CHAPTER LIX

The erection of some churches, which took place at this time

The religious who were coming to the province, although they had been diminished in number by the savages of Guadalupe, were of great use. They were fourteen in number, and, that they might immediately begin that which they had sought over so many seas and through so many hardships, they were assigned to their duties. The newly-elected provincial took with him four for the province of Nueva Segovia, where at that time the conversions were going on rapidly, because the country was large and nearly all the inhabitants were heathen. When they reached the cape known as Cabo del Bojeador, a place which is ordinarily a difficult one, the provincial saw that a small cloud which covered the peaks of some mountains near there was moving toward the sea, which began to be unquiet and rough. The pilot thought it best that the sails should be lowered somewhat, in order better to resist the attack of the wind and the waves which threatened them. While he was striving to do this, the tempest anticipated him; and the wind came with such force that wind and wave turned the vessel on its side, and the water entered over the sides of the ship. It was necessary for the religious to put their hands to the oars, while the rest went to work, with great difficulty, to get in the sails--nothing being left but the courses, in order to make it possible to steer. Although the amount of sail was so small, the wind was so powerful that, lifting the vessel on one side, it forced the other under the water. The religious repeated the exorcisms against the tempest, upon which it subsided a little; but when the exorcism was completed it came back with as much force as at first, almost capsizing the vessel, and making it ship water. When the exorcism was renewed, the tempest moderated itself anew; but when the exorcism was completed, its fury returned as before. Thus they perceived that this tempest was not merely a tempest of wind and of waves, but was aided by the devil--who at the words of the exorcism lost his strength, and as soon as that ceased received it again, to hinder the ministers of the gospel. Four times they repeated the exorcism, and four times the same thing happened, upon which the father provincial, recognizing the author of this evil, said: "Since I see that ministers are to be given to the villages of the heathen, and that the devil, who unjustly keeps them under his tyranny, is about to be banished from them, I promise to build a church under the patronage of the guardian angels, that they may aid us against this cursed enemy who is so clearly making war against us." As soon as he had made this promise, it seemed that the guardian angels took upon themselves the protection of the fragata; for the tornado began to disappear, and they continued their voyage. On the following day they rounded the cape, by rowing against a slight contrary wind which had arisen; and when this wind had quieted down, the fragata came to some billows where a number of opposing currents met. The waves were so high that the little boat put its side under water. A religious threw into the sea some relics of St. Raymond, repeating the glories of the saint, and the sea was immediately calmed--just as when water boils too violently in the kettle, and a little water is poured into it; and by the kindness of the saint a fair wind was given to them, with which they continued their voyage.

When they reached Nueva Segovia, a minister was provided for the village of Nasiping, which had been accepted ten years before, but for which it had been impossible previously to provide a minister because the supply of them was so scanty. Even now there was so much requiring the attention of the religious, and they were so few, that half a miracle was necessary for the missionary to be given. Father Fray Francisco de la Cruz, or Jurado, [40] was taken dangerously