The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898

 Explorations by early navigators, descriptions of the islands and their peoples, their history and records of the catholic missions, as related in contemporaneous books and manuscripts, showing the political, economic, commercial and religious conditions of those islands from their earliest relations with European nations to the close of the nineteenth century, Volume XXXVI, 1649-1666

 Edited and annotated by Emma Helen Blair and James Alexander Robertson with historical introduction and additional notes by Edward Gaylord Bourne. 

CONTENTS OF VOLUME XXXVI

 Preface 9

 Documents of 1649-1658

 Royal funeral rites at Manila. [Unsigned;] Manila, 1649. 23 Royal aid for Jesuits asked by Manila cabildo. Matheo de Arceo, and others; Manila, June 20, 1652. 44 Condition of the Philippines in 1652. Magino Sola, S. J. ; September 16, 1652. 49 Jesuit missions in 1655. Miguel Solana, S. J. ; San Pedro, June 30, 1655. 53 Letter from the archbishop of Manila to Felipe IV. Miguel de Poblete; Manila, July 30, 1656. 63 Two Jesuit memorials, regarding religious in the Moluccas, and the Inquisition. Francisco Vello, S. J. ; [Madrid, 1658]. 68 Jesuit protest against the Dominican university. Miguel Solana, S. J. ; [1658?]. 74 Description of the Philipinas Islands. [Ygnacio de Paz; Mexico, ca. 1658]. 87

 Documents of 1660-1666

 Recollect missions, 1646-60. Luis de Jesús and Diego de Santa Theresa, O. S. A. , (Recollect); [compiled from their works]. 109 Description of Filipinas Islands. Bartholomé de Letona, O. S. F. ; La Puebla, Mexico, 1662. 189 Events in Manila, 1662-63. [Unsigned; July, 1663?]. 218 Letter to Francisco Yzquierdo. Diego de Salcedo; Manila, July 16, 1664. 261 Why the friars are not subjected to episcopal visitation. [Unsigned and undated; 1666?]. 264

 Appendix: Judicial conditions in the Philippines in 1842 279

 Bibliographical Data 307

ILLUSTRATIONS

 Map of Philippine and Ladrone Islands; photographic facsimile of map by Sansón d'Abbeville ([Paris?], 1652); from copy in Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris. Facing p. 50

 Map of Cavite, with proposed fortifications, by the engineer Juan de Somovilla Tejada; photographic facsimile from original MS. (dated 1663) in Archivo general de Indias, Sevilla. 93

 Chart of the island of Luzón, with some of the smaller islands, drawn by a Dutch artist, ca. 1650; photographic facsimile of original MS. Map in the British Museum. 191

 Birds-eye view of bay of Cavite, showing towns, fortifications, etc. , by the engineer Richard Carr (in employ of the Dutch), captured in Madrid; photographic facsimile from original MS. (dated 1663), in Archivo general de Indias, Sevilla. 215

PREFACE

The present volume, covering the years 1649-66, is mainlyecclesiastical in scope. An appendix, showing the judicial stateof the islands in 1842, is added. A number of the documents arefrom Jesuit sources, or treat of the affairs of that order. Amongthese are an account of the Jesuit missions in the islands, and theirprotest against the erection of the Dominican college at Manila into auniversity. The archdiocese of Manila strives to gain more authority, both in the outlying islands of the Eastern Archipelago and over theadministration of parishes by the regular orders; and effort is made tostrengthen the power of the tribunal of the Inquisition at Manila. Thequestion of episcopal visitation of the regular curas is already vital, and the later conflicts over this question are plainly foreshadowed, and even begun. The history of the Recollect missions for the aboveperiod shows their prosperous condition until the time when so manyof their laborers die that the work is partially crippled. As forsecular affairs, the most important is the Chinese revolt, of 1662;this and other disturbances greatly hinder and injure the prosperityof the islands. 

Reverting to the separate documents: a curious pamphlet (Manila, 1649)describes the funeral ceremonies recently solemnized in that city inhonor of the deceased crown prince of Spain, Baltasar Carlos. Solemnand magnificent rites are celebrated, both civil and religious; anda funeral pyre, or chapelle ardente, is erected in the royal militarychapel, the splendors of which are minutely described. 

The Manila cabildo send a letter (June 20, 1652) to the king, praisingthe work of the Jesuits in the Philippines, and urging the king tosend thither more men of that order. Their services as confessors, preachers, missionaries, and peacemakers are recounted, and theirpoverty is urged; they are sending an envoy to Spain, to ask forroyal aid, a request supported by the cabildo. 

The Jesuit Magino Sola represents, in a memorial (September 15, 1652)to Governor Manrique de Lara, the needs of the Philippine Islands. Thegreatest of these is men and arms; and with these must be providedmoney to pay the soldiers. Sola enumerates the many misfortunes whichhave reduced the islands to poverty, and urges that the aid sent fromMexico be greatly increased. 

An account of the Jesuit missions in the islands in 1655 is furnishedby Miguel Solana, by command of Governor Manrique de Lara. Heenumerates the villages administered by Jesuits, with the names ofthe priests in charge. To this we append a similar report, made theyear before, enumerating the missions in Mindanao and the populationof each. 

The archbishop of Manila, Miguel Poblete, writes to the king (July30, 1656), making some suggestions regarding diocesan affairs: thatthe bishopric of Camarines be discontinued, and its prelate assignedto the Moro and heathen peoples farther south; and that ministersbe sent from Manila to outlying islands for their spiritual aid, as thus far these have been dependent on Goa. Poblete asks whetherhe shall ordain Portuguese priests who come to him for this office;on this point the royal Council ask for further information. 

Two memorials presented (1658) by the Jesuits to the king ask thata tribunal of the Inquisition be established at Manila, and thatthe religious jurisdiction of Ternate be vested in the archbishopof Manila. 

A memorial to the king is presented (1658?) by Miguel Solana, procurator-general at Madrid for the Jesuits of Filipinas, protesting against the erection of Santo Tomás college at Manilainto a university, claiming that this will interfere with the rightsalready granted to the Jesuit college of San Ignacio there. Solanaaccuses the Dominicans of trickery and bribery in having obtainedprivileges for Santo Tomás; and maintains that the rights of hisorder have been legally granted and authenticated, while the claimsof the Dominicans are mere assertions. Nevertheless, the latter arescheming to secure new letters and bulls granting their pretensions;Solana adduces various arguments to show that they should not beallowed the privileges of a university in Santo Tomás, and thatsuch a foundation should rather be made in San Ignacio, which "willbe subject in all things to the behest and commands of your Majestyand your Council. " The king is asked to examine certain documents inthe case, which show that the students of Santo Tomás are obligedto swear allegiance to the doctrines taught by Aquinas, and arenot allowed to teach other branches than philosophy and theology;moreover, that college has "no teachers who are acquainted with thefirst principles" of medicine and law; and the curious statement ismade that there is no graduate physician in the Philippine Islands, since one could not obtain a living, and the sick are treated byChinese. There is no need and no room there for a regular university, and the burden of its support should not be imposed on the treasury;but, if one be founded, it should be in San Ignacio. 

From a document of 1658 relating to the Inquisition we extract adescription of the Philippines, written in Mexico from data furnishedby the Jesuit Magino Sola. It outlines very briefly the government ofManila, civil and ecclesiastical; mentions the convents, hospitals, and other public institutions there; and enumerates the villages ofthat archbishopric, with mention of the missions conducted thereinby the several orders. Similar information is given about the townsand villages of the suffragan bishoprics; and the location, extent, government, and missions of the principal islands in the archipelago, including the Moluccas. At the end is a statement regarding the numberof commissaries of the Inquisition who are needed in the islands. 

The Recollect historian Luis de Jesús relates in his Historia(Madrid, 1681) the holy life and death (1646) of Isabel, a nativebeata of Mindanao; and the foundation in 1647, in the City of Mexico, of a hospice for the shelter and accommodation of the Recollects whopass through that city on their way to Filipinas. The history of thediscalced Augustinians for the decade 1651-60 is found in the Historiaof Fray Diego de Santa Theresa (Barcelona, 1743), a continuation ofthe work begun by Andrés de San Nicolas and Luis de Jesús; such part asrelates to the Philippines is here presented (partly in synopsis). Itbegins with the troubles of 1647 in the Recollect mission at Tándag, inMindanao, when its convent was destroyed by the military authorities, as dangerous to the fort at that place in case the convent wereoccupied by an invading enemy. Accusations against the Recollectmissionary there are sent to the king, who warns the provincial of thatorder to see that his religious aid the civil government in keepingthe natives pacified. Santa Theresa here prints letters from the civiland ecclesiastical authorities at Manila, praising in high terms theRecollect missionaries in the islands and their great services inall directions, and asking royal aid for them in their great poverty. The life of Fray Pedro de San Joseph is sketched. In the village ofLinao, Mindanao, a revolt occurs (1651) among the natives, which isrelated in detail; it arises from an order issued by Governor Faxardorequisitioning from each of the islands a number of native carpentersfor the government service at Manila. A Manobo chief, named Dabáo, fans the flame of discontent among the converted natives of Linao, and by a stratagem brings conspirators into the fort, who kill nearlyall the Spaniards. Troops are sent to that region who punish severelyeven the natives who surrender; and the people, although overawed, are filled with resentment. The Recollect missionaries do much toaid the natives, overlooking the fact that the latter had killed oneof those fathers; and one of them, "Padre Capitan, " secures an orderfrom the Audiencia liberating all the Indians who had been enslavedin consequence of the above revolt. This is followed by a sketchof Fray Santa María's life; he was slain by the insurgents in thatsame year. The writer recounts the difficulties met by the Recollectprovince of Filipinas, and the coming to Manila (1652) of a body ofRecollect missionaries. The lives of many of these are sketched. 

Considerable space is devoted to the subjection of religious to theepiscopal visitation, when they act as parish priests. Santa Theresadescribes the plan on which the missions have always been administeredin the Philippines by the various orders, and their relations to thediocesan authorities. His account is a brief for the orders in theircontroversy with the bishops over this question of visitation, andpresents the main points in its history; he writes it for the purposeof refuting the slanders that have been current in Europe regarding theattitude of the orders toward the diocesans, and discusses at lengththe arguments against the episcopal visitation of the regulars inparishes. These are advanced in behalf of all the orders in general, and then the writer adduces special reasons, which concern theRecollects in this matter. He enumerates the villages administeredby that order in different islands, and the spiritual conquestsmade by his brethren; in their missions the number of Christianshas been steadily increasing, and the hostile heathen element muchreduced. Santa Theresa relates the dangers and sufferings experiencedby the Recollects in their missions, which lie on the very frontiertoward the Moro pirates; many of these devoted missionaries have evenlost their lives in the Moro raids. Have not these religious, then, deserved the exemption from episcopal supervision that was grantedto the religious in Nueva España? Moreover, the missions need morelaborers than can be supported by their incomes (the royal grant fromthe tributes), and the order itself must maintain these additionalmen. It will become necessary for the order to abandon the missions ifthese are to be placed under diocesan control; nor, in such case, canit do more than sustain its leading convents in the islands. Finally, the writer presents sketches of some illustrious Recollects who havelabored in the Philippines. 

In a rare pamphlet by the Franciscan Bartholomé de Letona--boundin with his Perfecta religiosa (La Puebla, Mexico, 1662)--occurs anenthusiastic description of the Philippines, which we here present(in translation and synopsis). He describes the voyage thither, the location and distribution of the islands; the various provincesof Luzón; the climate, people, and products; the city of Manila, which Letona describes as the most cosmopolitan in the world; and theChinese Parián. Letona relates the downfall of Venegas (the favoriteof Fajardo), and the achievements of Manrique de Lara; enumerates anddescribes the various churches, colleges and seminaries, conventsand hospitals of Manila; and gives a sketch of each of the variousreligious orders there, with special attention, of course, to his own, the Franciscan. 

