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0

Cross,

In the royal presidio of San Anttonio de Bejar under

the jurisdiction of Thexas and kingdom of the New- Philip-

pines on the twenty-second day of the month of. May, one,

thousand seven hundred and thirty-five, about nine o'clock

this morning, before me, Don Manuel de Sandovaal,. captain of

Spanish infantry, governor and captain general of these

aforesaid provinces, appeared, in person, Domingo de Hoyos,

a settler from the villa of Sarithiago de la Moncloha in the

province of Coaguila and now a.resident of this afore®

mentioned presidio, whom I certify that I know, and he said

that he is about to go to Mexico City, as a courier for His

Majesty, carrying the parcels of letters and other messages

pertaining to the royal service which will be delivered to

him by, cue, the said governor, as soon as they are ready to

be dispatched0 This fact was known by Aparicio Ximenez, a

settler from the villa of Ss].ttillo, who was sent as a

courier from the said Mexico City by Don francisco de Cos

y I,ombrana, and he, the said Ximenez, suggested that, since

he was likewise about to return to the said city bearing

other letters in reply t,o those which he had brought, and

since they would have to travel the same road, they should

go together so that they could assist one another on such a

long journey® The deponent condeseended to do so, and they

agreed to do as the said Aparicio had proposed, and that the

one who left this presidio first should wait for the other

at the presidio of Rfo Grande. The said Aparicio Ximenez

effected his departure today in company with Joseph Miguel

de Vrrutia, Bernaue Carauajal, and Joseph Maldonado. When

the deponent was asked by Joseph Miguel de Sosa, in the

presence of Cayethano Perez and Joseph Maldonado, all three

of whom are soldiere of this preeidio, when he was going_ to

leave, he replied that, according to what I had told him,

he was to set out on the next day. To this the said Joseph

Mi.auel de Sosa replied that he should watch out and be

vigilant, both in protecting his person and the horses which

he was taking. When the deponent asked him why he had given

him this warning, the said Joseph Miguel de Bose, told him

that he had done so because Aparicio Ximenez, who had talked

to him secretly in the strictest confidence, had told him

that whenever he CXimenez= noticed that the horses which he

was taking were tired, he would be vigilant and spy upon the

said Domingo de Hoyos so that some night when they stopped on

th.e 'r®ad and Hoyos had gone to sleep, Ximenez could push on

ahead with all the horses and accelerate his pace so as to

arrive in Mexico City ahead of the said Domingo, for by so

doing, Ximenez could be able to make enough to live on for

the rest of his life. Ximenez said it was for this reason

he had arranged to travel with the said Domingo de Hoyos ® Helv

also said that about two hours j/later Juan leal A7:barez, a

councilman of the villa. of San fernando, told the deponent

that next to the guard room of this presidio on the preced

ing day, the twenty-first of the current month, in the presence

of Privates Bacillo Ximenez and Aza:dres Hernandez and Settlers

Joseph Padron and the said Leal, Joseph Migue1, de Vrruttia

told Aparicio Ximenez that if he would delay Hoyos on the

road and try to get ahead of him 'on the trip which they had

agreed to make together to Mexico City, so as to reach that

cou,rt-on schedule with the mail, they would make some excuse

for his arrival because it was more important for the documents

which they were carrying on their own account to arrive than

for those which Hoyos was carrying on the governore s pretext

that they pertained to the royal service just so that Hoyos

could act as a royal courier, for, since their own documents

also had to be delivered to the s,uperior government, they

likewise pertained to the royal service, their own welfare,

that of the soldiers of this province, and all the settlers

thereof. In any event, he said, the packets which they were

carrying had to reach Mexico City before those sent by the

governor, even if it cost them their lives. This information

was reported to me by the said deponent not only because it

concerned his life but also to protect the security of such

instruments as might be included in the packets which were-to

be given to him, leaving it to my judgment as to what should

be done in the matter. In witness whereof I ordered that the

foregoing be made a matter of record, and the said- deponent

signed same with me, I acting as a^uez receptor with attend

ing uiitnesses -In the absence of a notary public or royal

notary according to law and on common paper because there is

no stamped paper in this jurisdiction. I certify.

nD. Manuel de Sandoga.l Witness;

Domingo de 'Hoyoe Joseph Anttonlo.

