1889 HISTORY OF LINCOLN, NEBRASKA

     (15) Nebraska as a State is comparatively new. As a country its history dates back centuries, covered partly by the records of the priests, the old-time chroniclers, and partly by the legends which have come down to us through generations from the old Spanish settlers in Mexico, and the Indians who inhabited the land. The early history of Nebraska is a part of the history of all this western country, extending from the Missouri river to the Rocky mountains, and from the Platte river to the Rio Grande, and westward into Mexico. Around and over all this region is thrown the glamour and halo of the early days of chivalry in America, and the tales the legends tell are vague and weird enough to form the climax of any tale of chivalry, romance, or discovery. Away back three centuries and a half ago begins the legendary history of Nebraska. At that time the Land of the Sun, Mexico, had been taken possession of by the Spaniards, and from the City of Mexico exploring parties were wont to take their trips of discovery and exploration, led hither and thither by the frequent stories of wealth and splendor told the people by Indians who had strayed into that southern capital, or had been captured by the Spaniards in some of their frequent raids into the adjacent territories. Legend has it that years before the first recorded date, troops of Spanish cavaliers, traveling northward, entered a vast territory of grassy plains, crossed by broad rivers, which was said to be the home of a wonderfully wealthy people, whose cities, rich beyond compare, numbered seven. Later research has shown that some of these expeditions undoubtedly crossed what is now the northern boundary line of Kansas, and camped and traveled within the territory now known as Nebraska.

     As early as 1536, legendary history tells us, the Spaniards in (16) Mexico had heard fairy tales of a land far to the northward, called Quivera -- a land of unlimited wealth, of populous cities with lofty dwellings and stores fairly glittering with gold and silver and precious gems, whose people lived in a style of grandeur unknown in this country, and who were highly civilized, and acquainted with the arts. In the year 1536 four men, half starved and worn with toil, heat, cold, shipwrecks, and battles with the natives, reached the City of Mexico from the mountains and plains of the north. These four men were all that were left of a band of four hundred Spaniards that eight years before had landed on the coast of Florida, for the purpose of exploring that unknown country. That company of troops had traveled to the northwestward many weary years, but hunger, toil, and conflicts with the hostile tribes of Indians they met, had reduced the ranks to the four, whose coming into the City of Mexico, and the marvelous tales they told, excited the curiosity of the people. This band of four hundred had evidently traversed the country from the southeast as far north as Kansas, and west through Colorado. The stories of these four men confirmed the legends that had been handed down among the Mexicans for many generations, and if they had been doubted before, none now dared to dispute the existence to the northward of a country such as had been pictured to them.

     From this time forward we have not to depend upon legends only, for the events following this date were recorded, possibly inaccurately, by the priests, who were the historians of the time. Immediately following the arrival of these toil-worn explorers at the City of Mexico, an expedition was fitted out under the leadership of Marcos de Niza, a Franciscan monk, and sent to discover and report upon these mysterious cities and pave the way for Spanish colonization. Friar Marcos, the commander, soon became discouraged and disheartened by the cruelty practiced upon his band of soldiers by the natives, who slew many of them, and turned back, but not wanting his comrades at home to think him the coward that he was, he instructed his soldiers, who were ready for any scheme that would end their marching, to say that they had really seen the seven cities of Cibola from afar, and that they were more populous and far more wealthy than had ever been told. These tales again excited Spanish curiosity and cupidity and at once a larger and more powerful expedition was fitted out under the command of the Viceroy of Mexico, Francisco Vasquez de (17) Coronado. This expedition marks the time when Nebraska was really discovered -- the discovery which history records.

     Judge Savage, of Omaha, has spent much time and labor in collecting the scattered information to be had upon this early discovery, and from his account many of the facts and incidents of this expedition, and also his conclusions as to the points visited by Coronado and other explorers, are used. According to the authorities upon this subject, Coronado's expedition, composed of three hundred Spaniards and eight hundred natives, set out from the City of Mexico early in the spring of 1540, with bright anticipations and sanguine hopes. These were somewhat dampened by the hardships of the way, for the country traversed was rough, mountainous, and a desert; and now and then, notwithstanding the marvels of the seven cities which they expected to find at the end of their journey, distrust and homesickness overmastered their curiosity, and they longed to return home. It was only the stern resolution of their commander which prevented the expedition being a failure almost at the very start. But at last, after a tedious and toilsome march, what were thought to be the seven cities of Cibola were reached, and here the disappointment was so great that a mutiny was almost successful. And the soldiers were really not to blame, for the highly-colored tales had all proved false. The seven cities were seven hamlets the houses were small; gold was not found; the minerals were of little value; and farms there were in Mexico far better and richer than all of Cibola.