One of the Jesuit documents preserved in the Academia Real de laHistoria, at Madrid, relates in detail the embassy sent to Manila bythe noted Chinese leader Kue-sing (1662) to demand that the Spaniardssubmit to his power and pay him tribute. This demand being angrilyrefused by the Spaniards, the Chinese in Manila, fearing evil tothemselves, and hearing of their intended expulsion from the islands, undertake to flee from the Parián and other neighboring settlements, blindly endeavoring to save their lives. The Jesuit missionary atSanta Cruz hastens to the governor, to secure pardon for these poorfugitives; and other priests second his efforts. Meanwhile, theother Sangleys in the Parián are so terrified that many are drownedin trying to swim across the river, others commit suicide, and mostof those who remain flee to the hills. The Spaniards in Manila, in fear of an attack by the Chinese, are ready to slay them all;and a repetition of the horrors of the Chinese insurrection in 1639is averted only by the prudence and good sense of Governor Manriquede Lara, who, with mingled sternness and humanity, calms the fearof the Chinese and the anger of the Spaniards. Granting protectionto all who return to Manila by a certain day, he allows a specifiednumber to remain there for the aid and service of the Spaniards, andobliges the rest to return at once to China. The fugitives who do notcome back to Manila are hunted down and slain by the Spanish troops, aided by the natives. The two chief leaders of the Sangleys in theirflight are executed in public, and those who remain in Manila are keptin the Parián under heavy guards of Indian troops; afterward theseChinese are set at forced labor on the fortifications of Manila andCavite, thus taking a great part of that burden from the shoulders ofthe natives. The same ambassador sent by Kue-sing returns to Manilain April, 1663, this time with news of that corsair's death, and arequest from his successor for an amicable arrangement between themand the maintenance of their trade. Our writer gives an interestingsketch of Kue-sing's career, especially of his conquest of Formosa(1660-61), the first occasion when Chinese had defeated a Europeannation in war. The death of this formidable enemy relieves the fearsof the Manila colony; and the authorities decide to allow a moderatenumber of Chinese to reside in the islands, since their services areso necessary to the Spaniards. 

Governor Salcedo sends to a friend (July 16, 1664) some account ofthe affairs of the colony at his arrival in the islands--the treasuryalmost empty, the soldiers unpaid, commerce paralyzed, and the natives"irritated by cruel punishments. " He takes vigorous measures, at once, to improve the condition of the colony. 

An unsigned document (1666?) gives the reasons why the civilauthorities have not executed the royal decrees subjectingthe Philippine friars in charge of parishes to the episcopalvisitation. Apparently written by a friar, it gives the reasons whythe missions must be administered by the religious orders ratherthan by secular priests, and why the friars ask that they be notplaced under the episcopal authority. They allege that there arestill many heathen and Mahometans to be converted, throughout theislands; that the missions are full of hardship; that the courageand strict observance of the religious would grow lax under diocesansupervision; and that the most able of them would not consent to suchsubjection. Difficulties, also, must necessarily arise in the attemptof a religious to obey his superiors when these are both religious andecclesiastical, and from interference by the civil authorities. Allsorts of scandals and irregularities are liable to spring from thesecauses, affecting not only the missionaries but the natives, as wellas the many heathen peoples who surround Manila. 

The present volume is terminated by a short appendix taken fromSinibaldo de Mas, showing the condition of the judiciary ofthe Philippines in 1842. Justice is administered by the royalAudiencia, by the alcaldes, and by the gobernadorcillos, the lastbeing Filipinos. The action of the alcalde-mayor is very limited anddependent on the Audiencia. Mas draws a vivid picture of some of thealcaldes which shows that the system is honeycombed with graft. Thegreat evil arises from the fact that alcaldes are allowed to trade, andhence business absorbs all their energies for the six years of theiroffice, for during that time they must become rich. As one does notneed to be a lawyer to become an alcalde, those posts generally beingassigned to military officers, the incumbent of such post needs anadviser. This results in great delay, and often justice is completelysubverted. By advancing money at usurious rates the alcalde bleedsthose who borrow from him, and in fact such unfortunate people canalmost never get square with the world again. The gobernadorcillosin turn lash the alcaldes, for they are necessary to the latter, and good terms must be maintained with them. For the general legalbusiness the alcalde depends on his clerk, a native, who runs thingsto suit himself, and in his turn makes his office an occasion forgraft. The parish priests who formerly had so great influence in thevillages have now been ordered by the governors to cease meddlingwith secular matters, and some of them even are in collusion withthe alcalde, whom they endeavor to aid in order that they may gaintheir own ends. Notwithstanding the alcaldes are few who are notoften fined during their term. The government is most to blame forthis state of affairs for its course implies that the alcaldesare expected to be rogues. Crime has increased greatly of lateyears. Punishments are too light, and many criminals even get offscotfree. This produces only bad results. The officials are slow toarrest because the criminal will soon be released as a general rule, and will always take vengeance if possible. Although he argues thatthe death sentence ought to be abolished as an unnecessary cruelty, Mas urges that the lash be not spared, for a good beating will correctmore faults than anything else. The jail only acts as an allurementfor the majority of Filipinos, for it is generally better than theirown houses. The laws in force in the islands are a confused mass, consisting of the Leyes de Indias, royal decrees and orders, thedecrees and edicts of the governors, a portion of the laws of theSiete Partidas, parts of Roman law, etc. Mas advocates strenuouslythe prohibition of trade granted to alcaldes and an extension of theirterm of office. One common native language, could such be established, would be very useful. There should be a commission after the mannerof that in British India, to advise revision in the existing laws. 

The Editors

March, 1906. 

DOCUMENTS OF 1649-1658

 Royal funeral rites at Manila. [Unsigned;] 1649. Royal aid for Jesuits asked by Manila cabildo. Matheo de Arceo, and others; June 20, 1652. Condition of the Philippines in 1652. Magino Sola, S. J. ; September 15, 1652. Jesuit missions in 1655. Miguel Solana, S. J. ; June 30, 1655. Letter from the archbishop of Manila. Miguel de Poblete; July 30, 1656. Two Jesuit memorials. Francisco Vello, S. J. ; [1658]. Jesuit protest against the Dominican university. Miguel Solana, S. J. ; [1658?]. Description of the Philipinas Islands. [Ygnacio de Paz; ca. 1658]

Sources: The first of these documents is taken from Retana's Archivo, ii, pp. 105-158; the second and sixth, from Pastells's editionof Colin's Labor evangélica, iii, pp. 786, 787, and 804, 805; thethird and fourth, from the Ventura del Arco MSS. (Ayer library), ii, pp. 385-389. The following are obtained from original MSS. Inarchives as follows: the fifth, in the Archivo general de Indias, Sevilla; the seventh, in the Academia Real de la Historia, Madrid;the eighth, in the Archivo general, Simancas. 

Translations: The fifth document is translated by Robert W. Haight;the seventh, by Rev. T. C. Middleton, O. S. A. ; the remainder, by JamesA. Robertson. 

ROYAL FUNERAL RITES AT MANILA

Funeral ceremonies and the royal pyre of honor erected by piety andconsecrated by the grief of the very distinguished and ever loyalcity of Manila, in memory of the most serene prince of España, DonBalthassar Carlos (may he dwell in glory). By license of the ordinaryand of the government. [Printed] at Manila, by Simon Pinpin, in theyear 1649. 

[This document is presented in translation and synopsis, because of thelight it throws on the religio-social life of Manila in the middle ofthe seventeenth century. It is preceded by the license to print given(June 5, 1649), for the archbishop by Doctor Don Juan Fernandez deLedo, precentor of Manila cathedral, judge-provisor, official andvicar-general of the archbishopric; by that of the government, given(May 27, 1649), on recommendation of Joseph de la Anunciacion, priorof the Recollect convent in Manila; and by a letter (dated Manila, December 15, 1648, and signed by Lucas de Porras, Gabriel Gomez delCastillo, and Diego Morales) addressed to the governor Diego Faxardoy Chacon, which amounts to a dedicatory epistle. The relation beginswith the grief that comes to the city of Manila with the announcementof the sudden death (at the age of seventeen) of the prince BalthasarCarlos, heir to the throne and son of Felipe IV and Isabel of Bourbon, who had died but a short time before. The document continues:]

The first rumors of this so sad event reached this city in themiddle of December, 1647, by means of the Dutch, who were harassingthese islands at that time with a large fleet of twelve galleons, which sailed from Nueva Batavia with the intention of capturing thisstronghold. But they, after having experienced the valor and boldnessof our Spaniards in the severe and obstinate combat in the port ofCabite, of which a full relation has been written in former years, [1]attempted to terrify the hearts and take away the courage of those whomthey had not been able to resist by hostilities, by sending a letter toDon Diego Faxardo, knight of the Order of Santiago, member of the WarCouncil, and president, governor, and captain-general of these islands;and with it part of a gazette printed in the Flemish charactersand language, which contained a copy of a letter from his Majestyto the Marqués de Leganés, in which was mentioned the heavy griefof his royal heart because of the sudden death of his son and heir, Don Balthassar Carlos. The minds of so loyal vassals were alarmed, and their hearts chilled, on hearing so sad news; and those who hadnot given way before the violent attack of cannon-balls yielded tothe tenderness of grief, and to the sighs of sorrow; and they bore intheir faces the effects of their dismay and the marks of their pain, as if the prince were seen dead in each one. .. . There was no doubtof the truth of that news, for its arrival with the superscription ofmisfortune gave it the credit of truth. But neither the condition inwhich we found ourselves, with arms in our hands, nor prudence allowedus to proceed with public demonstrations and funeral ceremonies untilwe received a letter from his Majesty, and with the letter the order, direction, and prudent management which so serious a matter demanded. 

[The royal announcement arrived in July, 1648; and by his decreethe king ordered the demonstrations of sorrow to be made on the samescale as if intended for his own person. ]

In conformity with that decree, and in order that they might obey it, the auditors called a meeting, and resolved to publish the mourning, and to prepare the things necessary for the splendid celebration ofthe funeral ceremonies. At the same time they elected as the managerof that solemn function the fiscal auditor, Don Sebastian Cavallerode Medina, who was as vigilant and punctual in the affairs of hisoffice as attentive to the service of both Majesties--guaranteeingby the completeness of his arrangements the entire success which soserious a matter demanded. As his assistants in carrying out thatcommission were named the treasurer, Lucas de Porras Ontiberos, alcalde-in-ordinary, and Captains Gabriel Gomez del Castillo and DonDiego Morales, regidors. At a suitable time, the mourning rites wereheralded, in fulfilment of the above resolution; and all the provinceswere notified to make the same demonstrations, so that the externalconduct of so faithful vassals should correspond to the sorrow whichpalpitated in their hearts and saddened their breasts. Scarcely wasthe word given before the obedient people changed the precious andfine appearance of their attire with somber mourning garments; andthis whole community became a theater of grief--each one showing theloyalty which was as much evinced by his grief as it was wondered atby the barbarous nations who trade in these islands, when they sawin so remote a part of the world so extreme piety, so intense love, and so faithful allegiance to their king, that distance does not makeit lukewarm, or absence weaken the affection that these deservingvassals have ever had for their Catholic kings. 

The day set for their expressions of condolence arrived, Monday, November 9, 648; for the direction of the ceremonies, Admiral DonAndres de Azcueta and Captain Don Pedro Diaz de Mendoza were appointedmanagers. The halls of the Audiencia and royal assembly were made readywith the funereal adornments and other preparations significant of somelancholy an occasion. At two in the afternoon the bells of all thechurches began to ring, in so sad and doleful tones that they filledthe air with sorrow, and the hearts of those who heard their plaintswith bitterness and grief, learning from the very bronze to grieve forso considerable a loss. At that same time all the religious communitiesassembled, with their crosses, priests, deacons, and subdeacons, cladin their vestments, in the royal chapel of the garrison. That temple, although small in size, has all the characteristics of a great onein its beauty, elegance, and arrangement. There, architecture wasemployed to the best effect, and genius was alert in erecting a royaltomb and mausoleum proportionate to the grandeur and sovereign rankof the person; and one not at all inferior to the one erected duringthe funeral rites and pageant of our lady the queen, [2] by thedirection and advice of Doctor Don Diego Afan de Ribera, auditor ofthis royal Audiencia, and auditor elect of that of the new kingdomof Granada. The royal assembly entrusted the arrangements of thatsolemnity to him. Each community in succession chanted its responsary, with different choirs of musicians, so well trained that they couldvie with those of Europa. While that pious action was going on, theecclesiastical and secular cabildos were assembling, as well as thetribunal of the royal official judges, the superiors of the orders, the rectors of the two colleges--San Joseph, which is in chargeof the fathers of the Society of Jesus; and San Thomas, which isruled by the fathers of St. Dominic--and the members of the bureauof the Santa Misericordia (as was determined and arranged two dayspreviously, the place of each being assigned) in the hall of the royalAudiencia. There the managers assigned them their position, observingtoward each one the order of his seniority and precedence. They leftthat place in the same order, to express their condolences to DonDiego Faxardo, governor and captain-general of these islands, whostood in the hall of the royal assembly. He was covered with mourning, which well manifested his grief and represented very vividly in hismajestic appearance the royal person--in whose name he received thecondolences for the death of the royal son and heir, Don BalthassarCarlos, the prince of España. First entered the royal Audiencia, incompany with their official, as grave in the pomp of their mourning asadequate in the demonstrations of their grief. Don Antonio de Castro, senior auditor and auditor-elect of Mexico, spoke in the name of all, expressing in brief and impressive sentences the universal grief ofall the community and the special grief of that royal Audiencia. HisLordship listened to him attentively, and answered him gravely andconcisely, with words suitable to the subject, thanking him in thename of his Majesty for the demonstrations of grief which servantsso loyal were making on an occasion so consecrated to sorrow. Havingfinished their oration, the royal Audiencia gave place successivelyto the ecclesiastical cabildo, the secular cabildo, the tribunal ofthe royal official judges, the superiors of the orders, the colleges, and the bureau of the Santa Misericordia--each one taking its properplace as regards precedence. All of them observed the courtesiesand punctilious forms due to the decorum and seriousness of thatfunction. After these had signified by the gravity of their words, and by the seriousness and sadness of their countenances, the heavyweight of the sorrow which oppressed their hearts for a loss so worthyof immortal lament, and after his Lordship had answered with equallyapposite speech what good judgment dictated and sorrow forced out, that act of mourning came to an end. It was no less dignified thanrefined; and no accompaniment or ceremony was lacking in the decorumof that action--the daughter of the affection with which so faithfulvassals serve their king and sovereign. 

