Undaunted by these failures, another expedition sets forth (1542) to
gain a footing for Spanish power on the Western Islands--that commanded
by Ruy Lopez de Villalobos; it is under the auspices of the two most
powerful officials in New Spain, and is abundantly supplied with men
and provisions. The contracts made with the king by its promoters
give interesting details of the methods by which such enterprises were
conducted. Various encouragements and favors are offered to colonists
who shall settle in those islands; privileges and grants are conferred
on Alvarado, extending to his heirs. Provision is made for land-grants,
hospitals, religious instruction and worship, and the respective
rights of the conquerors and the king. The instructions given to
Villalobos and other officials are minute and careful. At Navidad
Villalobos and all his officers and men take solemn oaths (October 22,
1542) to carry out the pledges that they have made, and to fulfil
their respective duties. In 1543 complaint is made that Villalobos
is infringing the Portuguese demarcation line, and plundering the
natives, which he denies. An account of his expedition (summarized,
like the other documents), written by Fray Jerónimo de Santistéban
to the viceroy Mendoza, relates the sufferings of the Spaniards from
hardships, famine, and disease. Of the three hundred and seventy men
who had left New Spain, only one hundred and forty-seven survive to
reach the Portuguese settlements in India. The writer justifies the
acts of Villalobos, and asks the viceroy to provide for his orphaned
children. Another account of this unfortunate enterprise was left
by García Descalante Alvarado, an officer of Villalobos; it also is
written to the viceroy of New Spain and is dated at Lisbon, August 1,
1548. Like Santistéban's, this too is a record of famine and other
privations, the treachery of the natives, and the hostility of the
Portuguese. Finally, a truce is made between the Castilians and