     But the fitting out of the expedition had cost too much money to thus come to an ignoble end, and Coronado began to inquire if there were not other cities, richer and more populous, which it would be profitable to visit. The native, eager to get rid of their Spanish visitors, answered in the affirmative. Two hundred and fifty miles to the eastward, they said, was a rich, peaceful, and populous province, where their desire for wealth and ambition for power might be gratified. Following the directions given, Coronado led his little army to this new locality, a point which is identified to-day by its natural characteristics and by its ruins, as being the country which is now the eastern part of the Territory of New Mexico, and not far south of the present site of Santa Fe. Here the natives gave the Spaniards a cordial and sincere welcome, they being of a gentle and kindly nature, in return for which the Spaniards treated them with the utmost (18) cruelty. Having been instructed by the Spanish viceroy to let these people (meaning the inhabitants of the cities of Cibola) know that there was "a God in Heaven," Coronado proceeded to instruct the natives, first by stealing everything they had, then by imprisoning the chiefs of the leading tribes, and lastly, by burning their villages. Not satisfied with these outrages, Coronado's soldiers made inroads upon the families of their entertainers, debauching their wives and children. Notwithstanding these acts of "Christian charity," the natives still treated the Spanish troopers with what kindness they could, but naturally schemed for some way by which they could rid themselves of their unwelcome and unbidden guests, in which they were finally successful.

     One of these natives, willing to sacrifice his life for the salvation of the rest, and with a self-sacrificing spirit wonderful for a savage, took upon himself the task of carrying the scheme agreed upon into operation. Early one morning he suddenly appeared before Coronado, with much mystery in his movements, and great pretended hostility to the natives. He described a far-oft' country with such eloquence of language that the country pictured surpassed all previous imaginings of the Spaniards. The man came, he said, from a land far to the northeast, where there was a river seven miles in width. "Within its depths were huge fishes as large as horses, and upon its broad bosom floated canoes which carried twenty oarsmen on a side; huge vessels with sails which bore upon their prow a golden eagle, and upon the poop a sumptuous dias, whereon their lords were wont to sit beneath a canopy of cloth of gold. That every day the monarch of this favored region, named Tartarrax, long bearded, gray haired, and rich, took his noontide sleep in a garden of roses under a huge spreading tree, to the branches of which were suspended innumerable golden bells, which sounded in exquisite harmony when shaken by the wind; that this king prayed by means of a string of heads, and worshiped a cross of gold and the image of a woman, the queen of Heaven; that throughout the land the commonest utensils were of wrought silver, and the bowls, plates, and porringers, of beaten gold. This land of plenty, he said, was

     And thither he waited to conduct his friends whenever they should be pleased to accompany him."

     (19) The tale was well concocted, and told with consummate skill. The king being pictured as a man who worshiped after the fashion of the men to whom the tale was told, naturally made them more ready to believe, and the stories of such magnificent wealth, pictured with every appearance of honesty, made them eager to conquer the land. Coronado, while a brave, intrepid, and ambitious man, was superstitious, and had a wonderful belief in signs and omens. In his youthful days he had made the acquaintance of an Arabian sage, who, after long study and travel in the East, where he had collected the knowledge and skill in necromancy supposed to be native there, had taken up his residence in the city of Salamanca, Coronado's birthplace. To this sage Coronado intrusted the duty of looking into the future and telling him what was in store for him in the years to come. After consulting his sacred parchments and communing with the supernatural being, who had imparted to him their wisdom, the necromancer received Coronado, and gave to him what the Gods said was in store for him. The mystic forces which reveal future events to mortals he said foretold that the then young Salamancan student should one day become the lord of a great and distant country; but the portents thence forward were gloomy and sinister; they foretold that a fall from his horse would end his life.

     This made a strong impression on Coronado's mind, which grew as the years passed, and as he stood in the midst of the vast prairie which stretched beyond the vision of the eye on every side, surrounded by only a handful of dissatisfied, jealous, restless men and listened to the marvelous tale of the Indian, who had volunteered to guide him to the fabled realm where wealth was piled mountain high, no wonder that the fate predicted by the sage of Salamanca came to his remembrance. The first prophecy had come true -- he was the lord of a great and distant land; -- and how soon would the second one prove true? But the story of the Indian was so straightforward, and he stood the rude cross-examination of the Spaniards so well, that Coronado threw his fears to the wind, and determined to make this last attempt to find the kingdom of Quivera and the seven cities of Cibola. So on the 5th day of May 1541, Coronado and his army quitted the valleys which they had terrorized and "Christianized" so thoroughly, crossed the Pecos river from Santa Fe, and soon entered upon the treeless prairies of what is now Indian Territory and the State of (20) Kansas. Across mighty plains so bare and treeless that the adventurers had to make large piles of buffalo chips to guide them on their return, they made their way for 800 miles northeasterly, to the banks of a considerable river, which is admitted by all who have studied the route and the distance traveled to have been the Arkansas.

