selves a wide range, alone carried the
knowledge of them to the four winds. In every tribe, too, there are born
travellers who constantly visit distant regions, bringing back detailed
descriptions of their adventures and the sights beheld, with which to
regale an admiring crowd during the winter evenings. Their descriptions
are usually fairly accurate from the standpoint of their own
understanding. In this case the native gave a good description of the
Cibola towns, and the Tusayan people had meanwhile given Cardenas a
description of these very natives on the lower Colorado. A day or two
later Alarcon received further information of Cibola, and this informant
told about a chief who had four green earthen plates like Alarcon's,
except in color, and also a dog like Alarcon's, as well as other things,
which a black man had brought into the country. This black man was
Estevan, who had been killed about a year before. The news of this man
and his execution had travelled rapidly, showing frequent intercourse
with the pueblos beyond the mountains. Still farther on he met another
man who had been at Cibola, and who also told him of a great river in
which there were crocodiles. This was the Mississippi, of course, and
the crocodiles were alligators. As Alarcon had never seen an alligator
he took the description to mean crocodile. A little farther and he heard
of the negro Estevan again and the reason why the Cibolans had killed
him, which was to prevent the Spaniards, whom he described, from finding
their way into the Cibola country. This man also described the bison and
a people who lived in painted tents in summer and in winter in houses of
wood two or three storeys high. And thus the expedition continued up the
river, inquiring as they went on all subjects. On September 6th the old
man who had been a particular friend and interpreter was called on shore
by the natives, and there was immediately an animated discussion which
Alarcon discovered related to himself. Information had come from Cibola
that there were there men like these Spaniards who said they were
Christians. These had been warlike, and it was proposed to kill all of
Alarcon's party to prevent the others from gaining a knowledge of this
country. But the old man declared Alarcon to be the son of the sun
and took his part. Finally it was decided to ask him whether he were a
Christian or the son of the sun. Alarcon pretended great wonder at men
like himself being at Cib