San Antonio d~ Valero and 1Wissionar31 A ctivit31, I7z6-I7I9 rn9
French to the power of the king was to be the occasion for a much more formidable expedition and a much better planned attempt to reestablish the title of Spain to the territory on a solid basis and to extend the mis- sionary endeavors of the devoted Padres among the numerous tribes that inhabited the land, many of whom had become truly attached to the Spaniards and sincerely desired to be Christianized. Each successive effort carried a knowledge of the Gospel to new tribes and brought the natives more and more under the civilizing influence of the missionaries.
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