     At this point of the march a soldier named Castaneda, ignorant and credulous, but pious, became the historian, and he records the story of this weary march. Its weariness may be imagined by thinking of this band of soldiers, clad in the heavy armor of the times, plodding its way through the long summer days over the burning plains of Kansas, grim and silent, each one counting his steps, the more accurately to compute the distance passed. And the picture has a tinge of sadness hanging over it -- a pathetic tint coloring both the foreground and the perspective.

     But the adventurous knights seem to have had some little amusement to beguile the weary hours -- their regular amusement of robbery. On one occasion it is related of them that finding a village with an enormous quantity of skins, they cleaned it out so thoroughly and expeditiously that within fifteen minutes there was not a skin left. The Indians tried to save their precious possessions by force of arms, and the entreating tears of the squaws, but neither availed.

     Coronado at first, it will be remembered, had been suspicious of his guide, but had conquered his fears and suspicious. Now again these same suspicions became aroused in Coronado's mind, and they quickly spread among his troops. It was noticed that when they met with the wandering nomads of the plain, if the Turk, as they called the guide, was the first to meet and converse with them, they confirmed his stories, and pointed to the eastward as the true course, whereas if communication was prevented, the tribes knew nothing of the riches and splendor of the land of Quivera, and insisted that the country lay to the north instead of to the east.

     Coronado, therefore, seeing that the guide had deceived him, and that with the exception of the meat of the buffalo provisions were growing scarce, called a council of war to consider with his captains and lieutenants the best plans to adopt for the future. It was there decided that the general, with thirty of his bravest and best mounted men and six foot soldiers, should proceed northward in search of the land of Quivera, while the main body of the army should return to the (21) vicinity of the Pecos river. So, with the Turk securely bound, and with guides selected from the Indian tribes, Coronado recommenced his march.

     Northward from the Arkansas river for many weary hours the little band pursued its way over the Kansas plains. July had come; the days were long and hot, and the nights sultry. But dogged perseverance and good horses brought them at last to the southern boundary of Nebraska. And near there, along the Platte river, they again found the long-sought kingdom of Quivera, with Tartarrax the hoary-headed ruler of the realm. But alas for their expectations ! Their dreams of glory and conquest had a most rude awakening. The only precious metal that they saw was a copper plate hanging from the old chief's breast, by which he set great store, and which he seemingly regarded as a god. There were no musical bells, no golden eagle, no silver dishes, no indications of a religious worship -- the light of truth had dispelled the dreams of magnificence. Coronado hung his guide, but the guide met death bravely, and with his last breath declared that he knew of no gold, of no cities, of no realm of magnificent riches, and that he had led the Spaniards away from his people that they might be free from persecution and spoliation. In August, Coronado, after erecting a cross which bore the inscription,

set his face southward and passed out of the land of Quivera; but Nebraska had been discovered.

     For one hundred and twenty-one years the great plains of Nebraska were untrodden by the feet of any save the Indian tribes that for centuries had roamed from the Missouri to the Rockies. Their buffalo-skin tents formed the only cities, and the battles of the various tribes the only excitement on the prairies, except the chase of the buffalo and deer, and the festive pranks of the storm-king. For a century and nearly a quarter, the copper-colored wild man of the prairie held sway undisputed in his possession of the land. In the year 1662 another visit was made to Quiv era, which has been recorded by the Spanish historians, and is the second visit of which record is (22) made, the latter visit and the points reached being more easily determinable than of the first in 1541.

     The second civilized man to set his foot upon the soil of Nebraska whose visit has been recorded in authentic history, was a soldier, a knight of Spain, Don Diego, Count of Penalosa. This knight, who belonged to that period marked by all the glitter, romance and adventure which throw such a charm over the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, was not a Spaniard, but a Creole; that is, one of American birth but Spanish descent. He was born at Lima, South America, in 1624, and after a career of wonderful vicissitudes, finally left his native continent and drifted northward to Mexico. Here he came into high favor with the Viceroy of the country, who made him, at the age of thirty-six, Governor and Captain-General of New Mexico. This was a most responsible position; but once settled in it, Penalosa became again restive, and sought to perform some feat which would bring him everlasting glory and renown. Quivera was then the same goal of bright prospects that it had been to Coronado, and to that fabled country this knight resolved to force his way. So on the 6th of March, 1662, while the colonists in New England and Virginia were laying the foundations of an empire that has since taken in Quivera, and not only that but thousands of square miles beyond, this Spanish knight set out from Santa Fe to explore the regions to the north and east, to accumulate precious stones and metal, to annex a vast territory to his domains, to conquer the fabled opulent cities, and to win for himself renown and added power and influence at the Spanish court.

