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Aftermat/1 of San Sabti J1/a.ssacre
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San Saba and to seek them in their own country? Secondly, should the site on the San Saba be abandoned and the Presidio of San Luis de las Amarillas with its garrison of one hundred men be moved to the San Marcos or the Guadalupe to permit the Apaches and the scattered apostates of the San Xavier missions to congregate there? Thirdly, should the removal be to the San Marcos-Guadalupe area or to the vicinity of Los Almagres and the Llano River, with an increase of forty men in the latter case? Fourthly, can Terreros be held responsible for the maintenance of the missions, if transferred to the San Marcos-Guadalupe area? The Laws of the Indies, Title 4, Book III, expressly prohibited the waging of war against natives to reduce them to Christianity. But if Indians were guilty of revolt, or committed depredations. and waged open war against the Spaniards, the latter had the right to chastise and punish them by undertaking a formal campaign within three months. However. if the damage inflicted by natives was serious. Spaniards might take reprisals at a later date than three months. There was little doubt in the mind of the Fiscal that the murder of two missionaries and the complete destruction of a royal mission were sufficient cause to justify a formal campaign. But the time was not appropriate, nor were men and the needed supplies and arms available. Furthermore such an undertaking would require considerable expense. The question should be discussed by a special /tmt.a de Guerra:)' H acie11da, and if decided upon, the leader of the expedi- tion should be enjoined not to attack any Indian nation other than those who were known to have taken part in the sacrilegious murders of San Saba. He was not opposed to the removal of the presidio to the San Marcos or the Guadalupe, if this would result in the congregation of the Apaches. The two rivers had been examined, the sites were known and had been temporarily occupied. The chief purpose and the main reason for the establishment of the presidio at San Saba had been the reduction of the Apaches to mission life. This was its only justification for existence. The proposal should be given serious consideration. He was a bit suspicious, however, of the reputed mineral deposits discovered at Los Almagres and the Llano River. The evidence presented was unconvincing and insufficient to authorize the removal of the presiclio to an unknown site and the increase of its garrison by forty men. The question raised concerning the obligation incurred by Don Pedm Romero de Terreros in his agreement to bear the expense of missions established for the conversion of the Apaches presented no difficulty.
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