A Description of a Mission
This is part of an official report on Texa3 missions made in 1762. This describes the mission San Antonio de Valero, now knownas the Alamo, at San Antonio. It shows what an extensive enterprise the mission settlements were, a Documentos para la hiatoria de la Provlncla de Texas-.- Translated by Miss Rather of the School of History of the University of ?exa3.
"In this province are some beautiful springs. So great is the volume of water which they send forth, that within a short distance a river of considerable size is formed.	This stream, called the San Antonio, runs	from
north to south. West of it, and one league below the springs, stand the town of San Fernando and the presidio of San Antonio. Across the river on its eastern bank and about two gunshots from the presidio is the mission of ban Antonio de Valero. This mission was founded on the first day of
May, 1-|18, by order of the most excellent Marquis of Valero. It was the first which the college of the Holy Cross, in its zeal for the salvation of the natives, planted in the province of Texas.
'The records show that since its foundation seventeen hundred and ninety-two persons have been baptized. At present there are seventy-six families here, which, counting widows and widowers, orphans and other childred, comprise two hundred and seventy-five persons.
,l7he settlement contains a convent fifty yards square, with arcades above and below. In the convent are the living rooms of the religious, the porter's lodge, the dining-room, the kitchen and the offices. All these rooms are adorned with sacred ornaments and furnished with such articles as are needed by the religious for their own use and for supplying the Indians .
>'ln the second court is a room large enough for four looms. Upon these loom3 are made coarse cloths, embroidered cotton shawls, blankets, and other common fabrics of wool and cotton needed to supply and properly clothe the Indians. Adjoining this room are two others in which they keep the
stock of wool, cotton, combs, skeins, spindles, cards, and otier things