Conjugal Violence, Sex, Sin, and Murder in the Mission Communities of Alta California

Abstract

ON THE EVENING OF 16 NOVEMBER 1811 Fray Jose Pedro Panto (1778-1812) retired for the evening to enjoy his evening meal at Mission San Diego. After consuming a small portion of his dinner, he noticed that his soup tasted unusually spicy and bitter. He also noticed that it contained a white, cloudy powder. The concerned friar drank a glass of tepid water and proceeded to vomit for a very long half hour. Afterward, Fray Panto asked Corporal Antonio Guillen and Sergeant Mariano Mercado to examine the soup. They also noted the soup's bitter and peculiar taste.' Civil proceedings conducted by Spanish authorities in the weeks following brought many of the circumstances related to this event to light. The authorities identified Nazario, Fray Panto's servant, as the primary suspect. During the proceedings Fray Panto testified that he was not aware of what had provoked his servant's actions. Nazario was not a mission neophyte who possessed a bad heart, he stated. On the contrary, he considered Nazario to be a passive and peaceful Indian. Sergeant Mariano Mercado gave additional testimony that confirmed Panto's favorable impressions of Nazario, adding that Nazario had never injured any of his previous masters. But he did reveal that Fray Panto had given his servant twenty-five lashes (azotes) days earlier. He did not believe such a light punishment would have caused any resentment toward the friar, Sergeant Mercado added.2