 
kingdom; and he knew, having heard one Pedro Sanchez 
declare in the house of the comendador, 1 Rodrigo de Rio de 
Loza, that he had seen eleven mules with the brand of Juan 
Bautista de Lomas, in addition to many horses, in the Mal- 
pais near the mines of A vino, that some soldiers of D. Juan 
de Onate had hidden them, and that he had also seen, in the 
real of said Don Juan which was on the other side of the 
Rio de las Nazas, a number of horses with the same brand ; 
and this witness, being in the house of the comendador five 
or six days ago, there came a soldier named Zayas who said 
that he came from the real where D. Juan de Onate was, and 
there publicly declared, in the presence of this witness, of 
Captain Juan Dominguez y Bernardo de Porras, and of 
Asencio de Sancta Cruz that he gave notice for all to be 
careful and guard their estates because D. Juan de Onate 
was sending a captain with eight soldiers to get one hun- 
dred oxen for the carts of the camp wherever they could find 
them, because they could not go forward in any other man- 
ner and that the oxen they found for this purpose should be 
taken wherever they might find them, and not simply oxen, 
but also people and whatever else they might encounter, 
horses and mules. And that, being in the place and house 
of governor Rodrigo de Rio, this witness wishing to enlist, 



7. The comendador, or knight, was an official in one of the military orders. 



ORATE A MARAUDER? 259 

Pedro Sanchez, above-mentioned, came to him and told him 
secretly that he should tell Juan Bautista de Lomas that, 
Pero Sanchez being in the real of said D. Juan de Onate, one 
D. Juan de Morales had told him that since Juan Bautista 
de Lomas had spoken ill of D. Juan de Onate, he would have 
to come with four companions, and in the very plaza of these 
mines of Nieves he would have to kill him or make a very 
striking insult. 8 And that he should tell and advise said 
Juan de Lomas so that nothing should happen to him and 
that he must not be off guard. This is what he knows re- 
garding what is asked, and it is the truth by the oath he 
has taken. It being read to him, he approved and signed 
it. He said he was more than forty-six years old, and that 
he is not disqualified by the general questions. Juan de 
Herrera. Domingo Hernandez. Before me, Andres Al- 
varez, notary public. 

"Francisco de la Riva said that on leaving his house 
today he heard it said publicly through the town how they 
had stolen, from the charcoal fields of Juan Bautista de 
Lomas, the oxen and horses he had there, as well as two 
married women, from the Indians of the group, and a 
small boy. In addition to the above, this witness told Lomas 
how Matias de Lechera, his father-in-law, had written him 
a note that he should warn Lomas of how a soldier from the 
camp of D. Juan de Onate had slept in his house and that, 
talking with him about things happening there, he warned 
him to watch his oxen and horses, for Captain Cesar with 
fifteen soldiers had left the camp at the orders of D. Juan, 
to bring one hundred oxen from whatever place or district 
they might find them, because the army could not go for- 
ward without them, since the oxen they had had there had 
fled. 9 And they came with the intention of going by the way 
of the charcoal fields of Lomas for them, all of which is 
known to this witness, for his father-in-law had written this 



8. That is, Onate's soldiers would kill Lomas. 

9. Gregorio Cesar was one of Onate's captains in the conquest of New Mexico. 
See G. P. Hammond, Don Juan de Onate and the Founding of New Mexico (Santa Fe 
1927), pp. 142, 150, 190. 



260 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

to him. Furthermore, he informed Lomas of this and 
showed him the letter. And he said that it might have been 
twenty days, more or less, when this witness, going in search 
of nine horses which they had taken from him and his 
father-in-law, arrived at the estate of Pero Hernandez Caro, 
which is six leagues beyond the hacienda of the comendador, 
Rodrigo de Rio de Loza; and this witness, asking if they 
had seen any horses of the brand of his father-in-law, was 
informed they had not, but they had seen many mules and 
horses go by belonging to Juan de Lomas. He said he was 
more than twenty-six years old. 

"Juan de Artiaga, the mayordomo in the charcoal fields, 
said that Monday, the 14th of this month, there came to the 
rancho four men on horseback, with their coats of mail, 
leather jackets, and guns, and another soldier, in coat of 
mail and a hooked knife in his hand, and together they went 
to the place where this witness was, and dismounted. At 
this moment the drove of oxen was herded from the corral, 
and they said, These oxen are very lean/ Then they asked 
this witness that he provide them something to eat. He 
sought for what he could give them, set the table before 
them, and fed them. Afterwards they left and one of the 
soldiers, who is a brother of one named Hinojos, 10 who was a 
cartwright for Captain Francisco de Urdinola and first was 
so for Alonso de Angulo, this soldier, brother of the one 
mentioned, took this witness aside and told him that his 
chief said that he should give him the single Indian women 
he might have, and he replied that he did not have any on 
that rancho, that all were married. But in answer to this 
he was told, 'Although they may be married, I must have 
them/ While things were in this pass, two others of the 
soldiers went to the house of Gabriel, the carpenter, the one 
on horse and the other on foot. He who went on foot seized 
a boy, son of Gabriel, named Melchor, and put him on the 



10. There were three men among Onate's soldiers named Hinojos or Hinojosa : 
Captain Pablo de Aguilar Hinojosa, Alonso Nunez de Hinojosa, and Hernando de 

Ynojos. 



ORATE A MARAUDER? 261 

back of the horse which the other soldier was riding. The 
boy began to shout, calling his father and mother. In 
response to this, his father came, seized him by the arm and 
pulled him to the ground. The soldier who was on foot 
went to Gabriel, the Indian, threw him to the ground and 
struck him in the face with his fist, from which he got a 
nosebleed. The boy took to flight, two soldiers going after 
him, one with a hooked knife, the other pointing a gun. The 
one with the knife struck him with it, struggled with him 
on the ground, seized and bound him and placed him on the 
back of the horse belonging to the soldier with the gun. 
Then they seized an Indian woman named Clara, married to 
an Indian named Juan Martin, and a soldier who was on 
foot put her on the back of Hinojos' horse, at his order. 
Before they had her mount, Clara came to this witness, 
wishing to be helped by him. But the soldier who was on 
foot took hold of the woman and both together fell to the 
ground. Then, as the soldier got up, he struck the woman 
a violent blow and asked her where she had her clothing, 
threatening her. She told him that this witness had it in 
his chest. The soldier and the woman went to the room and 
found the chest locked, but Clara put her hand in the pocket 
of this witness's breeches, [took the key] and they went to 
the chest, opened it and took out the clothing, together with 
that of the Indian woman whom this witness had as his 
own. Then they left, and they mounted her on the back of 
Hinojos' horse. Afterward, they went to the house of 
Bonifacio, an Indian married to Maria, and took her by 
force, striking him in the face ; the said Indian woman, cry- 
ing out, called to this witness to protect and defend her. 
But, in spite of the resistance put up by the Indian woman, 
they mounted her on the back of the horse on which the 
chief [of the soldiers] was riding. Then they came to the 
house of this witness to take leave of him and they took a 
comal, the yoke-straps and tupiles* which were in the carts. 
Then they caught two other Indian men in order that these 



11. The tupiles were evidently lances, or goads. 



262 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

might bring them the yoke-straps and tupiles and asked 
them if they wanted to go with them. They said yes, and 
thus they took them along an harquebus shot's distance up 
the hill from the ranch, and there the five soldiers and 
Indians stopped. From there they sent back those that 
were bringing the yoke-straps and tupiles, telling them, 
'Go ! take back what we do not care for, for you should not 
rob the Indian women/ This is what the said Indians told 
this witness after they returned. Of these five soldiers he 
knew only two brothers named Hinojos. They belong to 
the company of Captain Bartolome de Cardenas. In regard 
to the other three, although this witness does not know them 
by name, he would recognize them on sight. From the 
rancho, thirteen horses are missing, part of them belonging 
to his proprietor, and others to this witness, and the rest 
to the Indians of this rancho. It is presumed that the sol- 
diers have taken them, as they have been missing for many 
days since the time that the soldiers went through this land. 
Likewise, he has heard it said that eight horses were missing 
from the small stock. This he heard said to Diego Ponce, 
nephew of Juan de Lomas, and because he saw them he went 
to search ; and he heard it said to Ponce how ten mules were 
missing from the hacienda. On Saturday morning, the 12th 
of the present month, the said Juan Bautista de Lomas, his 
proprietor, wrote him a letter, warning him to be careful 
to guard the oxen and the milk cows and to put two herders 
in care of them, because he had been advised that some of 
D. Juan de Onate's soldiers were coming for them and if 
they came he should not harm them, but use the Indians as 
witnesses as to how they took the oxen against his will; 
and while this witness was talking to the five soldiers as to 
whether they might take the women and the boy, they 
abused him, for this hacienda belonged to Juan Bautista de 
Lomas. They said that, although this might be so, they 
must have it, and that if it was necessary, they would kill 
him within the plaza of the mines of the said Lomas and 
anyone who might defend him. This is what they told him 



OfiATE A MARAUDER? 263 

with much determination. This is what he knows. He did 
not sign, for he said he did not know how. He said he was 
more than forty-five years old and that he was a servant of 
Lomas. 

"Pedro Perico, Indian captain in the charcoal fields, 
said that on Monday, the 14th, while in his house on the 
rancho, five soldiers came and went to where Artiaga was 
and asked him if he had seen in those parts some soldiers 
who had returned from the real and did not wish to go to 
New Mexico, for they had come in search of them. He said 
no; and then they said, 'Have you nothing for breakfast?' 
Artiaga replied, There is something/ and got tortillas and 
meat and gave them to eat. They then said they were going 
to see the oxen which at that moment the herder was bring- 
ing preparatory to yoking them. They said, They are not 
much good ; they are verv lean/ Two of them dismounted, 
and went into the house of Gabriel and caught a boy, but 
when thev seized him he began to shout, 'Father, they are 
takinor me!' His father came, but when he got there one 
of the soldiers had him [the boy] on the back of his horse, 
and the father pushed him off the horse, pulled him to the 
ground, and said. 'Now, eret goinor/ And the boy fled. Then 
thev seized the father and Dummeled him because he had 
protected the boy, and one of them set out after the lad with 
a hooked knife in his hand and struck him a blow with 
this weapon. Then the other soldier came, seized him, and 
aerain put him on the back of his horse. To another boy, son 
of Gabriel, they exclaimed, because they saw him on horse- 
back, This lad will probably give warning; let them take 
care that no one leaves here, and if anyone does leave, un- 
horse him/ They went after him, bound him, and then said, 
'We are going to get a woman/ They then entered the 
house of Artiaga and required him to give them some un- 
married woman whom they might take along. To this Juan 
de Artiaga replied that he had none, for they were all mar- 
ried. The soldiers, however, insisted, 'Even though they be 
married, we are going to take them along/ And they in- 



264 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

vaded the house where Clara lived, but the woman began to 
shout, 'Ah, senor mayordomo, they are going to run off with 
me/ He warned them, 'Leave this woman alone ; she is mar- 
ried/ But the soldiers answered Juanes by pointing their 
guns at his heart, 'Shut up, dog; leave us alone!' Then 
Clara grasped hold of Juanes, but a soldier seized the 
woman and, struggling to take her away, both fell to the 
ground. After they had gotten up, the Indian woman, 
frightened and seeing that she could not defend herself, 
said, 'Let me alone; I will not go!' They answered, 'Bring 
your clothes. Where are they?' She replied, 'The mayor- 
domo has them/ Then the soldiers demanded of Artiaga, 
'Get the clothing, for you have it/ But he answered, 'I do 
not know anything/ A soldier seized Artiaga by the shirt- 
collar, a knife in his hand, and exclaimed, 'Well, dog, hand 
over the key !' Clara, out of fear, said, 'Here it is, in his 
pocket/ And the soldier took it from his pocket, went to 
the chest, and opened it, and took out all the clothing there 
was, both that belonging to the woman and to Juanes, even 
taking the cowhide sandals and the soap which he had to 
give to the Indians. Then they took some axes and adzes 
from the room and a comal which Clara had. Afterwards, 
they went to the house of Juan Bonifacio, where this wit- 
ness was, laid hold of Maria, but she tried to escape out the 
back way. They went after her, however, and exclaimed: 
'Ah, dog of a woman ; you want to run from us. Walk, then, 
here with the others !' And they seized her ; but the woman 
said, 'I don't have to go, for I am married/ In spite of this, 
the soldiers answered, 'Even though you may be married 
and may be with your husband, we are going to hang him/ 
At once they put her on the back of one of their horses, and 
this witness, together with other Indians who were present, 
seeing how the soldiers used force, exclaimed : 'We are going 
after them. How is this they are running off with our 
women by force! We will protect them even though we 
die !' Then this witness said, 'Let us leave them go, for per- 
haps this is the king's order, as they say, and not pay too 



ORATE A MARAUDER? 265 

dearly for defending them.' On passing near a cross, they 
saw a little bell which is used to call to prayers, and they 
said, This we must take/ And they took it away. As they 
left, they shouted, 'Don't worry about it Juanes, this 
hacienda is not yours ; if it were, we would not trouble you.' 
This is what he knows. He appeared to be more than 
twenty-five years old." 

The judge heard the complaint and, on October 19th, 
ordered that a true copy be placed in the proceedings, to- 
gether with a copy of the notification which doubtless had 
been given to Onate. He further provided that Onate 
should be given whatever copies of the hearings he might 
wish, "in order that he might seek justice before whom, 
where, when, and how it might be suitable for him." 1 " 

Onate does not seem to have been present at this judi- 
cial hearing, nor anyone representing him, and there is 
nothing to show that he ever asked for a transcript of the 
record. That his rival Lomas had anticipated some such 
trouble is evident from two earlier documents which were 
written into the record and which explain the above refer- 
ence to an earlier "notification" to Onate. The inference is 
that Lomas had certified copies of these documents which 
he presented with his complaint to the judge in Nieves. 

It should be remembered that Lomas himself, in 1589, 
had secured from Villamanrique, viceroy at that time, a 
contract for the colonizing of New Mexico which had been 
later disallowed by the king in Spain. After Velasco became 
viceroy, Lomas renewed his petition without avail, in 1592 
and again shortly before the contract was given to Onate. 18 
In February, 1596, when the new viceroy, the Count of 
Monterrey, gave his final decision in favor of Onate, the 
latter was in Zacatecas but was represented in Mexico City 
by two of his brothers with his power of attorney. 14 The 



12. Luis Paez Brotchie, "Del Archive Judicial Neogallego. Juan de Onate, 
merodeador," p. 297. 

13. Hammond, op. cit., pp. 10, 12. 

14. Ibid., pp. 27, 33-35. 



266 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

unsuccessful and disgruntled Lomas also was there, and he 
immediately asked for, and was given, a royal decree which 
was in effect an injunction against any injury from Onate. 
As will be seen, this decree was dated in Mexico on March 
2, 1596 ; and it was served on Ofiate in Zacatecas, where the 
latter signed the "notification" a month later. 

"ROYAL DECREE. Don Philip, by the grace of God, king 
of Castile, Leon, etc. To you, D. Juan de Onate, to whom is 
entrusted the entrance and pacification of the provinces of 
New Mexico, and whosoever of your captains, other officers 
and soldiers, and to my alcalde mayor of the villas of Llerena 
and Sant Martin, and to his lieutenant residing in the mines 
of Nieves, and to each and all of my commissaries and other 
military officers, health and grace: Know, that before D. 
Caspar de Zuniga y Acevedo, count of Monterey, lieutenant, 
governor and captain general of New Spain and president 
of my audiencia and royal chancery which exists there, ap- 
peared Juan Bautista de Lomas, inhabitant of the said 
mines of Nieves, in the new kingdom of Galicia; and by 
petition, which he presented to him, gave an account, say- 
ing that as was well known, the above-mentioned [Lomas] 
had many mines and houses and estates of every kind, cat- 
tle and sheep ranches, and many fertile lands where he har- 
vested wheat, corn and other grain ; and that at the present 
time he had a large quantity of these locked up in his store- 
houses, together with flour and other things necessary for 
the support and subsistence of the mines. And that, being 
in the country and in a place where ordinarily there is no 
one to administer justice, and somewhat near the road 
where you, said D. Juan de Onate, must pass, it is feared 
that your captains and soldiers and other people which you 
may bring on the said journey might kill his live stock or 
take them along or might deprive his mayordomos of the 
said supplies; and that, although they should pay the just 
price and value, he would suffer serious injury as he needs 
all of it for the support and maintenance of his mining 
haciendas, the success of which benefits my royal service in 



OftATE A MARAUDER? 267 

the increase of my royal fifths ; and, in order to avoid these 
and other damages which might occur, he [Lomas] asks 
him [the viceroy] that, with reference to the above-men- 
tioned and to the fact that he had served me more than 
thirty-eight years in that kingdom, to issue my letter and 
royal decree ordering you, under grievous penalties, that 
you shall not pass or approach the estates, or mines, or 
houses of said Juan Bautista de Lomas, or stop or camp 
for the night in them, for it is not the road for your journey, 
to take anything from them against his will, neither for 
money nor without either flour, wheat, corn, or other smaller 
grains, or any carts or oxen, or any of his cattle or small 
stock, or any other thing, or take or consent to be taken 
any of his mayordomos, or servants, Spaniards or negroes, 
mulattos or Indians, whether slave or free, because the free 
ones owe him much money, and it would be the means of 
costing him all his estates; and this having been seen by 
my said viceroy, it was agreed that he ought to order this my 
letter and royal decree to you and to any of yours in the said 
case; and I, having under consideration the above, have 
deemed it proper, wherefore I order you, inasmuch as the 
direct road of your expedition does not lie by way of the 
said estates, houses, and mines of said Juan Bautista de 
Lomas, that you may not pass by them, you or any of your 
captains or soldiers ; nor may you allow them to go or pass 
by, nor make camp in them; and if the road is direct and 
necessarily goes by them, you may not kill or consent to kill, 
or take anything against his will, either for money or with- 
out, any of his live stock or provisions, carts or oxen, or 
anything whatsoever belonging to him of any description or 
quality ; neither may you take with you nor consent to take 
any of his mayordomos, servants, Spaniards, mestizos, 
negroes, mulattoes, or Indians, slave or free, that owe him 
moneys or who have made contracts of any kind with him, 
except that they fulfill them first, making payment and sat- 
isfaction, unless you relinquish it all for the support and 
maintenance of your said haciendas, notwithstanding what- 



268 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

ever clause or power you may have from me to take what 
you may have necessary for the support of the said journey, 
because I am revoking it with reference to the said Juan de 
Lomas and hold it of no value, the rest remaining in full 
force and rigor. This you shall do and fulfill without wait- 
ing for a second or third letter from me, under penalty of 
two thousand ducats for my exchequer and royal treasury 
and four times as much for whatever thing you might thus 
take, or do, or permit to be taken ; and for the captain or 
any other of my ministers, a penalty of 500 ducats and loss 
of such office ; and should it be a soldier, in addition to pay- 
ing four times as much as he shall take, as stated, he shall 
be proceeded against with all rigor, as against persons who 
take things in the country without permission of the owners, 
and they shall be punished according to the ordinances and 
laws of my kingdoms which regulate such matters. In these 
penalties, in every one herein contained, I hold you guilty 
from this moment, you and every one of yours, if you violate 
them. Given in my city of Mexico, March 2, 1596. I, the 
count of Monterey. I, Pedro de Campos Guerrero, chief 
notary for the government of this New Spain, inscribe it 
for the king, our lord ; by his order, his viceroy in his name. 
Registered. Juan Serrano. As chancellor, Cosme de 
Medina." 

"NOTIFICATION. In the city of Nuestra Senora de los 
Zacatecas, April 1, 1596, I, the notary-receiver above-men- 
tioned," at the request of Gonzalo Sanchez Caballo, in the 
name of Juan Bautista de Lomas, read and made known this 
letter and royal decree, as stated therein, to D. Juan de 
Oiiate, governor and captain general of New Mexico, in 



15. The reader may notice that the notaries of these two documents are 
different, so that the term "above-mentioned" cannot refer to the notary for the 
royal decree. Possibly it was legal phraseology, established by long usage, but here 
without meaning. It occurs to us, however, that the notary-receiver was in effect a 
recorder and that he may have kept a book of permanent record. Then "above-men- 
tioned" would refer to his notarial signature with the preceding entry in his book 
doubtless on an entirely different affair. Or, lastly, this may have been only one 
of several certified copies which Lomas had secured from the notary in Zacatecas 
and the others dropped out at some stage in the procedure. 



ONATE A MARAUDER? 269 

person. He took the letter in his hands, kissed it, and 
placed it above his head and said that he obeyed and would 
obey it, with the respect and reverence which he owes, and 
he is ready to fulfill that which is ordered in it, and that, 
although the road might go by the mines and the hacienda 
of said Juan Bautista de Lomas, in order to fulfill that which 
is ordered in the said royal decree, he will seek [another] 
road for making the journey; and as for the provisions, live 
stock, and other things which the said Juan de Lomas has, 
they will not ask him for them nor take them; in every- 
thing he will comply with the said royal decree as ordered. 
This he gave as his answer and signed it. Witnesses, Garci 
Lopez de San Juan and Juan Perez de Donis, inhabitants 
of this city. D. Juan de Onate, I vouch for it. Jeronimo 
Juarez, notary-receiver." 

In addition to the foregoing, Seiior Brotchie, from his 
study in the Guadalajara archives, found that Lomas exe- 
cuted a power of attorney in favor of Jeronimo Juarez, 
Rodrigo Hernandez Cordero, and Diego Martin de Rivera, 
on October 23 [ 1596] , and that, on November 8 of the same 
year, Martin de Rivera appeared before the audiencia of 
New Galicia and presented the information taken in Nieves, 
He asked that his patron "be given a full measure of jus- 
tice," that the guilty be punished in conformity with the 
seriousness of their crimes, and that the proper restitution 
be made to Lomas of everything that had been taken from 
his land. "But," concludes Brotchie, "since two powerful 
influences were at work in this case, the one more than the 
other, the Guadalajara tribunal, as will be seen from the 
following act, did not desire to pronounce sentence, but 
washed its hands of the affair, like Pilate." 18 

"In the city of Guadalajara, November 13, 1596, the 
president and judges of the royal audiencia of the new 
kingdom of Galicia, having seen this information received 
by Captain Joan de Herrera, justicia mayor of the villas of 



16. Brotchie, op. cit., pp. 299-300. 



270 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Llerena and San Martin and Nieves, from Joan Bautista de 
Lomas, inhabitant and miner of the said mines of Nieves, 
against D. Joan de Onate, governor and captain general of 
the provinces of New Mexico, and of his captains and sol- 
diers, in regard to having robbed him and taken from his 
haciendas many horses, mules, slaves, and freed Indians, 
his haciendas thereby losing the means for extracting sil- 
ver, and having read the rest contained in the said report, 
they said that they were ordering and ordered that notice of 
this crime be given to the viceroy of New Spain, and for this 
purpose they sent an accurate copy of the said summaries. 
Thus they decreed and ordered. (Three rubrics.) Before 
me, Francisco Partida. (Rubric)." 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST, VII 
Edited by LANSING B. BLOOM 

Chapter XII 
RETURNING TO THE SOUTHWEST 

DURING the six years from 1869 to 1875, Lieutenant 
Bourke's duties as an army officer and an aide-de-camp 
had given him unusual opportunities to become thoroughly 
acquainted with the country and the peoples of the South- 
west. When he accompanied General Crook to Omaha, 
upon the latter's transfer to the Department of the Platte, 
he went as a tried and trusted member of Crook's staff, 
and for the next six years he continued to serve in the same 
confidential relationship. 

The years from 1875 to 1881 were a very critical period 
in the history of the Northwest. 1 A perfect network of rail- 
roads was expanding rapidly westward; the buffalo which 
formerly had roamed in enormous herds were rapidly dis- 
appearing ; prospectors, cattlemen, and settlers were swarm- 
ing in by tens of thousands upon the vacant government 
lands and they were becoming covetous and clamorous 
for the choice parts of the large Indian reservations which 
still remained. 2 It is not strange that proud and warlike 
tribes like the Sioux and the Cheyenne became alarmed as 
they saw their hunting grounds taken up and game becom- 
ing scarce, while it was all too common for conscienceless 
traders and profiteering Indian agents to defraud them of 
food, clothing, and other supplies which had been solemnly 
promised them when they gave up part of their holdings 
or were moved away entirely to less desirable locations. 

Probably the most disgraceful period in our national 
history was the twelve years following the death of Pres- 



1. The Bourke records for these years have been made a special subject of study 
by Mildred Stuart Adler, doing: graduate work at the University of New Mexico. 

2. See the map of "The Great West in 1876" at front of this volume. 

271 



272 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

ident Lincoln. Of this period it has been said: "Never 
have American public men in responsible positions, direct- 
ing the destiny of the nation, been so brutal, hypocritical, 
and corrupt." This writer 3 was referring to conditions in 
the South during those years, but his statement applies in 
some measure to the West. The spring of 1875 was marked 
by the bursting of the Whiskey Ring scandal with the reve- 
lation of its speculations in St. Louis ; the following winter 
came the Emma Mine scandal which also involved the good 
name of President Grant as he was nearing the end of his 
second term; and this was immediately followed by the 
breaking of the Belknap scandal. By congressional investi- 
gation in the spring of 1876, it developed that Secretary of 
War W. W. Belknap had been grafting for nearly six years 
in lucrative post-traderships on the frontier. Doubtless the 
scathing comments by Bourke and others on various post- 
traders and Indian agents both in the Southwest and in the 
Northwest during the years from 1869 to 1881, were well 
merited. Not all traders and agents were rascals, but 
those who were, made a connecting link between a corrupt 
federal administration, symbolized by Mrs. Belknap's ex- 
travagant gowns and jewels, and the reservation Indian 
who was the immediate but not final victim. Knowing that 
he was being cheated and often made desperate by hunger, 
the Indian was apt to go on the warpath; and then the 
army would be used to crush and drive him back on his 
reservation. The more acquainted one becomes with the 
policing work done by the army during these years, the 
more impressed he is by the fine way in which it was carried 
through. 

