第5章
加入书架 A- A+
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  ThuswasDomingoMartinezdeIralaleftinsolecommandinParaguay。

  HenaturallyhadalltogainbynotcommunicatingwithSpain。

  Hadhedoneso,thepartheplayedinreferencetoAlvarNunezmusthavebeenknown。Hehad,however,certaingoodqualities,courageinabundance,Herculeanstrengthandgreatendurance,andthepowerofmakinghimselfobeyed。ButhehadtojustifyhimselftoSpainforhisposition,andthesurestwaytodosowastodiscovergold

  mines。So,namingFranciscodeMendozahislieutenant,hestarteduptheParaguay,takingwithhimthreehundredandfiftysoldiersandtwothousandGuaranis。

  Aftermanyhardships,hereachedthefrontiersofPeru,onlytofindthecountryalreadyconqueredfromthePacificside,andtobemetbythemessengersofthewisePresident,LaGasca,whotoldhimtoreturn,andnamedoneDiegoCentenoGovernorofParaguayinsteadofhim。Centenodiedbeforehecouldassumethegovernorship,soitseemedthatfatedeterminedthatIralawastocontinueincommand。

  AfterayearandahalfhereturnedtoParaguay,havingfoundnogoldorriches,butbringingmanythousandIndiansasslaves。

  ItisimportanttorememberthatIrala,whowasremarkableforhisrelativelykindtreatmentoftheIndians,onthisoccasionledsomanyofthemcaptive。OnarrivingatAsuncionhefoundarebelliongoingon,asnotinfrequentlyoccurredwhenaSpanishGovernorlefthisdomains。Hislieutenant,Mendoza,hadbeenkilledbyoneDiegodeAbreu。AfterquietingmattersinAsuncion,hedespatchedNuflodeChavesoneofhiscaptainstofoundatownonthehigherwatersoftheParaguay。

  Likemanyothercaptainsofthosedays,theideaofChaveswastomakehimselfquiteindependentofauthority;so,strikingintotheinterior,hefoundedthetownofSantaCruzdelaSierrainBolivia。

  AftermanyadventureshewaskilledbyanIndian,whostruckhimwithaclubwhilsthewassittingeatingwithouthishelmet。

  IraladiedatthelittlevillageofItain1557,andwasburiedinthecathedralatAsuncion,whichhewasbuildingatthetime。

  Withhimexpiredthegenerationoftheconqueringsoldiersoffortune,who,schooledinthewarsofItaly,broughttoAmericasomeofthevirtuesandallthevicesoftheOldWorld。

  Afterhimbeganthereignofthehalf

  casteSpaniardswhoweretheprogenitorsofthemodernoccupantsoftheSpanish

  Americanrepublics。

  AtIrala\'sdeaththeusualfeuds,whichhaveforthelastthreehundredyearsdisgracedeverypartofSpanishAmerica,began。Intothemitisunnecessarytoenter,forwithIraladiedalmosttheonlyGovernorofParaguaywhoshowedthesmallestcapacitytomakehimselfobeyed。

  TrueindeedthatAriasdeSaavedra,anativeofParaguayandLieutenant

  GovernorunderRamirezdeVelasco,theGovernorofTucuman,displayedsometracesofabilityandofintelligence。HeitwaswhofirstappealedtoSpainformissionariestoconverttheIndians。

  WhilstAlvarNunezandIrala,withNuflodeChavesandtheothercaptains,hadbeenconqueringandbuildingtowns,theJesuitshadbeenpreachinginthewildernessandgatheringtogethertheIndiantribes。

  NottenyearsafterthefoundationoftheirOrder,orabout1550,theyhadlandedatSanSalvadordeBahiainBrazil。

  AcquavivawasGeneraloftheOrderatthistime;hewasamanofmarkedabilityandgreatenergy。

  In1554,inthedistrictofGuayra,ontheupperwatersoftheParana,andabovethecataract,thetownsofOntiveros,CiudadReal,andVillaRica,hadbeenfoundedbyDonRuyDiazdeMelgarejo。

  In1586FathersAlfonsoBarcenaandAnguloleftthetownofSantaMariadelasCharcasBoliviaattherequestofFranciscoVitoria,BishopofSantiago,whohadappealedformissionariestotheSocietyofJesus。

