Our C at/1olic H cri tage in T exas
J outel, a man of sense and observation, and the Marquis de Sablonnierc, a debauched noble, whose patrimony was his sword, were now the chief persons of the forlorn company. The rest were soldiers, raw and undis- ciplined, and artisans, most of whom knew nothing of their vocation. Add to this the miserable families and the infatuated young women who had come to tempt fortune in the swamps and canebrakes of the Mississippi." 21 The Indians were hostile and treacherous, the location on the coast unsanitary, and the water supply unfit for a permanent settlement. Shortly after the departure of Beaujeu, the refore, La Salle began to look around for a better site. This he found on the west bank of Garcitas Creek, about five or six miles up the stream, on a high bluff overlooking the sur- rounding country. Here the water of the stream was fresh and the site could be much more easily defended against enemies. He lost no time , therefore, in returning to the temporary fort on the coast and ordered all the settlers to move to the new location, where he soon erected a permanent fort, named St. Louis in honor of the king. Th is consisted of a large building constructed of timber, roofed with boards and raw hides, and divided into apartments. When the fort was completed, addi- tional lodgings were built separately for the men and the women, a small chapel was erected, and the whole was surrounded by substantial palisades. Eight pieces of cannon were mounted on the four corners of the main fort. "Between the palisades and the stream lay a narrow strip of marsh, the haunt of countless birds; and at a distance it deepened into pools full of fish. All the surrounding prairies swarmed with game ... The river supplied the colonists with turtles and the bay with oysters." 22 When the colony was discovered by the Spaniards in 1689, it was found to consist of a fort and six houses, grouped about on the south side of the little stream, (Garcitas Creek) made of timber and mud, and roofed with buffalo skins. Eight pieces of artillery were found, some mounted . The whole was surrounded by palisades within which there was a fairly large cultivated area, where as much as three bushels of corn could be planted. That the place selected was well adapted for settle- ment is proved by the admission of the Spanish force that discovered it, %!Parkman, op. cit., 388. For the number of those who stayed see Bancroft, North Mexican Stales, I, 396; French, Historical Cflllections flf Louisiana, I, 111; IV, 192; Castaneda, Aforft's History of Texas, 124. 22 P:irkman, r,p. cit., 397; Joutel , Journal, I, 111-116.
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