That parade was followed by another of no less gravity, namely theaccompaniment of the royal crown to the chapel of the royal camp forthe solemnity of vespers and the funeral oration which was prepared[for this occasion]. For that purpose, after the condolences themembers of the royal Audiencia returned to the hall of the royalassembly, where the august crown reposed with all authority andpropriety, signifying, in the somber mourning with which it wascovered, a sorrowing majesty and a monarchy grief-stricken atbeholding itself without the head from whose glorious temples ithad fallen--Cecidit corona capitis nostri. [3] His Lordship handedthe crown to General Don Pedro Mendiola y Carmona, entrusting to hishands the honor of so great a Majesty, and thus crowning the greatservices which the latter had rendered to his king in the lofty poststhat he has occupied in these islands. This was the opening act of theparade, which commenced at the palace, encircled the entire plaza ofarms under the galleries, and ended at the royal chapel--the theater, as we have already remarked, destined for the magnificence of thatfuneral celebration. That act was arranged by the care and foresightof the royal assembly, and carried out by means of the managers withso great brilliancy, gravity, and propriety that it corresponded inall things with the majesty of the [dead] person. The orphan boysof the college of San Juan de Letran--who number more than onehundred and fifty, and are reared at the expense of his Majesty, in charge of the fathers of St. Dominic--marched first of all, twoby two (the universal order that was observed in that act by all thetribunals and communities) holding their candles of pure white wax, which were distributed, that day and the following, with magnificenceand liberality by this illustrious city. The alguaçils followed, andthen the ministers of justice, the attorneys, the judges' secretaries, the notaries, public and royal, with their gowns and cloaks trailingbehind. Next to them came the confraternities with their pennants andbanners, and after these the parishes from the suburbs of this city, with their crosses, and their curas clad in black cloaks. Next in theline was the college of Santo Thomas, and following it that of SanJoseph, with their badges [becas] turned back at the collar as a signand token of grief. Then followed the bureau of the Santa Misericordia(which is composed of the most noble persons of this city) all cladin their black surtouts and hats, with heads covered, bearing theirsmall bells, and the standard with their insignia in front. The holyfamilies also marched: the brethren of St. John of God, the Recollectsof St. Augustine, the Society of Jesus, the hermits of St. Augustine, the seraphic family of St. Francis, and that of the Preachers. Thesewere not so splendid by reason of the candles which they carried intheir hands as by the gravity and modesty of their manner, showing inthe seriousness and composure of their faces the religious sorrow andpious grief that oppressed their hearts. The ecclesiastical cabildofollowed with their black choir-cloaks, with the skirts extendedand their heads covered; and altogether with so grave and majestica demeanor that they commanded the eyes and also the applause of allthe people. The city [cabildo] followed, together with the tribunal ofthe royal official judges, bearing their maces and insignia. They wereaccompanied by the nobility of the city with flowing black mourningcloaks, and with heads covered; but very apparent was the grief andmanifest the sadness which their love and good-will towards theirunfortunate prince brought to their faces. The royal standard of thecity was carried by Captain Gabriel Gomez del Castillo, assisted by thetwo alcaldes-in-ordinary, who carried it between them, as authorizingthe action. The royal Audiencia with their president, the governorof these islands, crowned all that grave and religious concourse withall the splendors of authority. They were followed by the governmentand court secretaries, and by the gentlemen and pages of the palace, clad in all display of grandeur in funeral garb, thus manifestingin somber grays the sharpness and depth of the wound which they hadreceived by the sudden death of the most serene and very august prince, Don Balthassar Carlos, the clear and resplendent light of the Spanishmonarchy, at whose taking away all the world was darkened. Between thecity cabildo and the royal Audiencia was carried the Cæsarean crown, with two kings-at-arms, on a cushion of rich cloth, with the gravityand decorum which is due to the head [that it adorns], to which allthe people who were present that day rendered humble veneration. Sosad a spectacle was made by all that splendid parade, that never wasmore bitter grief represented, never was Majesty seen more afflicted, never was sorrow seen more at its height. All the Plaza de Armaswas occupied, while that brilliant procession was going round it, by the royal regiment of the Spanish troops, the governor of which isSargento-mayor Manuel Estacio Venegas. It consisted of four hundredand eighty-six infantrymen formed in a body with four fronts, eachof which was commanded by two captains and one alférez. The regimentmarched to take position in five lines, with fifty artillerymen in therear with their campaign linstocks. They all maintained so great orderand discipline that the military art was seen in practice in all itssplendor--a glorious proof of the diligence of their commandant andthe loyalty and devotion of so valiant soldiers; for notwithstandingthe excessive heat of the sun they remained immovable on that andthe following day, their zeal and love for their king, which burnmost brightly in their hearts, being preponderant in them. Theparade having passed, all the soldiers fell in behind, captainedby the sargento-mayor himself, the commandant of the regiment. Theyentered by one door of the royal chapel and went out by the other, with drums muffled and banners trailing, and the soldiers carryingtheir arquebuses under the arm with the butt-ends reversed, with anorder so regular and so in keeping with military rules that that actiondeserved the acclamation and even the admiration of all. The fatherchaplain-in-chief of the regiment, namely, the presentado father FrayJoseph Fayol, of the Order of Nuestra Señora de la Merced, was present, as were also all the royal chaplains, at the door of the royal chapel, with cross and wax tapers [ciriales] held aloft while the processionwas entering. After they had entered, the royal crown was placed onits royal catafalque--or rather a funeral pyre of fire, crowned withcandles as is the firmament with stars, where the brilliant and themajestic glowed in competition. I leave the description of that forthe crown of this historical compilation. Those in the procession tookpossession of and even filled all the seats which were provided forthe tribunals and the communities, distributing themselves thereinaccording to the same order of their seniority. With this began thevespers for the dead, which was in charge of the chaplain-in-chief, assisted by the royal chaplains, with all the requisites of solemnityand pomp, accompanied by the piety, devotion, and silence of so gravean assembly who were present, at the verge of tears. They paid withfervent suffrages the debt of their love and the obligations of theirloyalty to the prince, their deceased sovereign, whose obsequies theywere performing; and they refreshed their memories with his heroicvirtues, and his brilliant deeds in the tender and flowery years ofhis age--gifts that assured us that he was glorious and triumphant inthe court of Heaven. The complement of the solemn splendor of that daywas the reverend father, Fray Vicente Argenta, of the seraphic order, and past provincial of this province of San Gregorio. He, occupying thepulpit, took up the space of an hour with a funeral panegyric, wherehis eloquence had an opportunity to exercise itself in all its colors, and in a beautiful variety of erudition, both divine and human. Heroamed through the spacious and extensive field of the virtues ofour most serene prince, with so impressive discourse adjusted to thegravity and meaning of the subject, that he softened the hearts of thepeople and even drew tears from their eyes, the faithful witnessesof their grief. That solemn function ended with a responsary; andthen the procession was again formed, in the same manner and method, until they left his Lordship at the palace. After having performedthe due courtesies, the gentlemen of the royal Audiencia, and ofthe cabildos, tribunals, and religious communities bade one anotherfarewell, and returned to their houses, for the night had set in. 

The following day, Tuesday, November 10, before sunrise, the care andanxiety of the sacred families were awake, and all went to the royalchapel with different choirs of musicians. There, at the various altarsassigned to them, they sang first each their mass, and afterward theresponsary in front of the royal catafalque. The mingling of so manyvoices with the dead silence and serene quiet of the night made anindistinct harmony and a confusion of echoes pleasant and agreeableto the listeners, awakening at the same time in their hearts tenderaffection and loving grief, which they consecrated to the gloriousmemory of the prince whose obsequies were being celebrated. Afterhaving performed this pious action they went to the palace, where theywaited until all who had taken part in the parade of the precedingday had assembled. The parade was arranged and directed at theappointed hour, with the same order and brilliant display as on thepreceding day, and took the same course until they entered the chapelof the royal camp. There having filled the seats, and the order andarrangements of the day before having been observed, the office for thedead was commenced, and then the mass was sung. Doctor Juan de Ucles, the venerable dean of the holy church, officiated, accompanied withall solemnity and pomp, at an altar which was erected near the centerof the catafalque in front of the urn. He was clad in his vestments, with precious ornaments; and on that day the music was better thanever before, the musicians outdoing themselves in heightening itsbeauties, and with the consonance and harmony of their voices renderingit suitable to the majesty and high dignity of him who filled theirthoughts at that moment. The reverend father Francisco Colin, outgoingprovincial and present rector of the college of the Society of Jesus, and qualifier of the Holy Office, sealed the glory of that day. Hemounted the pulpit, where he preached a sermon so well suited to thesubject in its eloquence, the depth of its arguments, the gravityand maturity of its discourse, the profundity and erudition of itsfundamental proofs, and the solidity and thoroughness of its learning, that he arrested the attention and even the admiration of thosepresent. Not less learnedly did he instruct them than he melted themto affection and sorrow, quickening in them all, with his intellectualvigor and his well-known pulpit eloquence, grief at having lost a lifeso filled with virtues and so crowned with merits. Some responsariesfollowed the sermon, and with that ended the funeral ceremonies forour prince, whose memory will live immortal in our hearts. Duringthose two days was shown the devotion and loyalty of vassals everattentive to the service of their Catholic monarch, in recognition ofthe rewards that they receive from his august hand. The same paradewas formed once more; and, leaving his Lordship at the palace, theybade one another farewell, and returned to their houses. 

The sumptuous and royal mausoleum, which was erected by the pietyof this noble community, occupies the last place in this briefrelation. In the description of it, one finds his eloquence failand he is dismayed, and he can find no excellence in his art that isproportionate to the measure of its grandeur and majesty. The saidalcaldes-in-ordinary and two regidors assisted the fiscal auditor asmanagers in the construction of that catafalque. They urged forward thework, and attended to what was done by the best workmen and those whowere most skilled in the matter. Beyond doubt they saw fulfilled theobject of their vigilance, in the applause and admiration of all. Itwas a work that seemed born of nature rather than a contrived inventionof art. In it gravity was surpassed, richness gleamed forth, majestywas displayed, and method excelled; and its brilliancy was dazzling, with so beautiful an arrangement and display of lights, without provingan obstacle by their number or the lights paling, that grandeur wasnever seen to greater advantage or majesty more resplendent. 