  TheyreachedtheprovinceofGuayra,andbegantheirlabours。

  ShortlyafterwardstheywerejoinedbyFathersEstezanGrao,JuanSolano,andThomasFields;SolanoandFieldshadalreadyvisitedsomeofthewanderingtribesupontheRioVermejointheChaco。

  In1593othersarrived,asJuanRomero,GaspardeMonroy,andMarcelinoLorenzana。ShortlyafterthistheyfoundedthecollegeinAsuncion。ThenFathersOrtegaandVellarnaopenetratedintothemountainsoftheChiriguanas,andbegantopreachtheGospeltotheIndians。

  In1602Acquaviva,seeingthenecessityofcommonaction,calledallthescatteredJesuitsofParaguayandtheriverPlatetoaconferenceatSaltatodeliberateastotheirfuturepolicy。In1605

  FatherDiegoTorreswasnamedProvincialoftheJesuitsofParaguayandChile,thusprovingboththepaucityofJesuitsinSouthAmericaatthetime,andthelittleideatheGeneralinRomehadoftheimmensityofthecountrieshewasdealingwith。

  BeforethisdatetheJesuitsinParaguayhadbeenundertheecclesiasticaljurisdictionoftheBishopsofPeru。

  TorresarrivedinLimawithfifteenpriests,andalmostatthesametimesomeothersarrivedatBuenosAyres;bothpartiesproceededtoParaguay。

  AlreadytheJesuitsfoundthemselvesapreytocalumny。

  BothinTucumanandParaguaytheywereexpectedtolendthemselvestotheenslavementoftheIndians。InChileFatherValdiviawasexpelledfromSantiago,andtookrefugeatTucuman。TherehefoundtheconditionofaffairssointolerablethathewenttoMadridtosolicittheprotectionoftheKing,PhilipIII。,forhisIndiansubjects。

  In1608PhilipissuedhisroyalletterspatenttotheSocietyofJesusfortheconversionoftheIndiansintheprovinceofGuayra。

  TheBishopandtheGovernor,AriasdeSaavedrahimselfaParaguayanbybirth,offerednoobjection,andtheschemeofcolonizationwasagreeduponatonce。

  ThustheJesuitsobtainedtheirfirstofficialstatusinAmerica。

  FathersSimonMacetaandJoseCataldinobothItalians

  leftAsunciononOctober10,1609,andarrivedinFebruary,1610,onthebanksoftheriverParanapane。

  Paranapane=theWhiteParana,or,accordingtoothers,theParanawithoutfish。

  TheretheymettheIndiansamongstwhomFieldsandOrtegahadbeguntolabour,andtheretheyfoundedtheReductionofLoreto,thefirstpermanentestablishmentinstitutedbytheJesuitsamongsttheGuaranis。Thus,inthewoodsofParaguay,uponatributaryoftheParanabutlittleknownevento

  day,didtheSocietyofJesuslaythefirstfoundationoftheirfamousmissions。

  ButlittlemorethanfiftyyearsfromthefoundationoftheirOrder,thushadtheypenetratedtowhatwasthen,andisperchanceto

  day,aftertheirmissionsallareruined,oneoftheremotestcornersoftheworld。

  Reduction`reduccion\'wastheSpanishnameforamissionaryestablishment。

  Theretheybuiltupthesystemwithwhichtheirnameislinkedforever

  thesystemwhichfortwohundredyearswasabletoholdtogetherwanderingIndiantribes,restlessasArabs,suspiciousaboveeveryotherraceofmen

  andwhichto

  dayhasdisappeared,leavingnothingofalikenatureinalltheworld。

  ChapterII

  Earlydaysofthemissions

  Newsettlementsfounded

  RelationsofJesuitswithIndiansandSpanishcolonists

  DestructionofmissionsbytheMamelucos

  FatherMaceta

  PadreAntonioRuizdeMontoya

  Hisworkandinfluence

  RetreatoftheJesuitsdowntheParanaItdoesnotseemdoubtfulbutthattheworkdonebyFathersOrtegaandFilds

