Arizona silver belt., 1895-09-14
rAn,Y EXPLORATIONS er ARIZONA.
And Description of ,he San Xavier mlssiou
 Church.

he says, troyersed tho continent from the Texas coast to California in 1856, but probably did not go us far north | as Arizona. However, his reports of the populous towns which the natives told him lay north of his route, excited 1 great interest in the Spanish provinces of Mexico, and expeditions were plan ned to explore the unknown country, but none were carried out until the year 1589, when Fray Marcos dc Nizo organized an expedition, accompanied by Francisco Yasquez de Coronado
 Niza sent negro Franciscan friar, named Estayauico, ahead of him into the territory that is HOW Arizona. Es. tayanico pushed north, sending runners back to the main company of explorers with wonderful stories of the natural wealth of the country and of it's inhab itants. Estavanico was well received by the natives until he reached one of the famed seven cities of Cibola, the home of the Zunis, where he was met with hostile demonstration, and he and most of his companions finally killed
 Arizona was explored by Christians, therefore, either l94 or 18l years (ac, cording to which statement is Gccepted) before the landing of the Pilgrims on the coast of Massachusetts.
 The subjugation of the natives must be credited to the Jesuit and Fran oiscan missionaries, who were the path finders for the military expeditions which followed them. To these mis- siouaries we are indebted for tho most reliable historical data of that early period, sud for interesting relics and architectural monuments which are not less valuable to the antiquarian than the written records.
 The most important and best pre-. served of the old missions in the South west is, perhaps, San Xavier del Bao, nine miles south of TGcson. The lnis. sion is supposed to have been estab- lished by the Jesuits, for the Papagos, about the year 1894 and Q small adobe church occupied shc site where stands the present structure, begun about the year 17s3 and completed iu l797. The Jesuits were expelled in l767 and the Franciscan friars were
 placed in charge of the missions in
 Sonora.
 X sketch of the Mission of San
 Xavier del Bae, by q missionary of , Arizona, gives very good description
 of the church. The edifce belongs to the Moorish style. On the fronGs.
 piece, which shows the full width of
 the church with its two towers, in low
 relief. is the ecoat-of-arms ofthe order of
 St. Francis of Assisi, founder of the
 Franciscan Order. It consists of au
 escutcheon, with white ground filled
 in wiih twisted cord (a part of the
 Franciscan Gress) and cro.s oh which
 are nailed one arm of the Savior and
 one of St. Francis, representing the
 union of the disciple with tho Divine Master in charity and the love of sui,
 fering. On the right side of the es- cutcheon is the monogram of Jesus tue
 Savior of men, and that of tho Blessed Virgin Mary on the left The life-size statue of St. Francis that surmounted s the frontispiece, has decayod and fallen @ away.
 , The church, built of stone and brick , is 1O5x27 feet inside Che wallis Ih form is that of cross, the transepl forming on each side of the nave [ U chapel of twenty-one feet square The . nave is divided into six portions, marked by as many arches, each resting on two . pillars set against the walls, support ing the roof, which is of brick ant c cement three feet thick. Above the tran sept is cupola fifty feet in elevation ! The main walls of the church are tc
 feet thick.
 '- As you face the altar, there is on the o right wall fresco representing the ,- coming of the Holy Ghost upon thu T disciples, and on the opposite wall d picture, also in fresco, of the Las e Supper, These paintings measure - about 9x5 feet each.
 In the first chapel to the right art 8 the two altars, one facing the nave witt l. the image of Our Lady of Sorrows ,- standing at the foot of large eros
 which is deeply engraved in the wall l. and the other with the image of thu n Immaculate Conception. In the sam,
 chapel are two frescoes representing 70 Our Lady of tho Rosary, and the Hid den Life of Our Savior. The opposit
 chapel is also adorned with two altars
 one dedicated to the Passion of Gu
 Lord, and the other to St. Joseph ,e Also, the two paintings: Our Lady o st the Pillar, and the Presentation 9 'd Our Lord in the Temple.
 is The main altar, which stands at th to head of the church facing the nave, i 'g dedicated to St. Francis Xavier, tn i l, patron saint Above the image of St |. Francis Xavier is that of the Hol,