Greetings Cactusjumper and everyone,
Cactusjumper wrote:
You will need to bring a direct quote from one of my posts, where I have demanded anything.
Perhaps you misread my statement, which said "virtually demand" which was only my way of stating that you had
asked for documents which would be absolute and undeniable proof. "Demand" not as in putting down a fist and shouting "gimme" but as in asking.
Cactusjumper also wrote:
The debate, as I understand it, is: Did the Jesuits, as an order, practice mining in the New World? Did they take the fruits of that labor and horde a vast treasure which they eventually were forced to hide/bury somewhere.
I have repeatedly stated as clearly as I can put it, that I am NOT saying the Jesuit order practiced mining, but that INDIVIDUALS did. So perhaps I have labored (and publicly posted information I would prefer
NOT to have) under the mis-conception that the debate was that ANY and ALL Jesuits NEVER did any kind of mining. As to hiding a vast treasure, I would expect this would be in Rome, not Arizona. However, if there were proceeds being accumulated while awaiting trans-shipment to Rome, it makes sense to conceal them from the danger of Apache/Seri attack as well as robbers; such shipments would not necessarily be revealed to Spanish authorities, especially considering the treatment Spanish colonists gave Amerindians. I do not see this as some kind of "evil" on the part of the Jesuits, even IF it were under the direction of the Order, in fact it might have been to prevent even
more evil from being committed by the Spanish.
Cactusjumper also wrote:
In our particular debate, that somewhere is the Superstition Mountains of Arizona? You should keep in mind, that the charges are that the Jesuit Order was involved in these activities and by extension the Vatican.
I have seen nothing that convinces
me of ANY Jesuit presence or activity in the Superstition mountains of Arizona, nor in fact of any other Order. As this discussion is actually within the Tayopa sub-board, I think we can trace this 'transferral' into the Superstitions to one of our mutual friends here, as it appears that anything that might be connectable MUST be connected in the minds of some researchers.
IF the mining activity was under the direction of the Society of Jesus, it stands to reason this was under direction of the Pope. It is
not proven (in my eyes) that the mining activity was under the direction of the Society, but IF it were, it is reasonable to assume that the Pope had need of the proceeds. The period we are speaking of was not one of static peace everywhere, but of violent upheavals and threats from Islam, which required vast financial assets to fight and protect Christianity.
Cactusjumper also wrote:
Did they also enslave the natives to work in those mines, causing or being a part of causing a number of bloody uprisings?
Again, as a GROUP I would state NO, they did not enslave the natives, in fact the Jesuits are famous for having defended and protected Amerindians from slavers. However, making use of Amerindian labor to work on the rancherias owned by the missions is well documented, and of their labor (in at least one case) for mining, in a mine owned by a Jesuit. To the Amerindian having to do this work, it may have SEEMED the same thing as slavery, and we do know that the Jesuits made use of the Spanish army to bring Amerindians in to the missions. Many are aware of the explorations of the Jesuits such as father Kino, but few are aware that in almost every case, they were accompanied by a military escort. How do you suppose this was viewed by the native peoples? It does appear (to me) that some INDIVIDUAL Jesuits mistreated the Amerindians under their charge (resulting in the death of a pregnant Amerindian woman in one case) and this was a direct cause of the bloody uprising(s).
Cactusjumper also wrote:
Did they build smelters adjacent to the mission church's to process the ore from those mines? As part of that last question.....Were they stupid men?
It is apparent from the evidence that smelting was indeed done directly adjacent to the mission churches. Were they
stupid men? Obviously this would vary
greatly between INDIVIDUALS, as it does in any group to be found. Probably
some were highly intelligent, while
some might have been of lessor intellectual abilities.
Cactusjumper also wrote:
Can the offers of "proof" supporting such things be explained with simplicity and logic?
One can 'explain away' virtually ANYTHING that could be produced concerning activities which took place well over 200 years ago, through re-interpretation and alternative theories, and failing that, through sophistry. (I once put forth an argument that the Amerindians actually WON the so-called "Indian wars" as can be pointed to by the numerous language adaptations, food products, our form of government, even the percentage of Americans today who claim to be of Amerindian ancestry.

)
Cactusjumper also wrote:
As you are searching for the "demand" information,<snip>
You have included yet another
indirect request for more documentation to challenge, in this same post:
I expect I will continue to test/question each and every document, story/legend......etc
I
do in fact have "more" and possibly it
would be exactly what you desire, but I can not and will not post everything I have; this information was obtained with some difficulty and
many hours of diligent research. It is also "sensitive" in details, concerning the location of certain 'lost' mines which have been as yet undiscovered. Therefore, I must plead 'fifth amendment' for several reasons, one of which being how easily such information would be misconstrued by some of our fellow treasure hunters, into a very distorted idea of the Jesuits and mining activity.
I would also point out that
some of the documents from the Spanish colonial era, and specifically from the Jesuit period, have been lost. For example, in an 1891 article in the New York Times newspaper, writing about the sad state of Mission San Xavier, the reporter said, quote:
The first time I visited the place, in 1867, the presiding priest showed me a manuscript book, in which were recorded marriages and baptisms in 1730. I gave him $10 for two leaves, one of which I placed under the cornerstone of a new high school in Los Angeles Cal., about seventeen years ago, and the other I gave to the Hon. R. C. McCormick, who was at the time Governor of Arizona.
(WHOOPS forgot to cite source: March 1, 1891 - BEN C. TRUMAN, NY Times later edit)
What we have TODAY is only a FRACTION of what documents actually existed in the 1700s, so for us to find ANY remaining is actually surprising.
Don Jose de La Mancha wrote:
p.s I lived with theYaquis for 3-4 years. i know their land and the Bacatetes better than they do .
You have confirmed my suspicion about you, mi amigo. I do not doubt what you say. Good luck and good hunting to you Cactusjumper and everyone, I hope you find the treasures that you seek.
your friend,
Oroblanco