  hadbornesomefruit。PerhapsnotquiteafterthefashionthattheJesuitsbelieved;butwhenMacetaandCataldinoarrivedatGuayraandfoundedtheReductionofLoreto,theirsuccessatfirstwasofanaturethatalmostjustifiedtheepithet`miraculous\',anepithetwhichindeedallmenapplytoanyenterpriseoftheirswhichmeetssuccess。Almostfromthefirstinceptionofthemissions,theJesuitsfoundthemselvesinthestrangepositionof,thoughbeinghatedbytheSpanishsettlers,yetrecurredtoasmediatorswhenanyofthewildtribesprovedtoopowerfulfortheSpanisharms。Thus,farfromcities,farfromevensuchelementarycivilizationasParaguayshouldshow,almostupontheedgeofthegreatcataractoftheParana,theJesuitsfoundedtheirfirstreduction;towhichtheIndiansflockedinsuchnumbersthatasecondwassoonnecessary,towhichtheygavethenameofSanIgnacio,inmemoryofthefounderoftheirrule。

  SomeoftheSpanishwritersrefertoFildsasPadreTomFilds。

  HisrealnamewasFields,andhewasaScotchman。

  ForthefirstfewyearsallwentwellwiththeJesuits。TheIndians,happytoescapethepersecutionsoftheSpaniardsontheonehand,andtheincursionsofthePaulistasontheother,flockedtothereductions,missionaftermissionwassoonformed,andthewildIndiansgatheredupintotownshipsandtaughttheartsofpeace。

  ButthoughtheGuaranisatfirstenteredintotheJesuitreductionsasarefugeagainsttheirpersecutors,thePortugueseandSpaniards,soon,aswasonlynaturaltomenaccustomedtoawildforestlife,theyfoundtheJesuitdisciplinetooirksome,andoftenfledbacktothewoods。Thenthepoorpriest,leftwithouthisflock,hadtotakeupthetrailoftheflyingneophytes,followthemtotherecessesoftheforests,andpersuadethemtocomeback。

  ThePaulistasweretheinhabitantsofthePortuguesenowBrazilian

  townofSaoPaulo。Azara,whohatedtheJesuitshisbrother,DonNicolasdeAzara,havingbeenconcernedintheirexpulsion,saysthatfearofthePaulistascontributedtothesuccessoftheJesuitswiththeIndians。DeanFunes`HistoriadelParaguay\',etc。

  saysjustasreasonablythatitwasfearoftheSpanishsettlers。

  AsameanstosecuretheconfidenceoftheIndians,theJesuitsfoundthemselvesobligedtocommunicateasrarelyaspossiblewiththeSpanishsettlements。Thus,fromthefirstthepolicyofisolation,whichwasoneofthechiefchargesbroughtagainsttheOrderinlateryears,wasofnecessitybegun。Voltaire,noloverofreligiousOrders,saysoftheJesuits:`Whenin1768themissionsofParaguayleftthehandsoftheJesuits,theyhadarrivedatperhapsthehighestdegreeofcivilizationtowhichitispossibletoconductayoungpeople,andcertainlyatafarsuperiorstatethanthatwhichexistedintherestofthenewhemisphere。

  Thelawswererespectedthere,moralswerepure,ahappybrotherhoodunitedeveryheart,alltheusefulartswereinaflourishingstate,andevensomeofthemoreagreeablesciences;plentywasuniversal。\'

  Therewas,however,aroyalOrder`cedulareal\'whichappliedtoallAmerica,whichespeciallyprohibitedSpaniardsfromlivingintheIndiantowns,and,moreover,providedthatevenforpurposesoftradenoSpaniardshouldremainformorethanthreedaysinanIndiantown。

  `HistoirePolitiqueetPhilosophiquedesIndes\',vol。i。,p。289

  Gene\\ve,1780。

  Itis,however,toberememberedthatVoltairewroteasaphilosopher,andnotasaneconomist,andthathisstatementmostprobablywouldbetraversedbythosewhoseeadvancementratherinmaterialimprovementthaninmoralhappiness,forwithoutdoubt,inLimaandinMexicouponthewhole,societymusthavemadeamongsttheSpanishandSpanish

  descendedcitizensgreateradvancesthanintheJesuitreductionsofParaguay。InsomerespectstheiralmostinaccessiblesituationclosetothecataractoftheParanawasfavourabletotheearlyJesuits,andinquicksuccessionthevillagesofLoreto,SanFranciscoXavier,SanJose,SanIgnacio,SanPedro,andothersoflessimportance,werefounded,containinginallaboutfortythousandsouls。