Bueno de Roxas

Witness:

Juan Delgado`

Declaration -In the roysl presidio of San Anttonio

de Bejar on the said day, month, and year,

1, the said Zovernor, Don Nianuel de Sandoval, in view of the

preced,i.ng,-declaration and denunciation made by Domingo de

Hoyos9 a courier for His Majesty appointed by me to carry to

the superior government of the.Dllost Illustrious and Most

Excellent Ax°chbishop and Viceroy of this New Spa,in, various

packets pertaining to the royal service, do hereby f3.nd that

I should order, and I do order, that the contents of the said

denunciation be examined, and that a declaration be taken, in

all due solenmity according to law, from Joseph Miguel de --

Bosa, corporal of the squadron of the company of this- royal

presidio, and Juan Leal Albares, a counc3laan of the villa,

of San ferna.do, in order that, in view thereof, the proper

me asure may be taken so that justice can be administered.

Thus I decreed, ordered, -and signed it, acting as aforesaid

according to law. I certify.

nD. Manuel,de Sandova.l witness;

Joeeph. Anttonio

Bueno de Roxas

Witness;.

Juan Delgado

Declaration._.... __.^..._^.....

In this royal presidio of San LAttonio2

de // Bejar on the said twentydsecond day

ofMay, one thousand seven hundred and thirty-five, I, the

^.;aid governor, Don Manuel de Sandoval., in view of the fore-

going decree issued by me, sunuuoned.before me Joseph Miguel

de Bosa; corpora.l of the squadron of the company of this said'

presidio, and when he appeared.I administered the oath to

him, which he took in the name of Goc1 and the siZA of a cross

in due form according to law, under penalty of whi-ch--he

promised to tel].. the truth..ins®fa.r as he knew and,snight' be.

questioned® When he was questioned concerning the contents-

of the deposition which appears at the head of these proceed

ings, he said that.on the nineteenth day of the present month,

when the deponent was on duty as corporal of the guard of

1()

this royal presidio, there arrived Apax°i;61-10 Ximenez, with

whom he is acquainted and is on friendly terms, since he

has been a soldier of this aforesaid presidio. e They sat

down on the stocks and the said Aparicio Ximeries began telling

him about everything that had happe:ndA to him since the time

that he was in the presidio of Rio ^rande and Don fermin de

luiricu and Don Ignacio de Inclan arranged for hicn to go with

thew to the said'Mexico City, where they were being sent by

the captain of this presidio, Don Joseph de Vrruttiao With

reference to the matter on which he is being questioned, the

said A,paricio Ximinez told him that while he was in Mexico

City waiting to return to Salttillo, where he lives, with the

aforesaid Iuiricu and Inclan, they called him into a conference

with Don francisco de Cos y lombrana and told him that if he

would come as a courier to this presidio of San Aittonio they

wro u].,d , pay him very well. When he said that he would, they

agreed that they would dispatch him the next day, at which

time Don fermin de Ibiricu and Don francisco de Cos called

him again and the latter said to him:

Well, Aparicio, be sure that you performthis errand with the necessary promptness, andbe sure to accompl.ish the purpose for which youare being sentm You will not only receive yourordinary pay, but, in addition, I shall pay youenough that you will be able to retire and take iteasy for the rest of your life, for just as soonas you can go and get back I shall promptly becomethe captain of the presidio, of la Vahia. I havealready obtained the approval of the viceroy through.my uncle, the auditor, and the secretary of His

I i

Excellency, who wrote the letter which you arecarrying to Sandoval,o Before you give it tohim, though, and before you arrive, you mustnotify Captain Don Joseph de Vrruttia about itso that he, pretending that he has gone to seehim about another matter, may be present whenyou hand the said letter to the governor andacknow],ege receipt of same, as he is instructedto do® You can do this at the mission of SanJuan Capistrano by asking Father Cabriada tonotify the said captain for me by sending apiece of papex°, to him by a soldier from themiasion®