Bourke saw plenty of hard campaigning from 1875 to 
1881, 4 but he also found many opportunities to continue and 
broaden his ethnological studies. In 1873 he had prepared 
a sort of questionnaire for his own guidance in gathering 
information systematically among the Apaches, and he fol- 



3. Claude G. Bowers, The Tragic Era. 

4. See his chronological record, New Mexico Historical Review, viii, 6. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 273 

lowed the same method with the Sioux, Cheyennes, and 
other tribes of the plains and mountains of the Northwest. 
But his chief interest continued to be in the peoples of the 
Southwest and he believed that his studies there would be 
of recognized value if he could return and carry them 
through. His opportunity finally came. 

The winter of 1880-1881 found him in Indian Territory, 
serving as recorder with a peace commission to the Ponca 
Indians, and afterwards it was necessary for him to go to 
Washington to write up the findings of the commission in 
the form of a report. From his notebooks a few scattered 
entries of earlier date will be found of interest, followed by 
his own account of developments in Washington. 

New Year's Day, 1880, passed pleasantly ... in Omaha . . . 
January 10th. The Edison Electric light un fait accompli. 
. . . The value of his enterprise is established by the depre- 
ciated quotations of gas stocks and the enhancement of the 
shares of the company formed to introduce his new light 
into New York and other great cities of the Atlantic Coast. 
. . . February 5th. Railroad consolidation the order of the 
day. The combination of the Union Pacific, Kansas Pacific 
and Denver Pacific (with lateral branches) under one man- 
agement, marks the successful issue of plans long since 
matured in the keen, brilliant intellect of that wonderful 
genius, Jay Gould- one of the most extraordinary men 
the world has ever produced. 5 

February 5th. Commissioner Hayt, of the Indian Bureau, 
peremptorily removed for corrupt practices. In connec- 
tion with Inspector Hammond, Indian Agent Hart, (San 
Carlos Agency, Arizona) and others, Hayt had quietly 
siezed upon a silver mine of immense prospective yield in 
Arizona. This matter getting into the public journals, an 
investigation was ordered. Hayt lied like Beelzebub and 
Hammond swore positively that a letter which he had sent 
Hayt, and which somehow fell into the hands of the inves- 
tigating committee, was a forgery. 

This testimony Hammond retracted the very next 
morning, saying he had been guilty of perjury in making 

5. An anecdote about Jay Gould will be found below, under date of April 8, 1881. 



274 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

it. It required but a few moments cross-examination to 
develop Hayt's villainy in the particular offense specified 
above as well as in many others. The mine had been pur- 
chased by a Mr. Edward Knapp (Hayt), Hayt's own son 
who suppressed his family name, at his father's instance, 
to avert attention; and paid for by a Mr. Hogencamp, of 
Jersey City, Hayt's own partner. 

At this late day in the administration of President 
Hayes, it will be hard to find any gentleman to succeed Mr. 
Hayt and it will be impossible to find a more thorough rascal. 

Mr. Barston, of the Board of Indian Commissioners, a 
whining, psalm-singing hypocrite discovered in illicit con- 
nection with stove contracts for the Indian Bureau. 

The distress in Ireland augmenting. Parnell, M. P., 
visits this country to excite American sympathy. . . . 

January 21st, 1881. Received an invitation from Major 
Powell, of the Ethnological Bureau of the Smithsonian In- 
stitute, to pay him a visit with reference to a better acquain- 
tance. 6 Busy all day with the Ponca Commission Record. 
After dinner, called upon Mrs. Johnson and accompanied 
her and her daughter to the Skating Rink where we re- 
mained several hours. The hall was well lighted, the music 
superb and the great throng present embraced many lovely 
young ladies and graceful gentlemen. I knew a number 
of the young ladies and for that reason I took more pleasure 
in the visit. I had never been in a skating rink before and 
couldn't compare the scene to anything so much as the 
movements of whirling dervishes, after the music had 
warmed the skaters to enthusiasm. 

January 22, 1881. Dr. Armstrong, Chief Clerk of General 
Ruggles' Division of the Adjutant General's office, in whose 
room I have occupied a desk for the past two or three days, 
has made a comparison of the rapidity of my writing with 
that of several of the most expert penmen in his Division. 
It was found that Mr. McCoy and Mr. Dennathy, his two 
quickest writers, considered that they had done a good day's 
work when they had finished 20 pages of legal cap copy- 
ing, each page of 28 lines and each line of 8!/2 words. My 

6. Major J. W. Powell, a veteran of the Civil War in which he lost his right 
arm, had led his famous exploration through the Grand Canon of the Colorado in 
the summer of 1869. During the '70's he did much exploring in the Rocky Mountain 
region, and at this time he was director of the U. S. Geological Survey and of the 
Bureau of Ethnology under the Smithsonian Institution. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 275 

work was not far from 25 pages per diem, working from 
10 A. M. to 4 P. M., without lunch, altho' at great stress I 
am certain I could do 35 p. per diem, of 28 lines each, and 
an average of 17 words to the line. 30 pages of my work 
equalled 52% pages of the best War Dep't work; the great- 
est number of words on one of my pages was 388, which will 
show how close and fine my writing was I mention this 
fact merely to prelude my regret that my education has been 
so imperfect. If, instead of a lot of useless classical train- 
ing, I had been carefully instructed in phonography, and 
telegraphy, I should have been a man of more consequence 
in my day and generation. Every boy should be taught 
such branches and also made to study a trade. 

I went with Nickerson to the Smithsonian Institute to 
call upon Major Powell, by whom I was received with the 
greatest cordiality; he said that Capt. Button of the Ord- 
nance Corps, and Professor Holden had spoken to him a 
number of times about my service among the Indians and 
of my note books which latter had also been spoken of by 
Reverend Mr. Dorsey. Major Powell asked me to join his 
expedition to the New Mexican Pueblos in the summer of 
the present year : I promised to take the matter under con- 
sideration, as it was a subject in which I was deeply inter- 
ested. Our interview was most delightful and I gladly 
accepted Major Powell's invitation to repeat it. Dined with 
General, Mrs. & Miss Ruggles. 

January 23rd, 1881. Attended mass at Saint Matthews. In 
the evening, dined with my old friend, Lieut. Green and his 
wife. They have a pleasant little home, filled with bric-a- 
brac, collected during his travels in different parts of the 
world. In running our National Boundary from Lake of 
the Woods to the foot of the Rocky Mountains; of this, 
he gave an animated uescription, referring to the Red River 
half-breeds, and their carts, dogs and dog sledges, fur 
clothes, the "bull" and mackinaw boats of the Upper Mis- 
souri the fabulous swarms of mosquitos, his experiences at 
a half-breed ball his expedient for obtaining a "sight" 
across a lake making one of his men swim to the other 
side and hold up a marked rod ; his manner of placing mon- 
numents in swamps along the Boundary ; this he effected by 
driving 250 piles around each wooden monument: of all 
the above, he had many well-executed pictures, the work of 
a German artist with his command. He also had numerous 



276 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

articles of Chippeway workmanship, all displaying decided 
taste. On the walls, were hung the medals conferred upon 
him by the Czar of Russia and the Government of Roumania 
for gallant services in the Turco-Russian campaign. These 
medals are six in number and are all for work of a danger- 
ous nature. Frank Green is justly proud of them and I 
couldn't help feeling proud of him for winning them. He 
has a considerable collection of photographs of the Russian 
Imperial family, of Skobeloff and other eminent Russian 
commanders, all or nearly all with the signatures of the orig- 
inals attached. Lastly, he showed me pictures of places in 
Saint Petersburgh, and Constantinople and the renowned 
Monastery of Mount Athos which has played so stirring a 
part in early history of the Christian world. 

January 24th, 1881. A bright, lovely morning. Worked 
very hard all day. The newspapers contain the names of 
persons appointed by President Hayes to various positions 
in the Army. Major D. G. Swain, to succeed Dunn as Judge 
Advocate Gen'l, and two civilians to be Paymaster. One 
of the civilians is the son of Bishop Whipple of the Episco- 
pal Church a Bishop who has been very much in fear 
of the demoralizing influences of Army officers upon the 
Indians under his charge. To me, Whipple has always 
appeared to be very much of a fanatic and something of a 
hypocrite. President Hayes made such an ado about reform 
in the administration of the government that some people 
four years ago were deluded into believing that he was hon- 
est in his expressions, but a uniform duplicity and treachery 
have convinced the nation that something besides Apollin- 
aris water at a State Dinner or an unctious outpouring of 
sanctimonious gab at all times, is needed to make a man holy. 

No president ever entered upon his office with brighter 
prospects of gaining popular esteem and affection than did 
Hayes ; no one has left or will leave the White House more 
thoroughly despised and detested. 

After supper went to Ford's Opera House, a miserable 
hole, very inconvenient, poorly ventilated and dangerous in 
case of fire. It was packed from floor to dome, every seat 
taken and standing room difficult to find. By extreme good 
luck, I secured a very good seat in the gallery and listened 
for three hours to the Opera of Sonnambula, in which Mad- 
ame Etelka Gerster sang the part of Amina. The voice 
of this lady is phenomenal it is of great compass and in 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 277 

every note, high or low, sweet and clear and silvery. The 
vast audience remained in ecstasies during 1 the whole per- 
formance in which Gerster was ably assisted by great artists 
like Ravelli and others whose names I cannot recall. 

Evidently, the best society of Washington was fully 
represented; costly raiment and beautiful jewels worn by 
lovely women formed a grand feature which afforded one 
indescribable pleasure. 

January 25th, 1881. Extremely busy all day; finished the 
transcript of evidence taken before the Ponca Commission. 
Dined with General Ruggles, meeting his wife, his niece, 
Miss Ruggles, and his bright, handsome children, and his 
cousins, Miss Brooks and Miss Coggswell, all refined and 
elegant ladies; the last named, an extremely beautiful girl, 
the daughter of General Milton Coggswell, under whom I 
formerly served (1870) in Arizona. 7 Mrs. Ruggles is said 
to be the handsomest lady in the National Capital at this 
time and I, for one, believe the statement to be true. 

I accompanied General Ruggles and the ladies to the 
President's Reception. This can be outlined in a very few 
words. There was plenty of good music, by the Marine 
Band, and a great crowd of people, including many beau- 
tiful women and some not beautiful all well dressed and 
not a few extravagantly dressed. Taking our places in the 
long line, we slowly advance step by step, running each 
moment the risk of tearing off the train of the lady in front 
and finally reach the 'presence of the President and Mrs. 
Hayes. Somebody asks you "names please?" You answer, 
"Lieutenant Bourke and Miss Coggswell," whereupon he 
bawls out "Colonel Snogser and Mrs. Quirkswill." But it 
don't make any difference. The President greets you with a 
smile that is too truly good for this earth and Mrs. Hayes 
gives a gentle, pleasant glance of welcome which may not 
have any sincerity about it, but which is for all that, 
extremely pleasant. No one remains long at a White House 
reception ; there is such a crush that after promenading once 
or twice around the rooms and through the conservatory, 
people order their carriages and drive off to other enter- 
tainments. The policeman is requested to "call General 
Ruggles' carriage," of course, he yells out at the top of his 

7. Milton Cogswell graduated from West Point in 1849 and was assigned to the 
infantry branch of the army. After the Civil War he served as major of the 21st 
Infantry from March 26, 1869, until he retired September 5, 1871. 



278 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

lungs for "Giniril Murdock's kerridge," but the coachmen 
seem to be marvelously gifted and intuitively know when 
their services are most needed. 

January 27th. After breakfast at the Riggs', visited Major 
Powell at the National Gallery, the new building of the 
Smithsonian Institute. This is a magnificent structure, 
one of the finest I have ever seen. Being a little bit too 
early, I whiled away the moments, preceding Major Pow- 
ell's arrival, in making a hurried examination of a number 
of the apartments and cases. I succeeded in walking through 
those devoted to the "seal family," the "rattlesnakes" and 
"skunks" and was delighted beyond description by the order 
and system or arrangement. 

Major Powell coming in, received me very warmly and 
presented me to his assistants, Captain Garrick Mallery of 

the Army and another gentleman, Mr , whose name 

I did not catch, but who impressed me as a young man of 
decided ability. (Mr. I. Pilling). Our conversation natur- 
ally turned upon Ethnology and in reply to Maj. Powell's 
queries, I gave a succinct statement of my own efforts in 
that direction in Arizona, in 1873. At that time, as I told 
Major Powell, I was still quite young in years and totally 
without knowledge of this most important branch of science, 
but I was impelled by a very sincere desire to learn and 
that is half the battle always. I prepared a long list of 
questions embracing a wide range of topics but based upon 
the idea of an Indian's life, commencing with his birth, 
taking him through all the principal events of his history 
and ending with his death and mortuary services. Major 
Powell renewed his invitation for me to join his expedition 
in May, and I again assured him that I would give the mat- 
ter very earnest deliberation. 

I then passed over to the old building of the Smithson- 
ian, and after glancing at the lordly proportions of the 
Irish Elk and the German Aurochs, I entered the division of 
Anthropology, which I was most anxious to see. There 
is certainly a fair collection of Indian property, but it is 
only fair and is not well arranged. If the United States 
Government so desired, the Bureau of Ethnology could get 
specimens enough to fill one-half the Smithsonian Institute. 
The cases containing stone axes, hammers, "celts," spears 
and daggers, make a good display and are so labelled as to 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 279 

give a good idea of the purposes for which their contents 
were intended. 

Returning to Nickerson's office, I stopped on the way 
at the Washington Monument, which I desired to ascend, 
but the elevator was under repair, and the wooden stairway 
too slippery with ice and snow so I gave up the idea and 
entered the small frame building, where are stored the 
stones presented by the various state, territories, cities, 
towns and associations. 

At the Signal Office, Nickerson presented me to Cap- 
tain Saldanha da Gama, of the Brazilian Navy, now on an 
official visit to this country. This officer is a direct descend- 
ant of Vasco da Gama, the great navigator of Portugal. 
Captain S. da Gama is a gentleman of unusually courteous 
manners, extended acquaintance with all quarters of the 
globe, keen powers of observation and, apparently, great 
range of reading. Professor Abbie invited me to visit the 
Instrument room of the Signal Service, which I did, and was 
shown through by Lt. Birkhimer, an esteemed friend of 
many years' standing, whom I had not seen since 1869. 

I was astonished at the advances made in this depart- 
ment of science and gave as close an inspection to the self- 
registering anemometers, barometers and thermometers, 
which were tracing out the direction, force and temperature 
of wind at every moment of the day. 

I ended the extremely active work of the morning by a 
visit to the Corcoran Art Gallery, which has plaster casts 
of notable statues. It is much patronized by Washington- 
ians and by strangers coming to the city, and is the nucleus 
of a grand National Gallery of Art in the future, when our 
people shall be more wealthy and more refined. 

Later in the afternoon, Nickerson drove me to the 
Taylor Mansion to meet some of the Committee of the Art 
Loan Exhibition in aid of the School for Nurses. This com- 
mittee, of which Major Powell and Nickerson are members, 
was desirous of securing some Indian trinkets from Gen. 
Crook's Hd. Qrs. and these I of course, promised to send, 
altho' our stock of such things is just now sadly depleted. 

General Crook & Major Roberts, A. D. C., left for 
Omaha. In the evening, I made calls at General MeCook's, 
Attorney General Williams', General Sherman's, and Con- 
gressman Loring's, at which last named place, there was 
to have been a musical entertainment but owing to the 



280 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

sudden indisposition of one of the young ladies who was 
to sing, we were deprived of the pleasure promised but had 
the recompense of an animated conversation with the fam- 
ily a very cultured one from Boston, Mass. 

We wound up the night at the weekly reception of the 
wife of Justice Hunt, a preceding one of which I attended 
some days since. At this house, one meets all the distin- 
guished people in Washington there were certainly, if 
anything, too many of them here this evening. Judges of 
the Supreme Court, members of the Cabinet, officers of the 
Army and Navy, diplomats, literary people, ladies and gen- 
tlemen of wealth, and leisure. The English embassador, 
Sir Edward Thornton, with his wife and daughters, was 
there and also the Japanese minister, Mr. Yoshida and his 
wife. The latter are extremely diminutive people but very 
bright and amiable. They wear the American costume. 
Here I met Mrs. Dahlgren and Miss Welsh, both of whom 
asked me to come to see them. Miss Welsh is a beautiful 
young lady, the niece of the wife of Lieut. Sternbel, of 
the Army. She paid a long visit to Fort Omaha two or 
three years ago, and made hosts of friends by her beauty, 
intelligence, and animated, gentle nature. Mrs. Dahlgren, 
widow of Admiral Dahlgren of the U. S. Navy, was the 
mother of Lieutenant Goddard of the Army, with whom, 
when cadets, I was on terms of the closest intimacy. Nat- 
urally, her unexpected meeting with me, recalled many sad 
associations. I also met Sec. Carl Schurz, who asked me 
to be sure to come to his office (Department of the Interior) 
before leaving town, as he was particularly desirous of 
having a talk with me. I felt almost sure that the Report 
of the Ponca Commission had been a severe blow to him and 
that the conversation would be upon that topic. . . 
January 28. Called upon Secretary Schurz, but learned that 
he had just left for a cabinet meeting. Mr. Hanna, his 
private secretary, told me that Mr. Schurz was very anxious 
to have me wait until his return. My time was very much 
crowded, but I promised to wait as long as possible and in 
the meantime, Mr. Hanna brought me to Mr. Lockwood, 
chief clerk of the Indian Bureau, with whom I had a slight 
previous acquaintance and by whom I was received in a 
very kindly manner. . . . 

March 7, 1881. Received a very complimentary letter from 
Reverend Edward Everett Hale, in acknowledgment of 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 281 

mine to him, which letter he said he would read at the next 
meeting of the Massachusetts Antiquarian Society in April. 
Mr. Hale's letter will be found preserved in my book of per- 
sonal orders. I also received another letter from Major 
Powell, of the Smithsonian Institute, repeating his invita- 
tion to me to join his proposed expedition to the Pueblo 
Indians. 

March 8, 1881. Wrote a personal letter to Lieut. General 
P. H. Sheridan, Commanding Military Division of the Mis- 
souri, requesting to be detailed in the work of ascertaining 
points in the ethnology of the North American Indians, and 
especially of the Pueblos ; if I can get such a detail, it will 
enable me to do more promptly the same amount of work 
which would require, with Major Powell, six or eight 
months. I feel that I ought to devote some time to this 
important work and thus save the accumulations of notes 
and memoranda of more or less account, taken during my 
nearly twelve years of service among the Indians of the 
great Plains of the Missouri & Columbia Basins and in the 
remote South-West in the valleys of the Gila, Colorado and 
Rio Grande. 

The following list of questions, prepared for my own 
use, will serve to make clear the object and scope of my 
proposed investigation. 8 

In the preparation of these memoranda, I have not depended 
alone upon such personal experience as I have had with Indians, 
but have carefully consulted the valuable works of Hubert H. Ban- 
croft, Tylor, Trumbull, Hayden, Yarroiv, J. W. Powell, Gibbs, Dall, 
Lubbock, Maine, Morgan, Parkman, Evans, Short, Baldwin, Simpson, 
Stephens, Squires, &c., &c., from all of whose writings I have ob- 
tained important suggestions; and after preparation, have submitted 
the memoranda to the criticism of Army Officers of extended exper- 
ience on the frontier. To these officers Generals Sheridan, Crook, 
Robert Williams, G. A. Forsyth, Colonels Royall, Ludington and T. H. 
Stanton, and Captains W. P. Clark and W. L. Carpenter I am deeply 
indebted for correction, sympathy and encouragement. 

H'D. QRS. DEPT. PLATTE, 

Fort Omaha, Neb., March 28, 1881. 

J. G. B. 



8. See title no. 9 of the Bourke Bibliography (New Mexico Historical Review, 
viii, pp. 11-15). As printed in Omaha about three weeks later, it consisted of ten 
pages, copies of which are here inserted in the notebooks. The complete text of 
this prepared list may be seen most easily in his On the Border with Crook (1891), 
pp. 262-275. Only the opening paragraph is here given. 



282 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

The following is the complete list of works studied upon 
this subject, from most of which much valuable information 
has been derived. 

Tyler's Early History of Mankind and Primitive Man. 

Bancroft's (Hubert Howe) Native Races of the Pacific 
Slope. 

Lubbock's Pre Historic Times. 

Yarrow's Mortuary Customs. 

Short's North Americans in Antiquity, (an excellent 
work) 

Morgan's Ancient Society. 

Sir Henry Maine's Early Institutions. 

March 15, 1881. The newspapers this morning contain 
the information that the Czar of Russia was (March 13th) 
assassinated in the streets of Saint Petersburgh. This is 
a good thing. Alexander began life as a just and moderate 
ruler, anxious to alleviate the sufferings of his wretched 
subjects; he freed the serfs and during our civil war re- 
mained the firm friend of our Government for both of 
which acts, the world owes him a debt of gratitude. But his 
later years have been years of tyrannical severity toward his 
subjects, of licentious disregard of his vows to his wife 
(who died last year of a broken heart,) and of religious 
and political intolerance toward the unhappy people of Pol- 
and. The full account of his assassination will be found in 
the extracts from today's Omaha Herald. . . . 

I hope before many months to be able to chronicle the 
assassination of Bismark, one of the coldest-blooded and 
most unprincipled tyrants who have ever sprung into power. 

We, Americans, have the satisfaction of knowing that 
political trouble in Europe means increased financial pros- 
perity and power to our own country. . . . 

March 18, 1881. The newspapers this morning chronicle, 
without comment, the fact that yesterday the first train 
started out from Kansas City, Mo., for San Francisco, Cal., 
by way of the newly completed Southern Transcontinental 
Route. Within five years, it is my belief that we shall have 
at least five lines running across the American Continent, 
including in this number any that may be built in Canada 
or Mexico. 

March 20th, 1881. Received the following telegram from 
Lieutenant-General Sheridan : 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 283 

Chicago, Ills., March 19th, 1881. 
Lieut. John G. Bourke, 
A. D. C., Omaha, Neb., 

I have just read your letter. 9 - If Gen. Crook will make 
no objection to your absence, I will furnish you with all 
the reasonable means necessary for the accomplishment of 
the purpose you have in view, but shall want to see before 
you start. 

(signed) P. H. Sheridan, 

Lieutenant-General. 

Thereupon, General Crook telegraphed as follows: 

Fort Omaha, Neb., March 20th, 1881. 
Lieutenant-General P. H. Sheridan, 
Chicago, Illinois. 

Bourke read his letter to me before sending it to you. 
It had my fullest approval and I consider the work he pro- 
poses very important. If you have no objection, I'll send 
him to Chicago tomorrow. 

(signed) George Crook, 

Brigadier General. 

March 25, 1881. Left Omaha, Neb., in obedience to the 
above telegram from Lieut.-General P. H. Sheridan. . . . 

March 24, 1881. Thursday. While passing through East- 
ern Iowa and Illinois, noticed a still greater amount of snow 
than in E. Nebraska. This is owing to the heavy storm of last 
week, from which Omaha and vicinity escaped. The Miss- 
issippi and Missouri are still solid with ice and along the 
banks of both mighty streams the gravest apprehensions 
prevail as to the consequences of a sudden ice-gorge. . . 

Sidney Dillon, President of the great Union Pacific R. 
W. System, was a fellow traveller with me and early this 
morning came over to my seat and opened a conversation 
which lasted a long time* I have always been anxious to 
meet this gentleman and was delighted when chance threw 
us together. In appearance, Mr. Dillon is majestic, not 
less than 6' 2", sinewy, muscular and finely proportioned, he 
bears his seventy years as if they were but 40. His head 
is finely shaped, showing keenness, penetration and strength 
in every feature; his eyes are good, but rather too pierc- 
ing and there is an expression of dogged self-will about him 

9. See above under date of March 8. 



284 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

which may be regarded as a good or bad sign according to 
the humor under which he may be acting. Our conversa- 
tion was principally upon the resources and progress of the 
Territories, especially of Idaho, Montana, Utah, Colorado, 
New Mexico, and Arizona, and finally some little concern- 
ing N. E. Nebraska and S. Dakota, in all of which sections 
Mr. Dillon knew that I had travelled. My impression of 
him was that he possessed great financial intuitions, com- 
bined with remarkable common sense, altho', as he himself 
admitted, he has had no educational advantages. 

Reached Chicago in the evening, 5 hours behind time, 
our detention occasioned by a freight-train off the track, in 
some part of Western Illinois. 

Put up at the Grand Pacific. In the evening, visited 
Haverly's Minstrels, which consisted of 100 negro per- 
formers: The singing was good and the acting fair, but 
by no means equal to that of the average white "burnt- 
cork artist." 

March 25th, 1881. Visited General Sheridan's Hd. Qrs., 
where I met Gen. G. A. Forsyth, A. D. C., Colonel Grant, A. 
D. C., Colonel Jordan, 9th Infantry, Colonel M. V. Sheri- 
dan, A. D. C., Capt. W. P. Clark, 2nd Cavalry, and Capt. 
Gregory, Engineer Corps, with all of whom I had pleasant 
converse. Brigadier General John Pope, now command- 
ing the Department of the Missouri and his A. D. C., Cap- 
tain Volkmar, 5th Cav., entered the room and talked with 
us for a little while and then left to confer with the Lieu- 
tenant General. Upon their departure, I was sent for by 
General Sheridan who received me with his usual gentle 
and cordial manner and had a long talk with me upon the 
subject of my ethnological researches among the Indian 
tribes living within the limits of his Mil'y Division. The 
purport of his remarks was summed up in the closing sen- 
tences: "I want you to devote your time to the Indians, 
South of the Union Pacific Road and let Clark 10 take those 
north of it, but of course I don't mean that either of you 
shall be tied down to mathematical lines, there is plenty 
of work for you both. Don't be in a hurry. Take your 
time. I want you to make a success of this and I'll back 

10. William Philo Clark entered West Point from New York, graduated in 1864. 
After graduating he was assigned to the 2nd Cavalry, and he had now just received 
his captaincy (Jan. 25, 1881). The task here indicated for him was to be interrupted 
by his death on Sept. 22, 1884. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 285 

you up in every possible way. I am giving 1 you this work 
because I regard you as the man for the place and that it's 
just the thing for you." 

