Occupation of tlte Trinity River, 1746-1772
53
new supplies or sent to Saltillo. This trade, in violation of every Spanish regulation, seems to have been as lucrative as it was illegal. But while Governor Barrios appears to have had a practical monopoly, French traders seem to have continued their activities and frequently visited these Indians. It was charged in the investigation that the par- ticipation of the French traders was with the collusion of Barrios. This idea apparently was widely held, for even Morfi in his Historia, referring to the arrest of Blancpain and his companions in 1.754, says: "After having served Barrios in his illicit trade, this official, fearful of being discovered by his successor during the residencia, sacrificed them by denouncing the unfortunate men. They protested in vain that they had entered the province with the consent of the governor, whose orders they always obeyed... .',io Morfi exaggerated the facts in this instance, for no such claim was made by the prisoners. Arrest of Blancpain and companions, October 10, 1754. Whatever the relations of the French traders with the governor, the fact remains that the prisoners did not implicate him in their declarations. But the whole story of this incident that led to the establishment of a presidio and a mission on the Trinity has only been summarized heretofore. 11 It seems that on September 20, 1754, Barrios held a secret investigation at Los Adaes. He declared he had reliably been informed that four Frenchmen and two Spaniards had settled near the mouth of the Trinity River, where they had built houses (jacales) and were selling guns and ammunition to the natives. This was a violation of the regulations of the viceroy and a transgression of Spanish territory. The claim to the Trinity had.been established by the visit of Joaquin Orobio y Basterra, of La Bahia, the first to explore its mouth, and the Bidai and Orcoquisac Indians had long been the friends of the Spaniards. Proof of this was the aid given to Father Fray Mariano de Anda of San Xavier in recov- ering runaway Mayeyes, Yojuanes, and Yerbipiames who had taken refuge among them. 12 1 °Castaiieda, Morft's History of Texas, pt. 2, p. 373 (Quivira Society Publicadons, Vol. VI). For details of the investigation concerning illicit trade see Bolton, T1ras, 35-40. 11 Bolton's account is brief, as is Miss Brown's. With full details now available, a fuller account is given here. Bolton, Texas in the JI.fiddle Eiglrtttentl, Century, 66, 337-338; Brown, "Spanish Settlements at Orcoquisac," 21-:14 ( University of Texas, Master's Thesis, 1 909). llA11to of Governor Jacinto de Barrios y Jauregui, September 20, 1754, in Testi- monio de los auttos !echo a consulta de D. Jacinto de Barrios y Jauregui Govor. de la
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