Our Catholic Heritage in Texas
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on the part of the French and the repeated orders of the king for tfie establishment of missions among the Indians, he concluded that His Majesty had approved and recommended the occupation of the Province of the Tejas and the conversion of these Indians and all others that might be induced to accept our holy faith; that large sums of money had been spent in pursuance of this object; that the only purpose of His Majesty in ordering that missionaries be sent, escorted by soldiers, was the conversion of the natives and their reduction to civilized life; that the reasons why the desired .end had not been obtained up to this time were the failure to congregate the Indians in pueblos where they could be instructed in the doctrine of our faith and the customs of civ- ilized life, the bad conduct and abuses committed by the soldiers entrusted with the care of the missions, and the insufficient force placed in each of the establishments; that now, in addition to the primary object there was a second and very important one of a temporal nature, the winning of the friendship of the numerous nations in that region to check the activities of the French, observe their movements, and stop their illicit trade; that to establish a presidio at Natchitoches or among the Cado- dachos as suggested by Ramon and the missionaries, without first taking possession of the Bay of Espiritu Santo, could not put a stop to the com- mercial activity of the French, while the failure to occupy Espiritu Santo might prove a serious danger to the missions already established. He then went on to point out some material considerations that made the holding of Texas important and indispensable. By gaining control over the Tejas and their allies, the Cadodachos, who were their neighbors and lived to the north in a rich beaver country, could be brought under the dominion of the king, extending thereby the possessions of His Majesty and winning thousands of souls from perdition. The land was rich in flax, valuable woods, and perhaps in minerals, products that would be of great value to the commerce of Spain. According to Don Gregorio Salinas Varona, Governor of Pensacola, direct communication might be established between the outposts on the Rio Grande and Florida through the Tejas and their neighbors. Governor Salinas Varona had just cele- brated a peace with the Chief of Cavite who ruled fifty-eight different nations from Florida to the tribes beyond the Mississippi, some of whom were neighbors of the Tejas. If these could be brought under the dominion of Spain by the extension of missionary work, they would afford a means of safe communication between the two remote areas. This may appear as a far-fetched plan, but it is of interest in showing the wide scope of
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