°'Axid (the said A,paricio eontinued),°1 since Geronimo

flores 'hadcome . from the Rio Grande with me, I sent word by2v

him // to the captain that as soon as he heard a shot he

should rush into the home of the governor, which' he did, "

And if SandovaI (Don Francisco said tome), in view of what he is ordered to do inthe said letter, should desire to dispatch aeourier to this court, as soon as you learnabout it notify the captain, receive such lettersand instruments as he may give you, and -startout on the road so that you will get here aheadof the mail sent by the governor, for by so doingwe shall be able to forestall any report which hemay make. If this should not happen and he shouldrefuse to P̂ ive you a reply to the letter whichyou are carrying, you must find some witnessesto go with you and ask him for a receipt for same,always notifying the captain first so that he may,be present and certify to anything that you askhim to. It would be a great help if you couldmanage to ,get Sandoval to do so, too. In anyevent,, the most im,portant thing is for us to know,through the letters which you will bring, whathas taken place there before,Sandoval can reportite To accomplish this end you must use everypossible method and device®

"For this purpose, uXimenez told the deponent, "I have

arranged for Domingo de Hoyos and us to go together so that.,,and

as soon as we have passed. Saltillo/I find that my horses are

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^ tired, I shall use my horses to drive off his and leave him'

afoot some night while he is asleep. While he is trying to

reach some place where he can obtain new equipment, I shal1,

get as far ahead as possible and reach Mexico City before

he does® u

To this the deponent replied: "You had better not try

that, for it may cost you dearly. He is a eourier dispatched

in the name of the king, and sooxier, or,l,ater he is bound to

reach Mexioo City, where they do not play pranks like they do

here, and as soon as he makes a complaint it will go hard

with you® so

The said Aparicio replied: 'gYou don't know much about

the parties involved in this. They will use some trick to

get me out if by chance things should not turn out well for

meo I have to reaoh Mexico City before he does, even if I

have to kill him or lose my life in the attempt, for, if I

should 'fail, I would lose what Don franoisoo de Cos has pro-

mised me. Also, this is the only thing that Captain Vrruttia

is sending me-to do, for he has told me that this time we

will accompl,ish even more. tYipn what those in Mexico City are

trying to do, for he is sending charges preferred against

the governor by the soldiers, the settlers, himself, and the

priests."3

The deponent says that this is true because he knows

the said Apario'io, and he knows that on another occasion when

13

he was sent by the soldiers to Mexico City during the time

that Don larelebor de Media Villa was governor, both on the

way d®wn and on the return trip, he took other people's

horses and mules whenever he pleased, and whenever he oame

across anyone who was guarding a herd and would not let him

take the horse or mule that he wanted; he abused ^him verbally

and physica].ly® He also says that when the said Aparicio was

stationed as a soldier in this presidio his operations were

not any too disoreeto Since he did not want the said Domingo

de Hoyos to have any dii'fieulty on the road with the said

Aparicio because the deponent's wife was related to Hoyos,

the deponent told him what he has stated in his denunciation,

omitting the other things which he has now stated because

they were not pertinent to the protection di the said Hoyos,

which is what he was prims,rily interested in. He is report-

ing it now so as not to violate the oath which he has taken®

,He says that this is the truth, to the best of his knowledge

and belief, and when his deolars:tiori had been read to him,

he aff'irmed and ratified same® He said that he was thirty.

two years old, a little more or le$s, and that he . did not

know whether the general provisions appl3.ed to him with respeot

to either the plaintiff or defendant, but if they should apply

to him he still has not violated his oath® He did not sign

his name because he did not know how; instead, he made the sign

of a cross® I, the aforesaid governor, have affixed mY

14

ez r^tor with attending^ signature hereunto, acting as aJu

witnesses according to law. T certify®

nD. Manuel, de Sandoval. Witnessa.