Thanking the General for his courtesy and his high 
opinion of me, I bowed and withdrew. 

Captain W. P. Clark, 2nd Cavalry, then invited me to 
run over to his apartments at the Palmer House and ex- 
amine the manuscript of his new work on the "sign lang- 
uage of the North American Indians." Of course, I made 
no examination, not deeming myself fit to criticize the labors 
of Clark who has made this subject a profound study for 
years. He is eminently fitted for the field now opening 
before him; of strong mental powers, powerful physique, 
indefatigable, persistant, ambitious and magnetic, he gets 
into the confidence of the Indians more quickly than any 
man I know, excepting Gen'l. Crook. . . . 

.... Passed the greater part of the evening in the 
pleasant, comfortable rooms of the "Chicago Club," where 
in our party were General Sheridan, General G. A. For- 
syth, Captain Clark, Mr. Norton, Mr. Lyon, Mr. Fisher, Mr. 
Pope and others. 

March 26, 1881. Saturday. Enjoyed a cosey breakfast 
with General Forsyth, at the Chicago Club. The cooking 
and the service were simply perfect. 

Again to Hd. Qrs. where I had another conversation 
with the Lieutenant-General, from whom I received my final 
instructions, which read as follows: 

Hd. Qts. MiFy Division of the Missouri, 
Chicago, Ills., March 26th, 1881. 
Special Orders, 
No. 33 

First Lieutenant John G. Bourke, 3rd Cavalry, Aide de Camp, 
under instructions from the Division, will proceed to Fort Hall, 
I. T., and thence to Santa Fe, New Mexico, and from that place to 
such other points as will enable him to comply with said instruc- 
tions. Post Commanders, on his written application, will furnish 
Lieut. Bourke such transportation and scouts as he may require. 

By Command of Lieut.-Gen'l. Sheridan, 

(signed) Gen. A. Forsyth, 

Lieut.-Colonel I. A. D. C. 



286 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

I bade good bye to General Sheridan and other friends 
at Hd. Qrs., and then took the "Rock Island" train for 
Omaha. . . . 

March 27, 1881. (Sunday). Reached Omaha. While cross- 
ing the iron bridge over the Missouri, we saw that the fet- 
ters of the ice-king were slowly yielding and that the noble 
river would soon again be free. 



Chapter XIII 
A VISIT TO THE SHOSHONEES 

FROM OMAHA Lieutenant Bourke proceeded first to Fort 
Hall, Idaho Territory, to carry out a preliminary inves- 
tigation among the Shoshonees and Bannocks living near 
that post. The reason for this lay in the fact that these 
tribes belonged to the same linguistic stock as the Hopi 
Pueblo Indians in Arizona among whom he was planning 
to continue his earlier study. Evidently he wished to 
acquaint himself with any cultural relations between these 
two branches of the Shoshonean people. 1 

March 81st, 1881. Thursday. Gen'l. Crook returned from 
an unsuccessful bear hunt in the mountains north of Rock 
Creek, Wyoming; he did not reach the depot in town 
(Omaha) until after one A. M., as his train had been obliged 
to make a detour by way of Kearney Junction, Neb., and 
Saint Joseph, Mo., a sudden spell of warm weather having 
thawed the ice and snow in the valley of the Platte causing 
the river to overflow its banks, carry away several miles 
of the Union Pacific track and flood the towns of Fremont 
and Columbus. After bidding adieu to General Crook and 
other officers at Hd. Qrs. I left for Fort Hall, Idaho, and 
Santa Fe, New Mexico. My bright young friend, Paul Hor- 
bach, came down to the depot to say good bye. 

Owing to break in the U. P. R. R. near Fremont, our 
train had to cross the Missouri river east to the little sta- 
tion known as Council Bluffs, thence along the Kansas City 
Saint Jo. & C. B. R. R., to Plattsmouth Junction, crossing 

1. See Hodge, Handbook of American Indians, II, under "Shoshonean people." 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 287 

the river again at that point and re-entering the state of 
Nebraska, and then following the Burlington road West to 
Kearney Junction. While no serious damage had as yet 
occurred, it was evident at a glance that both the Platte 
and Missouri rivers were on the eve of open rebellion from 
which direst results were to be apprehended. We had to 
submit to many vexatious delays while the B. and M. line 
which, it must be remembered, was clogged with its own 
accumulated traffic and with that of the Union Pacific. In 
place of reaching Lincoln, the state capital, at 3 p. m., we 
did not pass there until almost 11 at night and upon awak- 
ening at 7:30 a. m., 

April 1st, 1881, found we had proceeded no farther than 
Kearney Junction, 200 miles West of Omaha. This slow 
mode of progress would have been very disheartening, had 
I not found good travelling companions in Major Blaine, 
Paymaster, U. S. A., Mr. Saulsbury of the stage and mining 
firm of Gilmor, Saulsbury & Co., and Mr. Wm. B. Loring, 
the latter an old friend. . . . 

From Kearney, we made pretty good time to North 
Platte where we were provided with two fresh engines and 
increased our speed to such a degree that the long vista of 
telegraph poles closing the horizon to our front seemed to 
open like a door struck by some magic wand and to close 
the horizon behind us as in obedience to the same spell. 
Great numbers of dead cattle were strewn alongside the 
track, from Ogallalla to Sidney, as well as for a considerable 
distance East of Ogallalla, or say for a total distance of 75 
miles, they were so numerous that if arranged in a regular 
series they would not have been more than ten yards apart. 
As this would give us 150 carcasses to the mile, some idea 
may be formed of the havoc caused by the fearful winter 
just closing or by the Rail Road trains running into small 
herds which had sought shelter in ravines and cuts and 
been unable to get off the track when the whistle blew. 
Gangs of men and boys were at work skinning the carcasses 
to save the hides. 

Attached to one train were a couple of car-loads of 
"tender-feet," going West; they were rough, good-natured 
plowboys and clerks from country stores, starting out to 
make their fortunes in the new territories. Each one was 
armed with a small toy revolver, conspicuously displayed 
and lavishly used at shooting at anything and everything in 



288 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

the shape of a mark along the line of travel. At every stop- 
ping-place, they made the air resound with the barking of 
their little pop-guns, and with much profanity. They will, 
undobutedly, with time, develop into good citizens and prom- 
inent men in our new communities, but a sound clubbing 
will first be required to take some of the conceit out of 
them. . . . 

During the night with the help of our double engines, 
we made up much of our lost time and reached Green River, 
Wyoming, almost at the usual hour for breakfast on the 
morning of 

April 2nd, 1881. (Saturday) A warm, lovely, bright day. 
Major Bisbee and Captain Young, 4th Infantry, were at 
Carter station and, much to my pleasure, rode with us until 
we met the Eastward-bound train at Evanston. Got to 
Ogden, Utah, in time to connect with the Utah and North- 
ern train for Fort Hall. At depot, I met Mrs. Bainbridge, 
wife of Major Bainbridge, commanding the post of Fort 
Hall, and Lieut. Kimball and party of ladies, including his 
lovely young sister, all of whom had come to see Mrs. Bain- 
bridge off. The weather in Salt Lake Valley was balmy as 
summer, the roads were thick with dust and fruit trees be- 
ginning to bloom. 

April 3rd, 1881 .... Arrived at Blackfoot, Idaho, a 
town which has grown from nothing within the past 
two years. It contains a number of very neat cottages 
and maintains a valuable trade with the rich mining dis- 
tricts now opening up in the mountain ranges between this 
point and Salmon River. An iron bridge, 600 feet long, has 
been thrown across Snake river to meet the demands of this 
trade, a sure indication of its value and permanency. 

Daily, immigrants are pouring into this part of Idaho 
and Montana, by the car and train loads, attracted mainly 
by valuable mines. Consequently, the Utah and Northern 
promises soon to become one of the best paying roads in the 
country. Work will soon commence on a new line of R. R. 
to run from near Fort Bridger, Wyo., cross the Utah and 
Northern near Fort Hall and continue on until it reaches 
Portland, Oregon. It will be built by the Union Pacific 
R. R. Co., and will play an important part in opening up 
Western Wyoming and all of Idaho. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 289 

The Keeny House, Blackfoot, boasts of a parlor with 
dadoed wall-paper, piano, melodeon, hanging lamps and 
easy chairs. A very good concern so far as it goes, but un- 
fortunately, the genius of improvement lost his enthusiasm 
on the threshhold of the dining room, where the spirit of 
the Past still holds sway and the grub, as of yore, is simply 
damnable. 

Major Bainbridge came over with an ambulance and 
drove Mrs. Bainbridge and myself to the post 8 miles, 
along a very dusty, but otherwise agreeable road 

April 4th, 1881. Monday. After breakfast, Major Bain- 
bridge and I rode over to the Shoshonee and Bannock 
Agency, at Ross Fork, 14% miles distant, taking the road 
across the nose of Mt. Putnam, which still had considerable 
snow close to its summit. At the agency we were kindly 
received by Agent Wright who escorted us about his Depart- 
ment, taking us to the saw-mill where we had the pleasure 
of meeting Dr. DuBois a very bright young gentleman, and 
Charlie and Joe Rainey, two intelligent Bannock half- 
breeds. 

At the post-trader's Mr. Schillings, the clerk, Mr. Holt, 
very kindly invited us to take lunch at his mess, which we 
did gladly, finding plenty of good food, well cooked. After 
lunch, we began to examine the Indians, whom Agent 
Wright had kindly sent for that purpose. The questions 
were based upon the categories contained in pp 1119-1127,* 
and unless otherwise explained apply to both Bannocks and 
Shoshonees, the tribes believed to be originally of a com- 
mon origin, altho' now speaking widely different languages. 
They call themselves and each other by the same names 
employed by the Whites Bannocks and Shoshonees. . . . 3 

These Bannocks and Shoshonees were largely repre- 
sented in the hostilities against the whites in '66 and '67 and 
suffered a terrible castigation at the hands of General Crook, 
for whom they cherish an admiration based upon whole- 
some fear. 



2. The reference is to his "Memoranda." See chapter xii, note 8. 

3. The notes omitted here are Bourke's records of his own observations, on this 
and the following day, and of the data gathered from his "informants, Charlie and 
Joe Rayney, two well-informed French and Bannock halfbreeds who, when at all 
in doubt, asked assistance from Captain Jim, Captain John, and Ti-hi, old Shoshonee 
and Bannock chiefs." 



290 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

"How is Clook?" asked Captain Jim, when he met me. 
"Clook down in Omaha? Clook all light? You tell Clook 
me know him." 

"All right, Jim, I'll do it." 

Major Bainbridge & I did not get back to Ft. Hall, 
and finish our dinner, until long after dark and then my 
kind host mixed me a stiff toddy and we retired to rest. 
Slept soundly and awakened much refreshed, 

April 6th, 1881. Wednesday. Rained quite heavily last 
night. Strong wind blowing all day. Paid short visit to 
Lt. and Mrs. Yeatman & Dr. Grimes and devoted rest of the 
day to writing up my journal. Bade farewell to my kind 
hostess, Mrs. Bainbridge and the Major and took the con- 
veyance awaiting me at the door to drive me to Blackf oot 
station.* 

*(In Mrs. Bainbridge's parlor is one of Moran's paint- 
ings camp on Snake River presented to her by the artist, 
and valued at $1,500. It is a gem of drawing and coloring.) 4 

The road to Blackf oot station was very sandy; only 
enough soil on top to give a scraggy growth of sage-brush 
an excuse for existence. A fierce wind blowing the sand 
into ridges and ruts complicated the difficulties of crossing 
one or two of the larger "dunes," in our way, but we had 
no serious obstacle and reached the station in good time 
for me to check my baggage to Denver and engage a berth 
in the sleeper to Ogden. . . . 

April 7th, 1881. The Utah & Northern is one of the easiest 
roads to ride upon that I have ever travelled over; the 
change, in this road, since I first knew it, in 1875, is almost 
incredible. (For a description of it as it then was, consult 
notebook Nov. & Dec. 1875.) 

This morning has been quite cloudy. At Ogden, I was 
met by Lieut. Kimball, 14th Infantry, whom I very much 
wanted to see, on account of his service among the Fort 
Hall Indians. 5 He said these Indians didn't seem to have 
any idea of God, except as they learned of him from the 



4. A marginal note was here inserted later by Bourke. perhaps after becoming 
acquainted with the artist, Peter Moran, in Santa Fe. See The Snake-Dance of the 
Maquis, p. 5. 

5. William Augustus Kimball, born in Indiana, was admitted to West Point 
from Utah but was a cadet only from July 1872 to January 1873 He was commissioned 
2nd lieutenant, 14th Infantry, on August 81, 186 ; 1st lieutenant in 1890 ; and was 
retired with rank of captain on August 13, 1894. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 291 

whites; they have a vague belief in spirits and claim to be 
descended from the cayote. Their languages are identical, 
in most respects, except that the pronunciation of the Ban- 
nock is much the more guttural of the two. A great num- 
ber of the Bannocks are able to talk in both dialects and 
many of the Shoshonees now realize the advantage of being 
able to do the same thing. Lieut. Kimball speakes Sho- 
shonee to a slight extent and from his great iptelligence may 
be relied on as an excellent authority. He says the male 
Bannocks and Shoshonees exhibit the same facility I have 
noticed among other Indian tribes, in drawing animals; 
the women are very faithful in their delineations of the 
human body. "Captain Mary" cuts out from paper figures 
of women which are anatomically correct. (Kimball prom- 
ised to get some of these for me, and Mr. Schilling promised 
to send me a soapstone pipe and a war-whistle made of the 
bone of an eagle's wing.) They have one set of names for 
males and one for females; the former are as a rule sug- 
gestive of majesty, strength or ferocity or recall animals 
in which these attributes are noticeable; the latter are 
drawn from the lists of plants, flowers or gentle animals. 
"Buffalo Horn," "Hairy Bear" or "Spotted Eagle" would be 
typical male names : "Corn Tassel," "Pine Tree" or "Fawn," 
typical female. 

I will now recapitulate the information obtained con- 
cerning the Shoshonees and Bannocks, and not otherwise 
distinctly specified. 

The Bannocks, Shoshonees and Comanches and, with 
scarcely any doubt, the Utes belong to one family. They 
have never, according to their own statement, woven any 
fabrics, but they were approaching 1 that stage of improve- 
ment at the time of the coming of the white man, as they 
made, and still occasionally make, garments of interlaced 
strips of fur of the cayote 8 and jack-rabbit. They have 
never made pottery, but they display some skill in the fab- 
rication of baskets and mats of reeds and willows. 

They have never mutilated or disfigured the human 
countenance, in any way that I have been able to ascertain, 
either by compression of the forehead, tattooing or cutting 
the nose or lips. They make a free use of paint and, espe- 

6. Here, as elsewhere, Bourke spells this name as then pronounced by Anglos. 
In origin it is from the Nahuatl word "coyotl," softened in Spanish into three sylla- 
bles "co-yo-te" and so pronounced in New Mexico today, "koh-yoh'tay." 



292 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

daily among the Bannocks, apply a dazzling band of ver- 
million to the forehead at roots of hair. From their former 
intimacy with the Flatheads, I am inclined to ascribe this 
coloring of the foreheads to their association with a people 
who flattened it, altho' the Bannocks say that the Flatheads 
have now abandoned the practice. 

For music, they make use of drums, tambourines, 
gourds filled with shot, flageolets and war whistles, the last 
made of a bone from the wing of an eagle. They deny that 
their songs have any words to them and say that they are 
not arranged with words "only music, that's all." 

The women are expected to perform all work consistent 
with their strength; thus, all that relates to the cuisine, 
comes within woman's province, & in hunting or fishing she 
cuts up and preserves the catch of each day. Berry, nut 
and insect collecting belongs to her, as well as all tanning 
of furs and making of garments. 

They employ "sweet" (i. e. aromatic) grasses as dis- 
infectants for their Council & sweat lodges ; the latter are 
made of willow withes, having the two ends stuck in the 
ground & bent over to form a dome-like structure, upon 
which are placed blankets and skins to make them airtight. 
The occupant strips off his clothing and sits over a pile of 
hot stones, upon which is thrown cold water to cause an 
escape of steam. 

The introduction of fire-arms has effected such a 
change in their mode of warfare, even in the past decade, 
that nothing is so fraught with difficulty as the task of get- 
ting arrows and lances. They say they don't use them any 
more, hence don't make them. 

Their pipes are either of the indurated ochreous clay 
in use among the Sioux & Crows & obtained from the latter 
in trade, or else of steatite (sope-stone) found in their own 
country. 

They do not admit that their women use any different 
terms for the same object different from those the men 
employ ; nor have I been able to learn from any sources that 
such is the case. 

Mr. Lewis Morgan, in his "Ancient Society" has ad- 
vanced with much ingenuity and skill the theory that all 
our wild tribes have been governed by clan or gentile sys- 
tems, similar to those of the Iriquois. Until its existence 
among the Shoshonees and Bannocks be better defined, the 
burden of proof will rest with Mr. Morgan and his school. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 293 

Certainly, my efforts to determine the existence of such a 
system have been honest and well-meant, but entirely want- 
ing in success. 

The Bannocks and Shoshonees use the sign language. . . 

April 8th. The U. S. Railway Mail Agent invited me to 
enter his car and examine its workings. I was much in- 
terested. The Railway Mail system has been methodized 
almost to perfection since 1870 and has done wonders in 
expediting the transmission of letters and postal packages 
across the country. 

We reached Cheyenne on time to catch the Denver Pa- 
cific train. We pulled out in a snow gust, but this did not 
last long and did us no damage. The Denver Pacific runs 
along a much more level line of country than that followed 
by the parallel line the Colorado Central. It is of the 
Denver Pacific that the story is told in R. R. circles that 
Jay Gould, having first quietly gobbled up the Kansas Pa- 
cific, the Colorado Central and the Union Pacific, thus cut- 
ting it off from all except local traffic, telegraphed the Dutch 
share-holders in Amsterdam to know whether or not they 
would sell. An affirmative reply was cabled and Gould 
started for Europe. He reached Amsterdam on time and 
met the share-holders as agreed upon. The price for which 
they were willing to sell was $1,350,000 ; "All right," said 
Gould, "sign the transfer papers." "But," rejoined the 
phlegmatic Mynheer who acted as spokesman for the Hol- 
landers, "we want you to agree to pay us 5 p. c. on the indebt- 
edness until cancelled." "All right," said the American, 
Whereupon, the legal documents were formally signed and 
delivered, and Gould, without giving the Dutchmen time to 
light a pipe of tobacco, drew his check-book, made out a 
draft for the entire amount on the Baring's Bank, in Lon- 
don, handed it to the chairman and started on his return 
trip to America, having been in Holland about 6 hours. . . . 

Denver itself is full of bustle and "has a boom," to use 
the Western phrase. Its people have a go-ahead spirit and 
numbers of fine brick blocks, new or reconstructed hotels, 
and a magnificent Union R. R. depot, attest their faith in 
the permanency of their city's prosperity. They have gas 
and water works, the latter supplying a very filthy liquid 
which is used by the inhabitants in their ablutions ; strang- 
ers recoil from it, being content, as a general thing, with 
the dust and grime already upon them. There is some talk 
of introducing the electric lights and take it in any aspect 



294 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

of the case, Denver is a "live town and no mistake." It al- 
ready has the Denver Pacific, Colorado Central, Denver and 
South Park, and the Denver & Rio Grande: the Union Pa- 
cific is pushing to completion a new branch from Jules- 
burgh, Colo., and its rival the Burlington, is making ground 
fly on the extension of its Trans-Missouri system through 
Denver to Ogden, Utah, perhaps to the Pacific Coast -who 
knows? Lastly, the Topeka and Santa Fe, contemplates 
running its track in from Pueblo, thus giving Denver an 
eminent position as a Rail Road center. . . . 

By the Denver & Rip Grande, the distance to Santa Fe 
is just 400 miles; for this distance, the fare is $32.50, and 
has only recently been reduced from $39.25! And yet at 
such atrocious rates, it is well patronized. Leaving Denver, 
we ran close by the machine and repair shops of the com- 
pany which are very extensive and complete. The road, like 
the Utah and Northern, is a narrow gauge, but cannot com- 
pare with its northern comrade in solidity of track-bed, or 
elegance of equipment. Still the Rio Grande is a grand line 
and one of ambition, as well. It has at present writing 
about 800 miles of rail under its management and has made 
arrangements to extend one branch to Galveston, Texas, an- 
other to Chihuahua, Mexico and a third to Salt Lake, Utah. 
We ran along the E. slope of the Rocky Mountains and, 50 
or 60 m. South or S. east of Denver, crossed the "divide," 
between the waters of the South Platte and those of the Ar- 
kansas ; on the summit of this "divide" is a small lakelet or 
pond, said to be 15' deep, 200 yds. in diameter, and having 
no visible inlet or outlet. I was riding in the day car, the 
better to observe the country, passengers &c. Most of those 
in our train were bound for Leadville and the mining region 
in its vicinitv and beyond it. One of our passengers told 
me that the Denver and Rio Grande now has 5.000 men at 
work grading its line of extension from Leadville to Gun- 
nison and on toward Salt Lake. 

As we receded from Denver, the country became 
rougher; our direction converged more closely with the 
trend of the mountains and pine timber appeared in greater 
plenty. The view of the more elevated peaks was not very 
good, the day being gloomy and clouds hanging low down 
on the skirts of the range. (The newspapers of this morn- 
ing announce a heart-sickening earth-quake at the great 
island of Chios, in the Mediterranean one of the birth- 
places of Homer. 8000 lives reported lost. Also a great 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 295 

flood at Omaha, Neb. threatening serious injury to that 
young city.) 

At Husted in the "pine region," we saw a large quan- 
tity of lumber from the mills 14 miles up the mtn's. 

75 miles below Denver, is "Colorado Springs," a well 
known summer resort, well patronized even in this season. 
The little village is solidly built, with an eye to comfort and 
taste. Near this station, we saw five villainous tramps, 
seated by a little fire, in a ravine at side of track. They 
ought to be hanged. 

Below Colorado Springs, the country became flat and 
tame again, but looked like good farming and grazing land. 
The farms and cattle ranges in vicinity of the road are 
nearly all enclosed with good, stout fences, either of poling 
or barbed wire. 

Approaching the valley of the Arkansas, the character- 
istics of the inhabitants began to change ; their dwellings, at 
least the older ones, were of adobe and "jacal"; (posts 
placed upright in the ground and chinked with mud) ; 
ditches for irrigation were cut across the level plains in all 
directions. 

We crossed the Arkansas at Pueblo, the point of junc- 
tion of several branches of the D. & R. G. and the Topeka 
and Santa Fe. I was amazed at the transformation effected 
by these roads in what, 10 or 12 years ago, had been one of 
the drowsiest of drowsy Mexican villages. Pueblo, or 
rather South Pueblo, is a thorough-going American town; 
the streets are regularly laid out; it has steel-works, smelt- 
ing works, boiler works, and machine repair shops all in 
full blast, for all of which the proximity of beds of coal and 
iron is perhaps as much to be thanked as the Railroads are. 

The dinner at this point was exceptionally good. All 
the eating stations on the Topeka and Santa Fe line, and 
Pueblo is one, are under the supervision of a caterer who 
devotes close attention to his duties, much to the gratifi- 
cation of the traveling public. The "South Pueblo Land 
Improvement Company" advertises for sale building lots; 
farms and other real estate and the great throng of people 
with sharp Yankee or gawky Missouri visages would lead 
one to infer that the company has many clients for whom 
provision must be made. 

Having become tired of the restricted accommodations 
of the day, I here entered the dainty little sleeping car, 
as much of a gem in its way as those on the Utah Northern 



296 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

line. Here our train divided; one portion went N. W. to 
Leadsville, and the other kept on South toward Santa Fe. 
Once across the Arkansas, you are in a foreign country, so 
far as the permanent population is concerned; the Ameri- 
can, it is true, is present in strong force and holds in his 
hands the key of power and wealth; he controls the Rail 
Roads, manages the telegraph and works the steel foundries 
and coal mines, but, nevertheless, it takes but a glance to 
assure you that he is present, as yet, merely as an intrusive 
element, alien to the population, to the institutions, manners 
and customs of the Territory. The houses proclaim this; 
they are all of adobe, except here and there a lonely one built 
by the R. R. co. for its employees ; the children and women 
proclaim it their swarthy faces and liquid black eyes have 
drawn their tint and glow from warmer suns than ours 
their fathers and husbands are the trackmen of the road, 
but receive their instructions in a tongue strange to the 
people who projected and built it; the names of the stations 
and localities proclaim it we have: Pueblo, Cucharas, San 
Carlos, San Luis, Alamosa, Sangre de Cristo, Trinidad, Las 
Animas, Raton, Rayado, Embudo, Los Luceros. Even the 
animals in the fields and the viands on the table proclaim 
the change. We see plodding patiently along the country 
by-ways little trains of little "burros," each bearing on his 
diminutive back a load much bigger than himself, but suf- 
fering his trials with so much patience and uncomplaining 
good humor that the conviction flashes upon my mind that 
each burro is now the place of transmigration of the soul 
of some ancient stoic philosopher; a conviction which im- 
pels me to touch my hat to a burro every time I meet one 
and when speaking of him to employ the masculine pro- 
noun instead of the neuter which applies to animals. Then 
there are herds of goats with long beards they look like 
old time patriarchs, but they forfeit by their levity the re- 
spect excited by their dignified appearance. Goats are too 
much addicted to chewing tin cans or picking their teeth 
with fragments of old hoop skirts to ever gain the position 
in the social scale that the prim and well-behaved burro 
attains at once and without effort. 