  CretineauJoly,`HistoireReligieuse,PolitiqueetLitte/rairedelaCompagniedeJe/sus\',vol。iii。,cap。v。,p。322Paris,1846。

  SointheJesuitreductionsoftheprovinceofGuayrawasfirstbegunthesystemoftreatingtheIndianskindly,andstandingbetweenthemandtheSpanishsettlers,whichmadetheCompanyofJesussohatedafterwardsinParaguay。

  Littlebylittletheirinfluencegrew,sothatwhen,in1614,PadreAntonioRuizdeMontoyaarrived,hefoundthattherewerealreadyonehundredandnineteenJesuitsinGuayraandinParaguay。

  OfalltheJesuitswho,duringthelongperiodoftheirlabours,appearedinParaguay,hewasthemostremarkable;oneofthemostlearnedmenoftheageinwhichhelived,heyetunitedinhimselfthequalitiesofamanofactiontothoseofscholarandofmissionary。

  WithouthispresencemostlikelynotatenthpartoftheIndianswouldhaveescapedafterthedestructionofthemissionsofGuayrain1630and1631atthehandsofthehalf

  civilizedhordesknownasPaulistasorMamalucos,whofromthecityofSanPaulocarriedfireandswordamongsttheGuaranis。

  ItiseasytounderstandthattheSpanishcolonists,whohadlookedonalltheIndiansasslaves,wererenderedfuriousbytheadventoftheJesuits,whotreatedthemasmen。

  To

  daytheEuropeancolonistinAfricalabourslesstoenslavethantoexterminatethenatives;butifabodyofclergyofanysecthavingtheabnegationanddisregardofconsequencesoftheJesuitsofoldshouldarise,fancythefurythatwouldbeevokediftheyinsistedthatitwereastrulymurdertoslayablackmanasitistokillamanwhoseskiniswhite。Mostfortunately,ourclergyofto

  day,especiallythoseofthevariouschurchesmilitantinUganda,thinkotherwise,andholdthatChristwasthefirstinventorofthe`colour

  line\'。

  AtthefirstsettlementofSouthAmericagreatsemi

  feudalfiefscalled`encomiendas\'weregrantedtotheconquerors。Oneoftheconditionsoftheirtenurewasthatthe`encomenderos\'theownersofthefiefs

  `shouldseetothereligiouseducationoftheIndians\'。

  MuchthesamekindofthingastoenjoinkindnessandChristianforbearanceuponthedirectorsofamodernCharteredCompany。But,inadditiontothe`encomiendas\',twoothersystemswereinvoguecalled`yanaconas\'and`mitayos\',whichwereinfactdesignedtoreducetheIndianstotheconditionofmereslaves。

  Herrerasaysthatthe`\"yanaconas\"weremendestinedfrombirthtoperpetualslaveryandcaptivity,andintheirclothing,treatment,andtheconditionsoftheirtoil,weredifferentlytreatedfromfreemen。\'

  `HistoriaGeneraldeloshechosdelosCastellanosenlasIslasytierrafirmedelMarOceano\',decad。v。,lib。iv。,cap。xl。

  InParaguaythese`yanaconas\'wereknownas`IndiosOriginarios\',andgenerallyweredescendantsofIndiansconqueredinwar;they,too,wereinaconditionofserfdom。Theylivedinthehouseofthe`encomendero\',andcouldnotbesold,andthe`encomendero\'wasintheoryobligednotonlytofeedandclothethem,buttoinstructtheminreligioustruths。

  Inordertoseethattheseconditionsweredulycarriedout,visitorsweresenteachyeartohearwhatmutuallythe`encomenderos\'andtheIndianshadtosay。