Joseph Arattonio

Bueno do Roxas

Witness:

Juan Delgado

In the royal pr.esidio of San Anttonio de Bejar on the

day, month, and year mentioned in the preceding declaration,

I, the said governor, immediateiy summoned before me Juan

Leal Albares, a councilman of the villa of San fernando, and

when he had appeared in person I administered the oath to

him, which he took iri the name of Our Lord God and tho sign

of the Holy Cross according to l,aw., under penalty of which

he promised to tell the truth insofar as he knew and might be

questioned. When he was asked about the contents of the

denunciation which heads these proceedings, he said that on

the tvaenty®first day of the present month, which was yesterday,

when he happened by the guard room of this presidio he found

Jo s eph .Padron, a settler of the vilia _of San fernando, Aidr es

Hernandez, a corporai, of the said guard room, Bacilio Ximenes,

a soldier of the said guard, Aparieio Ximenes, and Joseph

Miguel de Vrruttia, son of the captain of this presid3o, gat4ered

15

around a fire next to the said guard roomo As the deponent3v

approached, he heard Vrruttia //say that if- Domingo de Hoyos

thought he was going to reach Mexico City before they did

he was crazy, for the packets which he was carrying on the

governor! s pretext that they pertained to the royal, service

merely to give him the character of a royal courier were a

stratagema to provide safe conduct for the machinations which

the governor was reporting to the viceroy concerning Vrru®

ttia° s father. Meanwhile those which they were carrying,

although not inthe capacity of a royal courier, likewise

pertained to the royal service, for they concerned the de®

fense of his father p s honor arid the universal service of the

soldiers, the settlers, the missions, and the entire prov®

inee, Since they were all traveling the same road, as soon

as they set out they would make the. said Hoyos do whatever

they wanted him. to or else they would delay him on the road

and make some kind of an excuse when they reached Mexico

City. To.thie A,paricio Ximenez added that if anyone else

reached Mexico City before he did it would be over his dead

body. After the deponent hacl hear,d the said conversation,

he .went off and left them still talking. Taking pity on the

said, Domingo de hoyos, and wanting him to be on his guard,

the deponent went to him about two hours later and told him

what he had heard, as related alacive® He says that this is

the truth, to the best of his knowledge and belief, under

penalty of the oath which he has ts,ken® When his declaration

16

had been read to hira, he affirmed and ratified same. He

said that he was thirty-eight years old and that the general

provisions of the law do not apply to him. He signed with

me, the said governor, I acting as a^uez recePtor with

attending witnesses according to 1.aw® I certify.

nD. Manuel de 5andovAl Witness:

Juen Leal Joseph Anttonio

Bueno de' Roxas

Witness:

Juan Delgado

DecreeIn the royal presidi® of San Arattonio de

Be j ar on the said day, month, and year, immea-

diately I, the said governor, Don Manuel de Sandoval, in

view of the contents of the foregoing denunciation and, deola-

ration and bearing in mind the previous oases which have

occurred in this said.presidio durilig my tenure here up to

the present time, and also clesir ing, as is my duty, to pro-

mote and achieve the greatest possible peace and quiet in

this said presidio and province under my eupervi,sion, I

consider it necessary for the Most Illustrious and Most

Excellent Archbishop and Viceroy of this New Spain to be

informed as to who is disturbing and upsetting same, both

with regard to the residents of this province as well as

0

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those individuals from elsewhere who by their suggestions

