Ulloa Had Orders To
Explore The Coast Of California, And To Search For Hurtado, Who Had Never
Been Heard Of.
After an absence of seven months, Ulloa returned to Xalisco,
without having effected any discovery of importance; and was assassinated
a few days afterwards on shore by a soldier who bore him a grudge.
Thus
ended the projected discoveries of the Marquis del Valle, in which I have
heard him say that he expended above 300,000 crowns. He never prospered
after his first conquest of New Spain; and his bad fortune was ascribed to
the curses of his companions, for having treated them so ill in the
distribution of the property acquired by their bravery. He now determined
on going to Spain, in order to solicit an allowance from his majesty for
the expences he had been at in these voyages, as also to endeavour to end
the dispute concerning the vassals of his estates in New Spain, and to
procure restitution of the property which had been seized from him by Nuno
de Guzman, who was now a prisoner in Castille.
After the departure of the Marquis, the viceroy and court of audience sent
a military force from Xalisco by land to the north west, under the command
of Francisco Vasquez Coronado, who married the beautiful and virtuous
daughter of the treasurer Estrada. Coronado left his government of Xalisco,
under the charge of an officer named Onate, and marched into the country
named _Celibola_[11] or the Seven Cities; whence he sent a Franciscan
friar, named Marcos de Nica, to Mexico, to give the viceroy an account of
the country. He described it as consisting of fine plains, with great
herds of cattle quite different from those of Europe; having populous
towns, in which the houses were of two stories with stairs. He also
represented that it lay on the coast of the south sea, by means of which
necessaries and reinforcements could be easily sent to the Spanish force.
Accordingly, three ships were sent for that purpose, under the command of
Hernando de Alarco, an officer belonging to the household of the viceroy.
In the year 1537, Don Pedro de Alvarado fitted out a great armament of
thirteen vessels from the port of _Acaxatla_[12] on the south sea, in
consequence of a license from his majesty, in which he had a grant of
certain rents and advantages in such countries as he might discover; that
is to say, in China and the Moluccas or Spice Islands. As the port where
this armament was fitted out was above 200 leagues from Vera Cruz, whence
all the iron and most other articles had to be carried by land, its cost
might easily have fitted out eighty such vessels from Old Spain. All the
wealth which Alvarado brought from Peru[13], together with what he had got
from the mines in Guatimala, with the rents of his estates, and rich
presents from his friends and relations, were insufficient for his
preparations on this occasion, although all the merchandize was procured
on credit.
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