  Herrera1describestheIndiansunderthe`mitayo\'systembythenameof`mitayostindarunas\',explainingthattheword`tindaruna\'

  signifies`forcedlabour\'。Thechiefshadtoprovideacertainnumberofthemeveryyeartoworkinminesandmanufactories,andsowellwasthelabourintheminesknowntobefatal,thattheIndiansuponbeingdrawnforservicedisposedofalltheirproperty,andnotinfrequentlydivorcedtheirwives。The`mitayos\'wereatthebeginningIndianswhohadnotfoughtagainsttheSpaniards,buthadsubmittedtotheirrule。TheyweregroupedintownshipscomposedofportionsofatribeunderachieftowhomtheSpaniardsgavethepositionofAlcalde。Inthetownsthusformedonlythemenbetweeneighteenandfiftywereliabletobedrawnforserviceinthemines;

  originallytheirtermofservicewasforonlytwomonthsintheyear,andfortheremainingtenmonthstheywereintheoryasfreeasweretheSpanishsettlers。By1612theabusesoftheirsystemhadsodiminishedthenumberoftheIndiansthatDonFranciscodeAlfarowasnamedbytheSpanishGovernmenttoreportuponit,andtoreformabuseswherehefounditpossible。HisreportdeclaredthattheGuaranisandGuaycurusshouldnotbemadeslavesof,anditabolishedintheirfavourtheforcedlabourwhichtheyhadpreviouslyendured。TheEuropeansettlersinAsuncionthoughtthatthiswasowingtotheinfluenceoftheJesuits,andthereforetheyexpelledthemfromthetown。RecalledtoSantiago,theyfoundedthereacollege,andthosewhoremainedinParaguaypushedonthemission

  work。Brabo2pointsoutthatthefirsttwentyreductionsfoundedbytheCompanyofJesusweresettledinthefirsttwentyyearsfromtheirfirstappearanceintheland,3

  andthatfromthefoundationoftheMissionofSt。GeorgethelastestablishedofthefirsttwentytownstothatofSanJoaquim,inthewildforestsoftheTaruma,theyemployedahundredandtwelveyears。

  Intheintervaltheychieflyoccupiedthemselvesintheconsolidationoftheirfirstsettlements,andinvariousunsuccessfulattemptstoinstitutesimilarreductionsamongsttheIndiansoftheChacoacrosstheParaguay。

  1`HistoriaGeneraldeloshechosdelosCastellanosenlasIslasytierrafirmedelMarOceano\',decad。v。,lib。x。,cap。lxxx。

  2`Inventariosdelosbieneshalladosa/laExpulsiondelosJesuitas\'

  Madrid,1872。

  3TheFranciscanshadalreadyfiveorsixsettlements。

  ButwhilsttheJesuitsweresettlingtheirreductionsintheprovinceofGuayraandthoseupontheParanaandUruguay,anestofhawkslookedattheirneophytesaspigeonsreadyfatteningfortheiruse。Almosteighthundredmilesaway,atthecityofSanPaulodePiritinanga,inBrazil,astrangesocietyhadcomeintoexistencebydegrees。PeopledatfirstbyPortugueseandDutchadventurersandmalefactors,ithadbecomeanestofpiratesandahomeforallthedesperadoesofBrazilandParaguay。

  Thisengagingpopulation,beinginwantofwiveswherebytopropagatetheirvirtues,tooktothemselvesIndiansandnegresses,andbredaraceworsetentimesthanwerethemselves,asoftenhappensbothinthecasesofMulattosandMestizosinAmerica。

  UnderthenameofMamelucosgiventothemnooneknowswhy

  theysoonbecametheterroroftheland。Equallyathomeonhorseback,incanoesupontherivers,orinschoonersonthesea,excellentmarksmenandcourageousfighters,theysubsistedchieflybyprocuringIndiansasslavesfortheplantationsinBrazil。

  InashorttimetheyexhaustedalltheIndiansnearSanPaulo,andwereforcedtosearchfarinthedepthsoftheunknowninterior。

