OF THE COLORADO.

believed to

be richer in

wealth and splendid cities than

Mexico itself. A Franciscan friar boasted that

he had vis

ited a region in the interior named Cibola, the Land of Buffaloes, in which were seven splendid cities. He declared that the land was rich in silver and gold, and that his Indian guides had described to him a region still wealthier. The friar's story was religiously believed, and an expedition set out in 1539, under command of Francisco Vasquez Coronado, the governor of New Galicia. The expedition explored the region of the Colorado, examined the country now known as New Mexico, and penetrated as far east as the present State of Kansas. Coronado found neither gold nor precious stones, and the only cities he discovered were the towns of the Zuni Indians of New Mexico. He reported to the viceroy on his return to Mexico that the region was not fit to be colonized, and his description of the country through which he marched is so accurate as to challenge the admiration of every succeeding traveller.

Still the Spaniards refused to abandon the belief that fabulous wealth was to be found in the interior of the continent; and even those who had borne a part in the conquest of Mexico and Peru gave credit to the

wild stories that were told concerning the undiscovered regions. Among those who gave such implicit faith to these stories was Ferdinand de Soto, of Xeres, a veteran soldier, who had served with distinction with Pizarro in the conquest of Peru, and had amassed a considerable fortune from the spoils of that province. The fame and wealth acquired by him in this expedition opened the way to other successes in Europe. He was honored with the favor of the Emperor Charles V., and received the hand of a noble lady in marriage. Eager to distinguish himself still further, he determined to attempt the conquest of Florida. He demanded and received from the emperor permission to undertake this at his own cost, and was also made governor of Cuba and of all the territories he should conquer. As soon as he made known his intentions applications for leave to serve in the expedition poured in upon him. Many of the volunteers were of noble birth, and sold their lands and other property to equip themselves for the undertaking. De Soto selected six hundred well-equipped men from the number who had volunteered, and .in 1538 sailed from Spain to Cuba, where he was welcomed with great rejoicings. A vessel was despatched from Cuba to find a harbor in Florida suitable for the landing of the expedition. On its return it brought two Indian captives, who perceiving what was wanted of them, told by signs such stories of the wealth of the country as greatly delighted the governor and his companions. Volunteers in Cuba swelled the ranks of the expedition to nearly one thousand men, of whom three hundred were horsemen.

FERDINAND DE SOTO.

In May, 1539, leaving his wife to govern the island, De Soto sailed with his fleet for Florida, and a fortnight later landed at Espiritu Santo, now Tampa bay. Everything had been provided which the foresight of an experienced commander deemed necessary, and De Soto, in order to remove any temptation to retreat, sent his ships back to Cuba. He never dreamed of failure, for he believed that at the most the task before him would not be more difficult than those which had been accomplished by Cortez and Pizarro. After a brief halt at Tampa bay the march into the interior was begun. It was long and tedious, and was full of danger. The Indians were hostile, and the guides constantly led the Spaniards astray, and plunged them into difficult swamps. The guides were instantly given to the bloodhounds, and torn in pieces by the ferocious animals; but not even this dreadful pun

ishment was sufficient to prevent a renewal of such acts.

Before the close of the first season the whole company, save the governor, had become convinced that their hope of finding gold was vain, and they besought De Soto to return to Cuba. He sternly refused to abandon the effort, and pushed on to the country of the Appalachians, east of the Flint river, and not far from the Bay of Appalachee. The winter was passed in this region, and a scouting party during this season discovered Pensacola.

In the spring of 1540 the march was resumed. An Indian guide promised to conduct the Spaniards to a country abounding in gold and governed by a woman, and he described the process of refining gold so accurately that De Soto believed his story. It is possible that the Indian may have referred to the gold region of North Carolina. One of the guides told the governor plainly that he knew of no such country as his companion had described, and De Soto had him burned for what he supposed was his falsehood. The Indians, terrified by his fate, from this time invented all manner of fabulous stories to excite the cupidity of the Spaniards. De Soto, with a singular perversity, held to his belief that he would yet realize his hopes, and continued to push on long after his men had become disheartened; and so great was his influence over them that in their deepest despondency he managed to inspire them with something of his own courage and hopefulness.

Instead of conciliating the Indians, the Spaniards seized their provisions, and provoked their hostility in numberless ways. They treated their captives with the greatest cruelty. They cut off the hands of the poor Indians, burned them at the stake, or turned them over to the bloodhounds, who tore them in pieces. They were chained together by the neck, and forced to carry the baggage and provisions of the troops. The march was now into the interior of Georgia, as far as the headwaters of the Chattahoochee, from which the Spaniards passed to the headwaters of the Coosa. Here they turned to the southwest, and marched through Alabama to the junction of the Alabama and Tombigbee rivers. At this point there was a large and strongly fortified town called Mavilla, or Mobile, a name which has since been given to the river and bay. The town consisted of "eighty handsome houses, each sufficiently capacious to contain a thousand men. They were encompassed by a high wall, made of immense trunks of trees, set deep in the ground and close together, strengthened with cross-timbers and interwoven with large vines." It was the middle of October when Mavilla was reached, and the Spaniards, tired of living in the open country so long, wished to occupy the town. The Indians resisted them, and a desperate battle

ensued, which was won by the Spanish cavalry. The victory cost the whites dear, however, for the town was burned during the battle, and with it all the baggage of the Spaniards was consumed. The Indians fought with a desperate bravery, and numbers of them were slain and burned to death in the town. The Spaniards had 18 killed and 150 wounded; 12 horses were killed, and 72 wounded.

Ships had arrived in the meantime, according to appointment, at Pensacola, and by them De Soto received letters from his wife. He would send no news home, however. He had not yet realized the objects of the expedition, and he determined to send no news of himself to his countrymen until he had found or conquered some rich country. Turning his back resolutely upon the ships, the governor resumed his march to the northwest. By the middle of December he reached the northwestern part of the State of Mississippi, and finding a deserted village in the country of the Chickasaws, occupied it as the winter quarters of the expedition. December, 1540, the winter was severe, and the ground was covered with snow, but the corn was still standing in the fields, and this furnished the Spaniards with food. Their force was now reduced to five hundred men, and it was evident to all, except the governor, that they would never find the cities or the wealth they had set out to seek.

With the opening of the spring of 1541 a new disaster befell the Spaniards. De Soto, as had been his custom with the other tribes, demanded of the Chickasaw chief two hundred men to carry the baggage of the troops. The demand was refused, and that night the Indians, deceiving the sentinels, set fire to the village. The bewildered Spaniards were aroused from their slumbers to meet a fierce attack of the savages. The latter were repulsed after a hard fight, but the whites were left in an almost helpless condition. The little they had saved from the flames at Mavilla was destroyed in the burning village. Armor and weapons were rendered worthless, and scarcely any clothing was saved. The troops were forced to resort to dresses of skins and of the long moss of the country woven into mats. In this condition, they suffered greatly from the cold. To supply the weapons destroyed forges were erected, and the swords were retempered, and new lances made.

Renewing their march the Spaniards pushed on still farther west, and about the 2d of May reached the banks of the Mississippi, at a point a short distance below the present city of Memphis. They were the first white men to gaze upon the mighty flood of this noble river, but De Soto had no admiration to express for it. It was only an obstacle in his westward march, and would require greater efforts for its passage than any stream he had yet encountered. A month was passed on the banks of