11. The Hasinai consisting of four tribes on the Trinity River in
Texas, referred to by the Spanish as the Tejas (some historians
classify them as Caddos. They spoke the Caddo language).
The Ais Indians had as their neighbors to the west the Hasinai
federation of Indians which was composed of four tribes: The Nacogdoches
at Nacogdoches; the Bidais, the Nasoni and the Nabidache, the latter
three were located on the Trinity River.
Such was the situation when the first aliens came in contact with the
Caddos.
II
SOME EARLY HISTORY
In his book, “La Relacion que Dio Alvar Nunez Cabeza De Vaca delo
Acaescido unlas Indias”, De Vaca writes in the year 1530 that “we were
among the Adayes (Adais), the others were Juan Castillo, Andrea Dorantes
and Estabancio of Azmor who was a slave of Dorantes.” These four
survivors were of 300 of the Panfilio Narvez expedition that went into
Florida in 1528.
Narvez’s expedition, beaten by the Apalache Indians, unable to return to
their ships, killed their horses, ate the meat, used the hides to make
bellows and water casks; they forged their armor and weapons to make
tools and nails, then constructed four boats. They skirted the coasts of
Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana, foraging for food. During a storm
the boats were wrecked, four survived to become slaves of the coastal
Indians.
De Vaca and his companions became traders and medicine men. Meanwhile
they learned to live off the land as the Indians did. They planned and
successfully escaped.... And now they were among the Adais seeking
directions. They were the first white men to travel westward over the
Buffalo Trail. They wandered ever westward and finally found a Spanish
patrol from Mexico.
De Vaca was the only one of the three hundred to return to Spain and
even before he published his book in 1542, he had inspired the Hernando
DeSoto expedition into Florida with his story of the City of Cibola, a
city built entirely of gold.
Hernando DeSoto, the Golden Eagle, led the next expedition into Florida.
Continuously harassed by the Appalachie tribes of Indians of the
southeastern states he crossed the Mississippi and now in the year 1540
he marched into Louisiana, pillaging, raping and destroying. He was
assisted by these trusting Lieutenants: Don Luis Moscoso, Don Juan de
Anasco, Don Baltazarde Gallegardo, Don Juan Labillo, Don Carlos
Chinquez, Juan de Quizman, Don Vasco de Procello, and Don Diago Vasquez,
and these Captains: Espilando, Gallegardo, Maldamando, and Luis Fuentes.
The Chronnicalor, Gonzado Quadrado Charmillo de Zafra who wrote (From
the translations of B. F. French):
“We marched one day west from the Rio de Cannis in all this cold country
this Wednesday, March 21, 1541, at the end of the day we came to a place
called _Toalli_. All the Indians have houses built so, the houses are
built of reeds in a manner of tules and daubed with mud which show as a
mud wall, they are very clean and have a small door; when you shut it up
and build a fire within it is as warm as in a stove.”[1]
Don Luis De Moscoso and a scouting party traveled westward over the
buffalo trail as far as the Trinity River before returning to the Adais.
For the next hundred and forty years this area was devoid of white
explorers.
By early 1682 Cavalier Robert de LaSalle had begun descending the
Mississippi River accompanied by Henri De Tonty, the “Iron Hand”, and a
party of other Frenchmen.
April 9, 1682, LaSalle discovered the mouth of the Mississippi River and
established a plaque there, claiming all land drained by this river for
the King of France, Louis XIII. He named this land LOUISIANA in honor of
King Louis and Queen Anna.
Returning up the Mississippi near a location in the Illinois country at
Starving Rock in that same year he established Fort St. Louis and left
Captain Henri De Tonty in command.
LaSalle went to France and received assistance so that he could return
and establish a settlement at the mouth of the Mississippi River.
Through erroneous navigation the expedition missed the mouth of the
Mississippi River and traveled westward, landing at Matagorda Bay, and
in the Texas country established another Fort St. Louis in 1685.
LaSalle, realizing that this area was not suitable for colonization,
began land excursions in an attempt to reach Canada.
Father Joutel’s diary reveals that in January, 1687, he was with
LaSalle, and a scouting party, were among the Nakassa Indians which
resided on Nakassa Lake.[2]
In 1682 at Quaerataro, Mexico, The College of the Holy Cross was founded
by Priests; Father Francois Hidalgo, Father Jose Diaz, Father Felix
Isadore Espinosa, Father Nunez, Father Antonio de San Buenaventura
Oliverez, Father Francisco Marino, Father Juan Parez, Father DeVaca,
Father Salazar, Father Massinettes and Father Margil de Jesus, the last
named, Father Margil de Jesus, being chosen as President of the College.
