From thence they
were sent by ship to Europe, and the great social structure they had
erected fell forthwith to the ground.
The districts which had formerly been occupied by the mission Indians
became after a while practically depopulated, and the Portuguese,
remarking this state of affairs, decided that the moment was favourable
for aggression. Thus, in 1801, Portuguese troops from the town of San
Pedro advanced against the Spanish port on the western shore of the Lake
Patos, whilst others advanced towards the River Prado.
The majority of these invaders appear to have been more or less of the
freebooting order. One of the most notable bodies was commanded by Jose
Borges do Canto, who assembled a small army of forty men, which he armed
at his own expense. Learning that the Indians, bereft now of their
Jesuit Fathers and discontented with the Spanish rule, would take the
first opportunity of rising against the Spaniards, he determined to
push on towards the site of the old missions.
At San Miguel the band of desperadoes came across an entrenchment manned
by Spaniards. These, entirely deceived as to the real importance of the
force which attacked them, retired after the exchange of a few shots,
and capitulated on condition of permission to retreat unmolested.
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