Its ground space and arch occupied all the space of the principalchapel, until it met the very ceiling of the temple; and had thecapacity of the place allowed more, the execution of so extensive acontrivance would not have been confined to so narrow limits. Theheight of the socle was six feet, and it was thirty-nine feetwide. In the center of it arose the catafalque, which was octagonal inform. It was composed of two structures made after the best ideas ofarchitecture. The first structure was composed of sixteen columns, with foundations on a like number of bases and pedestals crownedwith beautiful and curiously wrought capitals. On top of them arosethe entablatures with their friezes, architraves, fluted mouldings, and pediment of the arch crowned with balusters--all regulated to therequirements of art without detracting one jot from the idea [thatthey expressed]. That structure ended in a cupola, [4] which wellsupplied the place of the sky, when it was seen reflecting the lights, and bathed in splendor. The cornices, mouldings, representationsof fruit, mouldings above, and brackets, were of a bronze color, so cunningly done that they appeared rather the work of nature thanthe imitation of art. The pedestals and capitals, touched with beatengold, heightened the fiction of the bronze which the brush and handof the artist feigned and imitated. The shafts of the columns, withtheir pedestals, friezes and architraves were so vivid an imitationof jasper that one would believe them to have been cut from thatmineral; or that they had stolen the confused variety of its colors, so that one's sight was mistaken in it. Their beauty was heightened bythe brilliancy of silver work or broken crystals with which they werewreathed. In the center of that structure shone forth majestically theurn, which was placed under a canopy of solid silver covered with arich violet cloth of gold, with two cushions of the same material, andand her of white cloth of gold, on which reposed the royal crown. Onits pedestal was seen a stanza of ten verses, as follows:

 "Esta fatal urna encierra This fatal urn encloses a fallîda vna Magestad: ayer dead majesty, but yestreen temida Deidad, oy breve a reverenced deity, now a mere montón de tierra. Heap of earth. Little gains he, and much he errs, who, Poco alcança, y mucho hierra cautious, does not note the quien prevenido, no advierte mutability of his lot; for lo inconstante de su suerte; Fate does not exempt the pues no reserva la Parca al successor of a monarch from Sucessor de un Monarca del the tribute of death. " [5] tributo de la muerte. "

At the four corners of the urn, outside the circumference of thecatafalque, were seen four kings-at-arms, of beautiful appearancewith their headpieces pulled down and gold maces on their shoulders, with which one hand was occupied, while with the other they held upthe escutcheon of the royal arms embroidered with gold. The royal armswere also stamped upon their breasts on their black corselets, girdledwith a beautiful variety of bands and edgings of gold. In the niches ofthe first columns, which formed the front and faced the urn, upon theirfretted pedestals and spattered with gold rose the figures of Grammarand Rhetoric with their emblems--so excellent in their workmanshipand lifelike in attitude that, although mute, the excellence of theirsculpture and make-up instructed [the beholder]. I do not describe thegrace of their shapes, the beauty of their features, the easy flow ofthe hair, the undulations of the drapery, spangled with bits of glass, and the other accompaniments of beautiful ornaments and fantasies ofart, in order not to weary [my readers] with prolixities. They weresignificant of the excellent progress which the prince made in bothof those branches of study, and an illustrious trophy of his earlygenius and marvelous intellect. Grammar had the following attachedto the placard of her pedestal:

 "La primera, que dictò al "The first to dictate to Prince Principe Balthassar Preceptos Balthassar the rules of de declinar, y de construir, declension and construction was fuy yo. I. At death he declined in his last lesson; for it is a sure A la muerte declinó en su conclusion that in the art of postera licion, porque es dying the construction of cierta conclusion; que en living ends in declension. " el arte del morir, la construccion del vivir acaba en declinacion. "

Not less pithily and elegantly did Rhetoric explain her thought inanother stanza, of ten verses, as follows:

 "Yo enseñé lo figurado, y lo "I taught the figures and terso del estilo al Principe, polish of style to the aquiem el hilo cortò de la Prince, whose thread of life vida, el Hado Fate cut short. But now already lies he disfigured Mas ya está desfigurado en in that dark tomb. Look at aquesta tumba oscura: mirale him, robbed of his beauty; sin hermosura; y desde tus and, from thy tender years, tiernos años, Rhetoricos learn in that figure desengaños aprende en esta rhetorical errors. " Figura. "

The second structure was built upon the first, and it was no lessgrave and majestic. There symmetry and proportion vied with beauty andvariety of colors, which the brush usurped from nature. It was composedof twelve columns, made in imitation of jasper, with their pedestals, architraves, and flying cornices; and these were closed above witha cupola, adorned with spirals and volutes, which happily completedthe work. In the space between the columns of the facade or front, and occupying their own pedestals, were set majestic and pleasingfigures of Arithmetic and Geometry, with their emblems. These statuesfaced each other, and corresponded to Grammar and Rhetoric who werein the first structure--in both their location and altitude, and inthe proportions and excellence of their sculpture. It was a gloriousblazon for our prince, who, although of so tender years, was able, having cast aside sloth and childish amusements, to give himself upto the exercise of branches of learning so useful, thus preparing forsuccess in the monarchical government of his kingdoms. Arithmetic hadan inscription on the placard of her pedestal, which read as follows:

 "A guarismo reducida la cuenta "Reduced to a cipher is de Balthassar, no vino mas que the account of Balthassar, a sumar diez y siete años de who at last added up but vida. Seventeen years of life. The entry was concluded, and Concluyóse la partida, y la the account having been cuenta rematada se hallò la ended, death was found to muerte pagada: porque se be paid. For he so balanced ajustó de suerte, en la vida his accounts with death in con la muerte, que no quedó life that he did not remain a dever nada. " at all indebted. "

Geometry had a corresponding placard on her base, which read asfollows:

 "Balthassar con mi medida el "Balthassar estimated the orbe entero midio: y no whole world with my measure, contento passó a medir la and, not content, he passed eterno vida. To measure eternal life. It is better to be able to La indistancia conocida, measure the unknown distance que ay del vivir al morir; between life and death es mejor saber medir lo (which must endure eternally) que eterno a de durar con with the rule of good works regla del bien obrar, con and the compass of good compas del bien vivir. " living. "

The space between the columns of this structure was occupied bythe prince (or rather, our sovereign)--the glorious shoot from theAustrian trunk, and the beautiful flower which was the most brilliantornament of the august lily of Francia--who, because he had no roomin the entire sphere of his extensive monarchy, mounted gloriously, by means of the wings of his brilliant and heroic virtues, to rule inthe heavens. His statue was so well conceived, and so commensurate withthe beauty of the architecture, that one would think it had a soul, for it gave soul to the entire work. Not only did it take possessionof the eyes but also of the hearts [of the people] who rendered humbleadoration to the image of their prince. The prince was armed, withbreastplate and shoulder-piece embroidered with beautiful edgings ofgold, and his clothing was elegant and showy. In his right hand heheld an imperial and Cæsarean crown. In his left hand was anotherand royal crown, indicating him as sworn prince of the kingdoms ofEspaña and of the empire of the Indias. On the base of the image wasan inscription which read as follows:

 "Iurado Principe fui; y Rey, "I was the sworn prince, and y Emperador fuera: mas ay would have been king and que la Parca fiera, embidia emperor, had it not been that tuvo de mi! Hiriome cruel, y savage Fate was envious of me. Perdi el ser Rey, y Cruelly did she wound me, and Emperador: mas orto Imperio I lost the kingship and the mejor por el perdido he empire. But I have gained ganado: porque crece el another and better empire embidiado, quanto la embidia instead of the one that I lost; es mayor. " for greater does the envied one become when the envy is greater. "

By way of a finial, there was displayed on the ball at the center ofthe cupola a proud and spirited figure of Monarchy--armed gracefullybut heavily with breastplate, shoulder-plate, greaves, cuisses, gorgets, and bracelets; and wearing skirts of bronze color edged withgold. Her head was encased in a morion surmounted by waving plumesand beautiful crests. Over her breast was a rich sash that hungloosely with airy grace and splendor. She was clad in a militarycloak, flowing in beautiful lines, and ornamented here and therewith embroidery in silver. In her right hand she gracefully helda general's baton subduing with it by the jaw a rampant lion ofwonderful fierceness. With the left hand she clasped an escutcheonof the royal arms, bound about with many spirals of gold edging andbeautiful ornaments. Massed about her feet were various militaryinstruments, and at her side were the standards and devices ofher glorious triumphs. All that variety composed a collectionof beauties which was the crown of the entire work. Two finelycarved pyramids arose gloriously at the two extremes of the socle, which they confronted. They were as high as the catafalque, andwere painted in various colors, and spangled with bits of crystal, and on them were many rows of candle-sockets. There were, besides, other triumphal obelisks which were erected upon the cupola, andgarlanded the upper structure, which accompanied Monarchy as gloriousmonuments. Many escutcheons of the royal arms and of the city wereseen hanging at regular intervals--some of them embroidered andothers in bas-relief, and all with much ornamentation of ribbonsand resplendent in colors. The brilliant display of candles, (more than one thousand two hundred in number), enhanced all thissplendor. Most of the lights were candles of two, three, four, five, or six libras, and were placed in their silver candlesticks, sockets, and holders. Besides, there were a great number of codales, [6] whichwere made for that purpose and filled the entire space of the plinth. 

The funeral poems and eulogies with which all the royal chapel wascrowned were a glorious acquittance of the Muses, in the happy deathof their illustrious pupil. Some of these will be given in conclusion, and with them will end [the account of] what was done at the funeralceremonies which this noble and loyal city of Manila performed forits august prince. The public demonstrations corresponded, not to thedevotion with which so loyal vassals serve their Catholic sovereigns, but to the condition in which this community finds itself at present, worn out with so many calamities, oppressed by so many misfortunes, andeven bloodless and exhausted by the so continual invasions of enemies;had not the divine hand been so favorable on its side, it would notnow have any shoulders to support so heavy a burden. May our Catholicand invincible monarch accept these slight indications of the desire, and the proofs of the affection, which all this community offers asthe obligation of its loyalty and in token of its grief, consecratedto the happy memories of their prince, in this public manifestation;if not suited to the grandeur of his person, it is to the generosityof his royal breast and august blood. May Heaven extend his life forthe glory and increase of this monarchy, as we his humble and obedientvassals desire. [7]

[Then follow the poems and eulogies above mentioned, which are writtenpartly in Latin and partly in Spanish. ]

ROYAL AID FOR JESUITS ASKED BY MANILA CABILDO

Sire:

This city of Manila has informed your Majesty on other occasions howthe Order of the Society of Jesus, which came to these islands manyyears ago with an ardent and apostolic zeal for the greater serviceof our Lord and that of your Majesty, has been employed in theconversion of souls; and that it has made and makes use of variousmeans extraordinarily and especially efficacious to allure soulsto the true knowledge of the matters of our holy Catholic faith, as experience has proved and proves daily. Their modest prudenceand their admirable example of life and morals have verily aided inthat--qualities which, resplendent in them, as is right, our Lord haspermitted to shine out with great profit in the missions that theyhave in charge in these remote islands, besides the great edificationthat they cause in this city by their holy and excellent instruction. 

We say the same in this letter, and, in particular, that thesaid order, recognizing its extremely great need of religious, hasdetermined to send at the present time Father Diego Patiño [8] as theirprocurator-general--a religious of excellent abilities and learning, and of long experience in everything relating to these islands, ashe has served your Majesty here for thirty years--in order that hemight petition your Majesty to be pleased to grant him permission tobring as many religious as he can; for the said need is today greaterthan what it was when Father Diego de Bobadilla came with the fortymen that he brought. For, since that time, sixty-one religious havedied here, and some of them of but moderate age, as the land and itsmeans of livelihood in general are so poor. The said order uses them assparingly as is demanded by the poverty that the land suffers at thistime. They are also placed under great restrictions by the continualhardships and dangers of their missions, as they are so separatedin various islands--some of Moros and others of infidels--and by thestormy seas and awful currents. In that said number of sixty-one whohave died, are nine priests who have gloriously given and sacrificedtheir lives to our Lord at the hands of the infidels. Attested officialreports regarding three of these have been given before the ordinaryof the city of Santísimo Nombre de Jesus, while those of the remainingsix are being considered. For that reason the posts of the provinceare suffering the said need of the workers who are necessary; for thecollege of this city has one-half of the number of priests that it hadformerly, in order that they might attend to the so numerous dutiesthat they exercise--the school for children; chairs of grammar, arts, and theology; and as preachers and confessors, because ofthe great frequency with which people of all nations go to theircollege for the administration of the holy sacraments of confessionand communion throughout the year, and especially during Lent. Thisis something which does not receive due consideration; and with thefew religious that they have, they are necessarily very hard-worked, for they have to go out day and night to confess the sick; to ministerin the hospitals, prisons, and girls' schools; and to the ordinarypreaching in the guardhouses--from which abundant fruit has been seen. 

The colleges of the city of Santísimo Nombre de Jesus and of the portof Yloylo, which formerly had five or six priests, do not now havetwo apiece, so that it is impossible to attend to the many dutiesthat there present themselves. 

