The Narvaez Expedition, 1526-1536
75
After spending a day in the village of one hundred huts they went on for a short distance, perhaps four miles and came to another village of seventy huts, located, it seems, on present Comal Springs, near New Braunfels. It was here that the robbing of the visited by the visitors began. Cabeza de Vaca reaclzes tlte San Antonio area. Continuing on their journey they traveled about sixteen miles and arrived at a rancherza, where many of the Indians were blind. "The greater part were clouded of an eye, and others in like manner were entirely blind," says Cabeza de Vaca. "They are people of fine figure, agreeable features, and whiter than any of the many nations we had seen until then." They had now reached the Cibolo. s-t "It was here we began to see mountains; they appeared to come in succession from the North Sea." It was towards the mountains that the travelers steered their course now. "We set forth in a direction towards them with these Indians and they guided us by the way of some kindred of theirs, and were not willing that their enemies should come to such good luck, as they thought it was to see us." \,Vhen they arrived at the next village they were kindly received and given presents of ochre, beads, and a few little bags of silver which Oviedo says should be margarite (pearl-mica) . 85 They were by this time in the vicinity of present day San Antonio, where the Indians had established a ranclzo because of the natural facilities of the region for settlement. "If this deduction of mine is true," declares Dr. Hill, after many years of careful and painstaking study, "then San Antonio is the oldest identi- fiable village within the present limits of the United States." 86 Tlte -marclt from San Antonio to the Det Rfo area. Cabeza de Vaca and his companions informed their hosts of their intention of continuing their journey the next day. The natives expressed regret and insisted they should go to visit some of their friends who lived at the edge of the mountains. But the Spaniards "considered it preferable to travel inland; for those of the interior are better in condition and treated us mildly, and we felt sure that we would find it more populous and better provisioned. Moreover we chose this course, because in traversing the country we should learn many particulars of it, so that should God our Lord be pleased to take any of us thence, and lead us to the land of
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MHill, Dallas News, November 1 I , 1933; Hodge, 92, note I. 85Hodge, 92; Oviedo, Vol. 3, p. 605. B6Hi11, Dallas News, November 19, 1933.
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