Aguayo Expedition and San lose Mission, IJI9-z722
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The patient work of three years had been wiped out. The unexpected appearance of M. Blonde! and seven French soldiers had caused the Spanish settlements among the Tejas Indians to collapse as if struck by lightning. The oft-repeated warnings of the missionaries had at last become a sad reality. Not a single man had remained from San Antonio to Red River to defend Spain's title to this vast territory. The relatively large sums spent in the enterprise and the great sacrifices of the mis- sionaries had been of little or no avail in bringing this territory under the power of the· king or the civilizing influence of the sons of Saint Francis. But neither Spain nor the missionaries had any intention of definitely abandoning Texas. This bold affront to Spanish honor and dignity, this telling blow to the patient efforts to Christianize the Indians and bring them into the fold of the Church was to spur the viceregal government to a more vigorous effort, and to steel the determination of the Padres to spread the Gospel among the thousands of unredeemed souls that roamed the wilderness, at the cost of their lives if necessary. Tlte King's plan to reenforce Texas. While still ignorant of the attack on the Mission of San Miguel and the subsequent abandonment of the Province of the Tejas, the viceroy received, on May 29, 1719, an interesting cedula which had been issued almost a year before on June II, 1718. From the instructions given in this instrument concerning Texas, one is tempted to believe that the king and the Council of the Indies were gifted with prophetic insight, for the cedula covered every phase of the emergency which now faced the viceroy, with surprising accuracy. After commanding the viceroy to issue strict orders imme- diately to all governors of ports against the admission of French vessels and to. all commanders of presidios on the frontier against permitting expeditions from Mobile to enter New Spain on whatever pretext, the king declared that it was his royal will that the viceroy "dedicate himself with the greatest application and care to foment and maintain the mis- sions established in the Province of the Tejas. Placing a convenient guard of soldiers in each one of them, you will take steps to see that the mission on the San Antonio River is provided with as many mis- sionaries as necessary, this being the nearest to the Bay of San Bernardo. On this bay you will .cause a fort to be erected on the same spot where M. de la Salle established his in the past." In order to save both time
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