Many of their Indian missions which formerly rendered two religiousindispensable, have now but one. In the great island of Mindanao, nearly one-half of the civilized villages are without a minister, andconsequently many people die without the sacraments. It is necessaryfor one minister to attend to one, two, three, or four villages whichare very distant from one another, when each village needs its ownpriests. They do not hesitate, for all that, to go in the fleetswhen opportunity offers, in the capacity of chaplains, and in theshipyards where galleons are built. In those duties they have performedwell-known and special services to our Lord and to your Majesty. 

By the industry of the said religious, and by the toil and hardshipswhich can be understood, they have aided the arms of your Majesty;and the kings of Jolo and Mindanao, who were the ones who had rebelledand were destroying the islands with their plunderings, were reducedto peace, and today are increasing their friendship. The greatestfoundation for that friendship is the example furnished by the saidreligious in their lands, and in the region where they have theirmissions, such as the mild and fitting treatment that they employ, according to their custom, having hopes [thereby] to gain the nativesfor God; for they listen without any reluctance to the matters ofour holy Catholic faith from the mouths of the fathers, and learnfrom them very willingly. 

The poverty of the houses of the said Society is as great as that whichthe inhabitants suffer, who are the fount whence originates all thesupport of this order and all the others. For since they are so poor, they cannot aid with the generosity that they might wish this and theother orders, the colleges, hospitals, prisoners, and brotherhoods. Forthat reason it was necessary to beg alms from door to door for morethan five years, in order that they might maintain the college ofthis city and the few fathers in it; and the reason why they haveceased to beg is not because the need is not the same and greater, but because it is recognized that the citizens cannot continue theiraid. For that reason the said father procurator-general of the saidorder is going [to España], as others have gone, as he can expect nomore aid here. Consequently, it will be necessary to make heavy loansthere, if your Majesty do not please to order that he be assistedin that royal court, and in Sevilla and Mexico, with your usualliberality. This city humbly petitions your Majesty to be mindfulof the said great need of ministers and the great fruit that theyobtain for our Lord and your Majesty, whose royal Catholic person maythe divine Majesty preserve, as is necessary to Christendom. Manila, June twenty, one thousand six hundred and fifty-two. [9]

Matheo de ArceoJeronimo de Fuentes CortésNicolas Fernandez ParedesCristobal VelazquezGabriel Gomez del CastilloPedro de MoralesPedro de AlmonteJuan de SomonteA. De VerasteguiFrancisco Lopez MontenegroAlbaro de Castillo

CONDITION OF THE PHILIPPINES IN 1652

Summary of the memorial of the Jesuit Magino Sola [10] to Don SabinianoManrique de Lara, governor of the Filipinas Islands, explaining theneeds of the islands. 

In this memorial Magino Sola shows that the conquest cannotbe sustained, or extended to the points that are indispensable, without arms and soldiers. That the conquest may be carried on, it isnecessary that the pay of the soldiers be met, as well as the otherobligations of the islands, which have been quite disregarded forseveral years. Especial attention should be given to the evangelicalministers, who ought to be helped by the military. 

The scarcity and misery has been the cause of serious disturbances. Thefather says: "The reason why the Chinese in Filipinas rose in revoltwas only because of the lack of the ordinary supplies for the soldiers, so that the soldiers violently seized their food and clothing fromthe houses and Parián of the Chinese. The merchants could not paythe Chinese for the goods that they had bought from them for thewant of the same succor. [11] The reason why the natives in someprovinces have risen in insurrection and killed their ministers andthe Spaniards was only because, the ordinary supplies being lacking, the Spaniards could not satisfy the natives for the food and goodsthat they had given on credit, nor pay them for their work. 

"The reason why the governor of those islands found himself obligedto seize the money of their citizens and that of this city [i. E. , Mexico], with so great loss to trade, was only for the reënforcementof the presidios, and to avoid troubles which follow from not payingthe soldiers. Let one consider in how many years either the relieffor those islands has been lacking altogether, or has been sent in sosmall quantity that it neither supplies the need, nor gives any hope ofpaying the amount owed. That is the origin and beginning, if I do notdeceive myself, of all the many troubles and misfortunes that were andare suffered by the inhabitants of those islands, since the year 1637, when the trade began to dwindle because of the harshness at Acapulcoin the visitation of Licentiate Don Pedro de Quiroga y Moya--troublespredicted, without doubt, by the ashes that rained down throughoutthose islands in the year 1633, which was followed by a generalfamine. In the year 1636, no ships came from those islands. In the year38, the 'Concepcion' was wrecked in the Ladrones. In the year 39, thetwo ships which were being sent back from this kingdom were lost on thecoast of Cagayan, and the Sangleys rose in revolt. In the year 1640, the volcanoes burst open and some villages were entirely engulfed;and many other damages resulted. It would appear that Heaven itselfwas announcing new troubles and was sounding to arms against thoseislands. For throughout that archipelago one could hear distinctlyaërial combats with artillery, and skirmishes with musketry. 

"In the year 1644, occurred the so terrible earthquake which destroyedand overthrew two-thirds of the temples and buildings of Manila, andburied many persons among their ruins. In the year 46, the ship whichwas returning from this kingdom to those islands was wrecked. In thatyear and in that of 47 no ships could come here, for the Dutch heldthose seas, and they were committing great depredations and robberiesin those islands. In the year 49, the ship 'Encarnacion' ran agroundwhile returning, and was lost with all the cargo aboard it, while someof the people lost their lives. There was no ship in the year 1650, for that which was coming had to put back into port. 'Nuestra Señorade Guia' was almost wrecked among the islands when returning, withgreat loss and damage on the goods carried. No help was sent to thoseislands in the year 51-52. Let so many misfortunes be considered, andwhether so many losses demand extraordinary reënforcements. Let oneconsider what must be the present gloomy conditions in those islandssince the reënforcements have failed there for so many years. Let oneconsider whether an extraordinary and all-surpassing reënforcementis now rightly due and demanded, and according to the command of hisMajesty. For, as appears by his decrees, he ordered in past years, onhearing of some of the above-mentioned troubles, that those islandsbe reënforced, even though the usual money and treasure should notbe sent to España for that purpose. "

The father continues to speak of the sacrifices made by the citizensof Manila because of the wars with the Dutch, not only giving money tothe royal treasury, but also military service in the Plaza de Armasand manning the galleys with their slaves. In the time of Corcuera, money was taken from the charitable fund of the Misericordia forthe maintenance of the infantry; and the gratings and balconies, and even the bells, served for the making of nails and artillery. 

Therefore, the father states the necessity to the islands of a governorwho should have as his chief aim the relief of the soldiers, and ofthe other classes who received assistance from the state. 

This relation is dated September 15, 1652. 

JESUIT MISSIONS IN 1655

Father Fray Miguel Solana [12] of the Society of Jesus, provincialof this province of Filipinas, in fulfilment of the royal decree, of which he was notified by order of your Excellency, commanding himto give accurate information of the religious whom the Society hasengaged in work in the missions of the Indians and of the villageswhich are in their charge, declares that all the villages and missionsthat they administer are located in the archbishopric of Manila andthe bishopric of the city of Dulce Nombre de Jesus, where there aresixty-seven priests, distributed as follows:

There are seventeen in the archbishopric of the city of Manila. 

There are four priests in the city of Manila, who are interpreters, and are at the expense of his Majesty, so that they may attend to theministry to the Indians who go thither from all parts, as that placeis the capital of the islands. They also minister to the mulattoesand those of other races. At present those priests are Fathers AntonioJuan Sana, Jose Pimentel, Juan Bautista Suredo, Francisco Manuel. 

In the village of San Miguel, which is inhabited by Tagálog Indians, is Father Magino Sola. 

In the village of Santa Cruz, which, is inhabited by ChristianChinese, mestizos, free negroes, and Tagálogs, are two priests, namely, Fathers Francisco Ferrer and Ambrosio de la Cruz. 

The village of San Pedro, where Indians, Chinese, and mestizos whowork in the surrounding country congregate, has Father Francisco Colin. 

In the residence of Antipolo, where there are other villages--namely, Antipolo, Taytay, and Baras, with four visitas in the mountains--therehave always been three priests. At present there are two, namely, Fathers Luis Espinelli and Ygnacio Zapata. 

In the residence of Silang reside three priests, namely, FathersYgnacio del Monte, Diego de Sanabria, and Juan de Esquerra. Theyhave charge of three villages, namely, Silang, Yndan, and Maragondon, and their visitas. 

In Cavite, the port of Manila, and in Cavite el Viejo, Fathers Andresde Ledesma and Juan Lopez attend to all the people of every class. 

There are two fathers in four settlements of the island of Marinduque, namely, Fathers Luis Pimentel and Juan de Espinosa. 

BISHOPRIC OF CEBU, OR OF SANTISIMO NOMBRE DE JESUS

In various islands of the bishopric of Cebu there are fifty priestsof the Society of Jesus, in the following residences and villages. 

In the city of Cebu itself are two fathers, who attend to the villageof Mandaui and to the many Indians in the said city [of Cebu]. Theyare Fathers Domingo Esquerra and Francisco Combés. 

There are four fathers in the island of Bohol--namely, Luis Aguayo, Pedro de Auñon, Bartolome Sanchez, and Francisco de la Peña--who attendto all the villages of the said island, five in number, called Loboc, Baclayon, Panglao, Ynabangan, and Malabohoc, and their visitas. 

Island of Leyte

The Society has two residences in this island. The first is that ofCarigara, where there are six priests, namely, Juan de Avila, Juan dela Rea, Pedro Carlos Cristobal de Lara, Andres Vallejo, and Antonio deAbarca. They instruct twelve villages, namely, Carigara, Leyte, Jaro, Barugo, Alangalan, Ocmug, Baybay, Cabalian, Sogor, Ynonangan, Panaon, and Luca. Those villages are scattered through a space of sixty leguas. 

The second residence in the same island is that of Dagami. Its villagesnumber ten, namely, Dagami, Malaguicay, Tainbuco, Dulag, Bito, Abuyo, Palo, Basey, Guinan, and Balanguigan. They are in charge ofsix fathers, namely, Carlos de Lemos, Diego de las Cuevas, FranciscoLuzon, Laudencio Horta, Juan de la Calle, and Jose de Leon. 

Island of Samar and Ybabao

The Society has two residences in this island, which is a very largeone. One is located on the coast on the side toward España, and theother on the opposite coast. The former is called the residence ofSamar, and the alcalde-mayor of this jurisdiction lives there. Itis composed of six villages, namely, Catbalogan, Calbigan, Paranas, Bangahun, Ybatan, and Capul; and other smaller villages have beenreduced to these. The ministry of that residence is in charge of fourpriests, namely, Fathers Melchor de los Reyes, Baltasar de Portiçela, Ygnacio de Alçina, and Matias de Montemayor. 

The second residence is that of Palapag. The villages in its missionnumber ten, namely, Palapag, Catubig, Burabur, Catalman, Bonbon, Biri, Bacor, Tubig, Sulat, and Borongan. They are visited--with greatdifficulty, because of the roughness of the seas--by six priests, namely, Fathers Bartolome Besco, Simon Baptista, Diego Flores, CosmePilares, Pedro de Espinar, and Jose Luque. 

Oton

One father looks after the fort of Spanish infantry owned by hisMajesty. Another priest attends to the village of Yloilo, which iscomposed of Indians and Sangleys. Those priests are Fathers Pedro deMontes and Juan de Contreras. However, his Majesty gives a stipendto only one. 

Island of Negros

In four villages, namely, Ylog, the capital of the corregidor of theisland of Negros, Canancalan, Suay, and Ygsiu, with two other visitasin the mountains, there are two fathers, namely, Esteban Jaime andFrancisco Deza. 

Mindanao

His Majesty possesses two forts in this great island, that ofYligan and that of Samboangan, to which two priests of the Societyattend. Father Ygnacio Navarro attends to that of Yligan, and FatherNicolas Cani to that of Samboangan. There are also two residences inthe said island. The one lying toward the north is that of Dapitan. Thevillages in its district are inhabited by Subanos. There are fourteenchurches, besides the one of the natives in the village of Yligan. Theyare Cayaguan, Delanun, Bayug, Dapitan, Lairaya, Dipolo, Dicayo, Duhinug, Piao, Licay, Manucal, Ponot, Silingan, Quipit, besidessome others of less renown. They are in charge of four priests, namely, Fathers Jose Sanchez, Carlos de Valencia, Francisco Angel, and Bernardino de Alison. 

