Our Catliolic Heritage in Texas
222
himself with giving the captain a list of the maximum prices he was to charge the soldiers for the most common supplies furnished to them and informed the officer he would hear from the viceroy as to the future course he was to follow. The salary paid the men and the captain he considered fair and consequently made no changes in this regard. Rivera evidently made up his mind at this time to urge the total abolition of this He now proceeded to the Presidio of Nuestra Senora de Loreto de la Bahia del Espiritu Santo, where Captain Bustillos y Cevallos had a garrison of ninety men. For some unexplained reason, this officer, he remarked, was called "governor." The order of the men and their military bearing offered a striking contrast to those at Los Tejas. This was more remarkable in view of the fact that it was the worst organized presidio in the province when the new captain had taken charge of it in 1725. "The garrison observed such good discipline, as a result of the care with which the commander performs his duty, that there was nothing to correct; rather I was particularly impressed to see the soldiers uniformly dressed and skilled in the manual of arms, execut- ing the different drills with the proper words of command," declared the inspector. Although the provisions and supplies were furnished at exces- sive prices, the captain exercised such rigid economy, that all the men not only had everything they needed but had a balance in their favor in their respective salaries. The captain was instructed to charge all sup- plies hereafter in accord with a list of prices left for his guidance, in order that this abuse might be corrected. The rate of pay which had been four hundred pesos a year, was reduced to three hundred and eighty, an amount which, in view of the maximum price list left to be enforced, would better enable the soldiers to obtain all necessities than their former salary.IS post upon his return to Mexico. Conditions at Espfritt, Santo. Turning his attention to general conditions, he pointed out that in the immediate neighborhood were to be found the following tribes: Tacames, Aranames, Mayeyes, Pampopas, and Pastias, some of which had been congregated in the mission that had been established a short distance from the presidio. The Indians were in the habit, however, of going out frequently during the fishing season and when it was time to gather different wild fruits. Being nomads, they experienced great difficulty in remaining long confined to one place. They had none of the warlike
IS/bid.
' ·-
Powered by FlippingBook