Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1915-03-14
The History of Nebraska
~ A. Z. SHELDON

Indians had dogs TO pull their tents from
place TO place and had never seen horses
until the Spaniards came. The Spanish
army saw for the first time the American
buffalo. None OF these Indians who
hunted the cows had ever heard OF the
rich land OF Quivlra with its gold and
silver. its great canoes and It's king. Here
THE two guides began TO tell different
stories and confessed that the houses in
Quivira were not quite SO large as they
had said and the people not so rich.
Coronado and his army had eaten all
the corn they had brought with them for
food The land of Quivira was still said
to be far to tho north. A council was held
and 1t was determined to send the army
back to the Rio Grande, while Coronado
with thirty horsemen and two guides
pushed on to find Quivira- So the army
went back and Coronado with his thirty
men travelled on. eating nothing but buff
/ falo meat. After crossing great river,
supposed to be the Arkansas, they came
to the country of Quivlra, forty-two days
after parting from the army, or seventy
seven days after leaving the Rio Grande.
Coronado says in his letter to the king
OF Spain: Where ] reached Quivira IL
was in the fortieth degree (of latitude)."
The fortieth degree forms the state line
between Nebraska and KansaA This
would make Quivira in the Republican
valley. Coronado found no gold, no silver,
no bells tinkling from tho trees. no fishes
| big as horses and no boats with golden
prows. He found Indians living in grass
huts, growing corn and beans and melons,
eating raw buffalo meat and cutting 1t
with stone knives. There were twenty
five of these grass hut villages and the
only metal seen in them was piece or
copper worn by a chief around his neck.
Coronado went on for seventy-five miles
| through the villages OF Quivira and
came to the country called Harahey. The
chief of Harahey met them with 200
men. all naked. with bows and arrows
and Some sort of things on their heads
which probably means the way they put
UP their hair, and suggests that they
were Pawnees. Here the Turk confessed
he had lied to tho Spaniards about the
riches Of Quivira In order TO lead the
army off on the traclkless plains, where
1t would perish. 1--WE strangled him that
night 80 that he never walked up" Is the
way one of the Spaniards tells the story
Of what happened TO the Turk.
Coronado spent a month in Quivira and
Harahey. He wrote that the country was
the best he had seen since leaving spain.
for the land was very fat and black and
well watered with Tivulets and springs
and rivers. He found nuts and plums and
very good sweet grapes and mulbefries
TO eat, and plenty OF grass and Wild flax
ana surnach The spanierds held a council
and resolved to go back TO Mexico. FOR
they feared trying 10 winter in tho coun-
try so far from the rest Of the army So
Coronado raised a great cross and at
the foot OF It he made some letters with
a chisel, which said that Francisco
lVasquez de Coronado. general of the
army, had arrived there. The Spaniards
then marched away in the month OF
August, 1B4l. almost 400 years ago. and
left the land OF ouivira with it's fat, black
soil, It's beautiful rivulets and springs
and rivers, its great prairies Of grass and
its nuts. plums. good sweet grapes and
mulberries, its queer cows with bumped
backs and Its Indians living in grass huts
and eating raw buffalo meat And no one
has yet found the great cross the Span
lizards raised with the name Of Coronado
upon It. Nor has any one yet found the
tree covered with golden bells under
which Tatarrax. the great king OF Out
vira, sleeps, lulled by the music OF the
bells