Even the Railroad itself, intruder tho' it be, has had 
to succumb to the pressure of Mexican ideas and has dubbed 
its sleeping and chair cars with such (to us) strange names 
as "La Senorita," "Aztec," "San Ildefonso," "Tierra Ama- 
rilla," &c. Chile, frijoles, and the fine large Mexican onion 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 297 

appear in various forms upon the tables at the refreshment 
stations and one by one from out of the gloom somewhere, 
there glide figures wrapped in toga-like scrapes and instead 
of announcing themselves as Thomas Jefferson Dawkins or 
George Washington Podger, whisper in a voice half dulcet, 
half husky, the names Jesus Maria Salazar or Guadalupe 
Francisca Gallegos. 

At Cucharas (spoons) our route turned West, giving us 
a fine view of the snow mantled Spanish Peaks to the South 
and bringing us soon to the foot of the steep grade ascend- 
ing "Veta Pass." The "Sangre de Cristo" (Blood of Christ) 
range, in which is the "Veta" (mineral vein) pass, is the 
dividing line between the drainage of the Arkansas & that 
of the Rio Grande : aside from this, it is the locality of one 
of the grandest feats of Rail Road Engineering of the pres- 
ent generation, so prolific in grand achievements. The 
ascent of the Pass overcomes some of the steepest grades 
ever surmounted and introduces curves of the greatest se- 
verity, one of them, "The Mule Shoe," being aptly described 
by its name. Going around this, we could see our two little 
engines climbing like cats higher & higher up the mountain, 
and below us, deep down in the bosom of the canon, glis- 
tened the head light of another locomotive, toiling and puff- 
ing in our wake. The scenery in the Pass is impressive and 
majestic, but decidedly naked & void of much claim to the 
picturesque; it appeals to one's fears instead of to his love 
of the beautiful. There is not enough of snow, or timber or 
verdure to conceal its severe outlines ; snow in huge patches, 
and timber in great clumps can be seen in many places, but 
the general impression left on the mind is that of solemn 
desolation. The summit is 9997 ft. above the sea level ; here 
in a sheltered recess is a side track with a water-tank and 
engine house a slight trace of civilization in an otherwise 
unbroken solitude of savage Nature. 

Once across the Blood of Christ mountains, we ran 
down a narrow ravine which gradually widens into the 
beautiful San Luis Valley in which is the military garrison 
of Ft. Garland. 

When last I knew of the valley of San Luis, its inhabit- 
ants had no other means of transportation than their home- 
made "carreta," a shocking burlesque upon its hightoned 
distant relatives, the Brewster Buggy and the Studebaker 
Wagon; made altogether of wood and raw-hide, without a 
single nail or piece of iron in its composition, its wheels 



298 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

were solid sections of great pine trees, perforated in the 
center by a hot iron to make a hole to admit the ungreased 
axle. As they rolled over the dusty roads, they squeaked a 
siren song which wakened the dead for five miles or more. 
In our car, were Captain and Mrs. Guthrie, 13th Inf 'y, 
with their children who left us at Fort Garland, where I 
met Captain Shindley (?), 6th Infantry, last seen at Fort 
Buford, at the mouth of the Yellowstone, Montana, in 1877. 
It was so late that the Fort could not be seen ; that is nothing 
more than the lights which flashed from the windows of the 
quarters. I turned in to bed at this point and did not waken 
until we had reached the terminus at Espanola. 

April 10th. Palm Sunday. At early dawn we took our 
seats in the stage bound for Santa Fe, 28 mi. distant. No 
fault could be found either with coach or teams ; the former 
was a new Concord, of approved make, the latter (6) six 
strong, well-formed, active American horses. 

I took my seat by the driver, wishing to see and learn 
all I could of the country. We first turned E. crossed the 
Rio Grande by a new but very frail and shaky bridge and 
then kept a general S. course until we had reached the city 
of the Holy Faith. The Rio Grande at Espanola, hasn't a 
single element of beauty ; the water is turbid, the banks low 
and sandy, and there is an almost absence of foliage. In 
front of us, as we crossed the river, the Sangre de Cristo 
uplifted its snow-capped summit to form a back-ground in 
relieving contrast with the front of the picture which was 
a monotonous succession of red sand and clay mesas, cov- 
ered with a ragged growth of greasewood and soap-weed. 

Our driver was out of humor with his team and swore 
at them all for laziness, emphasizing his remarks by a lib- 
eral application of the whip to "Tim" and "Keno" whose 
performance he considered below his standard of excellence. 

The road was very sandy and without the stimulus of 
the whip our animals might perhaps have lagged, but with 
its continuous cracking sounding in their ears, they had no 
incentive to delay, so we were not many minutes in reach- 
ing Santa Cruz, on the creek of the same name; a pretty 
Indian "pueblo" or hamlet, built in the form of a square, all 
the houses of adobe facing inward. 7 One side of the square 

7. It is somewhat surprising that Bourke should mistake Santa Cruz for an 
Indian pueblo. Perhaps in appearance it was not then very dissimilar from a pueblo, 
and early on Palm Sunday in passing through on the stage he may have noticed vis- 
itors from San Juan, Santa Clara, or even from San Ildefonso or Nambe. As a 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 299 

was occupied by a church, said to be 250 years old. We 
had no time to examine it, but its dilapidated looks corrob- 
orate any assertions as to its venerable age. Its walls are 
of adobe, flanked at the cornices by square towers of the 
same material and these surmounted by low belfries of old- 
fashioned pale brick, which in their turn are topped by 
crosses. The main door of the sacred edifice opens upon an 
enclosure surounded by a high, thick wall of adobe and 
pebbles. From seeing a tall wooden cross in this enclosure, 
I inferred that it must be the Campo Santo. (The Holy 
Field or burying ground.) In the center of the plaza itself, 
(the town plaza) is another cross, erected upon a truncated 
pyramid of adobe; the total height is about 12 ft. At the 
foot of the little pyramidal mound is an "aguada" or little 
reservoir, with a bottom of puddled clay, into which flows 
water from the acequia coursing diagonally across the 
square. This is the refreshment place for all the dogs, goats 
sheep, chickens and "burros" of the pueblo. 

All around the town extend broad acres of land, cut up 
by acequias and having the peculiar flat look of fields culti- 
vated by irrigation. I learned that the annual yield of fruit, 
grain and vegetables is considerable, but we had no time to 
obtain figures. 

Two of the main acequias, (ditches,) crossed the road 
and near the bridges we saw Mexican flour mills ; these were 
cottonwood log edifices, about 12 ft. square and 7 ft. high, 
built over the ditch to allow the water to turn a small tur- 
bine wheel. I should conjecture that in an emergency, 
under the stimulus of a Gov't. contract, with a full comple- 
ment of hands (that is to say a man smoking a cigarrito, a 
small boy scratching his nose, and a big dog scratching his 
ribs.) and running full time, one of these mills could grind a 
bushel of wheat in a week; the ordinary output can't be 
over half that quantity. 8 

The Rio Grande valley was dotted with the "plazas" 
of Mexicans and the "pueblos" of the Indians. The descrip- 
tion given of Santa Cruz will do for them all, except that 

Spanish plaza it dates from the 17th century, but after the Indian Rebellion (1680) it 
was occupied by Tewa and Tano Indians until in 1695 they were forced to vacate 
by Gov. Diego de Vargas. The Spanish colonists of "Santa Cruz de la Canada" at 
that time asked, and received, recognition as the second oldest villa in New Mexico. 

8. A number of these old under-shot mills are still to be seen near Truchas, on 
this same stream but eastward from Santa Cruz and near the mountains. Bourke's 
mention of two in Santa Cruz in 1881 is of interest. 



300 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

the more pretentious residences in some cases were coated 
with lime and stucco ; that the gardens and fields were en- 
closed by walls either of plain adobe, or of adobe clay mixed 
with pebbles, or of "Cajon" laid in huge blocks 4 feet long 
by 3 in length [height?] and breadth; or else in place of 
walls, they had a boundary of fencing made by sticking 
thorny cactus branches in the ground or ordinary stout cot- 
tonwood branches placed in the same manner. 

Each house had at one of its exterior corners, a bake- 
oven, which was nothing more or less than a hemi-spherical 
tumulus of hardened mud . . . The agricultural implements 
the plows and harrows were of the most ridiculously 
primitive description and the simple fact that they were in 
use spoke volumes for the fertility of the soil. 9 

We did not adhere very closely to the Rip Grande, but 
followed along parallel to it and at some distance to the 
East, crossing a number of its tributaries, one of the prin- 
cipal being the Pojuaque, upon whose banks is the "pueblo" 
of the same name. 10 This is much neater in appearance than 
Santa Cruz and has a look of greater prosperity. Several 
Pueblo Indians were at the stage station. A Mexican boy 
told me in a sleepy tone of voice that they raised trigo 
(wheat), maiz (corn), duraznoes (peaches), manzanas 
(apples), ciruelas (plums), cerezas (cherries), peras 
(pears), sandias (watermelons), melones (mush-melons), 
calabazas (pumpkins) , chili verde (green chile) , and 
muchas otras cosas (many other things.) 

An old Frenchman lives here upon whom I thought I 
would perpetrate some of my French. The old man's 
native language seemed to double him up as if a nitro-gly- 
cerine bomb u had exploded nearby. I had started without 
any breakfast and was ravenous for lunch. I couldn't 
remember what the French for lunch was, neither could I 
get to my tongue's end the precise question I wanted which 
was to ask him if he could let us have some bread and but- 
ter. However, I asked him one just as good which I had 
memorized from Ollendorff, which was: "Have you the 
bread of my uncle or the butter of my sister?" The look 
the old fellow gave me was one of dumbfounded perplexity, 



9. Such implements may be seen in the Historical Society rooms of the old 
"Palace of the Governors," Santa Fe. 

10. By inter-marriage, this old Tewa pueblo has since become wholly a Spanish 
plaza. 

11. Evidently bombs are not of recent origin in warfare! 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 301 

occasioned, I imagine, by his amazement at hearing the lan- 
guage of his native land spoken with such purity in such a 
strange country. The old man gasped out: "Ah, monsieur, 
vous parlez tres bien mais ! mais !" Well, we didn't get any 
lunch, and the driver who was an unfeeling, coarse-minded 
fellow without any aesthetic culture, remarked in a sneer- 
ing tone : "If yer wanted hash, why the h didn't yer ask 
fur it? Ole man Bukay talks American !" The memory of 
old man Bouquet's appearance during my first interview 
with him shall ever be one of the most fragrant reminis- 
cences of my experience on the border. 



CHAPTER XIV 

HOLY WEEK IN SANTA FE 

(April 10, 1881. Palm Sunday.) Getting nearer to Santa 
Fe, the road became firmer and better but much more hilly. 
Pine and pinon trees crowded in clusters down to the road. 
Droves of little burros passed us, each bearing a load, 
weighing from 150 to 300 Ibs. 

Heaps of boulders, surmounted by rude crosses, marked 
where Mexican funeral processions had halted on their way 
to the last resting place of the dead. 

At Tesuque, an Indian pueblo, we obtained a little lunch 
at the house of a Dutchman while the driver was changing 
teams. We had beer and raw onions, jerked meat and very 
good bread and enjoyed the meal very much. 

At Santa Fe, I registered at the Exchange Hotel * and 
had hardly done so when Lieutenant Millard Goodwin, 2 
R. Q. M. 9th Cavalry, an old friend, tapped me on the shoul- 
der and insisted on taking me over to his Quarters, a propo- 
sition to which I assented the more gladly when I learned 



1. This was the famous old hotel at the end of the Santa Fe Trail. It stood 
on the corner now occupied by La Fonda Hotel. The "new hotel" mentioned below 
was the former De Vargas Hotel, then being built on Washington Avenue, destroyed 
by fire in 1918. 

2. Millard Fillmore Goodwin graduated from West Point two years after Bourke 
did. Born in New York, he had entered the Military Academy from Arizona, where 
his father was the first territorial governor. He was assigned to the 9th Cavalry 
in 1872, promoted to 1st lieutenant in 1879, and served as regimental quartermaster 
from January 1881 to May 1883. He resigned his commission the following August. 



302 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

that he and my old mate Clare Stedman, 8 were messing 
together. 

At same time, I met Mr. Rumsey of Omaha, who is 
going to keep the new Hotel (not yet completed) in Santa 
Fe, and Mr. Samuel Abbey, the Express Agent, who had 
servel in the same regiment with me as a private soldier 
during the war of the Rebellion. 

At Goodwin's house, I had a most refreshing bath and 
then at dinner had the pleasure of meeting Goodwin's mess- 
mates Lieuts. Glassford, Cornish & Emmet, the last a 
collateral descendant of the grand Irish patriot, Robert 
Emmet. 4 

After lunch, Major McKibbin, 15th Infantry, called 
upon me : I had known him when I first came to New Mex- 
ico in 1869 and we had much to say to each other in the 
way of old and half -forgotten friends. 

With a party of gentlemen, I dropped in for a few 
moments at the gambling rooms of Mr. Shelby, one of the 
old timers of this country, who may have much information 
of value to me in my work. Despite the character of his 
profession, Mr. Shelby is regarded with much esteem by all 
who know him ; he is believed to be of sterling integrity and 
is known as a man of high character and great public spirit. 
He is one of the social incongruities to be met with in a 
place like Santa Fe, where public opinion, under the in- 
fluence of Mexican ideas, does not regard gaming as dis- 
honorable. There was nothing going on during our visit 
which lasted merely for a moment, but I may say that the 
rooms were quietly but elegantly furnished and that Mr. 
Shelby is a gentleman of unusually urbane & polished 
manners. 



3. Clarence Augustus Stedman, born in Massachusetts, entered the Academy from 
Pennsylvania in 1865. He also served with the 9th Cavalry, as 2nd lieutenant, 1st 
lieutenant, and quartermaster. From March 1880 to January 1885 he was regimental 
adjutant. 

4. Wm. Alex. Glassford was a cadet at West Point from 1871 to 1873, then 
entered the Signal Corps and from Nov. 1, 1879 to December 1890 was a 2nd lieuten- 
ant. Geo. Anthony Cornish was in Bourke's class at West Point; from January 
1876 to September 1890, he was 1st lieutenant in the 15th Infantry. Robt. Temple 
Emmet left West Point in 1873 and was a 2nd lieutentant of the 9th Cavalry from 
June 1877 and until advanced in rank in January 1883. Later he served (from New 
York) in the Spanish-American War; and on Aug. 9, 1899, was awarded a congres- 
sional medal of honor "for distinguished gallantry in a fight with hostile Indians in 
action at Las Animas Canyon, New Mexico, 18 Sept, 1879." 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 303 

Thence, Emmet and I went to the Cathedral of San 
Francisco, a grand edifice of cut stone, not more than half 
completed and enclosing within its walls the old church of 
adobe. As I purpose, at a later date, giving a more detailed 
account of this old building and others equally venerable in 
Santa Fe, as well as a sketch of the town itself, I will con- 
tent myself now with saying that the town has been trans- 
formed by the trick of some magic wand during the past 12 
yrs. 

It has gas works, is putting in water works, building a 
new hotel, has a fine new college under the Christian Broth- 
ers, a convent school for girls, and Metropolitan uniformed 
policemen! These innovations jostle against and contrast 
strangely with the medieval rookeries of adobe, the narrow 
streets, still lit at night with camphine torches or filled by 
day with a motley crew of hook-nosed Jews, blue-coated 
soldiers, curious tourists, senoritas wrapped to the eyes in 
rebosas, muchachos enfolded in bright colored serapes, 
Pueblo Indians stolidly marching alongside their patient 
burros, upon whose backs are tied great bundles of wood or 
hay. 

We finished our stroll by entering the old church of San 
Miguel, on the other side of the Rio Chiquito, hoping to be 
in time for vespers, but, probably because it was Palm Sun- 
day, there were no services. 

In this church, are oil paintings, hundreds of years old, 
black with the dust and decay of Time, which were brought 
from Spain by the early missionaries. The present edifice 
stands upon the site of an older one, destroyed in the gen- 
eral revolt of the Pueblo Indians in 1680: the gallery and 
other parts of the old church are preserved in the new and 
upon the beams holding the walls together may be deciph- 
ered in quaint characters the inscription: "The Lord Mar- 
quis de la Penuela made this building. The Royal Ensign, 
Don Agustin Flores Vergara, his servant, in the year 
(obliterated).'' 5 With a feeling of awe we left a chapel whose 
walls had re-echoed the prayers of men who perhaps had 
looked into the faces of Cortes and Montezuma or listened to 
the gentle teachings of Las Casas ; and then, after walking a 
few blocks, we took our stand in front of the old palace of 
the Spanish governors (said to be built upon and in part to 
include the ruins of the building used for the same purposes 
by the caciques of the Indians, inhabiting this country when 

5. The date can be read, and doubtless correctly, as 1710. 



304 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

the Spaniards came) , and there heard the afternoon concert 
of selections from the Little Duke, Pinafore & Carmen 
played by the colored band of the 9th Cavalry. 

It was certainly an odd jumble of ideas of the past and 
present suggested by a glance around. Here was the band 
of Africans to redeem whom from slavery had died the 
brave men to whose memory yonder cenotaph has been 
erected; 8 here is the palace of the old Castilian governors, 
across the street is the Hd. Qrs. of the Mil'y district, 7 not a 
musket shot distant, are the hoary old temples of San 
Miguel and Guadalupe these have all passed away or with 
time shall pass away and the land which once honored them 
shall wonder who built them, but here in the streets, cavort- 
ing on prancing plugs from the livery stable, are a dozen 
hook-nosed descendants of the babies that Herod unfortu- 
nately failed to kill. Will they ever pass away? Back from 
the walls of Guadalupe and San Miguel, back from the walls 
of the Palace, echoing high in the blare of brazen trumpets, 
comes the answer "Never! The progress of Moses is in- 
eradicable." When the Pyramids were young, the ances- 
tors of these accipitrine-beaked youngsters were selling 
ready made clothes to the subjects of Rameses. I don't 
know the Egyptian for the phrase, but whatever it was, 
some benevolent looking old Israelite must often have 
bawled out in those days "Isaac! Isaac! hont me town dot 
blum gulurd su-it mit der schvaller dails," and in the far 
distant Future when we shall have mouldered into dust, the 
same cry, the shibboleth of the all-conquering Hebrew, will 
resound in the land which has seen the Aztec, the Castilian 
and the American pass away. 

At dinner to-night, we had Mr. Irwin, the Chief En- 
gineer of the Denver & Rio Grande R. R. a very compan- 
ionable cultivated gentleman. 

April 18th, 1881. Monday. Shortly after I had arisen and 
dressed, a Pueblo Indian and squaw knocked at the door; 
they wanted to sell pottery, of which I bought a half dozen 
pieces for very low prices. They speak Spanish very well 
and told me the Apaches and the Navajoes are the same 
people, but that the Apaches are "malos" (bad) and the 
Navajoes buenos (good.) The Pueblos were "buenos" be- 

6. Referring to the monument in the center of the plaza, erected in 1867 by the 
Territorial legislature to the memory of those who had died in the Mexican War, the 
Civil War, and in the Indian wars. See further mention of it below. 

7. Across Lincoln Avenue, on the site now occupied by the Art Museum. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 305 

cause they were "Catolicos." In paying for the articles I 
purchased, I noticed that the woman kept the money. 8 

Worked hard at my journal all day, with an intermis- 
sion of half an hour at noon, devoted to going in company 
with Goodwin to a jewelry store filled with most artistic 
gold and silver-ware of Mexican make ; one brooch especially 
being a dazzling but barbaric incrustation of all the various 
kinds of precious stones found in this S.W. country. We 
also visited an unique establishment devoted to the sale of 
Indian pottery, basket-ware, stone-hammers, Navajo blan- 
kets and other articles of their manufacture. A great deal 
of the pottery was obscene but kept concealed from ladies 
visiting the place. 

I took occasion to register my name in the book for that 
purpose at the Hd. Qrs. of the District. This book has been 
in use since 1854 and contains the signatures of the greater 
number of the officers who became famous during the war 
of the Rebellion ; on the 1st page, I observed the names of 
A. D. McCook, J. W. Davidson, Gen. Sykes and several 
others, then subalterns but since Generals. Under date of 
Sept. 25th, 1869, appears my own autograph, "on leave of 
absence, en route to join regiment." 

Santa Fe possesses the only monument in the country 
to commemorate officers and soldiers killed in battles 
with hostile Indians. The Dode monument at West Point, 
N. Y. is not a monument in the sense in which I am here 
using the term ; it has no national or state significance, but 
was paid for by private contributions from personal friends 
of the victims. So, the Custer monstrosity at the same 
place, is happily, not a national work. I can't recall an in- 
stance in which the General Government has seen fit to 
recognize the services of men who gave up their lives to 
extend her frontiers ; there has been a little talk about hav- 
ing stones erected on the Big Horn and Rosebud fields, but 
I am not in a position to state whether or not this talk has 
been allowed to subside or has taken practical shape. 



8. To the ordinary observer this would seem merely an individual peculiarity, 
but Bourke recognized its ethnological significance and so jotted it down. It may 
still be seen among Pueblo Indians, and it roots back to times before there was any 
money and when the man brought home food-supplies and turned them over to his 
woman. 

9. This old register was removed from Santa Fe many years ago. If it can be 
located, it should be returned to Santa Fe and placed in the Historical Society 
Museum. Bourke added a clipping from the New Mexican Review which probably 
appeared that same week, so he may have called public attention to the old record. 



306 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

April 12th, 1881. Tuesday. Lieutenant C. A. Stedman re- 
turned from El Paso, Texas, in company with General Hatch 
and Captain Woodruff. Stedman and I had not met since 
the day of my graduation and were mutually delighted to 
meet in his quarters and review old recollections and keep 
alive the warm friendship always existing between us. I 
paid my respects to General Hatch who received me most 
courteously; he is a very handsome and soldierly man and 
has done an immense amount of hard work. 

About noon there was a very violent storm of thunder 
and hail, lasting, however, only a few minutes. 

Toward dusk, I walked about the Mexican part of the 
city and entered a number of grocery stores where I in- 
quired the prices of all sorts of commodities merely to keep 
me in practice in the language. 

Captain Woodruff called in the evening and remained 
with us several hours, talking over old times. 

April 13th, 1881. Wednesday. Had another interview with 
General Hatch this morning & explained the scope of the 
investigations I had been ordered to make. The General 
seemed to be greatly interested and promised to extend me 
every assistance in his power. He also asked me to go with 
him on a visit to the Navajoes in the N.W. corner of the 
Territory, and upon our return to go to the Northern 
Pueblos, as far as Taos. He gave me a most exact and in- 
teresting description of the evolutions of the Mexican troops 
he had reviewed at El Paso last week and praised them in 
high terms for discipline, cleanliness and high soldierly 
qualities. 

April 14th, 1881. This being Holy Thursday, I went to the 
Cathedral of San Miguel 10 to hear mass, arriving, however, 
somewhat too late. As the crowd of worshippers was leav- 
ing the church, one of them, a lady beckoned to me. 
Approaching her, I recognized the wife of my friend, Cap- 
tain Woodruff, who presented me to the lady in her com- 
pany. This latter proved to be Mrs. Synnington, a Mexican 
young lady of the Armijo family, and a very beautiful 
woman. I went with the ladies as far as Mrs. Synnington's 
house, where I met her husband, who showed me a number 
of very beautiful Navajo and Mexican blankets. Their little 



10. This was a slip, as Bourke meant the Cathedral of San Francisco. San 
Miguel was the old chapel south of the river, already mentioned. See below, the 
notes on Easter Sunday. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 307 

boy is one of the loveliest children I've ever seen. I was 
delighted with the f amilv which showed in a marked degree 
all the traits of Castilian good breeding, dignified but 
extremely cordial manners and very frank gentle behavior. 

I accompanied Mrs. Woodruff to her house and early in 
the afternoon returned to the church to be in time for ves- 
pers. I arrived as the bells were tolling and was fully re- 
warded for my trouble. The old church in itself is a study 
of great interest; it is cruciform in shape, with walls of 
adobe, bent slightly out of the perpendicular. Along these 
walls, at regular intervals, are arranged rows of candles in 
tin sconces with tin reflectors. The roof is sustained by 
bare beams, resting upon quaint corbels. The stuccoing and 
plaster work of the interior evince a barbaric taste, but have 
much in them worthy of admiration. The ceilings are 
blocked out in square panels tinted in green, while two of 
the walls are laid off in pink and two in light brown. The 
pictures are, with scarcely an exception, tawdry in execu- 
tion, loud colors predominating, no doubt with good effect 
upon the minds of the Indians. 

The stucco and fresco work back of the main altar 
includes a number of figures of life size, of saints I could 
not identify and of Our Lady. In one place, a picture of 
the Madonna and Child, represents them both with gaudy 
crowns of gold and red velvet. The vestments of Arch- 
bishop Lamy and the attendant priests were gorgeous fab- 
rics of golden damask. 

The congregation, largely composed of women and chil- 
dren were almost entirely of Mexican or Indian blood, 
swarthy countenances, coal black manes and flashing eyes 
being the rule, altho' three was by no means a total absence 
of beautiful faces. Fashion had made some innovations 
upon the ancient style of dress; cheap straw bonnets and 
the last Chatham street outrage in the shape of cheap hats 
were ranged alongside of the traditional black tapalo and 
rebosa. 

One of the priests preached a very excellent sermon in 
Spanish from the text: "This is my body." I did all I 
could to listen to and understand it, but such an epedemic 
of coughing, hawking, spitting and sniffling seized upon the 
congregation that it was impossible for me, a foreigner, to 
make out one third of what was said. I was perplexed, an- 
noyed and amused at the constant interruption of the 
sermon, a very able one, so far as I could make out, but 



308 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

utterly ruined in its effect by the continuous barking of the 
women and children. 

The sermon over, the Archbishop washed the feet of 
twelve of the altar boys, a custom which I have never before 
seen in this country. 

Lieutenant Emmet and I visited one of the Campo San- 
tos, (graveyards) hoping to come upon some antique head- 
stones; we failed to find anything of the age we sought. 
The head-boards were all modern, dating back only to the 
incoming of the American element : the older graves either 
had lost their head-boards, or what is much more likely, 
never had any, and had been marked only by a mound of 
water-worn cobble-stones and a diminutive wooden cross. 

