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Establislmzent and Early Progress of San Xavier irlissions
Not long after the return of the head chief, a large delegation of Coco Indians and other nations came to see Fray Mariano also and to tell him they were ready to be congregated. Others were expected to arrive daily and the enthusiastic missionary deeply deplored the lack of provisions and supplies that deprived him from beginning the reduction of the natives at once. "In order to encourage the Indians and that they might continue firm in their resolution with the hopes I had given them, I resolved to found a mission and I already have a church thirty varas long. I also have another building twenty-five varas long [intended] for cells and offices. These form a square with the stockade, leaving a well-proportioned patio in the center, in which the people may find refuge in case of attack. The Indians helped in the construction of everything. "The site could not be surpassed for the establishment of missions. There are spacious prairies admirably suited to irrigation. I have twice surveyed the plan for an irrigation ditch which will be easier to dig than any we have in the missions [of San Antonio]. All the lands can be irrigated with great ease, all ,that is needed is to dig the canals. Furthermore, one main irrigation ditch will suffice to water three missions. Another advantage is that there will be no need of fencing the fields, because on one side they are bounded by the banks of the San Xavier River and on the other by Las Animas Creek ... The river is so abundant that even should it lose half its volume because of extreme drought, it would still have more than enough for all needs. The land is much better than that found in San Antonio, and there is an abundance of dbolos, deer, turkeys, fish, persimmons, prickly pears, and other fruits used by the Indians." There wa.s plenty of timber and rock for building. But th~ winter had been cold, complained Fray Mariano, who stated that in trying to keep warm by the open fires, he had been half frozen on one side and roasted on the other. Chatting with the natives as he worked, he had learned that a short time before his arrival a group of French traders had visited them in their rancl1er1as. They had brought guns, lead, powder, beads, vermillion, and other things to exchange for furs and hides. This was not the first time these traders had visited them, the Indians explained. He asked if they came from Natchitoches or some other settlement, but the Indians were unable to tell. More startling still was the story that other foreigners, who were not Activities of Frend, and Indian traders.
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