The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 31, July 1927 - April, 1928 Page: 151
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Descriptions of Tejas or Asinai Indians, 1691-1722 151
ments until, in the year 1715 two Frenchmen from Mobile
came to the Presidio of San Juan Bautista under the pretense of
seeking for stock and provisions. They were sent on to the viceroy,
His Excellency Duque de Linares, who, after consultation with his
council, decided that the entry of the Frenchmen might lead to
very troublesome situations. He arranged for certain missionaries
to go at once to the Province of Texas to found missions, under
the protection of twenty-five soldiers with their corporal. He
hoped by this means to continue the spread of our holy faith among
the Indians, to effect the saving of their souls, to bring into mis-
sions the surrounding tribes, and thus, to effectively prevent the
introduction of Frenchmen to explore additional lands for the
purpose of introducing their commerce. . .. On [April 26]
we gathered together and the journey was begun. . . . As we
had to find roads as we progressed and there was no one to guide
us, it took us more than two months to reach the Texas country.
On June 27th we met thirty-four Indians, five of them being cap-
tains. They all embraced us and showed the joy with which they
received us in their country. On the next day after we had trav-
eled nine leagues ninety-six persons came out to meet us, with all
their captains and leading men. We went to meet them carrying a
standard upon which was engraved the images of the Crucified
Christ and Our Lady of Guadalupe whom they all adored, all
kneeling and kissing the images.
We marched on in a procession singing the Te Deum Laudamus
until we came to a very large arbor that had been provided for the
occasion and our songs ended in tears of rejoicing. We began to
take our seats on saddles that were tied and served as low chairs,
while coarse cloth served us as carpets. Each captain took a
handful of the powdered tobacco they use and placed it upon a
curious and beautifully painted deerskin. They all stirred it
around to show their union of wills. They then put some of the
tobacco in a pipe adorned with many white feathers as a sign of
peace among them. One of the principal Indians lighted it and,
after taking a whiff, he passed it to the priests and other Spaniards,
for this is their most usual ceremony when receiving friends. We
made on our part presents of chocolate to all the caziques while,
in the name of His Majesty, the captains divided among all the
Indians hats, little blankets, tobacco, and other trinkets. The
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 31, July 1927 - April, 1928, periodical, 1928; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101088/m1/163/: accessed May 2, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.