  Littlebylittle,followingthecourseofthegreatriversintheircanoes,theyreachedtheJesuitsettlementsupontheupperwatersoftheParana,wheretheyburnedthetownsandthechurches,madecaptivesoftheconverts,andkilledthepriests。MontoyarelatesthataJesuit,havingclaspedanIndianinhisarmstosavehim,wasdelugedwithhisblood,aMamelucohavingcreptupbehindhimandplungedhislanceintotheIndianbehindtheJesuit\'sback。TheMameluco,onbeing,asMontoyasays,`reprehended\'bytheJesuit,dogmaticallyremarked,`IshallbesavedinspiteofGod,fortobesavedamanhasonlytobelieve,\'

  aremarkwhichshowedhimclearlyanhonestopponentoftheJesuits,astheyinsistedgreatlyonthedoctrineofgoodworks。

  ThewordinBrazilisusedtodesignateahalf

  breed,buttheetymologyseemsunknown。

  `MehedesalvarapesardeDios,porqueparasalvarseelhombrenohamenestermasquecreer\'RuizMontoya,`ConquistaEspiritual\'。

  MontoyaaddswithatouchofhumourquiteinCervantes\'vein:

  `Este,sabeyaporexperiencialafalsedaddesudoctrina,porquelematarondetresbalazos,sinconfesion。\'

  RuizMontoyaandotherstellusthattheplanofactionofthePaulistaswaseithertoattacktheJesuitreductionsonSunday,whenthesheepweregatheredinthefoldlisteningtoMass,surroundthechurch,murderthepriest,andcarryofftheneophytesasslaves;orelse,disguisedasJesuits,enteramission,gaintheconfidenceoftheIndians,andthencommunicatewiththeirsoldiers,whowerewaitinginthewoods。

  Butnotcontentwiththis,itseems,sooftendidtheypractisesingingMasstopassasJesuits,thatonreturningtoSanPaulo,intheirorgies,theirgreatdiversionwastomasqueradeaspriests。Sothattherascalsnotonlyprofitedbytheirvillainy,butextractedmuchamusementfromtheirwickeddeeds。This,inMontoya\'sopinion,wasevenmoredamnablethantheactualcrime。Andsonodoubtitwas,andweinEngland,byhavingmadeourviceasdullasvirtueisinotherlands,havegonesomewaytowardsmorality,forviceandvirtue,bothdeprivedofhumour,becomenotsofarseparatedassomevirtuousdullfolkmaythink。

  TheMamelucossometimespushedtheirforaysrightthroughParaguayintothedistrictoftheMoxos,andPadrePatricioFernandez,inhiscurious`RelaciondelosIndiosChiquitos\'Madrid,1726,relatestheiradventuresinthatfar

  distantdistrict,andtheconflictswhichtheIndians,ledbytheirpriestsandhelpedbytheSpanishsettlers,sustained。

  Quitenaturally,theseredoubtablelandandriverpiratessawintheJesuitreductionsupontheParanapane,andgenerallythroughoutthedistrictofGuayra,merelyanopportunityofcapturingmoreIndiansthanusualatahaul。In1629theyfirstappearedbeforetheMissionofSanAntonioanddestroyeditutterly,burningthechurchandhouses,anddrivingofftheIndianstosellasslaves。

  SanMiguelandJesus

  Mariashortlysufferedthesamefate。InConcepcionPadreSalazarwasregularlybesieged,andheandallthepeoplereducedtoeatingdogs,cats,rats,mice,andevensnakes。Atthelastmoment,whenabouttosurrender,FatherCataldino,hastilyarmingsomeIndianswithanyrudeweaponsathiscommand,marchedontheplaceandraisedthesiege。

  AworthymemberoftheChurchmilitantthisexploring,fighting,intrepidItalianpriest,andonetheCompanyofJesusshouldhonour,fortohim,perhapsasmuchastoanyofthesefirstexplorersoftheUpperParana,iscreditdue。

  ButstilltheMamelucosrantheircourse,destroyingtownaftertown,sothatintheshortspaceofayear1630