The second residence is that of Samboangan. It extends from the borderof Dapitan to Sibuguy, the boundary of King Corralat, which is adistance of about fifty leguas. There are seventeen villages alongthat coast, which are as follows: Siocon, Siraney, Cauit, Sibuco, Bocot, Malandi, La Caldera, Baluajan, Masluc, Manicaan, Ducunney, Coroan, Bitali, Tungauan, Sanguito, Boloan, and Bacalan. Besidesthe above there are three [sic] villages of Lutaos near the fortof Samboanga, namely, Bagumbaya, Buayabuaya. In addition to these, that residence includes the island of Basilan, and also the islandof Joló and the island of Pangotaran, and other islands where manyChristians live. Five priests are divided among all those places, andsail in the fleet of Samboangan, and they are paid at his Majesty'sexpense. Those priests are Father Pedro Tellez, Father FranciscoLado, Father Francisco de Victoria, Father Juan Andres Palavicino, and Father Juan Montiel. 

Terrenate and Siao

Three priests are busied in these missions, by order of thegovernment. They are Father Vicente Choua, Father Francisco Miedes, and Father Diego de Esquivel, and they are paid at his Majesty'sexpense. Another one is needed to go and come thence, in order thatthe said priests may be sustained. 

The above sixty-seven priests are actual instructors andmissionaries. Besides them, there are eleven students in the collegeof the Society, who are studying the language and becoming suitableministers to supply the place of those who shall die. There are alsofive masters, who teach not only the members of the Society, but alsolaymen. To their teaching are indebted the majority of the beneficedclergy, secular priests, in the islands, besides many others who haveentered the orders. They also have charge of missions. Other priestsin the said province who are occupied in the care of the Spaniardsare not named in this paper, because they are not maintained at hisMajesty's expense. These are also used to fill the vacant places ofthose who are lacking in the said missions either from sickness ordeath; for no priest is permitted to work therein who does not knowone of the languages of the Indians who are in our care, so that allmay be instructors. In order that this may be given credit, I haveaffixed my signature in this village of San Pedro, June 30, 1655. 

The Mindanao Missions

The island of Mindanao [13] is the largest of these FilipinasIslands, next to that of Manila. A great portion of it is yet to besubdued. In that part which is conquered, the Society has charge ofthe jurisdictions of Iligan and Zamboanga. The latter is the chiefpresidio of the Spaniards, where a college is in the first years offoundation, which has a rector and five priests who work in it. Thevillages that it instructs are as follows: The village of the nativesand Lútaos [14] of the same Zamboanga, who number 800 families. Inplace of paying tribute, they serve as rowers in our fleets, whichare quite usually cruising about in defense of our coasts and toharass the enemy. The island of Basilan opposite the presidio ofZamboanga and two leguas distant, has about 1, 000 families--who, attracted by the industry, affection, and care of the mission fathersare most ready to show themselves for the Christian instruction, but few appear at the time of collecting the tribute. The Christiankindness of the Spaniards, which attends rather to the welfare ofthe souls than to personal interest, is tolerant with those people, as they are not yet entirely tamed and subdued, and because of thedanger of losing everything if they are hard pressed. That happensnot only in the island of Basilan, but also in all the other placesof that jurisdiction of Zamboanga, in the land of Mindanao. Thoseplaces are: La Caldera, a port so named, two leguas from Zamboangatoward the east, with about 200 families; Bocot, 250 families; Piacanand Siraney, 100 families; Siocon, 300 families; Maslo, 100 families;Namican, 30 families; Data, 25 families; Coroan, 20 families; Bitales, 40 families; Fingan, 100 families; Tupila, 100 families; Sanguinto, 100 families. All those places are at the southern part of Zamboanga, and contain in all 3, 251 families. The islands of Pangotaran and Ubianare also included in that jurisdiction, which are two days' journeyfrom Zamboanga; and their inhabitants, now almost all christianized, pay some kind of tribute when the fleets pass there. The islands ofTapul and Balonaquis, whose natives are yet heathen. There are manyislets about Basilan which serve as a shelter for Indian fugitives, many of whom are Christians, who on occasions come to the fathers forthe sacraments, and come at the persuasion of the fathers to serve inthe fleets. The island of Jolo also belongs to the same jurisdictionof Zamboanga. It has many Christians, who remained there when theSpanish presidio was withdrawn. The father ministers go at times tovisit them, and endeavor to attract them in order to administer theholy sacraments to them. All of the people in these various placesreduced to families will be a little more or less than as follows:in Pangotaran and Ubian, 200; in Tapul and Balonaquis, 150; in theislets of Basilan, 200; in Jolo, with its islets, 500--all togetheramounting to 1, 000. 

The jurisdiction of Iligan, with its residence of Dapitan

This jurisdiction runs along the eastern coast of the island, andits territory extends for a distance of about sixty leguas. Thatdistrict includes the people of the Subanos, who are one of themost numerous in the island, and one of the most ready to receivethe evangelical doctrine, as they are heathen and not Mahometans, as are the Mindanaos. The village of Iligan, which is the capital ofthe jurisdiction, where the alcalde-mayor and the infantry captainof the presidio live, has about 100 tributes along the coast. Thedistrict further inland, in another village called Baloy, hasabout 200 families, although only 30 make their appearance forthe tribute. Another village called Lavayan, which is located onthe other side of Iligan and the bay of Panguil, has 50 tributes, although there are [actually] twice as many more. Then comes Dapitan, which is our center for residence and instruction, as it is one ofthe most ancient Christian villages in these islands. Its inhabitantswent of their own accord to meet the first Spaniards who went outfor the conquest, and guided and served them in that conquest; andthey have always remained faithful in their friendship, for whichreason they have been exempted from paying tribute. There are about200 families there, while another village in the interior at the headof the same river has about 250. The villages located along the coasttoward Zamboanga are Dipoloc, with 300 families Duino, 600; Manucan, 100; Tubao, 100; Sindangan 500; Mucas, 200; Quipit, 300--in all 2, 750families This is the number estimated to be in this residence. Fivepriests generally aid in their instruction. [15]

LETTER FROM THE ARCHBISHOP OF MANILA TO FELIPE IV

Sire:

When we became established in these islands, and they were dividedup into bishoprics, the division was not made with due regardto convenience, and as the distance between the several partsrequired. This was due either to a lack of information, or to the factthat the conversion [of the heathen] had not yet been accomplished, norhad various islands, inhabited by numerous souls, yet been discovered;but these are now for the most part brought to our holy Catholic faith, or are shortly to be so, as we hope. To this must be added the lackof gospel laborers in regions which are distant more than a hundredleguas in the sea; as are the Litaos of Zamboanga, the Mindanaos, the Xoloans, the Borneans, and other nations, to which no bishopricextends or can extend, nor is there any prelate to care for thosesouls. Such a condition demands a remedy, and it appears to me best topresent the matter to your Majesty, beseeching you to be pleased toapply the remedy which is fitting, by providing a prelate and bishopto govern the church for so many souls. The most effective measure, itappears to me, is to discontinue the bishopric of Camarines, and havethe bishop put over the said nations--considering that the former isthe smallest bishopric, and borders on this archbishopric of Manila;and that the administration of the sacraments of confirmation, andthe visitations, could be attended to by land journeys [from here]. Inthis way these souls will be provided with their needed nourishment, and many will receive [spiritual] aid who today are neglected, orwho have hardly any ministers. It has seemed best to me to presentthis matter to your Majesty, that you may command what shall seembest. [In the margin: "Let the decision on the printed memorial, number 47, 48, and 53, be executed. "]

In the year 654 I gave an account to your Majesty of all the kingdomsand islands in the neighborhood of these. In some of them your Majestyhas garrisons and government, as in that of Terrenate; others aregoverned by their own native kings; and in all there are an infinitenumber of Christians. But all of them are lacking in ecclesiasticaljurisdiction and spiritual administration, because priests have to cometo them from Goa; and on account of the want that they have suffered, they find themselves in need of ministers. Considering the fact thatI am the nearest metropolitan in these islands, it seemed best to meto make known these facts to your Majesty, so that, if it be yourpleasure, you may provide assistance from this archbishopric--asis provided for the countries of Camboxa, Tunquin, Macazar, Sian, which are all governed by their native kings and are inhabited by aninfinite number of baptized persons, who are afforded salvation inthe same manner and way as was done in the year 654 in the islandsof Terrenate, where the power of your Majesty is established. Yourgovernor, Don Sabiniano Manrrique de Lara, withdrew the curacy whichwas established at Malaca, as it seemed expedient for the serviceof your Majesty; and at that time he sent ministers to maintain thatChristian community until your Majesty should determine otherwise, orhis Holiness should make provision [through me], as the metropolitannearest at hand, for the saving of these souls. [In the margin:"The same as in the preceding clause. "]

I also relate to your Majesty how, through the lack of bishops whichprevails in the kingdoms near these islands (whose ecclesiasticalgovernment has been administered by the archbishopric of Goa), severalPortuguese candidates, both secular priests and religious, have cometo this city from Macam and other regions, to be ordained. As a vassalof your Majesty, I decided not to ordain them without special advicefrom your Majesty; I, therefore, informed your governor of this, and have ordained none of them. That I may execute in this and ineverything else the will of your Majesty, I beg you to be pleased tocommand me what I must do. May God protect your Catholic and royalperson, granting greater kingdoms and seigniories. Manila, July 30, 1656. [In the margin: "This question was found in another letterfrom the archbishop. Have the fiscal examine it at once, and have itbrought with everything to the Council. " "The fiscal, having examinedthis clause of the letter, says that the Council might be pleased tocommand that the archbishop give information as to the manner in whichthose mentioned in this clause came to be ordained--whether with orwithout dismissory letters, and from whom they bring them--so that withthis he may make such request as is suitable. Madrid, March 2, 660. "]

Miguel, archbishop of Manila. 

[Endorsed: "Manila, July 30, 656. To his Majesty. The archbishopinforms us concerning various subjects, which are noted on the margin, namely: the great number of Christians who are in those islands, and the few laborers; much besides bishops and ministers is neededfor their government and instruction; and he proposes other matterswhich should be decided. " "June 6, 659. Memorial, number 47, 48, and 53. " "Session of the Council of March 4, 1660. Let his Majesty beadvised that the Council have considered what the archbishop of Manilawrites in the last clause of this letter of July 30, 1656, in regardto his refusing to ordain the religious and secular priests who cometo his archbishopric from the Portuguese who are in the territory ofthe archbishopric of Goa, on account of the state in which Portugalis; and, besides, what the fiscal answered on this point, after hehad seen the letter--namely, that the archbishop should be asked togive information in regard to the manner in which these men came to beordained, whether with or without dismissory letters, and from whomthey bring them, so that the proper request may be made. Althoughorders to this effect have been issued, it has seemed best to theCouncil to render account to your Majesty of what this informationcontains, on account of the bearing which it has generally uponthe affairs of Portugal; so that, in so far as this knowledge isimportant to him, such consultation may be held as shall appear mostexpedient. " "Let the Council take immediate action on this, so thattheir decision may go with the fleet. "

Don Juan GonzalesDon Pedro de GalbezDon Miguel de Luna

Dated on the same day. ]

TWO JESUIT MEMORIALS, REGARDING RELIGIOUS IN THE MOLUCCAS, AND THEINQUISITION

Sire:

I, Francisco Vello of the Society of Jesus, procurator-general ofthe province of Filipinas, who am at present in this court, deemit advisable for the service of your Majesty to make the followingstatements:

The governor of Filipinas, for certain reasons and motives that hehad, withdrew from the Terrenate forts the rector of a house of theSociety of Jesus which the province of Cochin in Eastern India hadthere from the beginning of those conquests, and placed there insteadreligious belonging to my province of Filipinas. The said rector actedas commissary of the Inquisition for the tribunal of Goa, as long as hewas there; but when he was withdrawn those forts were left without anycommissary. I gave testimony regarding that to the inquisitor-general, so that he on his part might procure from your Majesty the appointmentfor those forts of a minister--a matter so important for the purityof our holy faith--since your Majesty strives, as your chief glory, to preserve it in all the kingdoms and provinces of your monarchy;and it is most necessary in them, as they are in the midst of manysectaries, and, as those people are very warlike, they are more readyto receive errors. 

