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Occwpation of tlie Trinity River, I 7 46-1 ii .J
81
fifty bulls, two hundred sheep, fifty rams, and fifty yoke of oxen. Each family was to be given three mares, three cows, four sheep, one stallion, one bull, and one ram, and one yoke of oxen. The families were further- more to be transported to the new settlement at royal expense. As to the number of missions, the Junta decided one was sufficient. This should be assigned from three to five soldiers to protect and aid the missionaries. The Padres should be instructed to keep the Orcoquisacs and the Bidais separate and strangely enough, to foster hostility between them, a curious reversal of policy. This strange recommendation was the result of Governor Barrios' report that the natives were so numerous that if they ever made peace among themselves and joined forces, they could drive out the Spaniards from their lands. The matter of the price to be charged for corn by the governor was carefully considered. The ltmta decided that no fixed price could be determined, but that the governor should be instructed that he could sell corn to the ne;:w settlement at a price equal to its actual cost plus the cost of transportation, with nothing added for profit. The request for six cannon was considered just. These should be purchased by the royal treasury and sent to the presidio witnout delay. The two borrowed from Los Adaes should be returned. Liktwise, the royal treasury should bear the expense of a modest church to l,e built under the directions of the commander and the missionaries. The estimated cost for the construction of the irrigation ditches set at twenty-two hundred pesos was too high. In the opinion of the Jw1ta, the ditches should be dug by the settlers as a community project. The royal treasury should furnish the necessary tools. The amount to be spent for this purpose was to be left to the discretion of the viceroy.s: On March 18, 1757, the viceroy incorporated the recommendations of the Junta in a formal decree, which he dispatched to Governor Barrios with a personal letter on March 26. Bernardo de Miranda was still in Mexico City. Anxious to learn more about the country of the Trinity, the viceroy ordered him to make a detailed report of the area from Los Adaes to Orcoquisac. The contradictory proposals and changing whims of the governor had made the viceroy suspicious. 53 Viceregal action. •ZRecommendacion de la Junta de guerra sobre el establecimiento y mutacion de\ presidio. Sa11 Francisco el Grande Arc/1ivt1, Vol. 7, pp. 123-14.2. 53 Decreto de! Virey sobre pacificacion y conversion de los Indios del Rio de la Trinidad. l\farch I 8, 1 7 57. San Fra11cisco ,:/ Grande Archive, Vol. 7, pp. 142-148; the Viceroy to Governor Darrios y Jauregui. March 26, 1757. A.G. ,1/,, Historia, Vol.
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