Whilst Ychoalay was vainly seeking assistance in every quarter, Debayakaikin conducted his forces with all possible secrecy towards the south, but did not precipitate his assault on the colony, choosing rather to make use of craft. He sent forward some of his people with a commission to spread a report, that Debayakaikin did not intend attempting any thing against the colony of St. Jeronymo, but that the savage Mocobios purposed an immediate assault on the town of Concepcion, which was ten leagues distant from that of Jeronymo, and inhabited by the Abipones under the authority of Alaykin. Debayakaikin had two reasons for spreading these fictitious reports. The first was, that, as soon as the inhabitants of St. Jeronymo understood themselves to be out of danger of an attack, the Christian Mocobios, who acted as guards, would be sent back to their town of St. Xavier. The other was, that the Abipones of the town of Concepcion, whilst in hourly expectation of a hostile attack at home, would not be able even to think of succouring the inhabitants of St. Jeronymo against Debayakaikin. In both points the stratagem succeeded entirely to his wish. It is worth while to give a relation of the whole event, of which I myself was a spectator. The colony of St. Jeronymo had scarcely more than a thousand head of kine remaining, the bulls being almost all consumed; and of this number the greatest part of the cows were either with young, or engaged in giving suck, to spare which the Fathers requested my companion and myself, then residing in the town of Concepcion, to send them two hundred bullocks for the support of the Indians, dispatching Raphael de los Rios, the guard of their estate, to carry the beasts away. That this business might be properly conducted, I resolved to accompany the guards of the cattle myself. When everything was in readiness for the journey, I observed the Abipones running up and down the streets armed with arrows, and heard one of them charge my companion Sanchez, in the name of Alaykin, to have his musket in readiness, as their enemies the Mocobios were expected about evening. The road I was going being that which would be taken by the Mocobios, my companion endeavoured to persuade me to defer my journey, but could not succeed with one who despised these vague reports, as they proved to be, for we did not meet so much as the enemy's shadow the whole morning. On entering St. Jeronymo I spied Fathers Francisco Navalon and Joseph Klein: Joseph Brigniel and Ychoalay were at that time absent, being still intent upon procuring subsidies in the city of Sta. Fè. The next day, which was Sunday, at Father Navalon's urgent request, the Caciques of the Abipones and Mocobios deliberated on what was best to be done. The presence of the Mocobios contributed much towards the safety of the town; but as those guards daily consumed a great quantity of beef, tobacco, salt, and the herb of Paraguay, they were deemed ruinous to the public stores;