The inscriptions ran in much the same terms as those 
to be found in our own cemeteries: "En memoria [cross] 
de Rosario Duran, Esposa de Juan Sisneros. Fallecio Junio 
13 de 1877, de edad, 26 anos. Rogad por ella." 

En Memoria x de Guadalupe Real, Falleci6 el 3 de 
Junio, de 1877. Edad tres meces y tres dias." 

"En memoria de Manuela Casado, falleci6 el dia 18 de 
Abril de 1877, y nasio el dia 1, de Enero, Ano de 1806. Gose 
en Paz." 

"Aqui yase Nasario Ortiz, fallecido a la edad de 49 
anos, el dia 8 de Abril de 1878. En Paz Gose.' m 

Lieutenant John Conline, 9th Cavalry, came into Santa 
Fe this evening. He was at the Mil't. Academy with Wood- 
ruff, Stedman, Goodwin and myself and is a splendid fellow 
in every particular. 12 

At same hour almost, arrived Captain Edward Pollock, 
9th Infantry, Inspector General of the District, returning 
from an official tour to Fort Lewis, Colorado. He is an old 
friend of mine in the Department of the Platte, to whom I 
make references in my note-book of the campaign against 
the Sioux & Cheyennes, in November 1876. General Hatch 
also called upon us and remained nearly the whole evening, 
the conversation being very animated and agreeable. 



11. Bourke underscored letters whicn were incorrect in spelling on the head- 
boards. 

12. Conline entered West Point in 1863, so he was two years ahead of Bourke. 
Assigned to the 9th Cavalry in 1870, he was made a 1st lieutenant in November 
1875. In 1890, he was made a brevet captain "for gallant service in action against 
Indians in the San Andreas mountains, N. Mex., 7 April 1880" which relates to the 
outbreak of the Mescalero and Hot Springs Apaches in 1879-1880. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 309 

April 15th, 1881. Good Friday. Swallowed a cup of coffee 
for an early breakfast and started at 8 a. m. for the old 
"chalcahuitl" (turquoise) mine, 23 m. S. from Santa F6 
in the foot-hills of the Sandia Mountains, called the Cerrillos. 
Our party consisted of the Messers. Smith, father and son, 
guests and old friends of Gen'l. Hatch, and myself. We 
were provided with a comfortable ambulance, a good driver 
and four excellent mules and rapidly traversed an uninter- 
esting and dusty country, dotted at sparse intervals with 
houses of reddish adobe, scarcely distinguishable from the 
ground upon which they stood. 

Eighteen miles out from Santa F, passed through Bon- 
anza City, a mining town springing up over a deposit of 
silver and lead carbonates. Twenty (20) miles from town 
is Carbonateville, another mining "city," with houses and 
"saloons," of adobe frame work, or canvas. In this neigh- 
borhood, we entered the foot-hills (cerrillos) which are 
thinly covered with a growth of scrub cedar and pinon. The 
"chalcahuitl" hill was distinguished by a large wooden cross 
upon its summit: it is conical in form and at its very apex 
commences the series of excavations and tunnels from 
which the Indians obtained the (to them) invaluable gem. 
The "country rock" I take to be a siliceous limestone, read- 
ily splitting into fragments under the action of fire. This 
seemed to have been the method employed by the savages 
and the walls and ceilings of several of the excavations were 
heavily encrusted with soot, from fires made years ago. 
The "chalcahuitl," occurs in narrow seams not more than 
% to % in. thick and is not, strictly speaking, turquoise, 
but rather an anhydrous carbonate of copper (azulite) very 
beautiful in color and susceptible to high polish. 18 

Turquoise is Phosphate of Alumina, colored by Oxide of 
Copper. (The Apaches in Arizona in fact all the tribes 
over there, think highly of this stone, use it as an armlet, 
pendant from the neck or else inlay it in the stocks of their 
guns.) In the very center of the Indian excavations, a deep 
shaft penetrates the ground to the depth of several hundred 
feet and a notice tacked to one of the timbers informs the 
reader that Hyde has duly complied with all the require- 

13. Later, apparently, Bourke here inserted a long clipping from the Santa F6 
New Mexican of July 13, 1881, which is an article by Prof. B. Stillman, copied from 
the American Journal of Science, July, 1881. Sillman credited Prof. Wm. P. Blake 
with "our first detailed notice of this ancient mine" which had appeared in the 
same Journal in 1857. 



310 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

ments of the mining laws in the location of the "Chalcahuitl 
Lode" to mine for carbonates &c." 

Not knowing anything about carbonate ores, I am not 
ready to give an opinion upon the prospects of the "Cerri- 
llos" district, but I noticed that the "formation" was almost 
identical with what I've read concerning that near Leadville. 
There is the same iron-stained "cap rock" and the same 
friable siliceous lime stone which in Leadville are always 
found in close proximity to the silver and lead bonanzas. 
Upon every hill in the Cerrillos, shafts and prospect holes 
have been sunk, but the amount of development upon any 
one mine is very meagre. Many of the houses are dug-outs, 
having only a door and front-wall of man's workmanship, 
the rest of the edifice being Nature's handiwork. 

At this point, we investigated the contents of a lunch- 
basket, packed for us by Mrs. Hatch ; it formed, by far, the 
most interesting episode of the day. 

Coming back, when within 16 miles of the city, we dis- 
cerned a small procession of women and children climbing 
like ants up the abrupt flank of a high conical hill of basal- 
tic blocks, upon the crest of which a large cross was visible 
for a great distance. Thinking they might be "penitentes," 
my companions and myself jumped from our ambulance and 
clambored up the stony trail in pursuit of the procession. I 
reached the cross first and found 3 young women and as 
many as a dozen boys and girls in the attitude of prayer. I 
interrogated them and learned that they were not "peni- 
tentes" but "buenos Catolicos"; that this was "Viernes 
Santo" (Good Friday) and that not having any church 
they had erected this cross in this elevated position to let 
all their "projimos" see it and gather together for devo- 
tional exercises. 

One of the women was named McLain, one Espinosa, 
and one Padilla. They asked if I was a Catholic and upon 
receiving my answer that I was a very bad one, invited me 
to join them in the Rosary which I consented to do: and 
then la senora Espinosa began to intone in a very clear, 
sweet voice the Angelic Salutation. 

I had to listen very carefully to catch the words, but as 
the prayer was repeated over and over again, I soon learned 
it and was able to join in the responses. I think it ran this 
way: 

14. This Hyde was doubtless the "D. C. Hyde," who, according to the Sillman 
article, had recently explored the old workings. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 311 

"Santo Maria, Dios te salve; tu eres llena de gracia, y 
entre mujeres tu eres bendita y bendito el fruto de tu 
vientre, Jesus. 

"Santa Maria, madre de Dios, rezad por nosotros, peca- 
dores, ahora y en la hora de nuestra muerte, Amen." 

It looked to me as if they never would get through. 
Influenced by the example of these poor women, I had 
dropped on one knee and the sharp fragments of rock were 
beginning to make my joints ache. At last they finished 
their prayers with a very earnest one for the prosperity of 
our country, for the enlightment of our rulers and for the 
safety of all at sea. I arose, shook hands with the ladies, 
bade them Adios! and clambered down the mountain; my 
companions were neither of them very strong nor used to 
mountain climbing and did not gain the summit until I 
was about ready to descend. Odd as the whole thing was to 
me, it had a touch of simple, childlike piety which was very 
pathetic. 

In the evening called upon Captain and Mrs. Loud." 

April 16th, 1881. From my rambles around Santa Fe", I 
have seen much to impress me with the great changes 
wrought within the past decade. The newspapers are no 
longer issued in Spanish, and with the advertisements, store 
signs &c. are printed entirely in English. Numbers of 
private houses are finished with tin roofs, & painted, plas- 
tered and decorated in such a beautiful manner that they 
would be an addition to any young city. The streets are still 
filled with droves of burros tottering under immense loads 
of lena (fire-wood) and driven along by stealthy-footed 
Indians, robed in the old-time serape. It is a city of the 
past, awakening to a newer and more vigorous life, but yet 
one in which the remains of forgotten generations shall 
long present lessons of instruction and interest to the stu- 
dent and traveller. 

Lieut. Emmet and I drove in an ambulance to Tesuque, 
10 m. from banta Fe. This pueblo, of which I shall at an- 
other time, make a more careful examination and more 
detailed description, is composed of adobe houses all of two 
stories and facing upon a common "plaza" or square. This 
plaza is faultlessly clean, and the same praise rightfully 

15. John Sylvanus Loud enlisted in 1862 as a. private in the New York National 
Gnard, and rose to the rank of captain. After the Civil War he was given a com- 
mission in the 9th Cavalry as a 2nd lieutenant. He was made a captain in January 
1880. 



312 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

pertains to everything visible in the village. The Indians 
themselves are short and squatty, but powerful in build and 
present a remarkable similarity to the Apaches. We saw a 
couple of old squaws sitting in what little sunlight struggled 
through the lowering clouds, and near them were two half- 
grown boys bearing on their backs huge bundles of fire- 
wood. We asked one of the women to point out to us the 
house of the "gobernador." She understood Spanish and 
directed one of the party of little boys and girls to show us 
the way; the little girl not alone but the whole gang with 
her obeyed the order. We were marched over to the other 
side of the plaza and observed on our way that the chimneys 
of the houses were made of earthenware pots, placed one 
upon another and coated with mud, that upon the roofs in 
nearly all cases were bake-ovens, and that to enter any 
house it was necessary first to ascend a ladder to the roof 
of the first story and then descend to the living rooms. Be- 
cause we did not attend to this last peculiarity, we walked 
quite around the residence of the gobernador, followed by 
the whole swarm of boys and girls laughing and screaming 
at our ignorance. At last, we found the proper ladder and 
climbed to the second story. This was built upon the first, 
but the walls were not, as with us, flush with the front walls 
of the edifice. They receded in such a manner as to leave 
a platform in front ; this was the roof of the first story and 
was formed of round pine logs, covered with small branches 
and afterwards plastered smoothly with mud. 

Almost immediately behind us, bearing a baby upon his 
back, came the "gobernador " himself. He invited us to 
descend again into the house which altho' a trifle close was 
clean and in good order, warmed by a bright fire of cedar 
knots blazing on the hearth in one corner. We were first 
presented to his wife and little daughters ; the former mak- 
ing moccasins with soles of rawhide, the latter grinding 
corn upon metates. 

First, the "gobernador" or "cacique" (he acknowledged 
both titles lfl ) showed us two silver headed batons of office ; 
one, marked in plain script "President Lincoln a Tesuque, 
1863," and the other, unmarked, received from the Mexican 

16. This must have been an error, due to the fact that up to this time Bourke 
had had little opportunity to study the social organization of the Pueblo Indians. The 
cacique was the spiritual head of the tribe a life office; the governor and other 
Officers of an Indian town were elected annually and had charge of its material 
affairs. The former should be the best informed man in any pueblo which this man 
clearly was not. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 313 

Government before the coming of the "Americanos." Hang- 
ing on the wall alongside of these was a doll-figure of San 
Antonio and several crude and time-blackened holy pictures 
from Mexico. A very small window of nine lights opened 
upon the plaza. I asked the Gobernador what material was 
employed before they had glass; he answered promptly 
"yeso," (selenite) but added that now there was not a single 
pueblo employing that material "en ninguna parte." 

A couple of Apache baskets lay in one corner; I 
inquired whence they came ; "de los Apaches" he replied 
"Nosotros cambiamos nuestros generos por los de los 
Apaches cada ano." Then he showed us a gourd rattle (filled 
with stones) and another made of a tortoise shell and ante- 
lope hoof ; also a drumstick, with knob of buck-skin stuffed 
with hair ; all these were "por la musica de las fiestas, de los 
bailes." The bedding in the corner was of colchones and 
Mexican black, white and blue striped blankets; no Navajo 
blankets were to be seen, altho' he said they traded with the 
Navajoes and with all the tribes around. Finding him in a 
communicative mood, I asked him to name the tribes with 
which they had commercial relations. He promptly told off 
on his fingers Apaches, Navajoes, Utes, Shoshonees, Com- 
anches, Kiowas, Arapahoes, Napanannoes (Lipans) Tissur- 
oquis (Absorokas=Crows?) and two other tribes whose 
names I cannot recall but from the direction given by his 
finger, I am certain they were the Cheyennes and the Paw- 
nees or Sioux. I made him go over the list three times and 
did all I could to shake him in his assertion, but he stuck to 
this statement and said further that the Susonee, (Shosho- 
nees) were the same as the Utes, but lived a little beyond 
them. Furthermore, he said the Susonnee, the Ute, the 
Comanches, the Kiowas, the Tissuroquis, and the Arapa- 
hoes were one and the same people, even if they didn't speak 
the same language. The Napannannos (the Lipans) were 
"la misma sangre" with the Apaches and Navajoes. In 
communicating with people who didn't understand their 
language or Spanish, they (Tesuques) spoke with their 
fingers (i. e. used the sign language). 

The only fire-arm visible in the house was an old flint- 
lock. I asked him if the Tesuques were good Catholics he 
responded in the affirmative. "But, continued I, have you 
not another religion, that of your antepasados (fore- 

17. The governor was mistaken, for & few such windows may still be seen in a 
number of the pueblos. 



314 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

fathers) ? Haven't you an estufa here? (Estufa-stove, is 
the name applied to the room in which was habitually kept 
the sacred fire of all these building Indians.) I will pay you 
if you will show me the estufa." "Sta bueno," said the gob- 
ernador and leading us out of the house by the same means 
by which we had entered, he moved forward almost to the 
S. E. corner of the Pueblo. In the upper story of one of the 
houses on our way we saw what looked like strips of cork 
piled one upon the other; it was dried cow manure kept 
"para quemar loza" (to burn crockery.) 

"Este es la iglesia" (this is the church) said our guide, 
pointing to a sadly dilapidated one story flat roofed adobe 
structure, surmounted by a very small bell : we did not care 
much to examine the church just then, as the "estufa" was 
immediately behind it, but isolated from the rest of the 
village. The rumbling thunder warned us that we had not 
many minutes to spare and must economize as much as 
possible if we wished to escape a drenching. Like every 
other building (except, I think, the church) the estufa was 
entered by a ladder, in this case wide enough for two per- 
sons at once. The roof was shaky and the ladder running 
down into the "estufa" half -rotten and very rickety. The 
room was about 20' square and 8' high, without any opening 
save that of the entrance through the roof and a small hole 
on the level of the floor which looked as if it has been worn 
through. On one side, occupying a space between the wall 
and the center of the room, were the remains of a council 
fire and against one of the walls, was a small framework 
upon which, we were told, they placed a quantity of 
blazing wood, "lo mismo como una lampara" in the man- 
ner of a lamp. I asked is this lamp "por el sol? (for the 
sun) He answered briskly, Si (yes.) but I have my suspi- 
cions as to the sincerity of his statement. Upon further 
interrogation, the cacique said: "I myself know nothing, 
or but little of these things, but the viejos (old men) say 
that our ancestors came from over there, from the rising 
of the sun, (pointing to the North-East). They first lived in 
caves before they came here to build houses and then they 
moved down the river (Rio Grande) toward Chihuahua. 
All these caves you see in the canons are the old dwellings of 
our forefathers. 

When we want to transact business, we light that fire 
and meet here. (Council Fire.) but, en el mes de Octubre 
(in the month of October) we light the fire here and the 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 315 

lamp over against the wall : and when we have those lit, no 
other Indians can come in and no white men. 

The other pueblos have fires the same as we have in this 
estuf a and so used the Comanches and the other tribes I told 
you of. They didn't have estufas, because they were not 
"techados." (i.e. didn't live under roofs.) 

When our forefathers took up this ground and began to 
build houses, it was just like this, (drawing a circle on the 
ground.) Now in this place, (in the circle) all the "vivi- 
entes" were, (by the term "vivientes" or living people, I 
conjectured that he referred to the Pueblo Indians.) But 
the others did not build houses like us ; they made their liv- 
ing by hunting venado and cibola. The Apaches and Nava- 
joes and the Napannanoes passed around us. They came 
from the same place we did, but we were here first. We 
are all of the same blood and why not? Tenemos la misma 
cara, pero diferentes lenguas no mas. (We have the same 
countenances, but different languages and that's all.) Now, 
it's the same with you ; you are all one people and have the 
same faces ; but you are divided into Americanos, Irlandeses, 
Franceses, Alemanes y Italianos. The people of Santa Clara 
San Juan, Moqui, Nambe, Tesuque and Taos, speak one lan- 
guage; those of Tegua (one of the Moqui towns), Ysleta, 
Jemez, Pecos, Cochiti, Laguna, Acoma and Zuni (?) are all 
one people."" 

He then named the different pueblos : I think that, alto- 
gether, he mentioned 23, but, since I shall visit each of them 
this summer, I don't think it worth while to recapitulate 
them at this point. 

We considered that the cacique's conversation had been 
worth a little silver, which we gave him much to his grati- 
fication, and saying Adios, we started back for Santa Fe, in 
a brisk rain storm which lasted nearly through the night. 

April 17th, 1881. (Easter Sunday.) Attended mass at the 
Cathedral of San Francisco: the church, of course, was 
jammed, the altar a mass of light reflected back in the sheen 
of the gold embroidered vestment of the Archbishop and his 
assistants. The singing was execrable, but this unpleasant 
feature was in a great measure redeemed by the sermon 
delivered by Archbishop Lamy. His voice is weak, but his 
enunciation clear and distinct and his knowledge of Span- 
is. Bourke's informant made a sorry mess of the facts here. He has jumbled 
together pueblos which speak six distinct languages. 



316 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

ish precise and scholarly. To my great delight, I under- 
stood every word. His remarks bore upon the events com- 
memorated during Holy Week and the triumphant resurrec- 
tion typified and celebrated in the joy of Easter; of our 
Savior's reappearance among his Disciples and his reproof 
to the doubting Thomas for his want of Faith; how we 
resembled Thomas in this respect as we remained blind to 
the miracles of His power and continually offended Him by 
indifference to the Grace He wished to confer; that the 
present was the only time left us ; the Past was gone and the 
Future uncertain. As man sowed so should he reap and 
unless we planted the seed of good works, we could not 
hope to share in the Harvest of Eternal joys with Christ. 

In the afternoon Emmet and I went to a Mexican 
funeral ; only a hearse, followed by a long column of mourn- 
ing friends two by two no ostentatious display at all 
and a very sensible affair in all its bearings. 

In turning away to leave the cemetery, I was shocked 
to find that I had been standing upon the graves of my old 
friends, Lt. and Mrs. W. J. Sartle, with whom I had passed 
many pleasant hours of service at Fort Craig, on the Rio 
Abajo, in 1869. 

Stedman and I had a very pleasant dinner this eve- 
ning with our friends Captain and Mrs. Woodruff. 

April 18th, 1881. Monday. A glorious morning. A sky of 
sapphire, birds warbling merrily in the branches of trees 
fast turning green in a vesture of tender foliage. I began 
my rounds this morning by inspecting the lovely silver-ware 
at Lucas' and yielding to the temptation of purchasing some 
of the exquisite filagree work spread out for my inspection. 
Then I called upon his Excellency, Governor Lew Wallace, 
at the Palace and was received most courteously. Gov- 
ernor Wallace told me two things: 1st that the East wall 
of the palace was the wall of the Indian building stormed by 
the Spaniards when they recaptured Santa Fe, in 1692, and 
that it was believed to antedate the coming of the Spaniards 
to this country; and 2nd that the Indians of Mexico and 
New Mexico, meaning the Aztecs and Pueblos, did not wor- 
ship the Sun, but the Rattlesnake. 

The Governor introduced me to Mr. Ellison, the cus- 
todian of the Archives, who showed me about the Palace, 
which is the Administration building of the Territorial 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 317 

Government. 10 Here the U. S. Court holds its sessions, the 
Governor has his office and the other officials their bureaux. 
Mr. Ellison took me into the room which he said was the 
oldest in the building. It certainly looks to be several cen- 
turies old, but as the beams are of sawed lumber, its con- 
struction must have been posterior to the advent of the 
"Conquistadpres." On the E. side, the old foundations are 
still perceptible, cropping out above the pavement. They 
resemble the foundations of old buildings in Arizona. Next, 
we went into the archives' room and saw bundles upon bun- 
dles of paper, piled high above each other, in an inextricable 
confusion. There is no shelving, no glass-casing nothing 
to retard the destroying influences of time and weather. 
Dust lies thick upon the leaves; mildew and decay have 
obliterated much of the writing and worst of all it is said 
that a former Governor a drunken, political dead-beat, 
named Pyle, used many of these valuable documents for 
kindling the fires in his Office and sold cart-loads of others 
for waste-paper! Mr. Ellison is laboring occasionally to 
bring order out of Chaos, and as he is not only a patient 
student, but has a fluent knowledge of Spanish, I look for 
much good from his exertions. 

Perceiving my great interest in the old Spanish pam- 
phlets, Mr. Ellison gave me one or two to translate ; with the 
printed ones there was no difficulty except in technical law 
terms ; but the manuscripts were very difficult to decipher, 
the hand-writing being not only almost illegible, but pecu- 
liar in its way of forming letters &c. The printed matter 
on the other side is a copy of a treaty made with the 
Apaches who revolted in 1810. Having seen considerable 
hard service against the very bands mentioned in the 
Treaty, I asked Mr. Ellison to give me a copy of it which 
he kindly did and the following translation must do until 
someone comes along knowing Spanish better than I do and 
make a better. "Fundamental terms of the Peace granted 
to the Apaches in rebellion in the State of Chihuahua. 
Whereas, in the year 1810, the Gilena and Mescalero 
Apaches, having craved peace unconditionally and without 



19. Governor Wallace held office from 1878 to 1881 ; Samuel Ellison was Terri- 
torial librarian from 1880 to 1889. The latter was "a Kentuckian who went to Texas 
as a lieutenant in 1837, served in the Mexican War as quartermaster, and came to 
this territory from Mexico in 1848 with Col. Washington. Later he was secretary, 
interpreter, translator, legislator, and held various other positions before being made 
librarian and keeper of the archives in 1881." (Bancroft, Ariz. & N. Mex., 791, note) 



318 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

rations, the following Reservations were assigned for their 
occupancy and maintenance, to wit; 

To the Mescaleros, from San Elceario North to the 
North (or opposite) bank of the River (Grande) thence to 
the Sacramento Mountains, including intermediate ranges 
which they shall continue to enjoy (possession of.) 

To the Gilefia. From the Copper Range, to the Little 
Black Mountain, including the Bummer and Osier ranges, 
which they shall continue to enjoy (possession of) also. 

To those who have revolted from San Buenaventura, 
Carrizal [Reeds], and Janos, may be assigned lands from 
the Little mouth of Janos or the Corral of Quintero, Acha, 
near Saranpion, Burras to the little house, 19 " with all the 
intermediate lands up to Santa Lucia, all of them to recog- 
nize the jurisdiction of Janos. 

Let it be generally understood ; 1st, that they must not 
pass from their Reservations to the interior of the State, 
without the express permission of Hd. Qrs. and in the num- 
bers permitted; 2nd, they pledge themselves to return all 
stolen property now in their possession. Encinillas (The 
Little Oaks.) July 28th, 1832. Jose Joaquin Calvo. Copied 
at Chihuahua, August 30th, 1832. Cayetano Justiniani. 
Secretary." (Translated by Lt. John G. Bourke, U. S. 
Army.) 

Mr. Ellison promised to hunt up and present me with 
one of the old Spanish orders organizing a military expe- 
dition against the Indians. 

Mrs. Woodruff took me with her to see the Convent and 
chapel of Loretto. We first passed into a large orchard of 
fruit trees of many varieties, all in full blossom, then across 
a broad vegetable garden and at last entered the interior 
corridor of the convent. Faultless neatness was the rule 
everywhere, not a speck of dirt or dust visible. 

No one answered our repeated pull upon the bell, so we 
assumed the right to enter the Chapel, the loveliest piece of 
church architecture in the S.W. country. The nave is an 
original arch of great beauty, leading to the steps of the 
main altar in front of which hangs a very large lamp of 
solid silver. A very well built geometrical stairway leads to 
the choir where the sisters sing during the celebration of 
the Holy Offices. It afforded me much pleasure to see this 



19a. The Spanish phrase here, d la casita, uses a vulgarism with which Bourke 
was unfamiliar. The verb casar means to marry or unite; and casita, therefore may 
mean (as here) little marriage or union. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 319 

lovely little temple, so sweet, so pure and bright, attesting 
the constant presence and attention of refined and gentle 
womanhood far different from the damp dark mouldy 
recesses of San Francisco, San Miguel or Guadalupe. 

The funeral of a tiny Mexican baby stopped our prog- 
ress on the way home ; we looked for a moment at the tiny 
coffin, decked with pink gauze and artificial flowers, bearing 
its little burden of puny babyhood to the grim threshold of 
the Great Hereafter. The child pall-bearers gazed at us 
with mute curiosity, but the mother acknowledged our looks 
of sympathy with a kindly glance and courtesy as the pro- 
cession resumed its way. 

At lunch, our mess behaved most outrageously today. 
Our friend, Conline, is a fanatical admirer of the 1st Napo- 
leon and has read attentively nearly all the literature touch- 
ing upon his achievements. It was preconcerted among us 
that a systematic and vehement assault upon the memory of 
the great soldier should be commenced the moment we sat 
down to the table. Cornish led off and I replied with a very 
feeble defence of the Corsican; we fanned the flame with 
skill and before our cups of tea were finished had the satis- 
faction of seeing poor Conline almost beside himself with 
rage. 

After lunch, visited the establishment of Mr. Fisher 
where I saw a very good assortment of bear and other skins, 
Navajo blankets, Pueblo pottery, old stone axes and 
hammers. 

