said
pueblo was only one of seven, and the "Seven Cities of Cibola"
became the next object of Spanish conquest.

It is not our purpose here to describe the events of this
conquest, or rather series of conquests, beginning with the
expedition of Francisco Vasquez Coronado in 1540, and
ending in the final occupation of New Mexico by Juan de
Onate in 1598. For the history of these enterprises, we refer
the reader to the attractive and trustworthy work of Mr.
W. W. H. Davis.[27] But the numerous reports and other documents
concerning the conquest enable us to form an idea
of the ethnography and linguistical distribution of the Indians
of New Mexico in the sixteenth century. Upon this
knowledge alone can a study of the present ethnography
and ethnology of New Mexico rest on a solid historical foundation.

There can be no doubt that Cibola is to be looked for in
New Mexico. From the vague indications of Fray Marcos,
we are at least authorized to place it within the limits of New
Mexico or Arizona, and the subsequent expedition of Coronado
furnishes more positive information.

Coronado marched--"leaving north slightly to the left"[28]--from
Culiacan on. In other words, he marched east of
north. Hence it is to be inferred that Cibola lay nearly north
of Culiacan in Sinaloa. Juan Jaramillo has left the best itinerary
of this expedition. We can easily identify the following
localities: Rio Cinaloa, upper course, Rio Yaquimi, and upper
course of the Rio Sonora.[29] Thence a mountain chain was
crossed called "Chichiltic-Calli,"[30] or "Red-house" (a Mexican
name), and a large ruined structure of the Indians was
found there.

Within the last forty years at least, this "Red house" has
been repeatedly identified with the so-called "Casas Grandes,"
lying to the south of the Rio Gila in Arizona.[31] It should not
be forgotten that from the upper course of the Rio Sonora
_two_ groups of Indian pueblos in ruins were within reach of
the Spaniards. One of these were the ruins on the Gila, the
other lay to the right, across the Sierra Madre, in the present
district of Bravos, State of Chihuahua, Mexico. Jaramillo
states that Coronado crossed the mountains to the _right_.[32] Now,
whether the "Nexpa," whose stream the expedition descended
for two days, is the Rio Santa Cruz or the Rio San Pedro, their
course after they once crossed the Sierra could certainly not
have led them to the "great houses" on the Rio Gila, but
much farther e