QUI VARA EXPEDITIONS OF CORONADO AND ALARCON. 145 



natives. The principle of compulsory labor was established for- 

 ever ; and, even to this day, the Indian of Mexico remains the 

 bondsman he was doomed to become in the sixteenth century. 



Between the years 1540 and 1542, an expedition was undertaken 

 for the subjugation of an important nation which it was alleged 

 existed far to the north of Mexico. A Franciscan missionary, 

 Marcos de Naza, reported that he had discovered, north of Sonora, 

 a rich and powerful people inhabiting a realm known as Quivara, 

 or the seven cities, whose capital, Cibola, was quite as civilized as 

 an European city. After the report had reached and been consid- 

 ered in Spain, it was determined to send an armed force to this 

 region in order to explore, and if possible to reduce the Quivarans 

 to the Spanish yoke. Mendoza had designed to entrust this expe- 

 dition to Pedro de Alvarado, after having refused Cortez permis- 

 sion to lead the adventurers, — a task which he had demanded as 

 his right. But when all the troops were enlisted, Alvarado had 

 not yet reached Mexico from Guatemala, and, accordingly, the vice- 

 roy despatched Vasquez de Coronado, at the head of the enterprise. 

 At the same time he fitted out another expedition, with two ships, 

 under the orders of Francisco Alarcon, who was to make a recon- 

 noisance of the coast as far as the thirty-sixth degree, and, after 

 having frequently visited the shores, he was, in that latitude to 

 meet the forces sent by land. 



Coronado set forth from Culiacan, with three hundred and fifty 

 Spaniards and eight hundred Indians, and, after reaching the 

 source of the Gila, passed the mountains to the Rio del Norte. 

 He wintered twice in the region now called New Mexico, explored 

 it thoroughly from north to south, and then, striking off to the north 

 east, crossed the mountains and wandering eastwardly as far north 

 as the fortieth degree of latitude, he unfortunately found neither 

 Quivara nor gold. A few wretched ruins of Indian villages were 

 all the discoveries made by these hardy pioneers, and thus the en- 

 chanted kingdom eluded the grasp of Spain forever. The troop of 

 strangers and Indians soon became disorganized and disbanded ; 

 nor was Alarcon more successful by sea than Coronado by land. 

 His vessels explored the shores of the Pacific carefully, but they 

 found no wealthy cities to plunder, nor could the sailors hear of 

 any from the Indians with whom they held intercourse. 



In 1546, a desolating pestilence swept over the land, destroying, 

 according to some writers, eight hundred thousand Indians, and, 

 according to others, five-sixths of the whole population. It lasted 

 for about six months ; and, at this period, a projected insurrection 