These priests, so as to distinguish their work from the work of others
called themselves _Zatachinies_, their purpose being to prepare others
for frontier missionary duties. By 1684 they had succeeded in
establishing missions south of the Rio Grande.
The most northern Spanish presidio at that time was Fort San Juan
Bautista, located on the south bank of the Rio Grande near present day
Eagle Pass, Texas. The land of the Coahuile Indians extended from
present day San Antonio southward into the Monte Clova-Saltillo area of
Mexico. The Matagordo area on the Gulf Coast was included in the land of
the Coahuile.
Aside from the duties of the Spanish missions to spread the Catholic
faith, they were also, in reality, observation and trading posts of the
Spaniards. From one of these missions it was learned from an Indian who
came to trade, that other white men had come out of the sea in large
houses that floated on the waters of the gulf and had settled on the
coast land.
On March 20, 1689, LaSalle was assassinated by some of his own men on a
tributary of the Trinity River. Father Joutel reported the men
responsible for the assassination were in turn killed by the Indians.
The remnants of the party returned to Fort St. Louis and finding it
deserted, retraced their journey into the Trinity River area.
Alonzo DeLeon and Captain Flores were leading a scouting patrol when
they found Santiago Grislet, Jean Lavaschevque and two very young boys,
the Tulon brothers, Roberto and Pedro. This Spanish patrol searched for
the next two months for other Frenchmen, but not being successful,
returned to Mexico.
1689.
Juan Jarri had, during the absence of LaSalle, deserted Fort St. Louis
and had risen to a lordly position among the tribes of the Coahuile
Indians. During the search by DeLeon and Flores he had been shifted from
tribe to tribe so that the Spanish Patrol failed to capture him. The
Spanish now realized that this one Frenchman had the power to upset the
semi-peacefulness of the Spanish frontier. The College of the Holy Cross
was desiring to extend its Missionary work north of the Rio Grande.
Don Alonzo DeLeon, now the Spanish Governor of the Coahuile Territory,
led an expedition to establish three missions among Hasinai Indians
south of the Trinity River. He now also found himself in pursuit of a
party of Frenchmen (Father Joutel’s party).
Henri De Tonty at the Fort St. Louis near Starving Rock in the Illinois
country, realized something was amiss and came in search of LaSalle. It
is interesting to note how De Tonty, in all this vast country of the
southern United States area chose the exact direction in which to
travel. Probably the Caddo federation of Indians had trade agreements
with the Indian tribes as far north as the Illinois and even further
north among the Ouisconsins, to the west they traded with the Hasinais
who in turn traded with the Coahuile Indians.
The Amole root (a species of the Yucca plant) was supplied to the
Hasinais by the Coahuile Indians. The Caddos traded for this root, which
had cleansing properties such as soap and when boiled in water this
liquid was used for bathing purposes, it left a pleasant odor on the
body of the user.
[Illustration: Hinta-Sak: A home of the Adais Indians.
This drawing of a Caddo hinta-sak, or house, was made from the
description of an eye-witness, Gonzado Quadrado Charmillo, one of
the chroniclers of the De Soto expedition which visited the El
Camino Real area in 1540.
This Indian home was that of the Adais tribe near Robeline, La. of
the Caddo Federation. It was made of cypress poles and cane
interlaced with vines and daubed with a mixture of mud and moss. The
roof was covered with alligator skins which had been treated with
bees-wax to make it more impervious to rain. The broad leaves of the
cat-tail plant were inserted in the mud to prevent erosion from
rain. Thus the Spanish called the place toai_l_le, a deprecatory
description of a house built of tules. (Drawing by the author)]
[Illustration: _Top view of hinta-sak showing frame work and
construction (Drawn by the author)_]
The Jumas, traders of the Caddo Indians, were also linguists and it
would not have been impossible for them to distinguish the difference of
the French and Spanish languages. The same Jumas of the Caddos traveled
all of the Caddo trails. The Old Buffalo Trail extending from the
Trinity River in Texas to the Red River in Louisiana was now considered
part of the Caddo trail system.
In 1690 in the early spring De Tonty, “The Iron Hand,” was among the
Adais Indians and the Natchitoches Indians. He, too, went as far as the
Trinity River in Texas, but there his guides refused to go further; he
gave up his search for LaSalle. In the same year the Joutel Party found
the Buffalo Trail beginning at the Trinity River. There among the
Hasinai they learned of the Frenchman with the iron hand. They followed
the Caddo trail and finally came in contact with De Tonty among the
Arkansas Indians. Strangely enough, De Tonty actually came within one
days march of finding the Joutel Party.