Everything relating to the Inquisition of the Filipinas is carried tothe tribunal of Mexico, with great hardships to the persons, expenseto the treasury, and the risk of losing everything--sometimes yearsbeing spent in questions and answers, and the enemy capturing (ashappened at various times) not only the records but the criminalsas well. And when affairs are settled, whether the criminals arepunished or freed, they are left about two thousand five hundredleguas from their home and abode, and sometimes it is impossiblefor them to return. One would think that, since it was considered aninconvenience for the vassals of the Canarias (who are distant onlytwo hundred odd leguas from Hespaña) to go to Sevilla, and a tribunalwas established there for their alleviation, there is not less butmuch [more] reason in the Filipinas for your Majesty to be pleasedto order that a tribunal be erected in the city of Manila, as wasdone in the Canarias. Moreover, supposing that Goa return later tothe allegiance of your Majesty, it is as difficult to take criminalsand records from the forts of Terrenate to that place as to Mexico;and, in proportion to the dangers of the sea, much greater. 

At present, even if the road from Terrenate to Goa were short and easy, it is not right to take the faithful vassals of your Majesty to bepunished by rebels, and by secret decrees, in districts so distantfrom one another. And if they are not taken--as they have not beentaken for many years, during which acts have been fulminated--evildoersremain without punishment, and the one evil is as bad as the other. Allthat will be avoided by establishing a new tribunal in Manila. By thaterection no new expense will be added to the royal treasury other thanthat of the inquisitor, and the amount given him will be proportionedto the income of the country, and can be obtained by assigning acertain number of Indian tributes to the royal treasury for thatpurpose; and he can afterward be advanced to bishop and archbishop, with greater experience than those have who go from other regions. Theother officials do not receive a salary. I trust in God, and thepiety of your Majesty, that provision will be made for this in themanner most to our Lord's glory and the welfare of your vassals, etc. 

Francisco Vello [16]

Sire:

I, Francisco Vello, procurator-general of the Society of Jesus forthe province of Filipinas, declare that, on account of the informationthat I have had from those islands and from all parts of the Orient, I have deemed it necessary to represent to your Majesty that, when theforts of Terrenate were restored from the possession of the Dutch inthe year six hundred and four, the temporal government of those forts(which was before under Eastern Yndia), was administered by Filipinas, while the ecclesiastical and spiritual was left to the said Yndia, as it belonged to the bishopric of Malaca, and the Inquisition to thetribunal of Goa, and a house of my order to the province of Cochin orMalabar (which is one and the same thing)--your Majesty paying boththe expenses of the military and the salaries of the ecclesiasticalpersons from your royal treasury of Manila. 

Because of the troubles that Don Sebastian Hurtado de Corcuerarecognized while governor, after the insurrection of Portugal and theirconquests, he had the religious withdrawn--leaving only the vicar, because of the jurisdiction--which could not be administered by secularofficials, but by those to whom it belongs. After Don Diego Faxardoassumed that government, he again introduced Portuguese religiousthere, and withdrew those of my province. [That plan was pursued]until Don Saviniano Manrrique de Lara assumed the same government, who, on account of information from the warden of those forts, againwithdrew the religious from Yndia, and likewise the vicar--entrustingto my provincial that administration and house, at the advice of thearchbishop of Manila. That charge was immediately accepted, in orderto serve your Majesty; and it has been thus far fulfilled. 

Although those presidios and the king of Tidore (who is a Christian)and the people of those districts have persons to administer the holysacraments to them, their ministers have no jurisdiction, as it hasto emanate from the ordinary of Malaca. In the same way there is nocommissary of the Inquisition, as the tribunal of Goa thus far hasjurisdiction there. Malaca, to which the said forts belonged, hasbeen occupied by the Dutch since the year six hundred and forty-one;and our holy Roman faith is no longer exercised there, nor has therebeen left any city or village of that bishopric which could obtainthat see. Also is there no hope of the restoration of what has beenlost, according to the trend of the times. Because of that loss thejurisdiction of Terrenate had to be transferred either to the bishopricof Cochin--which is the nearest one, being distant thence six hundredleguas--or to the metropolitan of Goa, which is seven hundred leguasfrom Malaca, while the first one is one thousand three hundred leguasand the second one thousand four hundred from Terrenate. Consequently, on account of the long navigation, they cannot be furnished withsupplies from there, as their proper administration requires. Forthat same reason they were not visited for more than twenty yearsby any ordinary or ecclesiastical superior, as is commanded by thecouncils. Besides the above difficulty there is another one, namely, that no people sail from Yndia to the Moluccas except the Dutch, as thelatter have gained possession of those islands and of their drug trade, which they defend from all, most especially the Portuguese of Yndia. 

Consequently, it seems to be necessary that the spiritual affairs ofthose forts be placed in charge of the archbishop of Manila (althoughthey are nearer to the bishopric of Zebú), because of the ships whichcontinue to carry reënforcements, with a voyage of three hundred leguasor a little more or less. No other object is intended in this than thewelfare of those Christians; and your Majesty will obtain no otheradvantage than that of maintaining our Roman faith in its purity inthat most remote district of the world, among so warlike nations asare the Japanese, Chinese and Tartars, Tunquinese, Cochin-chinese, Cambojans, Siamese, Joloans, and others who almost surround it. Forthat alone so great a sum of money is spent as is known, not only inthose forts but in all those islands. It has been proved to be veryagreeable to God because of the extent to which the holy gospel hasspread among them, for they are the best fields of Christian effort ofall the conquests of the monarchy. It is well seen that He favors itin the continual victories that your Majesty's arms have had in thoseregions on sea and land, although it is so distant a member of the bodyof this monarchy. May God prosper this monarchy well with fortunatevictories for the welfare and increase of our holy religion. [17]

Francisco Vello

JESUIT PROTEST AGAINST THE DOMINICAN UNIVERSITY

Memorial of Miguel Solana, Jesuit, petitioning the king not toallow the Dominican friars to carry out their purpose of founding auniversity in Manila. 

Sire:

Miguel Solana of the Society of Jesus, and procurator-general of theprovince of the Philippine Islands, makes the following declaration, namely: That he has been shown a memorial presented by the fathermaster Fray Mateo Vermudez, [18] procurator-general of the collegeof Santo Tomas in the city of Manila, wherein for reasons therein setforth he asks that the ambassador at Rome be authorized in writing topetition his Holiness to erect a university of general studies, and toincorporate and establish it in his college as above--so that, shouldthere hereafter be founded separate schools and general [studies], the said university is to be transferred to them, in which may betaught three other branches of learning--namely, canon law, civillaw, and medicine, as more fully set forth in the said memorial, the meaning whereof to be taken for granted. Your Majesty will bepleased to order that the same be stricken from the judicial acts, and furthermore, that no other petition of similar import be admitted, with the declaration to the opposing party that, inasmuch as the matterhas already been decided [cosa juzgada] in favor of the college of SanIgnacio, which the Society conducts in the said city, they are barredfrom further relief. All which I petition for, for reasons to be morefully described hereafter, whereon I found the necessary petitionsand prayers, which, as is evident and appears, will be acknowledgedthroughout the whole line of reasoning and the acts of the suit thathas been entered by the said college, as well as from the allegationsand claims deduced therein. The claim of the college of Santo Tomas, in brief, is the establishment of a university in order to nullifythe right and privileges of the Society and of the said college ofSan Ignacio, whereon the Audiencia of Manila has acted and deliveredjudgment--which acts, on being brought before the Council on appeal, were ended definitively in the trial and review of the said suit. Thecase, therefore, is finished and closed, and for no reason can orshould it be reopened, either in whole or part. Wherefore it resultsthat the claim now introduced is faulty with no other purpose than toburden the said Society with new suits and expenses; as the case, asstated, has been decided and closed, and the reopening of it barred, as being a matter already determined. The said memorial thereforeshould not be admitted, nor a hearing granted to the claim advancedtherein, which should be refused further consideration. And to theend that his plea be drawn up according to the requirements of law, and for the better confutation of the reasons advanced in the saidmemorial, he [i. E. , Solana] maintains that what was petitioned for andobtained by the opponents in the warrant (which was secured throughthe aid of money) was the establishment of a university like thoseat Avila and Pamplona. But in order to avoid raising the questionof temporal privileges with the necessary expenses therefor, as wellas because the paper to be sent to Rome had to be of similar tenor, it was trickily drawn up, and the petition for a university made toread as for one like Lima and Mexico, whereof the reasons advancedin the said suit were set forth in full form, whence it follows thatit is not entitled to any further consideration; especially so, sincethe concession made by his Holiness was according to the tenor of theclear and truthful petition that had been presented to him, withouttaking into consideration the ulterior meaning that through deceitand malice had been introduced into the report and the subsequentdecree thereon. Nor should so important a defect be glozed over withthe assertion that the said paper bore the signatures of the presidentand the members of your Council (whereof there is no evidence) whilethe very contrary is evident in the acts. [Let it be noted] thatconsiderable time has passed, while, moreover, the proceedings havetaken for granted the certainty that those acts should have in similarmatters--besides the facts that, in the endeavor to secure a bull, theaccompanying statement was vague in that no mention was made thereinof the authority possessed by the Society of conferring degrees byperpetual and lawful right; and that in the Council acknowledgment wasmade (with full cognizance of the case and of whatever was proposed inthe said memorial and papers), that they were in favor of the collegeof San Ignacio and its degrees and students, and not of those of SantoTomas. Moreover, the bulls and apostolic privileges that have beenenjoyed by the Society are in legal and recognized form, and havebeen admitted and certified to in all the audiencias and tribunalsof the Indias, as is notorious; they were passed by the Council, andwere presented in the suit, and acknowledged as being of value; whilewhat was advanced by the said father procurator whereon were issuedthe decisions and writs of the Audiencia of Manila and the Council, was held as gratuitously asserted and without foundation. As early asthe year 26, the said bulls were presented to the president, governor, and captain-general, at that time Don Juan Niño de Tabora--from whichthe subreption latent in the bull which they obtained is inferrible, for in the form wherein it was granted, they would not have securedit if his Holiness had had the evidence of the right and [fact of]possession on the part of the said Society. Nevertheless, the saidfather procurator-general seeks and claims to have all the defectstherein corrected through the issuance of new letters and bulls, in order that the said Society may thereby be deprived and despoiledof its said just privileges and legal titles. In virtue of these itis toiling to the great benefit and advantage, both spiritual andtemporal, of the vassals of your Majesty who are resident in thoseregions and provinces, and who again and again have sought to havethe Society upheld in its said right, the same having been dulyacknowledged and certified, of which there cannot be the slightestdoubt. In order to make plain the baselessness of the arguments thatare raised against the said bulls, it suffices to say that they havebeen presented in legal, authentic, and unchallengeable shape, whereofthe evidence is wholly undeniable; and have been recognized as suchby the Council, by which they have been accepted with all neededcircumstances and requirements--so that, had any further scrutinybeen needed therein, the same would not have been neglected, nor, [in such case], would the audiencias of the Indias have allowed themto be cited. Moreover in the suit now pending in the Council, betweenthe college of the Society and that of Santo Tomas in sequence ofthe one conducted before the royal Audiencia resident in that city[of Manila], the fiscal of Santa Fé [in Mexico?] required that thosebulls should be recognized and fulfilled; and although oppositionthereto was offered on the part of the college of Sante Tomas, the acts of the trial and the review show that a writ of executionwas issued empowering the Society to make full and complete use ofthe same by conferring degrees, as it had been doing, the collegeof Santo Tomas being enjoined therefrom. In consideration of thisit is not right to grant the father procurator a hearing. Besides, in that suit many other arguments and reasons were brought forwardin favor of the Society. Wherefore, if this had not already beendecided, finished, and closed, as is the case, a petition wouldbe presented to have all the acts relative to the same broughttogether, or that a report should be drawn up of the proceedingsin the trial. With this concurs the fact, as said, that they werepassed by the Council, of which a cedula to that effect has beenpresented. Moreover in the said suit before the Audiencia of Manila, the cedula of November 25 of [the year 16] 45 having been offered inopposition thereto, full recognition was had of this article; and inthe trial and review of the case the claim was refused consideration, since the truthfulness and promptness wherewith the Society was andis proceeding was in evidence--as also was its right use of the saidbulls and its conferral of degrees, of which recognition and discussionwas made before all parties in this said suit. Besides, to assertthat the powers to confer degrees were revoked by Pius V and SixtusV is contrary to established fact, inasmuch as, so far as relates, appertains, and belongs to its privileges and bulls, these not onlywere not withdrawn from the Society, but rather were confirmed mostamply, with the grant besides of new favors and graces. Wherefore, as regards this plea all question is ended, while the revocationto which he refers concerns other parties, and other intents andpurposes, which do not belong to or affect this suit relative to thefirm and unalterable right of the Society of Jesus. The said fatherprocurator-general, then, should know what is so notorious that evenin Rome, where the Society has its principal university, it has beenconferring degrees on its students without any opposition whatever, which would not be the case were the bulls in any way detective. Butthis [claim] is wholly gratuitous and censurable, as the said decreesof execution were issued by the audiencias and councils; nor should itbe offered in opposition on the part of the college of Santo Tomas;nor should an attempt be made to reopen what has been resolved anddecided legally with such full knowledge of the case. And the reportwhich he files is also opposed to established fact, in his statementthat the city [of Manila] petitioned for the foundation of a universityin the said college; for no such paper was written, nor has one beendiscovered, to the best of our knowledge. Nay, the evidence on thecontrary goes to show that a special petition was drawn up in boththe general and the particular interest of that community wherein thesaid Society is established and the use and exercise of its said bullsmaintained. For this reason, when the Audiencia ordered the trial tobe held, the citizens displayed so much regret for this disturbance ofthe Society, that the cabildo and magistracy felt obliged to repair tothe governor and most urgently petition him to interpose his authorityto have the suit remanded to the Council. They asked that no change[in regard to the college] be made, and that he would petition yourMajesty on their behalf not to sanction the finding of the said act;or, in event of this being done, to extend the same grace also to theSociety of Jesus, in opposition to whose growth it was not right orwithin reason (with due respect) to have the question decided throughthe expenditure of money, and that the petty amount of two thousandpesos. Because of the harm to the public welfare and the serviceof your Majesty, besides other cogent reasons, any similar proposalshould be regarded with disfavor and refused a hearing. Moreover, it[i. E. , the Jesuit college] was sought for and granted on the fiat ofthe Conde de Castrillo, through whose agency this grant was secured, and confirmed by the Council. This they secured and obtained fully andsufficiently, and their warrants have been put into effect; whence itresults that (even though the intent [of these] had not prevailed andbeen put into execution, as it has been; even though the res judicatabars further action, as it does) no recourse is open to them [i. E. , the Dominicans], nor means that can be of use for introducing the saidclaim, nor ground for complaint--especially since in virtue of the bullthey enjoy many and valuable prerogatives which were not contained inthe temporal privileges which they exercised in former times. Thenthe archbishop gave them their degrees, which were recognized onlyin the Indias, while now these are recognized everywhere, beingconferred by the rector of the college, which has other officials, insignia, and preëminences of special import. Nor do they [i. E. , the Dominicans] refrain from nor content themselves with disparagingin every way the degrees and students of the Society of Jesus, whomthey deprive and despoil of their just titles and rights. Such isthe reason wherefore your Majesty should not give them a hearing werethe subject one entitled to a hearing; such the reason wherefore theCouncil, although wrongly the contrary is maintained, has not declaredthe college of Santo Tomas to be a university--since what it did do, as is evident in the acts, was to order and declare that both collegesuse their bulls. Thus the opposing party is deprived of nothing; nay, especially since, as is stated in the petition and prayer drawn up forthat purpose, it was in order to obtain such powers as are held by theuniversities of Avila and Pamplona. They should not now seek, becauseof the illegal act of the secretary, to have those powers extendedand enlarged to those [possessed by the colleges] of Lima and Mexico, even though his Holiness had not reduced them to the form, limits, and branches of knowledge, referred to in the said bull--to whosetenor and decision one must submit without therefore giving unduesignificance to the word academia used therein. For, without nowraising any question as to the effects thereof, the burden of thistreatise simply states that whether a college be a university or notdepends on the will of him who is empowered to grant it after inquiryinto the fundamental grounds of the matter. In the said lawsuit, the truth was established; accordingly it is neither expedient norfitting to discuss new points, as whether the term academia, or thatof university, or something else be used. Besides, as already stated, the city of Manila did not petition for a university as allegedby the opposite party. The petitioner to that effect in the paperreferred to was the said college itself, which secured the grant withlimitations as in the decree. Wherefore, even if the said bull had notbeen secured, there would have been no cause for complaint, inasmuchas they paid the said two thousand pesos with your Majesty's consent;nor could a new petition at any time be presented, one already havingbeen granted, even though they had not obtained the bull. 