From Fisher's "tienda," I went to the old house, said 
to have been in existence before the Spaniards came to 
Santa Fe. I examined it carefully, found it to be an 
extremely antiquated two story edifice, with round rafters 
thickly encrusted with grime and soot ; the second story was 
reached by a ladder. Upstairs, were a number of very old 
crucifixes, one, of especial sanctity and efficacy no doubt, 
being tenderly wrapped up in dust-stained gauze, cheap 
artificial flowers, wheels of watches, glass beads and other 
decorations. 

Lt. Cook, 15th Inf't., arrived in the evening, dined at 
the mess and entertained us for an hour with music on the 
guitar and singing. 20 

Stedman, Emmet, Cornish and self called upon Gen'l. 
Hatch and wife. I was shown the General's fine collection 

20. This seems to have been George Frederick Cooke, native of Ohio, who at this 
time was a 1st lieutenant with the 15th Infantry. 



320 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

of pottery, stone implements, Navajo and Mexican blankets, 
and listened to his narrative of what he had seen in this 
Territory. Among 1 other things of which I was told, was 
the ruined city or series of cities, some miles North of 
here, running for a total distance of 20 to 30 miles. 21 The 
General inclines to the opinion that the cave-dwellings have 
only recently been abandoned and cities in proof the 
discovery by himself and others of corn cobs still firm and 
compact. Emmet spoke of an ossuary or charnel-house in 
a cave dwelling opened near the source of the Gila ; pottery, 
stone axes, corn-cobs, human bones, cremated, were all 
found in abundance, covered by a stratum of bat-manure, 
3 ft. in thickness. Allusion was also made to the fact that 
dig where you will, in and about Santa Fe human remains 
will be exhumed, showing the antiquity of the population 
residing here. 

April 19th 1881. Tuesday. Stedman and I visited the old 
church of our Lady of Guadalupe. It shows great age in 
its present condition quite as much as in the archaic style 
of its construction. The exterior is dilapidated and time- 
worn; but the interior is kept clean and in good order and 
in very much the condition it must have shown generations 
ago. The pictures are nearly all venerable daubs, with few 
pretensions to artistic merit. At present, I am not informed 
upon this point and cannot speak with assurance, but I 
strongly suspect that most of them were the work of priests 
connected with the early missions of Mexico. Many of the 
frames are of tin. The arrangement for lighting this chapel 
are the old time tapers in tin sconces referred to in the 
description of San Francisco and San Miguel. The beams 
and timber exposed to sight have been chopped out with 
axes or adzes, which would seem to indicate that this sacred 
edifice was completed or at least commenced before the 
work of colonization had made much progress. 

In the evening, I attended the session of the U. S. 
Supreme Court, which was engaged in the trial of a man 
for murder. The proceedings were in English, but as all 
the jurors were Spanish, the employment of an interpreter 
became necessary, and he was an extraordinarily fine one 

21. Edward Hatch, born in Maine, was an officer from Iowa during the Civil 
War and served with distinction. In 1866 he was commissioned colonel of the 9th 
Cavalry and in 1876-81 he was in command of the military district of New Mexico. 
It was he who drove the Apache chief Victorio south into Mexico, where the latter 
was killed in 1880. The ruins here mentioned were probably the cliff-dwellings of 
the Pajarito Plateau. 



BOURKE ON THE SOUTHWEST 321 

too; the Prosecuting Attorney was delivering his speech 
against the prisoner; he spoke loudly and rapidly, but 
scarcely had the words escaped his lips before the interpre- 
ter had echoed them in Spanish, and in excellent Spanish, 
too, choosing the exact word to represent the nicest shades 
of meaning or to translate the technical terms of the law. 
Practice, certainly, had much to do with this; yet practice 
could never have supplied the want of a keen intellect had 
not Mr. Sena possessed it. 22 

Major Bennett, 9th Cavalry, on duty as Agent of the 
Navajo Indians, arrived from his Reservation this evening. 23 
He has had remarkable success in his management of the 
powerful tribe under his charge and is noted for his intelli- 
gent square-dealing, good-natured firmness and unflinching 
courage. 

April 20th, 1881. The telegrams announce the death of the 
Earl of Beaconsfield. 

Rain has drizzled down all day, interfering greatly 
with my plans for examining points of interest in Santa 
Fe. Captain Woodruff came to see me this evening and 
we had a very pleasant couple of hours together, chatting 
over old times. 

April 21st, 1881. Morning, damp and showery. 

April 22nd, 1881. I devoted some few moments this morn- 
ing to making another visit to the jewelry establishment of 
Lucas and Co., where I purchased a couple of exquisite 
articles of silver and gold filagree; thence, to the pottery 
establishment of Mr. Gold to secure one or two of the earth- 
enware bowls of the Pueblo Indians, and lastly, purchased 

22. Jose D. Sena was born in Santa Fe in 1837, son of Don Juan Sena who had 
come from Old Mexico, a trader. In the Civil War, Don Jose was a captain of the 
2nd regiment, New Mexico volunteers, and for distinguished service in the battle of 
Valverde he was promoted to major. At the close of the war, he was in charge of 
the rebuilding of Fort Marcy in Santa Fe. "Resigning his commission, Major Sena 
became sheriff of Santa F county, which office he held for twelve years. He occupied 
many offices of honor and trust and for many years was an interpreter in the courts 
of New Mexico, in which profession he had few if any superiors." (Twitchell, Lead- 
ing Facts of New Mexican History, ii, 388, note) A son of the same name, Col. 
Jos6 D. Sena, vice-president of the Historical Society for the last ten years, has also 
distinguished himself by many years of public service and enjoys a well-merited repu- 
tation as an interpreter. 

23. Frank Tracy Bennett, native of Ohio, served during the Civil War. In 
1867 he was commissioned a captain in the 39th Infantry, but in December 1870 he 
was assigned to the 9th Cavalry, and in June 1885 was made major of the 2nd 
Cavalry. 



322 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

from a Tesuque Pueblo Indian, a willow basket, of the 
peculiar form made by that people. 

I bade a hurried good-bye to the Woodruffs, to Mrs. 
Hatch and Mrs. Lee and had the great pleasure of an inter- 
view with my old friend, Colonel Lee, who returned from 
Chicago this morning. 24 Colonel Lee brought me the sad 
news of the sudden death of my friend Mr. H. W. Farrar, 
who made the trip to the Big Horn & Yellowstone with our 
party in 1877. The Colonel was, in 1870, depot Quarter- 
master at Tucson, A. T. and we there saw much of each 
other. I could fill pages with reminiscences of the town 
of Tucson as it then was, but have no leisure at this moment 
for so doing and will simply refer back to passages in my 
note-books. 85 



24. James G. C. Lee, native of Canada, served during the Civil War from 
Ohio. He was commissioned major in the quartermaster department in July 1879, 
although Bourke here speaks of him as colonel. 

25. Unfortunately any notebooks of that date are missing, but see N. MBX. HIST. 
RBV., ix, pp. 70-77. 



KIT CARSON, CATHOLIC 
By BROTHER CLAUDIUS ANTONY 

THE RECORDS concerning Christopher Carson, now pub- 
lished for the first time, were transcribed, July, 1934, 
in the rectory of the church of Nuestra Senora de Guada- 
lupe, Taos, New Mexico. The baptismal record is in the 
parish book "Bautismos," 1837-1844, p. 241 ; the marriage 
record, in "Matrimonies," 1833-1845, p. 209 ; and the burial 
record, in "Libro de Sepulturos," 1869, p. 92. 

To have the records photographed I had arranged at 
that time with Father Claudio Balland, the pastor of the 
church. But some weeks later when the photographer 
called at Taos, Father Balland was reluctant to allow the 
photostats to be taken, because His Excellency Archbishop 
Rudolph Aloysius Gerken, D. D., had lately given directions 
that all the old parish records should be taken to Santa Fe. 
The records were brought to Santa Fe in December by the 
Archbishop himself and deposited in the Archives of the 
Archdiocese. The photostats were finally made a few 
months ago with the permission of His Excellency by Mr. 
Charles E. Lord at the archiepiscopal residence. 

The baptismal record establishes the following facts: 

Christopher Carson, who was then thirty-two years 
old, was baptized by Padre Antonio Jose Martinez at Taos 
on the twenty-eighth day of January, 1842. Mr. Carson 
received the religious instructions which the Roman Ritual 
prescribes for converts instructions in the Christian faith, 
that is, the Apostles* Creed ; the sacraments, and especially 
the effects of baptism; the Our Father; the acts of faith, 
hope, charity, and contrition; and instructions in Christian 
morality, the divine precepts which are included in the 
Decalogue and the precepts of the Church. As Mr. Carson 
had been baptized according to the rite of the Anabaptists, 
he was baptized conditionally. He also made the profession 

323 



324 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

of faith which is obligatory for adult converts 1 and he was 
given the name of Christopher, the same name which he 
had received in his first baptism. Mr. Carson was baptized 
solemnly, that is, all the ceremonies prescribed by the 
Roman Ritual were performed. 

The godparents were Louis Lee and Maria de la Cruz 
Padilla. They too were instructed in their obligations and 
spiritual relationships. 

The marriage record contains the following statements: 

Christopher Carson, son of Linsey Carson and Rebecca 
Robinson, a native of Missouri and a resident of Our Lady 
of Guadalupe (Taos), on the sixth of February, 1843, gave 
notice of his intention to marry Maria Josefa Jaramillo, 
daughter of Francis Jaramillo and Maria Polonia Vigil, a 
native of the town of Santa Cruz de la Canada and a resi- 
dent of the above-mentioned town. The banns, the public 
proclamations of the Intended marriage, were published at 
the parish masses on three successive holydays, namely, on 
Sunday, January 29, on the feast of the Purification of the 
Most Blessed Virgin, February 2, and on Sunday, Feb- 
ruary 5. 

And as no diriment or prohibitory impediments were 
discovered (the first render marriage null ; the second, un- 
lawful) they were married by Padre Antonio Jose Martinez, 
according to the rites of the Church. 

George Bent and Maria de la Cruz Padilla were the 
canonical witnesses. Other witnesses were Manuel Lucero 
and Jose Maria Valdez and others, all residents of Taos. 

The burial record informs us that: 

Christopher Carson and Josefa Jaramillo, his wife, both 
of whom had died many months before at Rio de las Animas, 
were buried, according to the rites of the Church, at Taos 



1. "Haeretici vero ad Catholicam Ecclesiam venientes, in quorum Baptismo 
debita forma, aut materia servata non est, rite baptizandi sunt ; sed prium errorum 
suorum pravitatem agnoscant et detestentur, et in fide Catholica diligenter instru- 
antur." Rubrics of the Roman Ritual, 752, Article 12. 



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CHURCH RECORD OF CARSON'S MARRIAGE 



KIT CARSON, CATHOLIC 325 

on the twenty-fifth of May, 1869, by Father Gabriel Ussel, 
the pastor of the Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe. 

DOCUMENTS 2 

Christopher In this parish of Taos, on the twenty-eighth day 

of January, 1842, I the parish priest, D. Antonio Jose 
Martinez, after giving the necessary religious instruc- 
tions and when I was satisfied that he was sufficiently 
instructed in the principles, the means and the aims of 
our holy religion, and with his acceptance of the same, 
and as a reasonable doubt existed as to whether he was 
baptized or not, since he had been baptized according 
to the rite of the Anabaptists, 8 whose errors he abjured 
an adult thirty-two years of age I exorcised him, I 
anointed him with the holy oils, and I baptized him, 
conditionally, solemnly, I anointed him with the sacred 
chrism, giving him the name of Christopher, the same 
name which he had received at his first baptism accord- 
ing to the above mentioned rite. But, the baptism 
which I administered to him was according to the 
Church rite for adults as required by the Roman 
Ritual: the said adult came from the State of Mis- 
souri of North America; but it is a well-known fact 
that ever since he was fourteen years old he has 
lived here in this town of Our Lady of Guadalupe of this 
parish, and that he has been engaged in the occupation 
of hunting in the North: he said his parents were of 
legitimate marriage Linsey Carson and Rebecca 
Robinson: 4 the god-parents 5 were Louis Lee 6 and Maria 
de la Cruz Padilla, residents of this town of Our Lady 
of Guadalupe, whom I instructed in their obligations 
and spiritual relationship, and in testimony of which 
I have signed my name. 

Anto. Jose Martinez 



2. For the original Spanish, see the accompanying facsimiles. The sentence 
structure of the original has been retained. 

3. Anabaptists baptize again, upon admission to their communion, persons, 
especially infants, baptized when incapable of stating the doctrines of their belief. 

4. The original has, incorrectly, Roberson. 
6. Only Catholics may be god-parents. 

It is the duty of god-parents, arising from sponsorship, to regard their spiritual 
children as their perpetual charges and to instruct them carefully in the obligations 
of a Christian life, in order that they may prove themselves such as they solemnly 
promised by their baptismal vows to be. At most, two god-parents may be employed, 
namely, a man and a woman. 

6. The Sheriff of Taos County. 



326 



NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 



Christopher 
Carson and 
Maria Josef a 
Jaramillo 



In this parish of Taos on the sixth day of the 
month of February of the year, 1843, I, the parish 
priest, D. Antonio Jose Martinez, having completed 
certain judicial matrimonial inquiries at the request of 
Christopher Carson single, legitimate son of Linsey 
Carson and of Rebecca Robinson, 7 a native of Missouri 
in North America and a resident of this town of Our 
Lady of Guadalupe with Maria Josefa Jaramillo, 
single, legitimate daughter of Francisco Jaramillo 
and of Maria Polonia Vigil, a native of the town of 
Santa Cruz de la Canada and residing in the above 
mentioned town of Our Lady of Guadalupe, and the 
banns 8 having been published at the masses in this 
parish under my care on three holydays which were 
the twenty-ninth ultimo (January) and the second and 
the fifth of the present month, and no impediments, 
either diriment or prohibitory, having been discovered, 
I married and united them according to the rites of 
the Church. The groomsman was George Bent, 9 and 
the bridesmaid Maria de la Cruz Padilla, and the wit- 
nesses 10 were Juan Manuel Lucero and Jose Maria 
Valdes, all residents of the town of Our Lady of Guad- 
alupe, as well as the others who were present. 

In testimony of which I have signed, 

Anto. Jose Martinez 

In this parish of Taos, on the twenty-fifth day of 
May, 1869, eighteen hundred sixty-nine, I, Gabriel 
Ussel, parish priest, 11 buried according to the rites of 
the Church the bodies of Christopher Carson, and of 
Josefa Jaramillo, his wife; both had died at Rio de 
Las Animas many months before. 

In testimony of which I have signed, 

Gabriel Ussel. 



7. The original has incorrectly, Roverzon. 

8. Public proclamations of an intended marriage, as a help in discovering 
matrimonial impediments, if any exist. Three publications, on different Sundays or 
holydays, are required. 

9. A brother of Charles Bent, first civil Governor of New Mexico. 

10. At a marriage two witnesses are strictly required for its validity. Only Cath- 
olics may licitly act as witnesses. 

11. The pastors of the Catholic Church at Taos from 1826 to 1874 were: Padre 
Antonio Jose Martinez, Padre Damaso Taladria, Padre Jose Eulogio Ortiz, and Padre 
Gabriel Ussel. 



May 25 

Christopher 

Carson 

and 

Josefa 

Jaramillo 



KIT CARSON, CATHOLIC 327 



CHURCH BURIAL RECORD, CARSON AND WIFE 

In order that the reader may realize the procedure, 
which was followed when Christopher Carson made his 
profession of faith and received solemn baptism, the form of 
abjuration and the baptismal rites are given. 

The order observed in the reception of converts into 
the Catholic Church, when baptism is confererd condition- 
ally, as was the case with Christopher Carson, is as follows: 

First The convert makes the profession of faith. 

Second He is baptized conditionally. 

Third He makes a sacramental confession and is 
given absolution. 

I. THE PROFESSION OF FAITH AS MADE BY CHRISTOPHER 
CARSON. 

(The priest, having on a surplice, violet stole, and a 
cane of the same color, sHs down on the epistle side of 
the altar. Christopher Carson kneels down before him, 
and touching the book of the Gosnels with his right 
hand, makes the profession of faith;) 
I, Christopher Carson, having before me the holy Gos- 
pels, which I touch with my hand, and knowing that no 
one can be saved without that faith which the Holy, 
Catholic, Apostolic Roman Church, holds, believes, and 
teaches, against which I grieve that I have greatly 
erred, inasmuch as I have held and believed doctrines 
opposed to her teaching. 

I now, with sorrow and contrition for my past errors, 
profess that I believe the Holy, Catholic, Apostolic 



328 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Roman Church to be the only and true Church estab- 
lished on earth by Jesus Christ, to which I submit my- 
self with my whole soul. I believe all the articles of 
faith which she proposes to my belief, and I reject and 
condemn all that she rejects and condemns, and I am 
ready to observe all that she commands me. And I 
make the following profession of my faith: 
I believe in one only God in three divine Persons, dis- 
tinct from and equal to each other that is to say, the 
Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. 
I believe in the Catholic doctrine of the Incarnation, 
Passion, Death, and Resurrection of our Lord, Jesus 
Christ; in the personal union of the two Natures, the 
divine and the human; the divine Maternity of the 
most Holy Mary, together with the most spotless 
Virginity. 

I believe in the true, real, and substantial presence of 
the Body and Blood, together with the soul, and divin- 
ity of our Lord Jesus Christ, in the most holy Sacra- 
ment of the Eucharist. I believe in seven sacraments 
instituted by Jesus Christ for the salvation of mankind 
that is to say, Baptism, Confirmation, Penance, 
Eucharist, Extreme Unction, Holy Orders, and Matri- 
mony. 

I believe in Purgatory, the Resurrection of the Dead, 
and Everlasting Life. 

I believe in the Primacy, not only of honor but also of 
jurisdiction, of the Roman Pontiff, successor of Saint 
Peter, Prince of the Apostles, Vicar of Jesus Christ. 
I believe in the veneration of the Saints and of their 
images. 

I believe in the authority of the apostolic and ecclesias- 
tical tradition, and of the Holy Scriptures, which we 
must interpret and understand only in the sense in 
which our holy mother, the Catholic Church, has held 
and does hold. 

And I believe in everything else that has been defined 
and declared by the sacred Canons and by the General 
Councils, and particularly by the holy Council of Trent, 
and delivered, defined, and declared by the General 
Council of the Vatican, especially concerning the pri- 
macy of the Holy Roman Pontiff, and his infallible 
teaching authority. 

With a sincere heart, therefore, and with unfeigned 
faith I detest and abjure every error, heresy, and sect 



KIT CARSON, CATHOLIC 329 

opposed to the said Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic 
Roman Church. So help me God, and these his Holy 
Gospels, which I touch with my hand. 
(Then while Christopher Carson is still kneeling, the 
Priest sitting says:) 12 

1. Have mercy upon me, God, after Thy great 
mercy; and according to the multitude of thy tender 
mercies blot out my transgressions. 

2. Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquities; and 
clease me from my sin. 

3. For I acknowledge my transgression; and my 
sin is ever before me. 

4. Against Thee, Thee only, have I sinned, and 
done evil in Thy sight: that Thou mightest be justified 
when Thou speakest, and be clear when Thou art 
judged. 

5. For behold I was shapen in iniquity: and in sin 
did my mother conceive me. 

6. For behold Thou desirest truth: The hidden 
secrets of Thy wisdom Thou hast made manifest to me. 

7. Sprinkle me with hyssop and I shall be clean; 
wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. 

8. Make me to hear joy and gladness: that the 
bones which Thou hast broken may rejoice. 

9. Hide Thy face from my sins and blot out mine 
iniquities. 

10. Create in me a clean heart, O God: and renew 
a right spirit within me. 

11. Cast me not away from Thy presence: and take 
not thine holy spirit from me. 

12. Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation and 
uphold me with thy free spirit. 

13. Then will I teach transgressors, Thy ways: and 
sinners shall be converted unto Thee. 

14. Deliver me from blood-guiltiness, O God, Thou 
God of my salvation; and my tongue shall sing aloud 
of Thy righteousness. 

15. Lord, open Thou my lips, and my mouth shall 
show forth Thy praise. 

16. For thou desirest not sacrifice, else would I give 
it: Thou delightest not in burnt-oifering. 

12. Psalm 50, in the Rheims-Doway version ; 51, in the King James version. 
(Is it not more likely that any psalter or book of ritual owned by Father Martinez 
was based on the Latin Vulgate? Or if in Spanish, on the version of Scio or 
Amat. Editor) 



330 



NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 



17. The sacrifice of God is a broken spirit; a broken 
and a contrite heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise. 

18. Do good in Thy good pleasure unto Sion: to 
build the walls of Jerusalem. 

19. Then shalt Thou be pleased with the sacrifice of 
righteousness, with burnt-offering and whole burnt- 
offering: then shall they offer bullocks upon Thine 
altar. 

(The priest then stands and says:) 

Priest: Lord, have mercy. 

Response: Christ, have mercy. 

Priest: Lord, have mercy. (Our Father in secret.) 

Priest: And lead us not into temptation. 

Response: But deliver us from evil. Amen. 

Priest: Save thy servant. 

Response: Who puts his trust in thee, O my God. 

Priest: Lord, hear my prayer. 

Response: And let my cry come unto Thee. 

Priest: The Lord be with thee. 

Response: And with thy spirit. 

Priest: Let us pray. 

O God, whose property is always to have mercy and to 
spare, receive our humble petition: that thy servant 
here present whom the chain of excommunication doth 
bind, may by the compassion of Thy loving kindness 
mercifully be absolved. Amen. 

(The priest then sits down and turning toward Chris- 
topher Carson who is still kneeling, absolves him from 
his heresy, saying:) 

By the Apostolic authority which I exercise here, I 
absolve thee from the bond of excommunication, which 
perchance thou hast incurred, and I restore thee to the 
holy sacraments of the Church, to the communion and 
the unity of the faithful, in the name of the Father, 
and of the Son (the priest makes the sign of the cross.) 
and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. 

(The priest then enjoins upon Christopher Carson some 
salutary penance.) 

(Then the priest, Christopher Carson, and the sponsors 
proceed to the vestibule of the Church.) 



KIT CARSON, CATHOLIC 



331 



II. THE BAPTISMAL RITE FOR ADULTS ACCORDING TO 
THE ROMAN RITUAL: 



The Priest: 
Christopher 
Carson : 
The Priest: 
Christopher 
Carson : 
The Priest: 



Christopher, what dost thou ask of the Church of God? 

Faith. 

To what doth faith bring thee? 

To life everlasting. 

If then thou wilt enter into life keep the command- 
ments. Thou shalt love the lord thy God with thy 
whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with thy 
whole mind; and thy neighbor as thyself. 
(The Priest breathes gently upon the face of Christo- 
pher Carson and says:) 

Depart from him, thou unclean spirit, and give place to 
the Holy Ghost the Paraclete. 

(The Priest makes the sign of the cross with his thumb 
upon the forehead and the breast of Christopher Car- 
son, saying:) 

Receive the sign of the cross upon thy forehead and 
upon thy heart; take unto thee the faith of the heavenly 
commandments, and be thou such in thy ways that thou 
mayest be henceforth fit to be the temple of God. 
Let us pray: 

Graciously hear our prayers, we beseech Thee, O Lord, 
and protect by Thy unfailing might, this soul of Thy 
choice, Christopher, now marked with the sign of our 
Lord's holy cross, that holding to his first knowledge of 
Thy infinite perfection, he may deserve, by keeping Thy 
commandments, to come to the glory destined for those 
who are born anew: Through Christ our Lord. Amen. 
(The Priest lays his hand upon the head of Christopher 
Carson, and afterward holding the hand extended 
says:) 

Let us pray. 

Almighty, everlasting God, Father of our Lord Jesus 
Christ, deign to look with fervor upon thy servant, 
Christopher, whom Thou hast been pleased to call to the 
beginning of faith. Heal him of all blindness of heart; 
sunder all the snares of the enemy in which he has been 
entangled; open to him, O Lord, the gate of Thy 
fatherly love, that signed with the seal of Thy wisdom, 
he may be free from the corruption of all wicked 
desires, and under the influence of Thy Church, advanc- 



332 



NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 



Christopher 
Carson : 
The Priest: 



The Priest 



ing in perfection from day to day. Through the same 
Christ our Lord, Amen. 
(The Priest blesses the salt.) 

I purge thee of evil, creature of salt, in the name of 
God the Father Almighty, and in the charity of our 
Lord Jesus Christ, and in the power of the Holy 
Ghost. I purge thee of evil by the living God, the true 
God, the holy God, by God who hath provided thee for 
the well-being of mankind, and commanded that thou 
be consecrated by his servants for those who come into 
the life of faith, so that in the name of the Holy Trin- 
ity thou mayest be made a means of spiritual aid to 
drive the enemy away. We therefore implore Thee, 
O Lord our God, to make holy with Thy sanctification 
and bless with Thy blessing, this creature of salt, that 
it may become to all who receive it, an effective remedy, 
working ever within them; in the name of the same 
Jesus Christ our Lord, who shall come to judge the 
living and the dead and the world by fire. Amen, 
(The Priest puts a little of the blessed salt into the 
mouth of the Christopher Carson saying:) 
Christopher, receive the salt of wisdom; may it be unto 
thee an earnest of God's favor unto life everlasting. 
Amen. 
Peace be with you. 

And with thy spirit. 

Let us pray. 

God of our fathers, Source of all truth, most humbly 
we pray thee of Thy goodness, to look with favor upon 
Thy servant Christopher, and permit not that he, who 
now tastes this morsel of salt, should hunger any more, 
but rather that he abound in heavenly food, that he 
may be always fervent of spirit, joyful in hope, always 
honoring Thy Holy Name. Lead him to the font of the 
new and better birth, that as one of Thy faithful he 
may deserve to win the everlasting reward which thou 
hast promised: Through Christ our Lord. Amen. 

