Plans for tire Reorganization of tl1e Frontier
Anotlrer new post at San Elzeario. From the new location of the El Paso garrison at El Carrizal to La Junta de los Rios there was a long stretch of unprotected country thickly infested with hostile tribes. Rubi recommended the removal of the Presidio de Huaxoquilla (Guajuquilla) in Nueva Vizcaya to a point some forty leagues southeast of El Paso, suggesting Agua Nueva, San Bernardo, El Sauz, or the Valle de Elzeario on the Rio Grande as suitable sites. "The last named site," he said, "joins to its natural advantage of being next to the Rio Grande del Norte and its facilities for the cultivation of crops, the greater advantage of being at the juncture of the mountain passes of La Cueva, El Noga), Pena Blanca, and others through which the savages commonly enter to raid Chihuahua." 59 The Valle de San Elzeario begins just above the present town of that name (spelling modernized to San Elizario) just west of Clint, and extends for several miles almost to present Fort Hancock. The recom- mendation of Rubi resulted in the first formal occupation of this area. The purpose of San Elzeario was twofold, the protection of Nueva Vizcaya and of the El Paso area. Thus it will be seen that while the proposal to remove the original garrison and presidio from El Paso seemed to leave that important settlement unprotected, in fact it provided greater security by the establishment of the presidio itself at El Carrizal to protect its rear, an outpost at Robledo (near present Las Cruces) to cover its northern frontier, and the erection of a new post at San Elzeario to prevent attack from the southeast. Reestablislement of Presidio de la Junta. The abandonment of this presidio in 1766 by order of Governor Joseph de Aguero of Nueva Vizcaya was condemned by Rubi in the strongest terms. "Without the previous inspection of the site," said the Marques, "disregarding the orders of the present viceroy, which I transmitted to him, by which he was instructed to act jointly with me in deciding upon the maintenance or removal of this presidio and the founding of two others, and against the respect due my commission and rank, of which I complained in vain, he decided to abandon its site, and removed its garrisons and missions of northern Indians (who soon fled) to the location, where it now is in the Pueblo de los Julimes." Whatever the cost, the old site at La Junta (near present Presidio) should be occupied and the garrison reestablished. The hostile natives there, fully aware of the importance of this site in curtailing
S9Rubi, Digttame,,, pp. 22-23.
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