TRAVELS IN THE CALIFORNIAS 
177 
on the conspirators at night, kill a few, among whom is one 
of the most active in the massacre; but the leader escapes. 
The Captain, however, declares he shall die. But the rough¬ 
ness of the country prevents pursuit. Another means of 
arresting him is adopted. The Indians are told that they 
shall never have peace until they surrender this chief of vil¬ 
lains, and in a few days he is brought into the mission of San 
Xavier, A court-martial is now called, and the culprit ar¬ 
raigned, tried, and condemned to death ! The Padres inter¬ 
fere to save him. But the Captain will not yield. The pri¬ 
soner confesses that he intended to destroy all the converts 
and the Padres ; that he has burnt the chapel and the images ; 
that he has had a chief hand in the murder of Poblano; that 
he has been inducing the Indian women to marry the soldiers, 
in order to have more killed in the same manner; and the 
Captain will not release him from the punishment which he 
deserves for such terrible acts and intentions. All the Padres, 
therefore, gather at San Xavier to attend the last hours of the 
miserable man. They teach him to look at the fearful scenes 
which will break on him when the spirit’s eyes open on eter¬ 
nity ; exhort him to kiss the cross of redemption and lift his 
love to him who bled upon it for sins like his. He is taken 
to the plain in chains, blinded, made to kneel down and is 
shot! This is the first execution for a capital crime in Cali¬ 
fornia. Its influence is salutary. The Indians become peace¬ 
able, and regular in their duties. 
The Padres make use of restored peace in exploring the 
country to find sites for new missions. The river Mulege, at 
the north, is visited by Padres Piccolo and Bassaldua in the 
bark San Xavier. They find arable land on its banks, a 
league in width, which appears suitable for a mission station. 
They therefore proceed to Senora to obtain riding animals 
wherewith to explore the southern shore for a land route to 
Loretto. Having returned, they descend the coast a few 
leagues, where a range of dry volcanic heights arrests their 
progress, and compels them to abandon their design, and re- 
