it is interesting to note that a similar situation occurred in florida. in the middle of 1601, king philip iii, observing the difficulties in maintaining the sparse population of spanish settlers in the face of continued attacks by the native indians (and also noticing the limited amount of agricultural and livestock production), ordered the governor of havana, juan maldonado barnuevo, to send an expedition northwards. the expedition, composed of soldiers and friars under the command of captain don fernando de valdés, was to perform an inspection and determine the cost to the crown of maintaining the province. although the expedition found places in florida that could have been better utilized for colonial establishments, the captain warned that the abandonment of san agustín could harm spain to the benefit of her enemies. finally, the combined efforts of fernando de valdés and other officials such as alonso de las alas, bartolomé de argüelles, juan menéndez marques and the friars who accompanied the expedition (who believed that the indians of florida provided bountiful opportunities for conversion to christianity) proved to be successful in averting the abandonment of florida.