Introduction 
211 
On September 9 representatives from all over the province formally- 
submitted to the Spaniards, 71 and soon afterwards the various pueblos 
were assigned to the Franciscan missionaries who had accompanied the 
expedition. 72 
Oñate’s contract, among other things, called for exploration. Accord¬ 
ingly, after the colony had been established and the pueblos assigned to 
the missionaries, preparations were made for fulfilling this requirement. 
First Vicente de Zaldivar was sent from San Juan on September 15 with 
sixty men, a large number of horses, and supplies to hunt buffalo. He 
returned to San Juan on November 8 after having gone seventy leagues 
northeast from San Juan. 73 
On October 6 Oñate with over one hundred men started southeast from 
San Juan. After travelling thirty-five or forty leagues, visiting en route 
the salines and the Jumano pueblos, Oñate turned west with the intention 
of going to the sea. Acoma, Zuñi, and the Moqui pueblos in northeastern 
Arizona, were visited in succession. From one of the latter pueblos 
Captain Marcos Farfán with eight men was sent on November 7 to hunt 
for some rich mines reported to be further west. The next day Oñate and 
the rest of the party set out for Zuñi to await reinforcements from San 
Juan, under Don Juan de Zaldivar, before going on to the South Sea. 
From Moqui Farfán went to Bill Williams Fork over the route previously 
taken by Espejo. He brought back flattering reports of rich mines thirty 
leagues distant from Moqui. 
As the reinforcements under Zaldivar did not arrive Oñate resolved 
to return to San Juan from Zuñi before attempting to reach the sea. 
On December 13, while on the way home, news was received that Zaldivar 
and fourteen of his men had been killed in a revolt at Acoma. Seven 
days later Oñate’s force reached San Juan and in January, 1599 » Vicente 
de Zaldivar was sent to punish the Acomans. Many of the natives were 
either killed or sold into slavery and their pueblo was laid waste and 
burned. 74 
The same year Zaldivar was sent to reach the sea, but he was forced to 
turn back at a place reported to be only three days journey from his goal. 
Upon Zaldivar’s return Oñate made preparations to go to the sea himself 
and to build boats thereon. By April, 1601, all arrangements had been 
made for the undertaking but because of reports concerning the country 
to the east the plans were abandoned and instead it was decided to make an 
expedition to Quivira. The new capital, San Gabriel, located on the west 
71 Bolton, op. cit., p. 203; translation of Oñate’s letter of March 2, 1599, ibid., pp. 199- 
222; reprint of original manuscript map, ibid., p. 212; Bancroft, Arizona and New 
Mexico, pp. 128-134. 
72 For the names of these missionaries and the pueblos to which they were assigned, 
see Hodge, annotations, in Benavides, Memorial (Ayer translation), pp. 196-200. 
73 Bolton, op. cit., pp. 203-204; translation of the official account of the discovery of 
the buffalo in 1599, ibid., pp. 223-232. 
74 Ibid., p. 204; translation of the official account of the journey to the salines, the 
Jumano, etc., and of the official account of the discovery of the mines, 233-249. 
