8 o 
The Colorado River 
Colorado Valley and soon crossed the highest point attained 
by Alarcon in 1540^ probably near the upper end of the valley. 
He now doubled Alargon’s and presently also Melchior Diaz’s 
pathsj and arrived at the mouth of the river on the 25th of Jan¬ 
uary, 1604, the first white man in over sixty years. A large 
harbour which struck his fancy was named in honour of the 
saint’s day, Puerto de la Conversion de San Pablo, for the sun 
seldom went down without a Spaniard of those days thus pro¬ 
pitiating a saint. We are more prone to honour the devil in 
these matters. The Gila they called Rio del Nombre de Jesus, 
a name never used again. So it often happens with names be¬ 
stowed by explorers. The ones they regard most highly van¬ 
ish, while some they apply thoughtlessly adhere forever. 
All the tribes of this region, being familiar with the Cali¬ 
fornian coast, described it in a way that caused Onate to believe 
that the gulf was the South Sea, extending indefinitely beyond 
the mouth of the Colorado northwards, and thus the persistent 
error that Lower California was an island received further con¬ 
firmation. Without going across to the sea beyond the mount¬ 
ains, which would have dispelled the error, Onate returned to 
the Rio Grande by the outward route, suffering so greatly for 
food that the party were forced to eat some of their horses, a 
source of relief often resorted to in future days in this arid 
country. A few years after Ofiate’s expedition Zalvidar 
(1618), with Padre Jiminez and forty-seven soldiers, went out 
to Moki, and from there fifteen leagues to the Rio de Buena 
Esperanza, but they evidently encountered Marble Canyon, 
and soon returned. 
Another name closely linked with the early history of the 
Colorado is that of Padre Eusibio Francisco Kino,* an Austrian 
by birth and a member of the Jesuit order. This indefatigable 
enthusiast travelled back and forth, time and again, over the 
whole of northern Sonora and the southern half of Arizona, 
then comprised in Pimeria Alta, the upper land of the Pimas, 
and Papagueria, the land of the Papagos, His base of opera- 
* The name is written Kuhn, Kiihne, Quino, and in several other ways. Hum¬ 
boldt used Kiihn, and either this or Kiihne is probably the correct form, but 
long usage gives preference to Kino. 