     He set out with a great company of soldiers, Indians, and retainers, two score of baggage wagons carrying his trappings and provisions, and six cannon with which to batter down the walls of the cities of Cibola when he should reach them. A friar, Nicholas de Freytas, was the historian of this expedition, and gives with much elaborateness and detail the events of the march northward, the disappointment, disaster, and return of Penalosa. After proceeding for several weeks along the route laid out, the little Spanish army found itself confronted by a mighty river, along which dwelt an Indian nation who were called the Escanzaquas, the residence of this nation being near the fortieth parallel of latitude. This nation was at war with the Indians of Quivera, and when Penalosa arrived were just on the (23) point of starting northward to give their enemies battle. The force of the Escanzaquas numbered about 3,000, and immediately upon his arrival Penalosa joined this force and accompanied the Indians on their ,journey. For a day this army marched westwardly along the right bank of a mighty, rushing river, until it made a bend so that its current came from the north. For another day the march was continued to the northward, until toward evening the soldiers perceived across the river, now flowing eastward again, a high ridge whose sides were covered with signal fires, which showed that the natives were aware of their approach. Still marching forward, following the curves of the river, the little army came to a spot where, on the opposite side, another river, flowing from the ridge, entered the stream previously followed. Here was found a very populous city one of the cities of Quivera -- of vast extent. The chiefs of Quivera came over the river to welcome the Spaniards, and showed them every mark of esteem; but on that same night the Escanzaquas crossed the river, burned the city, and put thousands of the Quiverans to death. The next day the Spaniards spent some time in extinguishing the flames, admiring the vast number of dwellings and the great fertility of the soil, and in hunting for the fabled wealth of Quivera. After spending some time in this search and finding nothing, Penalosa, on the 11th of June, 1662, turned his troops southward and departed for his Mexican home.

     To what points these expeditions penetrated has been the subject of much contention and of much difference of opinion. But none claim that Coronado failed to enter this State some distance, and none dispute that Penalosa reached the Platte. At just what point the Platte was touched, or at what point Nebraska was penetrated, is the dispute.

     As to the visit of Coronado: The most generally accepted opinion, based upon the description of the country, its grasses, animals, and general topography, is that Coronado entered the State somewhere between Gage county on the east and Furnas county on the west, probably east of the present location of Superior, Nuckolls county. Authorities differ as to the distance and direction traveled by Coronado; but the opinion of Gen. Simpson and of Mr. Gallatin is that the Republican river was crossed and the march taken in a northeasterly direction, and that the northern point reached was somewhere west of and on (24) nearly the same parallel with the present site of Lincoln. The Spanish cavalier evidently did not reach the salt basin, or his chronicler would have noted the peculiar appearance of the country, and the presence of the salt. Coronado himself states that his expedition reached beyond the fortieth degree of north latitude, but how much further can only be judged by the description of the country traversed, the streams crossed, and the direction of the line of march. The recent finding of Spanish stirrups, bridle-bits, and other horse trappings of Moorish pattern, near the Republican, buried deep in the ground, while it does not prove that so early a visit was made to Nebraska, does indicate that the Spaniards, hundreds of years ago, traversed the region now embraced in the State, and left traces of their presence.

     The point reached by Penalosa has not so much to do with the present treatise; but without entering upon any discussion of the reasons for the location, it seems to be the most generally accepted theory that Penalosa reached the Platte at or near the spot now occupied by the city of Columbus.

     It will be noticed that the land of Quivera was located by these early explorers in a half a dozen different places, each spot being discarded on fresh reports of wealthy regions "just beyond," and the Quivera of tradition never was discovered. But the legends spurred on those early explorers mile after mile, league after league, northward from their southern home, until they had crossed the line that brought them within the confines of the State of Nebraska. The realm of Quivera is now a reality, and the seven cities of Cibola are legion. The dreams of the Spaniards have come true, and in this land, visited by them centuries ago, are found the gold and silver, the populous cities, the magnificent houses, the wealth and civilization of the fabled kingdom of Tartarrax.

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