  31theydestroyedpartiallythereductionsofSanFranciscoXavier,SanJose,SanPedro,andLaConcepcion;andthetwofirstfounded,SanIgnacioandLoreto,wereruinedutterly。ThewretchedIndians,towhombylawtheJesuitswereforbiddentoserveoutfirearms,stoodnochanceagainstthewell

  trainedPaulistas,withtheirhorses,guns,andbloodhounds,assistedastheywerebytroopsofsavageIndianswhodischargedpoisonedarrowsfromblowpipesandfrombows。Smallwonderthat,asMontoya,Charlevoix,Lahier,1andFilibertoMonero2allagree,despairtookholdofthem,sothatinmanyinstancestheycursedtheJesuitsandfledbacktothewoods。WhenonereflectsthatmanyoftheIndiantribeslookeduponbaptismasapoison,3

  itisnotstrangethattheyshouldhaveassociatedeffectwithcause,andsetdownalltheirsufferingstotheinfluenceofthemalignantritetowhichtheJesuitshadsubjectedthem。TheisolatedJesuitsranconsiderableriskfromtheirownsheep,andPadreMola,aftertheruinofSanAntonio,wassuspectedbythemofbeinginleaguewiththePaulistas,andhadtofleeforsafetytoanothertown;

  andasatouchofcomedyisseldomwantingtomakethingsbitterertothoseinmisfortune,atroopofsavageIndians,havingarrivedtoattacktheReductionofSanAntonio,andfindingitalreadyburning,instantlythoughtpoorPadreMolahadbeentheinstigator,and,startingonhistrail,almostsurprisedhimbeforehereachedarefugefromtheirpatrioticrage。

  1LahierFrancisciS。I。,`AnnaeParaguarie,Annor。1635,etduor。sequ。\'

  2`RelazionidellaProvinciadelParaguai\'。

  3Brabo。

  Thusinthegreaterworldreformersofallsortshavenotinfrequentlyintimesofscarcityanddangerbeentakenbytheirprotegesfortheauthorsoftheirtrialsandstoned,whilstthesmugGovernmentwhichcausedtheruin,wellbolsteredupintheaffectionofits`taxables\',chuckled,serenelyconfidentintheunendingfollyofmankind。

  MostcertainlytheJesuitsstruggledtodotheirdutytotheirneophytesinwhattheythoughttheysawwasright。OnfootandunattendedFathersMacetaandMansillafollowedthefifteenthousandcaptivestoBrazil,confessingthosewhofellupontheroadbeforetheydied,andinstantinsupplicationtothePaulistasfortheprisoners\'release。

  FatherMacetaespeciallybehavedheroically,carryingthechainsofthosewhocouldhardlydragthemselvesalong,himselfhalfdeadwithhungerandhisconstanttoil。EspeciallyhestrovetoeffectthereleaseofacaptivechiefcalledGuiravera,whohadbeenoneofhisbitterestenemies,andstrovesohardthataPaulistacaptain,eithertouchedbyhiszealorweariedwithhispleading,releasedthechief,hiswifeandfamily,andsixoftheIndiansofhistribe。

  ThechiefreturnedtobecometheJesuits\'bestfriend,andthetwopriestsonfootfollowedthecaptives\'train。

  Whattheyenduredonfootwithoutprovisions,torturedbyinsects,andindangerfromwildbeasts,aswellasconstantperilsfromthePaulistas,whonowandthenprickedthemwithlancesorfiredpistolsovertheirheadstofrightenthemaway,nonebutthosewhohavejourneyedintheforestsofthatforgottencorneroftheworldcanestimate。

  Iseethemintheirtornandsun

  brownedcassocksstrugglingthroughthe`esteros\'1inwatertotheknees,fallingandrisingoft,afterthefashionofthesupposititiousChristianonlife\'sway;

  pushingalongthroughforestpathsacrosswhichdartedhumming

  birds,nowcomingonadyingmanandkneelingbyhisside,nowgatheringtheberriesoftheguavirami2toeatupontheroad,andthenagaincatchingsightofajaguarasitslunkbesidethetrail,andallthetimeconvincedthatalltheirefforts,liketheeffortsofmostofthosewhostrive,wouldbeinvain。Sostumblingthroughthewoods,crossingtheriversoninflatedox

  skins,bakedbythesunupontheopenplains,atlengththeJesuitsreachedSanPaulo,wheretheyhadacollege,andwithoutrestingsetatoncetowork。

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