1 bid thee begone, unclean spirit, in the name of the 
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost; that 
thou depart and keep far from this servant of God, 
Christopher, for He commands thee accursed demon, 
who trod the waves under foot and extended a helping 



KIT CARSON, CATHOLIC 333 

hand to Peter who was about to sink. Therefore, 
accursed fiend, acknowledge thy doom and give honor to 
the living and true God, give honor to Jesus Christ His 
son, and to the Holy Ghost, and keep far from this serv- 
ant of God, because Jesus Christ our Lord and God has 
been pleased to call him to His holy grace and blessing, 
even to the font of baptism. (The Priest signs Chris- 
topher saying:) And this sign of the holy cross, which 
we trace upon his forehead, do thou, accursed fiend, 
never dare to violate : Through Christ our Lord. Amen. 
(The Priest and Christopher Carson say the Apostles' 
Creed and the Our Father.) 

I believe in God the Father almighty, Creator of 
heaven and earth. And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, 
our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born 
of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was 
crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell, 
the third day He rose again from the dead. He 
ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of 
God, the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come 
to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy 
Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgive- 
ness of sin, the resurrection of the body, and life ever- 
lasting. Amen. 

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. 
Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth, as it is in 
heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive 
us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass 
against us. And lead us not into temptation, but de- 
liver us from evil. Amen. 

The Priest: Let us pray. 

Holy Lord, Father almighty, eternal God,, author of 
the light of truth, earnestly call down upon this Thy 
servant Thy eternal and all-holy love, that Thou 
wouldst be pleased to guide him with the light of Thy 
wisdom. Make him pure and holy, give him skill to 
learn the truth, that having been deemed worthy of 
the grace of Thy baptism, he may preserve in firm hope, 
right purpose, and holy doctrine: Through Christ our 
Lord. Amen. 

(The Priest with his left hand takes Christopher Car- 
son by the right and leads him into the church, say- 
ing:) 



334 



NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 



The Priest: 
Christopher 
Carson : 
The Priest: 
Christopher 
Carson : 
The Priest: 
Christopher 
Carson : 



The Priest: 



Christopher, enter into the temple of God, that thou 

mayest have part with Christ, unto life everlasting. 

Amen. 

(After the Priest, Christopher Carson, Louis Lee, and 

Maria de la Cruz Padilla have entered the church, the 

Priest leads the way to the baptismal font and together 

with Christopher Carson says aloud the Apostles' Creed 

and the Lord's Prayer.) 

(Then before he enters the baptistry the Priest says:) 

I bid thee begone, unclean spirit, if any remain, in 

the name of God the Father Almighty, and in the name 

of Jesus Christ, His son our Lord and Judge, and in the 

power of the Holy Ghost, that you keep far from this 

creature of God's making, Christopher, whom our Lord 

has been pleased to call to His holy temple, that he 

also might be made a temple of the living God, and 

that the Holy Ghost might dwell within him: Through 

the same Christ our Lord, who shall come to judge the 

living and the dead, and the world by fire. Amen. 

(The Priest takes a little saliva on his thumb and 

touched the ears of Christopher Carson saying, 

"Ephpheta," which is "be thou open.") 

(Then touching the nostrils.) 

Unto the odor of sweetness. But thou spirit of evil, 

begone: for the judgment of God is at hand. 

(The Priest then questions Christopher Carson as 

follows : ) 

Christopher, dost thou renounce satan? 

I do renounce him. 
And all his works? 
I do renounce them. 
And all his pomps? 
I do renounce them. 

(The priest dips his thumb in the oil of the Catechu- 
mens, and anoints Christopher Carson on the breast 
and between the shoulders in the form of a cross, say- 
ing:) 

I anoint thee with the oil of salvation in Christ Jesus 
our Lord, that thou mayest have life everlasting. Amen. 
(Standing in the same place, outside the railing the 
Priest exchanges the stole and cape of violet for a stole 



KIT CARSON, CATHOLIC 



335 



The Priest: 

Christopher 
Carson : 
The Priest: 



Christopher 
Carson : 
The Priest: 
Christopher 
Carson : 



The Priest: 



The Priest: 
Response : 



and a cape of white. Then he enters the baptistry as 
do also the sponsors with Christopher Carson. The 
Priest at the font interrogates Christopher Carson 
again.) 

Christopher, dost thou believe in God the Father Al- 
mighty, Creator of heaven and earth? 

I do believe. 

Dost thou believe also in the Holy Ghost, the holy 
Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgive- 
ness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life 
everlasting? 

I do believe. 

Christopher, wilt thou be baptized? 

I will. 

(Then Louis Lee and Maria de la Cruz Padilla touch 

Christopher Carson, while the Priest takes baptismal 

water in a small vessel, and pours it three times upon 

the head of Christopher Carson, saying:) 

If thou art not yet baptized, Christopher, I baptize thee 

in the name of the Father (pouring the first time) and 

of the Son (pouring the second time) and of the Holy 

Ghost (pouring the third time.) 

(Then the Priest dips his thumb in the holy chrism, and 

anonts Christopher Carson on the crown of the head, 

in the form of a cross, saying : ) 

May God almighty, the Father of our Lord Jesus 

Christ, who has given thee a new life by water and the 

Holy Ghost, and granted thee remission of all sins, may 

He anoint thee with the chrism of salvation in the same 

Christ Jesus our Lord, unto life everlasting. Amen. 

Peace be to thee. 

And with thy spirit. 

(Having wiped his thumb and the anointed place, and 

laid a linen cloth upon the head of Christopher Carson 

in lieu of a white garment, the Priest says:) 

Receive this white garment, which mayest thou wear 

without stain before the judgment seat of our Lord 

Jesus Christ, that thou mayest have life everlasting. 

Amen. 

(The Priest gives Christopher Carson a lighted candle, 

and says:) 



336 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

Receive this burning light, and without fail be true to 
thy baptism ; keep the commandments of God that when 
our Lord shall come to claim his own, thou mayest be 
worthy to greet Him with all the saints in the heavenly 
court, and live forever and ever. Amen. 
(Last of all the Priest says:) 

Christopher, go in peace and may the Lord be with 
thee. Amen. 

III. CHRISTOPHER CARSON MAKES A SACRAMENTAL 
CONFESSION AND IS GIVEN CONDITIONAL ABSOLUTION. 

Saint Mary's College, 
California. 



BOOK REVIEWS 

The Greater Southivest. By Rupert Norval Richardson 
and Carl Coke Rister. (The Arthur H. Clark Company, 
Glendale, Calif ., 1934. 506pp. $4.00.) 

In this handsomely printed volume, the authors, one 
professor of history at Simmons University, and the other 
assistant professor of history at the University of Okla- 
homa, seek to correlate the economic, social and cultural 
development of the present states of Kansas, Oklahoma, 
Texas, Utah, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Arizona and 
California. Though forming a compact group of states 
which might be loosely designated as "The Southwest," they 
are unrelated geographically, topographically and climati- 
cally and their trend historically is naturally differentiated 
distinctly from each other. Even today, the states west of 
the great Continental Divide look toward the Pacific and 
those on the east toward the Gulf of Mexico and the Missis- 
sippi. An indefinite line also divides the region into that 
portion first populated by the town-building Pueblos and 
later colonized by the Spaniards, from the region which, 
occupied by the Shoshonean and other nomadic tribes, was 
settled much later by the westward pressing emigrants from 
the eastern states. The authors recognize this for they 
dwell upon the factors which determine culture, such as 
topography, climate, trails, forts, boundaries, natural travel 
routes, Indian migrations, exploration, settlement, railways, 
reservations, reclamation projects. The unity of national 
governmental activities since the region came under the 
authority of Washington and the establishment of state 
governments moulded along the same principles of democ- 
racy have, of course, drawn these states more closely to each 
other. The maps which accompany the treatise illustrate 
this for they cover in sequence, first, the physiography of 
the Southwest ; second, the Southwest in the eighteenth cen- 
tury ; third, the Southwest in the first half of the nineteenth 

337 



338 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

century; fourth, from the War with Mexico to the Civil 
War, and finally the Southwest as it is today. 

The authors bring to the volume no results of their 
own original research but they achieve a scholarly compila- 
tion of "the enlarged knowledge and newer points of view 
of historical research" by acknowledged scholars in the 
field. They render therefore a fine and acceptable service 
to high school and college students as well as to the general 
reader interested in the history and the cultural develop- 
ment of so large a part of the United States. The arrange- 
ment is logical. While the scope of the work does not per- 
mit of great detail, yet the subject is covered adequately 
even though concisely. On the other hand, the history of the 
section is tied up with events in Europe, and on the other, 
it is related to the background created during centuries by 
the Indians prior to European conquest and colonization. 
As summarized by the authors: "First came the Spanish 
conquerors and zealous priests, followed by proprietors and 
Mexican vaqueros; but Spain's hold on the country was 
slender and Mexico, her successor, lost it. Later Anglo- 
Americans entered the country trappers and traders, offi- 
cial explorers and soldiers, miners and adventurers, ranch- 
men and farmers some preceding and others following the 
flag of the United States. Here occurred the clash of rival 
nations and the contest for supremacy between two civili- 
zations. Furthermore, in the annals of this region the 
frontier looms large, for in some places civilization touched 
hands with savagery for almost three centuries." The book 
is written in the modern scientific spirit, devoid of romanc- 
ing and with a due sense of proportion in the treatment of 
incidents and episodes, which easily lend themselves to 
exaggeration. Yet, the volume is not devoid of color and 
holds the reader's interest from the first chapter treating of 
the Indian races, to the last, an excellent, philosophical sum- 
mary of "The Spirit of the Southwest." 

P. A. F. W. 



BOOK REVIEWS 339 

After Coronado: Spanish Exploration Northeast of 
New Mexico, 1697-1727. By A. B. Thomas. (Univ. of 
Oklahoma Press, Norman, Okla., 1935. 308 pp., 2 maps, 
editorial notes, bibliography, index. $3.50.) 

In this book Dr. Thomas makes available for students 
of Southwestern history, as he did in his earlier Forgotten 
Frontiers, a considerable body of documentary material. 
The title "After Coronado" is short and felicitous, but it 
is open to some question. The author's real theme is indi- 
cated by the sub-title or to paraphrase from his preface: 
he aims to make a comprehensive attempt to investigate the 
nature and the extent of Spanish influence beyond New 
Mexico during the 280 years between Coronado's journey 
to Quivira (1541) and the end of Spanish rule (1821). 
Within this long stretch of time he finds a significant period 
in the thirty-two years from 1696 to 1727 and all the docu- 
ments which he here presents except the first brief para- 
graph fall within these years. Where the main emphasis 
lies is shown by the fact that over three-fourths of the book 
deals with the still shorter period from 1719 to 1727, por- 
traying the danger to New Mexico from the French who 
were thought to be advancing from the plains of Cibola, 
and the reaction of the Spaniards to that threat. 

The best defense of the author's title is found in his 
"Historical Introduction" (pp. 1-49) which is an excellent 
analysis, well documented, of the entire Spanish period, 
sketching the long earlier expansion (1541-1680), inter- 
rupted by the Pueblo Indian Rebellion of the latter year. 
His analysis would have been strengthened, had he men- 
tioned the dying out of the Hapsburg regime just at the turn 
of the century and the rise of the Spanish Bourbons. The 
Spanish Empire belted the globe and this part of New Spain 
was, after all, only a minor sector of a vast frontier. 
Harassed by many and weightier problems elsewhere, this 
borderland which was a liability rather than an asset was of 
minor importance relatively to the Bourbon kings, yet it 
was a factor in their relations with the French from the 
time of Louis XIV to that of Napoleon. It is well to think 



340 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

of the struggle on this Spanish borderland during the 18th 
century always in relation to the ebb and flow in the for- 
tunes of the mother country. 

Numerous mistakes in accent are perhaps explained by 
the reliance of the author, in some cases, on the work of 
earlier writers instead of going back to the originals (v. 
note, p. 52). As a whole, the accents are shown correctly, 
but such errors as "Cuervo," "Cubero," and others are 
used throughout. A quick scanning of the text gives the 
impression that the translations are accurate as well as 
smooth much more so than in Forgotten Frontiers. For 
"Odyssey" the author probably meant "Anabasis" (p. 5). 
The textual "Tegua" (p. 60) is correct instead of the edito- 
rial correction "Tigua." Does not the caption (p. 91) in 
the original read "Al Burquerque"? And in the embodied 
letter (p. 245, line 21) "that" instead of "this"? And again 
(p. 285, line 4 from bottom) "Baluerde" for "Balue." 

Readers of After Coronado who are familiar with work 
in documentary material will appreciate the amount of 
work, and good work, which Dr. Thomas has put into it. 
As he has translated and annotated them, these documents 
make a very valuable addition to the historical records of 
the Southwest. 

L. B. B. 

My Life on the Frontier. By Miguel Antonio Otero. (The 
Press of the Pioneers, Inc., New York, 1935. 293 pp., ills, by 
Will Shuster, $6.00.) 

In this volume (the first of a contemplated series) the 
author, a former territorial governor of New Mexico, 
attempts to cover from an autobiographical angle, certain 
aspects of life in the American Southwest, during the years 
that the railroads were pushing their way into the trade ter- 
ritory, until then dominated by the Santa Fe Trail. These 
years, 1864 to 1882, ushered in a new epoch in the develop- 
ment of the West. That they were lively years is attested 
by the author. The circles in which he moved were finan- 
cially and politically interested in trade and government. 



BOOK REVIEWS 341 

The contacts he made, therefore, were in that sphere. His 
early life was more or less that of a scion of the so-called 
"ricos" and ruling class of New Mexico, rooted deep in the 
customs and views of life of a feudal past and yet reaching 
out commercially and politically into the new deal brought 
to the Spanish Southwest by the railroads and business 
enterprise of the Yankee. It was characteristic of the day 
that the father had married a Southern belle and that his 
household combined the easy going tempo of the old days 
with the high pressure of modern business demands. All 
this is reflected in the volume under review and makes it a 
valuable contribution eagerly read by the student of sociol- 
ogy and history. Yet, it is neither history nor biography, 
nor diary, but more or less random notes such as a reporter 
with a live imagination would have jotted down from time 
to time to be revived fifty or sixty years later and verified 
and augmented from old letters, documents, newspaper 
files and current stories of so-called old timers. 

The memory and acuteness of observation of the author 
when a mere child is nothing short of remarkable. Before 
he was five years old, he recalls that, while living in the 
vicinity of Lawrence, Kansas, "a troop of Federal cavalry 
drew up in front of our home and decided to pitch camp. 
Immediately, they hitched their horses to our picket fence. 
This was too much for my mother. Hurriedly putting on 
her white linen sun-bonnet, she rushed into the yard and 
unhitched every horse tied to the fence. Some of the officers 
and a few of the soldiers came up and objected in unbecom- 
ing language. But my mother stood her ground, declaring 
aggressively : 'I want you to understand that no Yankee sol- 
diers can hitch their horses to any fence of mine/ Her man- 
ner and her words were effective, for the soldiers forth- 
with took their horses to a clump of trees some distance 
down the road." 

Similarly minute in detail is an incident at Leaven- 
worth, Kansas, when he was in his fifth year: "One of the 
strongest recollections I have of Leavenworth is the large 
number of Union soldiers, both infantry and cavalry, I saw 



342 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

there, largely due to the fact that Fort Leavenworth was 
only a few miles north of the city. They literally seemed 
to fill the streets of the city and the entire country there- 
abouts. No doubt their presence was necessary, for the 
animosity between the anti-slavery and the pro-slavery fac- 
tions in eastern Kansas was still red hot. * * * Shortly after 
our arrival at Leavenworth, we had an experience with the 
military authorities at our home. One day six soldiers 
called and inquired for my father. My mother went to the 
door, and at the sight of the soldiers naturally concluded 
that some embarrassment, or possibly harm, was in store 
for my father. So she replied to their inquiry : 'Mr. Otero 
is not at home.' The soldiers were about to accept her state- 
ment and take their leave, when I, thinking that my mother 
did not really know the truth of the matter, ran to her 
side and blurted out: 'Why, yes, Mama! Papa is upstairs/ 
Hardly had I let the cat out of the bag than my father, who 
had been standing in the hall upstairs, came quickly to the 
door and submitted himself to the soldiers, who took him to 
headquarters to answer a summons they had for him." 

Were it not for the phenomenal precocity of the child 
as it also appears in other anecdotes of that early period, the 
psychologist would surmise that the author was repeating 
family traditions as he had overheard them rather than 
personal experiences for which he vouches. 

How the author happened to be on the spot whenever 
exciting events occurred is exemplified from the following 
when he was in his ninth year: "I was an eye-witness to 
Wild Bill's encounter with Bill Mulvey, and shall relate the 
details as they linger in my mind : I was standing near Wild 
Bill on Main street, when someone began 'shooting up the 
town' at the eastern end of the street. It was Bill Mulvey, 
a notorious murderer from Missouri, known as the handy 
man with a gun. He had just enough red liquor in him to 
be mean and he seemed to derive great amusement from 
shooting holes into the mirror, as well as the bottles of 
liquor behind the bars, of the saloons in that section of the 
street. As was usually the case with such fellows, he was 



BOOK REVIEWS 343 

looking for trouble, and when some one told him that Wild 
Bill was the town marshal and therefor it behooved him to 
behave himself, Mulvey swore that the marshal was the 
very man he was looking for and that he had come to the 
'damn town' for the express purpose of killing him. The 
tenor of these remarks was somehow made known to Wild 
Bill. But hardly had the news reached him than Mulvey 
appeared on the scene, tearing toward us on his iron-grey 
horse, rifle in hand, full cocked. When Wild Bill saw Mul- 
vey he walked out to meet him, apparently waving his hand 
to some fellows behind Mulvey and calling to them : 'Don't 
shoot him in the back; he is drunk/ Mulvey stopped his 
horse and, wheeling the animal about, drew a bead on his 
rifle in the direction of the imaginary man he thought Wild 
Bill was addressing. But before he realized the ruse that 
had been played upon him, Wild Bill had aimed his six 
shooter and fired just once. Mulvey dropped from his 
horse dead, the bullet having penetrated his temple and 
then passed through his head. During this episode I had 
been standing about twenty-five feet from Wild Bill. My 
joy in the outcome was boundless, for I had been afraid that 
Mulvey, with his rifle trained directly on Wild Bill, would 
pull the trigger." 

Young Otero came in contact with the saloon and 
bawdy house life of the frontier very early for he was only 
in his ninth year when "Calamity Jane" plied "her well- 
known profession among the soldiers rather than among 
the teamsters, freighters, herders and the hunters. Calam- 
ity Jane's accomplishments as a 'wild woman' were numer- 
ous: she could drink whiskey, smoke, chew tobacco and 
swenr better than the proverbial drunken sailor. When I 
used to see her about Hays City in 1868, she was a compara- 
tively young woman, perhaps twenty years of age or there- 
abouts, and still extremely good looking. She was a fear- 
less and excellent horsewoman, and a good shot with either 
rifle or pistol. Money seemed to mean little to her; she 
spent it recklessly in saloons or at the gambling table." 
This is followed by a vivid account of the "wholesale traf- 



344 NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 

ficking in female human flesh, which during those frontier 
days was more horrible than the atrocities committed by 
the wildest Indians." That the social life of those days 
centered about bar rooms, public dance halls and bawdy 
houses gives the student of sociology ground for optimism 
about the younger folks of this day whose antics and pranks 
disturb pulpit and welfare workers. 

When only ten years of age, the writer and his brother 
Page, entered St. Louis University. Boarding school life 
did not hold them long and 1871 finds them at Kit Carson 
in southern Colorado where the "popularity of the dance 
hall with the clerical force of Otero, Sellar & Co. was some- 
times a detriment to the business interests of the firm." 
There follow page after page of lurid incidents vividly told 
as the business firm moved southwestward with the rail- 
road, all the way to Las Vegas, where stirring events in- 
cluded lynchings by the Vigilantes and a railroad trip with 
"Billy the Kid" to Santa Fe. 

The twenty-third and last chapter is devoted to a 
biographical summary of the life of the writer's father, tell- 
ing of his death in 1882 to which year the book brings its 
narrative. The last three pages might well have been the 
preface, for in it the author tells of the inception of his plan 
to publish his memoirs. It was almost thirty years ago, in 
January 1906, when he retired as governor of New Mexico, 
that his friends importuned him to write his reminiscences 
and that he began gathering the data now serving this pur- 
pose. He says: "Many times during my trials and tribu- 
lations I have threatened to destroy my manuscript and give 
up the work, but somehow, as I progressed, it became more 
and more interesting to me, so I promised myself that I 
would finish it, if at all possible." 

Readers of the book will rejoice that Governor Otero 
stuck to his self -set task. Few will lay it down before they 
have perused to the final chapter. It presents an exciting 
picture of the times. Written almost entirely in the first 
person and pervaded with family pride it is frank in pic- 
turing the depravity and wildness of human beings in an 



BOOK REVIEWS 345 

environment and under circumstances which removed that 
restraint which life imposes in settlements where law and 
order, church and the finer arts have taken root. 

The book is beautifully printed and bound, and is dedi- 
cated to the author's son, District Judge M. A. Otero, Jr. 
The illustrations by Will Shuster, a Santa Fe artist, are 
noteworthy and unique. The first edition autographed by 
the author is reported sold and a second edition at one-half 
the price per volume of the first is being prepared for press. 
Volume No. 2, which is to take the Memoirs up to 1906, is 
being looked forward to with avidity by the many friends, 
and even a few of the former political enemies of Governor 
Otero. Much to be desired are similar frank accounts by 
the author's contemporaries who are in position to present 
other facets of the frontier life and of political events since 
the Civil War in the Spanish Southwest. Undoubtedly 
there are others, who are just as sure of their attitudes and 
the correctness of their points of view as is Governor Otero. 
The historian will give this book a place beside those of 
Castaneda, Benavides, Villagra and the chroniclers who fol- 
lowed them. 

P. A. F. W. 



FREDERICK WEBB HODGE ANNIVERSARY 
PUBLICATION FUND 

IN DECEMBER of 1886, Dr. Frederick Webb Hodge joined 
the Hemenwa'y Southwestern Archaeological expedition 
to Arizona, and began a career in anthropology which will 
reach its fiftieth anniversary in 1936. The occasion is to be 
marked by the creation of the Frederick Webb Hodge Anni- 
versary Publication Fund, under the guidance of the follow- 
ing Sponsoring Committee: H. B. Alexander, Franz Boas, 
Herbert E. Bolton, Fay-Cooper Cole, Carl E. Guthe, E. L. 
Hewett, Ales Hrdlicka, A. V. Kidder, Jesse L. Nusbaum, 
Bruno Oetteking, Elsie Clews Parsons, Edward Sapir, 
Frank G. Speck, A. M. Tozzer, Henry R. Wagner, Clark 
Wissler. This Committee will appoint an editorial board, 
self-perpetuating for publication by the Fund. Southwest 
Museum, of which Dr. Hodge has been Director since 1932, 
will administer the Fund as an endowment trust. 

All publications will be sold, at approximate cost, the 
income of the Fund being used as a reserve to meet the 
heavy cost of printing and to cover possible deficits. Con- 
tributors to the Fund who so desire will receive a pro rata 
credit on its publications, enabling them eventually to 
recover in publications the amount of their contribution in 
dollars. Contributions should be sent to Hodge Fund, 
Southwest Museum, Los Angeles, California. 

Dr. Hodge is one of the pioneers of American anthro- 
pology. A founder of the American Anthropological Asso- 
ciation, he edited its journal the American Anthropologist 
during its first fifteen years, meeting much of the initial 
expense from his own pocket. The Handbook of American 
Indians North of Mexico, always the standard work of 
reference on this subject, is but one among many of his 
editorial and original contributions to the study of Aborigi- 
nal America. Dr. Hodge headed the Bureau of American 
Ethnology for eight years. His long career has been one of 
constant support and encouragement to the study of Ameri- 

346 



NOTES 347 

can prehistory. The Fund which is to bear his name offers 
to his many friends and admirers an opportunity to do him 
personal honor, at the same time increasing the meager 
existing facilities for publication of research in the impor- 
tant field of American prehistory. 



ERRATA 

p. 50, lines 5-6, read: . . . Five years later he was in- 
volved in a petition which the people of Alburquerque 
brought . . . 

p. 113, line 14, for devise read device. 

p. 137, line 11, for Durley read Dudley. 

p. 244, second signature, read Enrique Lopez. 



348 



INDEX 



Abert, Col. J. J., 191. 193 

Acapulco, 57, 59 

Adobe, use in walls, 300 

After Coronado, A. B. Thomas, rev., 339- 

340 

Aguilar, Alfonso Rael de, 49 
Aguilar, Capt. Nicolas de, 92 
"Alburquerque and Galisteo, Certificate of 

their Founding, 1706," 48-50 
Albinos, among Apache and Moqui, 9 
Alchisay (Apache), 4 
Alessio Robles, Vito, Saltillo en la historia 

y en la leyenda, rev., 57-60. 
Alfonso VI, King, 113 

Almazan, Francisco de Anaya, 243, 245, 248 
Anabaptists, 323-325 

Antony, Bro. Claudius, "Kit Carson, Cath- 
olic," 323-336 
Apaches, 4, 8, 9, 12, 21, 78, 83, 84, 85, 88, 

96, note; slaves, 103; 107, 109, 133, 

Warm Springs, 134 
Archambeaux, Auguste, 129 
Archives, in Mexico City, 48; in Santa Fe. 

317 ; Roman Catholic, 323 
Argiiello, Gov., 89 
Arizona, 1 ; copper of, horticulture, 53, 61, 

62, 72 

Arizona Citizen, clippings from, 17, note 
Arizona, Dept. of, 11 
Arizona in Literature, by Mary G. Boyer, 

rev., 62 
Arizona Miner, cited, 16 ; 16, note ; 18. 

note; 20, 21, 27, note 
Arizona Sentinel, cited 20 ; 25, note 
Arizona State Teachers College, 62 
Arizona Territory, 12, 13, 19, 20, 23, 34 
Armijo, Manuel, 154, 191 
Army and Navy Journal, cited, 27, note 
Artiaga, Juan de, 260 ; 263 ; 264 
Aztecs, ruins in Arizona, 2 ; and people 

of Southwest, 9 
Aztlan, 18 

Baeza, Gov., 90; 102 

Bakersfield, 22 ; 24 ; 25 

Balland, Father Claudio, 323 

Bancroft, corrected, 49, note ; cited, 50, 152 

Bandelier, cited, 36 ; 50, note 

Bannocks, 286-293, passim 

Barston, of board of Indian commissioners, 

274 

Bartlett, U. S. Com. John R., 128 
Beale's Springs, 18 ; 24 and note 
"Bee House," see "Lion" House. 