strengthen and give confidence to those who are committing

crimes thereino. I am prevented from devotin:g.the proper4

attention to them because of the time which I must spend

on other orders and measures falling under my supervision in

connection with the royal service, sino e I have to convert

the hostile Indians and attract the domestic Indians who

have strayed away from their missionso Despite the many prudent

measures which I have placed in operation, I have 'not, in my

zeal, been able to find any explanation as to the cause of

so much unrest and disobedience and the many irresponsibl,e

thinEs.which are being done by most of the soliers.of the

company of this presidio, and by some of the settlers of the

villa of an fernando in this jurisdiotione I believe with-

cut a doubt, though, that among the doouments which the

parties mentioned in the said denunciation are said to be

carrying there will be included both the operations of the

transgressors and the suggestions which have been made to

the said transgressors, as :°we13 as` the names of those who

suggested them. Therefore I find that, for the due and proper

administration of Justice, ^ should order that when the de-

nounced courier has been apprehended and the letters - wh-ich he

is carrying have been examined, those.whioh are considered to

be suspicious shall be forwarded with these original proeeed.-

Ings which oI am drawing up, to the superior government of the

0 IVlost I3.1.ustrious and Most Excellent Arohbishop- and Viceroy

of this New Spain so that when they have been seen by t^he

sovereignty of His Excellency he may be pleased to issue

such orders and decrees as he. may see f it e And in order that

this may be placed into eff ect, I hereby order the alferez

of the company of this presidio, Don Juan Galban, Porthwith,

immediately, and without losing an instant of time, acoompan®

ied by three soldiers or. other persons who will comply exactly

with the orders which I give him, to take a concealed route

and intercept the said courier, seize such packets and letters

as he may be carrying, and bring him back with them to this

presidio. In order not to lose any more time, the ratifications

of the deponents shall be omitted and. taken after this measure

has been carried out. Thus I decreed, ordered, and signed it,

acting according to law. I oertify.

nD. Manuel de 5andovL Witnesso

Juan Delgado

Witness:

Joseph ,Anttonio .

Buerno de Roxas

In the.said royal presidio ara the said

twenty-second day of May, one thousand seven

hundred and thirty-five immediately I, the said governor, Don

Notif ication

Manuel de Sandova,l, summoned before me the alferez of the

eompany of this said presidio, Don Juan Galban, and when

he had appeared I informed him of the contents of, and

ordered him to execute, the foregoing decree® When he had4v

heard and un//derstood it, he said that, in order to comply

^with it punctually he ivould forthwith, without delay or,

loss of time whatever, proceed to execute my order. This

he gave as his answer, in witness whereof I ordered that it

be made a matter of record and he affixed his signature

hereunto with.me, T acting as a1nez rece-ptor with attending

witnesses according to law. I certify®

nD. Manuel de Sandoval. Witness;

Juan Galban Joseph Anttonio

Bueno de Roxas

Witne ss ;

Juan Delgado

In the royal presidio of San Anttonio de Dejar on the

said twenty-second day of May, one thousand seven hundred

and thirty-five, about eleven thirty at night, the alf'^rez

of this said presidio, Don Juan Galban, arrived at my home,

T, the said governor, being present, and he was accompanied

by Sergeant Asencio del Razo, the corporal, of the squadron,

Joseph Miguel, de Sosa, and Domingo de F3oyos., before whom he

20

told me that, in compliance with the order which I had given

him and accompanied by the above®mentioned individuals, he

had taken a concealed route to the lagoon next to the Medina

River, which is about six leagues from this presidio, and there

at an appropriate place he had lain in wait for Aparicio 'Ximenes,

who,,a little more than an hour after they had started waiting

for him, arrived at the said place with some other individuals.

