-----..Ji-!
Our Catlwlic Heritage in T c:xas
388
must be maintained intact because of its exposed position on the French frontier. La Bahia needed every man as a result of the new mission (Rosario) recently established in its vicinity and the evidence of renewed French activity in the neighborhood. On January 15, 1755, the captain of that presidio had formally requested ten more soldiers, alleging that part of its garrison had been stationed on the Trinity, where a group of Frenchmen had been discovered. No help could be expected either from Nueva Vizcaya, where a campaign had just been undertaken to suppress a revolt of the Zuma Indians, who had devastated the country from La Junta to El Paso in 1754. As a matter of fact a new presidio was being urged at La Junta at this very time to prevent such incidents in the future. In the more remote Provinces of Sonora and Sinaloa a recent revolt of the Pima Indians of the west had demanded the establishment of a new presidio at Tubae to restrain the Indian hordes. In the Province of New Mexico similar conditions existed, and in the neighboring Province of Coahuila, the former Governor, Don Pedro de Rabago y Teran, had reported just before setting out for Texas, a renewal of hostilities by the Indians. From the conditions described it was evident that it would be difficult to secure the additional twenty-four men needed for the San Saba presidio. He concluded by recommending that the matter be referred for solution to a general ltmta de Guerra y Hacienda. 1 ' Governor Barrios' final ,protest. When on November 8, 1755, Governor Barrios learned how near the approval of the San Saba project was, he immediately protested to the viceroy. He accused the missionaries, Galvan, and Don Pedro of having exaggerated the favorable character of the San Saba River, the real intentions of the Apaches, and the need for a garrison of one hundred men. It was preposterous to leave a garrison of only fifteen men in San Antonio, after removing also from its vicinity the fifty of San Xavier. It meant the complete ruin of the prosperous settlement on the San Antonio River. The citizens of San Fernando had many cultivated fields, large herds, and several looms. All these industrial features and operations would be destroyed and abandoned if left unguarded. He cautioned the viceroy to bewa~e, that the Apaches were treacherous, that they only sought the protection of Spanish arms
7'Dictamen del Auditor, December 21, 1755. In Ibid., pp. II6-148.
Powered by FlippingBook