349 



Belknap, W. W., involved in scandal, 272 
Belloli, Giorgio, rev., When Old Trails 

Were New: The Story of Taos, 65 
Beltran, Fr. Bernardino, 250 
Benavides, Fr. Alonso de, 99 ; 105 note ; 

176, 198, 199, 204, 205, 206, 207, 214, 

220, 226 

Bennett, Maj. F. T., 321 
Bent, George, 324, 326 
Beyer, Chas. D., 135, note 
Bibliografia de Coahuila, ref. to, 58 
Bill Williams Mountains, 1 
Billy the Kid, 68, 133, 344 
Black Range, 136; note, 136 
Bloom and Donnelly, New Mexico History 

and Civics, cited, 55, note 
Bloom, L. B. For Contributions see "Con- 
tents" 
Bolton, H. E., ref., 56 ; errors of, due to 

Bancroft, 56 

Bosque Redondo reservation, 133 
Boston, 1, 2, 105 

Bouquet, Frenchman at Pojuaque, 300-1 
Bourke, Lieut. John G., 1-35 , 271-322, 

passim 
Boyer, Mary G., Arizona in Literature, 

rev., 62 
Brand, D. D., rev, The Pawnee Ghost 

Dance Hand Game, 158 
Bridger, (Jim), 124; 125 
Broome, C. A., cited, 130 
Brotchie, Luis Paez, 252, note ; 269. note 
Brown's Hole, 129 
Buell, George P., 134, 135, 142 
"Buell's Expedition into Mexico in 1880," 

133 

Buena Vista, battle of, 50, CO 
Burnt Ranch, 17 
burro, described, 296, 301 
buffalo, 55 

Bustamente, Gov. Juan Domingo de, 50 
Bynner, Witter, quoted, 62 
Byrne, Capt., 18 

Cabeza de Vaca, 144, 250 

Cabttdo, Casa de, Santa Fe, 89 

Cachupin, Gov., 183 

"Calamity Jane," 343 

California, 8; southern, 19, 20, 24, 25, 26, 

gold of, 53; 124, 147 
Calvin, Ross, Sky Determines, rev., 66 
Camps, Apache, 4, 5, 11, 12, note; Cady, 

22; Douglass, 26, 33; Hualpai, 18; 

Mojave, 19 ; Reno, 2 ; San Carlos, 11 ; 

Verde, 2, 3, 11 



350 



NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 



Candelaria mountains, 140 
Carabajal, 59 

Cardenas, Capt. Bartolome de, 262 
Cardenas, Lopez de, 145 
Carr, Eugene Asa, 135, note; 136, 137, 138 
carreta, 297-8 
Carrizal, 139 

Carson, Kit, 65, 124, 125, 181, 133, "Catho- 
lic," 323-336 
Carter, Lieut., 15 
Casa Real, Santa Fe, 103, 104 
Cassaus, Roque de, 94, 108, note 
Castano de Sosa, 59 
Cataract Canyon, 123 
Cathay, 60 
Catholic religion, 24; teaching, 20; church, 

175; 181, 183, and note; 195 
Cattle, dead on plains, 287 
Caballos, Bernardino de, 90 
Chamuscado, Capt. Francisco Sanchez, 250 
Cheyenne, Wyoming, 84 
Chihuahua, 72; 135; 250 
Churches, San Gabriel, 24; of Santa Fe, 

302 et seq. 

"Cibola," plains of, 55 
"Cibola" and Cibolos, 55 
"Civil Government and Society in New 

Mexico in the Seventeenth Century," 

F. V. Scholes, 71-111 
Civil War, and Indians, 133 : memories of, 

341-2 

Clan system, 292-3 
Clark, Gov. Wm., 123 
Clark, Capt, W. P., 284, 285 
Clum, John P., Indian agent, 3; 64, 134 
Coahuila, 52, 58, 59 
Coan, C. G., 152 

Cofadta, in Santa Fe, 184, 186 et aeq. 
Coggswell, Gen'l Milton, 277 
Coleccion de Documentos Ineditos, 36, 37 
Colorado Chiquito, 5, 10 
Colorado river, 19, 71 
Colorado, state, 61 
Colquhoun, Archibald, of London, 34 
Comanches, 50 ; 291 
Conline, Lieut. John, 308, 319 
Cooley's ranch, 5 
Coppinger, Col. 11 
Cornish, Lieut. G. A., 139 
Coronado, 51, 57, 145, 250, see After 

Coronado 

Council of the Indies, 250 
Craig, Lt., 5 

Crawford, Capt. Jack, 138, 141 
Crimmins, Col. Martin L., "Colonel Buell's 

Expedition Into Mexico in 1880," 133- 

142 

Crook, Gen. Geo., 1-35, passim ; 279, 289-90 
Crook. Mrs., and President Grant, 25, note 



Crothers, W. D., agent at Fort Stanton, 

133 

Cubero, Gov., 180 
Cuervo y Valdez, Don Francisco, 48 

Dale, Harrison D., quot., 132 

"Death Valley," 22 

"Dedication of the Kearny Monument," H. 

C. Gossard, 51-3. 
Denver, 4, 293-4 
Deseret, 86 

Desert, Great American, 80 
Desert Wife, Hilda Faunce, rev., 165 
Dillon, Sidney, 283-4 
Dixon, Judge, 22 
Dodge, Col. R. I., 34 
Dodge, Lieut. F., 3 ; 34 
Dominguez de Mendoza, Gov., 99 
Doniphan, CoL A. W. 52 
Duchesne river, 130 ; 131 
Dudley, Col. N. A. M., 137, 141 

El Cal (interpreter), 8 

Ellison, Samuel, 317 

El Morro, 145; 150 

"Emma Mine scandal," 32 

El Paso, missions, 72, 76, 88, 138, 144, 148 

Emmet, Lieut. R. T., 302 

Englekirk, J. E., rev., Saltillo en la his- 

toria y en la leyenda, 57 
Escalante Expedition, 121 
Escalona, Fr. Juan de, 196 
Espejo, Don Antonio, 250 
Espinosa, J. M., "Notes on the Lineage of 

Don Diego de Vargas, Reconqueror of 

New Mexico," 112-120; 170-1 
Estudios y Documentos para la Historia 

del Arte Colonial, rev., 169 
Eulate, Gov., 80, 83, 85, 90, 95, note; 106, 

197, 198, 200, 201, 222 

Farfan, Capt., comedy by, 145 

Faunce Hilda, Desert Wife, rev., 165 

Fergusson, Erna, rev., Traders to the Nav- 
ajos, 60 

Fitzpatrick, trapper, 124, 125 

Ford Opera House, 276-7 

Forster, Chico, 34 

Forts, Concho, 134 ; Craig, 133 ; Davis, 134 ; 
Davy Crockett, 125; Griffin, 134; Hall, 
121; Kit Carson, 130; Mojave, 17, 18; 
Quitman, 141, 145 ; "Robidoux and 
Kit Carson," 121-132 ; Sanders, 34 ; 
Stanton, 135 ; Stockton, 134 ; Tejon, 
24; Unitah, see Robidoux; Whipple, 
11-22, passim; Yuma, 148 

Franciscans, 88, 182, 185, 186, 189, 190, 
195 

Freer's Ranch, 23 

Fremont, Capt. John C., 128 

Frontier, see Otero 



INDEX 



351 



Galisteo, Pueblo of, 49, 50; convent of, 89 

Galisteo river, 50 

Gallinas, 51 

Gambrell, Mirabeau Buonaparte Lamar, 

rev., 163 

Gerken, Archbishop R. A., 323 
Geronimo, 142 
Gillmor and Wetherill, Traders to the Nav- 

ajos, rev., 60 

Glassford, Lieut. Wm A., 302 
Godoy, Lucero de, 98 
Gomez, Francisco, 75 ; clan, 98 
Gossard, H. C., "Dedication of the Kearny 

Monument," 51 

Goodwin, Lieut. Willard F. f 139 
Gould, Jay, opinion of, 273 ; 293 
"Governors of New Mexico, The," L. B. 

Bloom, 152-7 
Gran Quivira, 59 

Grand Canon of the Colorado, 5, 8, 10, 145 
Grant, Blanche C., When Old Trails Were 

New: The Story of Taos, rev., 65; 

quoted, 124 

Green, Lieut. Frank, 275, 276 
Green river, Arizona, 26, 33 
Green River, Utah, 127, 130 
Grierson, Col. B. H., 134, 188 
Guadalajara,* 104, 251, 269 
Guerrero, Pedro de Campos, 268 
Guzman mountains, 136, note 
Guzman y Figueroa, 89 

Hackett, C. W. (ed.), Pichardo'a Treatise 
on the Limits of Louisiana and Texas, 
rev., 54-7 

Hale, Edward Everett, 280 

Hall, Willard P., 52 

Hammond, G. P., "Onate a Marauder?" 
249 

Harmes, John, 130 

Hart, agent at San Carlos, 273 

Hartz, Capt. W. T., 136 

Hatch, Gen'l Ed., 306, 309, 319-20 

Hayes, President R. B., 276, 277 

Hayt, Commissioner, corrupt practices of, 
273-4 

Herrera, Capt. D. Juan de, 253 ; 259 ; 269 

Hickok, Wild Bill, 342-3 

Hitchcock, Miss Kitty, 17 

Hodge, F. W., "Pueblo Names in the Onate 
Documents," 36-47; cited, 49, 50; anni- 
versary publication fund, 346 

Hopi pueblos, 5 ; 72 

Hotels, Exchange, 301 ; the old De Vargas, 
301, note; 302 

Hudson Bay Co., 131 



Huero, Apache guide, 5 
Kuntington, Ellsworth, 67 
Hurtado, Capt. Martin, 50 

Immigrants, 288 

Indian situation in Arizona, 1 ; in North- 
west, 271 

Indians, Christian, 49 ; roving, 52 ; fron- 
tier, 63; 79-83, 121, 313-5 

Indies, 48 

Inquisition, 87, 88, 104, 153, 195-241 

Jaramillo, Maria Josefa, wife of Carson, 

324 

Jemez, treachery at, 85 
Jews, of Santa Fe, 303, 304 
Juan-clishe, (interpreter), 3 
Juarez, Mexico, 147 
Julien, Denis, 122; 123 
Julien, Etienne, 123 

Kautz, Col. A. V. f 11; Gen., 15, 16, 17, 18, 
27, note 

Kautz, Mrs., 12, 17 

Kayenta, 60 

Kearny Code, 52 

Kearny Proclamation, 52 

Kearny, Stephen W., 51, 52, 53, 154 

Kercheville, F. M., rev., Mirabeau Buona- 
parte Lamar, 163 

Kimball, Lieut. Wm. A., 290 

Lamar, Mirabeau B., 163 

Lamy, Bishop, 193 ; Archbishop, 307, 308, 

315-6 

Laramie City, 34 

Las Navas de Tolosa, Battle of, 114 
Las Vegas, New Mexico, 51, 52 
La Paz, Apache chief, 133 
Lee, Capt. Stephen Louis, 124, witness at 

Carson Baptism, 324, 325 
Legislature, Arizona, 12 
Lesser, The Pawnee Ghost Hand Game, 

rev., 158 

"Lion" House, Salt Lake City, 27 
Lomas y Colmenares, Juan Bautista de, 

252-270, passim 
London, Lt., 3 
Long, Maj. S. H., 123, note 
Lopez, Enrique, 243-7, passim 
Los Angeles, 23; 24; 147 
Los Angeles Express, cited, 24 
Lovejoy, Dr., missionary, 129 
Luke, mayor of Prescott, 16 
luminarios, 173 
Lynch, Mrs. and Miss, of Prescott, 12 



352 



NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 



Madrid, Spain, 36; 112; 113; 114 

Maes, Don Juan de Dios, 51 

Magdalena, Sonora, Mexico, 2 

Maney, Lieut. James, A., 135 note 

Manso, Gov., 89 ; 95 

Marco Polo, 60 

Marin del Valle, Gov. Francisco A., 176- 

194, passim 
Marl Springs, 20 
Marquez family, Santa Fe, 99 
"Marquis of Oaxaca," see Cortez 
Martinez, Padre Antonio Jose, 323-6 
Martinez, Fr. Damian, 56 
Martinez de Montoya, Juan, 74 
Mason, Col., 5th Cav., 15 
Medrano, Gov. Juan de, 89 
Mendizabal, Gov., 80-107, passim 
Mescalero Apaches, 133, et seg. 
Mescalero reservation, 134 
Mexico, 34, 53, 57, 58, 73, 81, 133, 152, 250 
Mexico, archives of, 71, note 
Mexico City, 73, 75, 79, 84, 88, 101, 104 
"Mickey Free," guide, 5, 7 
Mills, old Mexican, 299 
Mills, Lieut. S. C., 137, note 
Mills, W. W., 134 
Mimbres valley, 110 
Mitchell, L. B., "Possible Origin of Lumi- 

narios," 173 

Modern Hispanic America, rev., 68 
Mojave Charons, 19 
Mpntezuma, different ideas of, 9 
Monument in Santa Fe, 304, 305 
Mojave River, 22 
Monterrey, 58 
Montgomery, Capt., 3 
Moqui Indians, 7, 8, 9, see Hopi 
Moqui Pueblos, 5; 10; 11 
Mora Ceballos, Gov., 83; 89 
Morales, D. Juan de, 254 
Moran, Peter, artist, 290 
Morfi, Fr., Viaje de Yndias y Diario del 

Nuevo Mexico, ref., 56 
Mormons, 8, 26, 27, 28, 30, 31 
Moroni, 28, 29 
Morrow, Albert, 34 
Mott, Thomas, 34 
Mulvey, Bill, killing of, 342-3 

Navajo Indians, 8, 61, 67, 83, 106 

Nevada, 19, 160 

New Biscay, 71, 72, 88, 92, 110 

New Galicia, 250, 251, 269 

New Mexico History and Civics, cited, 55 



New Mexico, laws of, 52 ; horticulture, 53 ; 
55, 56, 61, 65, 67, 71, 72, 73, 75, 81, 82, 
84 ; governors 86 ; 88, 89, 92, note ; 
non-aboriginal population 96 ; 97, 98, 
99, natives of, 100 ; commerce in, 109 ; 
110, 111 ; war in, 133 ; 250 

New Spain, 270 

Nickerson, Capt. A. H., 16, 17, 18, 34, 35, 
note; 276, 279 

Nickerson, Mrs. A. H., and daughter, 34 

Nueva Vizcaya, 58 ; see New Biscay 

Noyes, Maj. H. E., 137 

Nuestra Senora de la Luz, 175 et seg. 

Nuevo Leon, 58 

Nuevo Santander, 58 

Nueva Tlaxcala, 59 

Oakland Tribune, cited, 12, note, 26 
Ogden, Utah, 26, 33 
Ogilby, Maj. Fred D., 4, 5, 12, note 
Ojo Caliente, reservation, 133, 139 
Omaha, 4, 11, 32, note; 33, 34, 35 
Onate, conquest of, 36, 79, 92, note; 93, 

98, 146, 150, 153, 195, 249-270, passim 
Oraybe, Moqui village, 5 ; 8 
Ordonez, Fr. Isidro, 88 ; 89 
Oregon trail, 147 

Ortiz, Padre Jose Eulogio, of Taos, 326 
Osborne, Maj. N. W., 137, 139 
Otermin, Gov. Antonio, de, 74, 88, 89, 176, 

177, note; 206 
Otero, M. A., My Life on the Frontier, 

rev., 340-5 

Our Lady of Light, 175, et seq. 
Overland road, 34 

Pacheco y Cardenas, Coleccion de Docu- 
mentos Ineditos, 36, 37 

Pacific Coast, 25, 26, ocean, 53 

Palmer, Gen. I. N., 34 

Panamint, 21 

Parral, 89, 101, 110, 216, 242, 248 

Pawnee Ghost Dance Hand Game, by Les- 
ser, rev., 158 

Pawnee Indians, 158-163, passim 

Pearce, T. M., rev., Sky Determines, 66 

Pecos, 51, 72, 109, 133 

Pedraza, Fr. Geronimo de, 104 

Penalosa Briceno, Gov. Diego de, 85, 87, 
89, 103 

Peralta, Pedro de, 74, 88, 89, 93: instruc- 
tion to, 95; 154, 196, 200 

Perea, Fr. Estevan de, 83, 90, 100, 195-229, 
passim 

Pereyra, Carlos, 58 



INDEX 



353 



Perez, Balsera, Sr. Jose, Vargas records, 

112, note 

Perez, Caspar, 226 
Pershing, Gen., 135, note 
Peru, 86; 103; 250 
"Petrified birds," 10, note 
Petrified forest, 10 
Philip II of Spain, 250, 266 
Phoenix, Ariz., 16 
Pichardo, Fr., 54, 55, 57 
Pike's Peak, 21 

Pile, Gov., and the archives, 171 
Pioneer Padre: the life and times of Euse- 

bio Francisco Kino, rev., 167 
Pi-Ute Hill, 19, 35 
Pi-Ute Springs, 19 
Plains, Great, 55, 71 
Platte, Dept. of the, 11 
Pojuaque, pueblo, 300 
Pollock, Capt. O. W., 35 
Ponca Commission, 273, 274, 280 
Pope, Gen. John, 133, 134 
Powell, Maj. J. W., 122, 275, 278, 281 
Prescott, Ariz., 4-22, passim 
Prescott, W. H., eloquence of, 9 
Pueblo, city of, 295 
Pueblos, Indian names, 36, 47, 53, 75, 88, 

93, 106, 109 
Pueblo Revolt of 1680, 71, 96, 105, 112 

Quiros, Custodian, 102, note 
Quivira, Society, 37; slaves, 109 

Railroads, 273, 282, 286-7; 288, 293, 294, 
297 

Ramos Arizpo, 59 

Randall, Maj. G. M., 3, 4, 5, 11, 12 

Read, B. M., 152 

Reagan, Albert B., "Forts Robidoux and 
Kit Carson in Northeastern Utah," 
121-132 

Reichard, Spider Woman, rev., 165 

Reredos at Santa Fe, 175-196, passim 

Reservation of 1832, Indian, 318 

Reserve, Indian, 3 ; 4 ; 7 

Rhodes, Eugene M., 150 ; poem, "A Blos- 
som of Barren Lands," 151 

Richardson and Rister, "The Greater 
Southwest" (quoted), 2, note; rev., 
337-8 

Rio Aba jo, lieut-gov. over, 91 

Rio Arriba, gov. over, 91 

Rio Chama, 93 

Rio de las Nazas, 251 ; 258 

Rio del Norte, 48 ; see Rio Grande 



Rio Grande, 12, 57, 76; valley, 91, 93, 96, 

110, 143 

Rister, Carl C., 134, see Richardson 
Riva, Francisco de la, 259 
Rivera, Luis de, 208-225, passim 
River Styx, 19 
Roads of Southwest, 143-149 
Robidoux, Antoine, 121-131, passim 
Rocha, Sr. Jose G., 242 
Rockefeller Foundation, 48 
Rock Springs, 20 
Rodriguez, Fr. Augustin, 250 
Romero, family of Santa Fe, 99 
Rosas, Gov. Luis de, 85, 87, note; 89, 244, 

246-8 
Russell, S. A., Mescalero agent, 134 

Sage, Rufus, quoted, 125 

Saltitto en la historia y en la leyenda, 
Alessio Robles, rev., 57-60 

Salt Lake City, 7, 26, 32, 33 

Samaniego, Gov., 89 

San Bernardino Mt'ns, 23 

San Carlos, 1, 2, 3 ; reservation, 134 

San Francisco, 1, 6, 25, 32, note; 147 

San Francisco, Fr. Garcia de, 105 

San Francisco Mt'n, 14, 18 

San Gabriel, 24; villa of, 93; 94, 195 

Sangre de Cristo range, 93 

San Isidro, 113 

San Marcial, 133 

San Miguel, 51; church of, 102, 104, 176, 
177, 180 

Santa Barbara, 101, 145, 216 

Santa Cruz de la Canada, 50, note; 208-9 

Santa Fe, 4, 7 ; villa of, 48, 49 ; council of, 
49, note ; refounding of, 50, note ; 51, 
66, 73, 75, note ; villa of, 76, 77, 81, 88, 
90, 92, 93; naming of, 94; 95, 96, 98, 
101, 102, 104, 105, 107 ; trade, 111 ; 128, 
146, 152; religion, 176; 190, 194, 226, 
242, 301 et seq. 

Santa Fe Trail, 51, 146, 147 

Santa Maria de Gracia de Galisteo, 49 

Santa Maria mountains, 136, 139, 140 

Santo Domingo, 36, 50, 96, 108 

Santos, Apache guide, 3, 5 

Schaeffer, Lieut. C. M., 141 

Scholes, France V., "Civil Government and 
Society in New Mexico in the Seven- 
teenth Century," 71-111; "The First 
Decade of the Inquisition in New Mex- 
ico," 195-241 

Schurz, Sec'y Carl, 280 

Sena, Sr., Jose D., 321 



354 



NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW 



Sevilla, Spain, 114 

Shalako, 67 

Shelby, Santa Fe gambling house, 302 

Sheridan, Lt. Gen'l. P. H., 35; 281-285. 
passim 

Shevelon's Fork, 5 

Shipapu, 67 

Shoshonees, 286-293, passim 

Shuster, Will, 346 

Sierra Blanca Mts., 8 

Sierra de Anahuac, 127 

Sierra Prieta, 14 

Silva Nieto, Gov., 89 

Sin Lin, see Shevelon's Fork, 5 

Sioux Indians, 159 

Skating, 274 

Sky Determines, by Ross Calvin, rev., 66 

Smithsonian Institute, 278 

Snake Indians, 127 

Snake river, 124 

Sonora, 1; 110 

Sotelo Osorio, 89, 201, 202, 203, 205 

Southwest, see Richardson and Rister 

Spain, 54, 59, 71, 72, 249 

Spain, New, 54, 71, 72, 76, 78, 82, 84, 86, 
92, 97, 98, 110 

Spanish adventurers, 9 ; people, 53 ; fron- 
tier, 63 ; culture, 80 

Spanish Archives, Twitchell, ref., 49, note; 
50, note 

"Spanish Military Chapels in Santa Fe and 
the Reredos of Our Lady of Light, 
The," A. von Wuthenau, 175-194 

Spider Woman, Reichard, rev., 165 

St. Louis, 34, 121, 147 

Strait of Anian, 71 

Stewart, Sir Wm. Dummond, quot., 132 

Sullivan, Maud Durlin, "Old Roads and 
New Highways in the Southwest," 
143 

Tabernacle of Mormons, 30 

Taladria, Padre Damaso, of Taos, 326 

Tamaron, Bishop Pedro, 184, 186 

Taos, 10, note; 65, 66, 72, 121, 124; 

church records, 323 
Tecolote, 51 

Telegraph, and Indians, 4 
Tenderfeet, 287-8 
Tesuque pueblo, 301 ; 311 et seq. 
Texas, 52, 55, 56, 133, 144. 147, 164, 250 
Theaker, Capt. H. A., 137, 138 
Thomas, A. B., After Coronado, rev., 339- 

340 



Thomas, Lieut. E. D., 15 

Thumb Butte, Ariz., 14 

Thurston, W. A., 139 

Tiguex, 57 

Tonto Creek, 2 

Townsend House, Salt Lake City, 27, 32 

"Trade-Invoice of 1638, A." L. B. Bloom, 

242 
Traders of Santa Fe: Fisher, 319; Lucas, 

321; Gold, 321 
Traders to the Navajos, Gillmor and 

Wetherill, rev., 60 

Trebino, Don Francisco de Escovar, 248 
Tucson, Arizona, 2, 4 
Turquoise mine, 309-10 
Twitchell, Spanish Archives, cited, 49, 50, 

152, 176, 181, 193 

Uclenny, Apache, 4 

Uintah Basin, 121, 122, 128 

Uintah river, 130 

United States, history, 51; citizens, 52, 53, 

58 

University of New Mexico, 48 
Urdinola, Capt. Francisco de, 58, 59, 260 
Ussel, Father Gabriel, 325 
Utah, 28; 29; 30; 121 
Utes, 291 

Vargas, Gov. Diego de, note, 50 ; coat of 
arms, 71; 112-120, 170-1; 177-181, 
passim, 

Vertiz, Miguel de, 243, 244 

Victorio, 133, 134, 137, 138, 140, 141, 142 

Vigil y Alarid, Gov. Juan B. 154 

Vigilantes, 344 

Villanueba, Gov. Fernando de, 89 

von Wuthenau, A., "The Spanish Military 
Chapels in Santa Fe and the Reredos 
of Our Lady of Light," 175-194 

Wahsatch Mt'ns., 30 
Waldo, Capt. David, 52 
Waldo, Henry, 52 

Walker House, Salt Lake City, 27, 29, 32 
Wallace, Gov. Lew, 316 
Walter, P. A. F., recovery, 174. For con- 
tributions, see "Contents" 
Washoe mine, Ariz., 21 
Whipple, Bishop, 276 
Whitman, Marcus A., 129 
Wilhelm, Lieut. Thomas, 15; Maj., 18 
Wilkie, Ada Esther, book revs., 165-7 
Williams, Dr. Mary W., 69 



INDEX 355 



Williams, Joseph, quot., 125 Yucca, poem by E. M. Rhodes on the, 15 

Willis, Arizona murderer, 2 

Willow Springs, 18 Zacatecas, 89 ; 104; 110; 216 

Zeibcr, Al, guide, 4 

Young, Brigham, 27, 28, 32 Zuni, Province of, 36 ; pueblos, 55, 67 

Young, trader, 111 




BLOOM and DONNELLY 

New Mexico History 
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