carrying out my orders to seize any packets and letters which

he might be carrying, he saw that those which'he found on him

were addressed to various individuals at Rio Grande, Coaguila,

and 5altillo. Anong those he was carrying there were only

four plain letters addressed to Don Juan Anttonio de Bustillo,

Don f ranoisco de Cos, and Don Fermin de Ibiricu. Seeing that

the packets which I had warned`the alferez about were not to

be found among them,.and believing that Joseph Miguel de

Vrruttia, one of the individuals who was accompanying the

said Aparicio, might be carrying them, he proceeded to search

him, but the only thing which he found on him was an open

letter, a page and a half long, written by the said Joseph

Miguel de Vrruttia to Don Juan Anttonio de Bustil.lo. Seeing

that the only thing left for him to do in discharging his

commission was to return the said Aparicio Ximenez to this

presidio, he did so, placing him in the guard room and. bring-

ing his musket with him. When I had him to shoW the letters

which he had mentioned in his report, it was found that there

21

0 were letters with plain addresses, just as was stated5

above. When I, the said governor, flin the presence of the

a7.f4rez, began to read the open letter which he had brought,

I saw that its contents consisted of charges made against me

to the said Don Juan Anttonio de Bustill.o® I read on and

discovered that-its contents were so slanderous that I hereby

order that the a1.oa1 de of the villa of San. fernando, Juan

Leal Goraze should make a certified copy of same to forward

with these proceedings to the superior government of the Most

Illustrious and Most Excellent Arch'bishop and Vieeroy of this

New Spain, and that the other letters be left on deposit with

me so that I may return them to those who wrote them when

they call for them. The aforesaid ,Aparioio Ximenez shall be

placed in the stocks, and Joseph Miguel de Vrruttia shall

also be arrested. The aforesaid al.ferez shall sign this dem

. or ee of mine and retain the said Aparicio e s musket in his

possession as long as the latter remains in pr3.soxa® Thus I

deoreed, ordered, and sigaed it, acting as a juez recefator

with attendant witnesses according to law. I oertifyan

D. Manuel de SandovL

Juan GalbanWitness:

Joseph Anttonio

Bueno de . R'oxs,s

Witness:

Juan Delgado

22

0In the royal presidio of San Aattonio

de Bejar on the seventh day of the -month. of

June, one thousand seven hundred and thirty®five I, Don Ma-

nuel de Sandova.l, captain of Spanish infantry, governor and

captain general of these provinces of Thexas, in view of

what I ordered in my decree of the twenty-second of the past

month of May of this present year, which appears at the foot

of the declaration which Juara. Leal Al.be,rez has made in this

case, did summon before me Joseph Miguel de Sosa, corporal

of the squadron of the company of this presidio, so that he

could ratify the declaration which he made in these proceed

inzs on the said twenty®second day of the said month of May

of this year® When I had read the said declaration to him

verbatim and he had heard and understood same, he said that

the contents thereof were the same and in the same form as

he had given them, and that he has nothing to add or subtract

because it is the truth, under penalty of the oath which he

has taken, and he affirmed and ratified same a first, second,

and third time and as many more times as the law allows him.

This he gave as his answer. Hedid not sign his name because

he said that he did not know how. I, the aforesaid governor,

have hereunto set my hand with attendant witnesse$, with whom

I am acting as a uez receptor according to 1.awa I certify.

B. Man. de Sandovgi Witness:

Joseph Anttonio

Bueno de Roxas

Witness:

Ratification

Juan Delgado

In the said royal presidio of San Anttom

nio de Bejar on the day, month, and year men-

tioned in the preceding ratification, before me, the said

governor, Don Manuel de Sandova, there appeared, in person,

Juan Leal Albax°ez, a councilman of the villa of Sari fer°nand.o,5v

in order to ratify the decla//ration which he made in these

proceedings on the twenty-second of the past month of May in

the present year of one thousand seven hundred and thirty-

five. When I had read, same to him verbatim, he said that it

is the same one that he had made and that he had nothing to

add or subtract from the contents, and he affirmed and rati-

fied same a first, second, and third time, and as many more

as the law allows, under penalty of the oath which he has

taken. He signed with me, the said governor, I acting as a

juz receptor with attendant witnesses according to law® I

certify.n

D. Manuel de Sandoval

Juan Leal

iffitnesst

Joseph Aattonio

Bueno de Roxas

Witnesss

Jusn Delgado

24

A true copy of the original which is being forwarded to

the superior government of the Most Illustrious and Most Ex®

oel.ient Archbishop, Viceroy, Governor, and Captain General of

this New 5pain, from which, I, Don Marauel de SandovAl, cap®

tain of Spanish infantryD governor and captain general of

these provinces of Thexas and New Philippines, had It taken

on the preceding five written fol.ios, iraoluding this' one ®

It is true, accurate, corrected, and proofread, and it was

transoribed,,correoted, and amended in, the presenoe of Pedro

flores de Valdez, Do:min,go de Hoyos, and ,Albertto ],opez, real-

dents of this royal presidio of San Anttonio de Bejsr, where

it was done on the seventh day of the. month of June, 1736, I

acting as a juez receptor with attendant witnesses according

to law.in the absence of a royal notary or notary public, and

on common paper because there was no stamped paper as pro®

v5.d.ed by law. I certify®n I

(Signed) D. kan® de Sandoval

Rubric,

Witness:

Joseph Anttonio

^ueno d6 Roxas

cRubrio]

Witness.-

"i{alathia:s de

Montes de oca

cRubric3