Pierre Mallet’s third expedition to Nuevo México differed from his earlier ones, and not only in its outcome. When he came in 1739, he and his men were Canadians whose views of trade were those of the coureurs de bois: a simple exchange of goods that profited both sides.
When he returned in late 1750, he came from New Orleans where the plantation economy was based on African slavery. André Fabry de la Bruyère had promoted tobacco in the 1740s, but some growers had switched to indigo. Mallet’s supporters intimated, "if the Spaniards wanted negroes, they would send as many as needed to open the road against any enemies that might be in the vicinity."
When Mallet arrived the first time, he was a novelty that posed no threat. The alcalde personally boarded him and his party.
When he appeared the next time, the reputation of all Frenchmen had been sullied by Louis Moreau who had been executed for inciting rebellion against the kingdom by captives. Mallet didn’t know this and innocently carried a "letter addressed to Morenne who lives in the vicinity of the Santa Fé." The governor, Tomás Vélez Cachupín, had him and his men arrested, and their goods impounded.
Mallet’s first expedition had no recorded sponsors, though one presumes the commander at Fort de Chartres had approved his party’s departure. This trip was the idea of Louis-Xavier de Lino. He commanded Arkansas Post in the early 1750s where Mallet and his brother Paul had settled. Lino was related to the new governor of the territory, Pierre Rigaud. Abraham Nasatir said, he took Mallet to New Orleans to meet his kinsmen. He noted, no official funds were available, but he suspected both officials "may have invested privately in the expedition."
In his deposition, Mallet admitted he had support this time from some merchants. He left with a letter "for a merchant of the city, written by Monsieur Duran, a very rich man, and Monsieur Fuillet, also a wealthy man." The Mississippi port by then had a number of merchants, large and small, who traded in goods purchased from vessels and from planters’ crops. I haven’t found these particular names, though Duran may have been an agent specializing in tobacco.
Mallet left no record of the goods he intended to trade from Illinois country. What we know of his merchandise the next time is fragmentary. Vélez apparently was more interested in removing him from the kingdom, than investigating his packs. The surviving inventory was made by Bernardo Miera y Pacheco, who was appointed alcalde at Pecos by the next governor, Francisco Marín, in 1756.
Some goods on Miera’s list were odd: an old cloth hood, an old and torn scarf, a damaged petticoat of old chintz, an old striped smock, and some very badly worn overcoats. Although it was possible the city merchants were disposing of unsellable inventory, it seems more likely that people snuck into the pueblo store room, took things, and left whatever wasn’t useful to make the packages look untouched.
Other items were described as damaged. This may have been because Mallet’s party was stopped by the Comanche who "opened all our merchandise, taking pieces of wool and calico" or things may have been stored poorly.
Also, it was possible the New Orleans merchants were less than scrupulous, or it may have been Miera was denigrating some things so he or Marín’s could declare them worthless. Then, one or the other might have been permitted to take the salvage for resale.
As a result of repeated depredations, the inventory found by Miera may have represented those items with the least use in the pueblos and settlements, and not what was perceived as goods for trade by Mallet. Like the calico and wool, the most desired items may have disappeared.
Much of what survived was piece goods that required a tailor or dressmaker to convert into clothing. These included heavy nankeen, cambrics and brittany, all of which were made from cotton or cotton mixes. The merchants also sent papers of buttons, measures of thread and 156 sewing needles. The last were described as "worn."
John Garretson Clark observed that after normal shipping had resumed after the end of War of Austrian Succession, "a certain amount of opulence and splendor clothed New Orleans, evidenced by an increasing demand for luxury items, especially among the planters. Women dressed in high style."
The inclusion in the load of more luxurious taffetas and unembroidered silks reflected this taste, as did the black beaver hats, women’s linen blouses, and pairs of stockings for men and women. The two old shirt fronts with silver bottons were anomalous, because one can’t imagine anyone not keeping the buttons from old clothing.
The list of personal property owned by Mallet taken by Joseph Manuel Morales may have been more honest. Since Angélico Chávez didn’t mention him in his Origins of New Mexico Families, it’s impossible to know when the inventory was made.
Still, we know, that, in addition to blankets and saddles and the other impedimenta for using horses for transportation through open land, Mallet had a "bison hide overcoat," a flask, "three firearms, two of which are fusils, and one a shotgun," a small sword and a bag of rope. He also carried a copper pot, "a handmill and three chocolate cups."
Since there were four men in the party, the others may have carried the utensils needed for cooking and eating in the wild.
Notes: Mallet’s first expedition and Moreau were discussed in the post for 9 March 2016. For more on the importance of indigo in these years, see the post for 16 January 2011 on mercantilism in South Carolina. Lino’s full name was Louis-Xavier Martin de Lino de Chalmette. Pierre Rigaud also was known as the Marquis de Vaudreuil
Blakeslee, Donald J. Along Ancient Trails, 1995.
Chávez, Angélico. Origins of New Mexico Families, 1992 revised edition.
Clark, John Garretson. New Orleans, 1718-1812: An Economic History, 1970; includes a chapter on New Orleans merchants in this period.
Mallet, Pierre. Letter dictated to Tomás Vélez Cachupín, governor and captain-general; translation in Blakeslee. Negro is lower case in the original text.
Miera y Pacheco, Bernardo. List of Pierre Mallet’s goods; translation in Blakeslee.
_____. Memorial on his own background, manuscript in Edward A. Ayer Collection, Newberry Library; cited by Chávez.
Morales, Joseph Manuel. List of Pierre Mallet’s personal property; translation in Blakeslee.
Nasatir, A. P. "Mallet, Pierre Antoine," in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, volume 3, 1974.
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