Note 20 — Chapter XXXV

In the year 1693, the mission of Santa Cruz was established at a place called Gumpat, near a visita of Malaveg, called Santa Cruz, whence the mission took its name. It was founded by father Fray Joseph Galfaroso,20 or de la Santissima Trinidad, son of the convent of Pamplona, a man most zealous for the welfare of souls. While vicar of Malaveg, he, not being satisfied with the administration of the said village, made various entrances through the neighboring mountains in search of the heathens who lived in them, in order to lure them to the bosom of our holy faith. Those mountains are rough and broken, and the heathen who inhabit them are very brave, and give the Christian villages much to do with their continual raids and assaults with which they keep them terrified. Among those heathens of the mountain, a chief named Don Joseph Bucayu, who was the terror of all those mountains and of the neighboring villages, was prominent for his valor and courage, and was feared by all. This man God wished to take as the instrument for the foundation of that mission, for with the authority and respect that all had for him, he could attract many to his side, and taking example from him whom they considered their leader, many should embrace our holy faith.