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Our Catholic Heritage in Texas
tenance. A full stomach is the god to whom these wretched creatures pay the tribute of their hardest labors." He informed them that he had made several examinations of the ri\'er to determine the best location for the irrigation ditch and had found none better than at a point near the garrison where an arroyo, which he called San Francisco, could be utilized in part. The ditch could then be extended through the fields over firm ground to carry water to the lands of Missions Candelaria. San Francisco, and San Ildefonso. The ditch proposed would water a field one league long and half a league wide. Fearing that each mission might want to build its own irrigation system, he pointed out that such a plan was unnecessary and cited the example of San Antonio. He then appealed to them as brothers and members of the same Order and College to adopt the plan proposed. Taking for granted their acquiescence, he instructed each missionary to arrange to render his assistance on the fifteenth and recommended that each mission should send on that day as many yokes of oxen as it could spare, seven bars, fifteen picks, four axes, and one cauldron. They were also to provide every week in addition to the regular rations, while the work was in progress, half a mule load of salt, six bulls for slaughter and two bundles of tobacco to be distributed to the Indians. Fray Mariano offered to contribute himself one fanega (about two bushels) of corn a day to be cooked and rationed out as hominy. Mindful of the aversion of the natives to work, he reminded the padres . that the instructed Indians, those who had been longer in the missions, should be urged to take part in the work and in g1vmg instructions to those more recently congregated. To reenforce moral persuasion he had asked the commander of the garrison to send a corporal with a squad of soldiers each morning to each mission to escort the neophytes to their daily task. The soldiers, likewise, would be instructed to bring back the runaways, and to prevent desertions a military guard would be placed in charge of the horses of the mission Indians. He then explained that he would be obliged to leave for San Antonio to look after the needs of the missions there, for which reason he delegated full authority to Fray Ganzabal to carry out the instructions with regard to the digging of the ditch. Each missionary was requested to signify his approval of the project and the plan outlined for putting it into execution. 20
October I :i, I 7 so. Arcliivo del
ZOFray Mariano to the missionaries at San Xavier. ColegiQ, 1750-1767, (Dunn Tr.) pp. 16-19.
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