1690-1691
From the missions south to the Trinity River came the report of two
French patrols in the vicinity of the Hainais which also coincided with
the report of Don Alonzo De Leon.
Late in 1690 the Don Domingo Teran Del Rios’ expedition left Mexico, and
scouted the complete area of the Caddo and Hasinai Federations of
Indians; Teran listed the four tribes of the Hasinai as Bidia,
Nabadache, Nadaco and the Nacogdoches. Of the Caddos were the Ais, the
Adais, the Natchitoches, the Koasatas; he missed the Pedicaddo but
listed the Caddoquopois near present day Fulton, Arkansas. He was the
first white leader to sight Lake Bistineau. It is believed that the
location Father Massinetes, who was with this expedition, established
was La Mission Loretteto, near present day Ringgold, Louisiana.
For the reason Teran had not contacted any Frenchmen in all the
territory and much to the disappointment of the members of the College
of the Holy Cross, all missions north of the Rio Grande were withdrawn.
Padre Francois Hidalgo, being determined to establish missions north of
the Rio Grande and among the Texas Indians, which were called by the
Spaniards the Federation of Hasinai Indians, secured the support of the
College of the Holy Cross to appeal to the Viceroy of Mexico. They only
succeeded in obtaining permission to establish a mission at their own
expense south of the Rio Grande but in an area visited by the Hasinai
Indian traders. On November 7, 1698 Father Francois Hidalgo, assisted by
Father Salazar, established the mission Maria de Los Delores, ten
leagues north of Lampassas and ten leagues west of the Rio Sabinas.
(Note: this Sabine River is not to be confused with the Sabine River
which is the boundary between Louisiana and Texas).
From this outpost mission Francois Hidalgo conceived the idea of a
“Chain of Missions” to extend to the very eastern edge of the Texas
Indians’ territory. He had at his disposal the reports of Father
Massinetes and those of Teran and DeLeon. He knew that the land with its
fertile soil and the enormous growth of forests, together with an
abundance of wild game of the forests and fish of the lakes would supply
many families of the frontier settlers with food and shelter. These
families, who at this time were no better off than when they left Spain
to settle in Mexico, would welcome such an opportunity.
1700
From the Journal of Father Paul De Ru. February 1, to May 8, 1700.
“Iberville, having founded the Fort at Biloxi, ascended the Mississippi
River. At the village of the Tensas Iberville became ill but sent
westward St. Denis and Bienville with nineteen other Frenchmen, two of
whom were the Tulon brothers, Roberto and Piedro;[3] at the village of
the Tensas was a Wichita Indian whose tribe had settled near the
Tensas.” This Indian declared he had visited a Spanish mission in the
Texas Country (The mission Maria de Los Delores). The Indian was
immediately employed by Bienville as a guide.
On April 20, 1700 the St. Denis-Bienville party reached the Yatasee
village on Nantanchie Lake near present day Montgomery, Louisiana (See
Location 5 on map).
The Frenchmen were among the Natchitoches Indians (Location 8 on map),
on May 8, 1700 for on this day Bienville departed with Father Paul De Ru
leaving St. Denis to scout the locations of the Caddo Indians.
Bienville, having secured pirogues from the Natchitoches Indians,
returned by water down the Red River to the Mississippi and back to
Biloxi. St. Denis soon followed and brought with him a number of the
Natchitoches Tribe of Indians, who settled on the north shore of Lake
Pontchartrain. St. Denis settled near by at Fort Louis.
1701-1707
During these years Father Hidalgo and Father Salazar were trading and
preaching to the Indians at Mission Maria de Los Delores. Father Hidalgo
traded with the Indians for gold; Anya, who was then the Governor of
Coahuile, was aware of this. There are several historical records
referring to the raiding of the Hidalgo mission in search of gold.
Hidalgo at first did turn the gold over to the government, part of which
was to be given to the College of the Holy Cross. A Captain Hernandez
was broken in rank when he gave Hidalgo a receipt for the gold. Padre
Hidalgo realized that very little, if any, of the gold was reaching the
King of Spain.
Anya conceived the idea of cutting off the supplies of trade goods to
the mission so that the Indians would then have to come and trade at the
Presidio San Juan Bautista. Captain Hernandez upon the urgence of the
Priests of the College was restored to rank. Father Hidalgo, realizing
that no one would actually know how much gold he was accumulating, began
to hoard the gold.
Allarge Bejoux, operating from a location near present day Pointe
Coupee, had cut a road or trail overland northwestward to intersect the
Buffalo Trail west of the present town of Many, Louisiana, and had by
the year 1708 established trade agreements for horses with the Ais
Indians (See Location 10 on map). Francois Hidalgo through his trade
with the Indians of different tribes soon learned of this.