But without calling in question the matter which is alreadysettled, or his other representations which he insists on and firmlymaintains--without appearance, however, of abandoning his claim incase of its rejection--the point that now may be discussed relativeto a regular university and general studies is as follows: Has thecollege of Santo Tomas the needed requisites therefor? or are therenew conditions by which their claim can be supported, and which woulddeprive your Majesty of all ground [for refusing it], although you donot support it? In case a new foundation should be deemed advisable, this more suitably should be established in the said college of SanIgnacio, for the reasons to be gathered from the acts of the saidtrial, from the reports that have been made in favor of the Society, and from the excellent progress which, as is proved by experience, hasresulted from their learning and teaching in those islands, with thegeneral applause and approval of their inhabitants and citizens. Allthis [the writer] again brings forward in the interest of this plea;and he represents that the college of San Ignacio is one founded byyour Majesty, and the earliest, and is older than that of Santo Tomas;he also asserts its precedence and other prerogatives adjudged to itin the said trial. Its teaching staff has been, as it will continueto be, adorned with the needed endowments and learning; and that theSociety will, as is usual in such cases, carefully teach and trainyouth follows from its statutes; and the results of its labors in thisdirection are well known. For its teachers it has never demanded anyfees, nor have they any other reward than the luster which is derivedfrom the learning and uprightness of the scholars. They need no royalendowment for their support and maintenance, nor will they ever applyfor one. From the revenues enjoyed by the college and the favor shownby your Majesty from the beginning of their earliest establishmentsthey will maintain themselves and be gladly occupied in the fulfilmentof this duty. Your Majesty will be their only patron and will give themsuch statutes as he shall please for their better government. Moreover, without having the royal exchequer put to the slightest expense, application will be made to his Holiness for bulls whereby thisinstitution may win greater renown; while it will be subject in allthings to the behest and commands of your Majesty and your Council, as ever has been the notable course of the Society of Jesus in thoseregions, in order that you may clearly see and understand its mode ofprocedure and how consistent are its actions. As a favor from yourMajesty, it prays with the utmost earnestness and respect that youwill be pleased to command that the papers and reports bearing onthis matter in the secretary's office be examined and compared--notonly those from the present governor, but those from his predecessor;and especially what the latter wrote in the year 49, on the occasionof his referring [to the Council] this lawsuit. Therein will appearthe arguments in opposition to the college of Santo Tomas, andthe decisions thereon--among others, the fact that its graduatesand students have to take oath that they will uphold the teachingsof Saint Thomas [of Aquino]. As a matter of fact, in the renowneduniversities of the world an oath is taken to defend whatever theconsensus of Christian piety has decreed--as during these days wassworn to amid public demonstrations and applause, in the presenceof your Majesty--relative to the mystery of the conception of themost holy Virgin our Lady. [19] Besides this, by express enactmentsof law they are forbidden under censures to read and teach otherfaculties and sciences than those of philosophy and theology. It istherefore unbecoming and in conflict with the said enactments, as wellas incompatible with their institute and profession, which forbid themto conduct public universities in the form now claimed. It, moreover, is in manifest prejudice to the right conferred by bulls and privilegeson the Society of Jesus, as well as to what has been decreed in itsfavor with so much toil and expense. And, besides, it may be remarkedthat the establishment of a university, with courses of medicine, and canon and civil law, in the convent of Santo Domingo would bean improper and absurd proceeding, as they have no teachers who areacquainted with the first principles of these sciences, in default ofwhich there could be but poor instruction, whereas the law requiresthat the teachers thereof be very learned, besides being endowedwith singular talents and qualifications. As the matter is well andgenerally known, it may be observed that in the Philippines and thecity of Manila, where the only persons who treat the sick are Chinese, there is no graduate physician; for no one wishes to go thither fromMexico, as he would be unable to get a living. As regards canon andcivil law, graduates therein might go thither every year, if only theycould obtain a living and find scholars to whom they might lectureand give instruction. But the city of Manila is so small and confinedthat--as is evident from the paper here presented with the necessaryformalities from Don Sebastian Hurtado de Corquera--it numbers no morethan two hundred and seventy citizens. Behold then, your Majesty, underwhat conditions and in what sort of a place it is sought to establisha regular university of sciences and arts, with chancellor, rector, secretary, beadle, and other officials and teachers who make up itsstall--for whose support would be needed twelve thousand ducados ofincome, no matter how moderate the salaries; whereas, if a portionof this were applied in increasing the number of settlers, witha consequent saving of burdens on the royal exchequer, this wouldredound to the greater benefit and service of your Majesty. Withconsideration of the same and whatever besides in fact or law may beof moment, the writer prays and beseeches your Majesty to order thesaid memorial to be rejected, and allow no other of similar importto be received--with the addition of the declaration, if needed, thatthe case has already been settled, and the claim is not entitled to ahearing. In conclusion, without prejudice, however, to his plea norwith abandonment of the same, he [i. E. , Solana] prays that, shoulda university be established, it be founded in the college of SanIgnacio of the said Society; and on each and every matter relatingthereto he files all the petitions needed therefor, wherein he willreceive favor with justice, etc. [20]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PHILIPINAS ISLANDS [21]

Although it appears by the information above that in regard to thePhilipinas Islands (which belong to the district of the Inquisition ofMexico) it has not been possible to arrange the itinerary, because ofthe great distance thither from this kingdom; and that the inquisitorvisitor, Doctor Don Pedro de Medina Rico, charged its execution byletter to the father-definitor, Fray Diego de Jesus Maria, discalcedreligious of St. Augustine, and calificador of the Holy Office, ashe had labored more than twenty years in the said islands--the saidletter being sent in duplicate in the two ships that left this kingdomin this present year of one thousand six hundred and fifty-eight--yet, because the said visitor has heard of the great knowledge of thoseregions that is possessed by Father Maxino Sola, a religious ofthe Society of Jesus (who is at present in the City of Mexico, andabout to go to the kingdoms of Castilla as procurator-general of theprovince of Philipinas), in order that the said itinerary might bearranged with greater despatch, and so that in the interim until thecoming of the person who shall settle things in those islands, theremay be such relation as we are able to have in this book (which mustbe sent at the first opportunity to the most illustrious and mostreverend inquisitor-general and the members of the Council of thegeneral Holy Inquisition), his Lordship ordered me, Ygnaçio de Paz, that, continuing the work, I should set down the information givenby the said Father Maxino Sola. And, in obedience to that order, that relation which I have been able to procure with the exercise ofall care and minuteness, is as follows. 

Archbishopric of Manila

The city of Manila, from which the said archbishopric (as well as allthe island) takes its name, occupies the same site as did the largestsettlement of the natives of this island when they were heathen, who called it by the same name. It was conquered and happily unitedto the Spanish crown on May nineteen, one thousand five hundred andseventy-one (the same year of the establishment of the tribunal ofthe Holy Office of the Inquisition in Mexico) by the valiant MiguelLopez de Legazpi, native [of Guipúzcoa: blank space in MS. ], and aformer citizen of the said City of Mexico, whom his Majesty honoredwith the title of adelantado of the said islands. The city liesin fourteen degrees of north latitude. The governor lives there, who is the captain-general and president of the royal Audienciawhich resides in that city, and consists of four auditors who arealso alcaldes of the court, a fiscal, and the chief constable of thecourt. Their archbishop and the ecclesiastical cabildo live there, the latter consisting of the accustomed dignitaries--three canons(for one of the four canonries there was suppressed by his Majesty), two racioneros, two medio-racioneros, one secular cura, who hascharge of the Spaniards, and another who has charge of the nativesand mulattoes. They are building at the cost of his Majesty a templefor a cathedral, as that which they had before fell in the ruin causedthroughout those islands by the earthquakes in the year one thousandsix hundred and forty-four [sic; sc. Five]. There is a royal chapel inthe Plaza de Armas for the funerals and ministry of the soldiers, andit has a chief chaplain and six secular chaplains, all at his Majesty'sexpense. There is a commissary of the tribunal of the Holy Office, counselors, calificadors, a chief constable, and other employes. Thesaid commissary is necessary in the said city, and he will suffice forall the jurisdiction of the archbishopric of Manila, with the exceptionof the port of Cavitte. Because of the vessels that anchor at the saidcity from foreign kingdoms, and because it is not easy to cross thebay during certain months of the year, it is advisable for that cityto have its own commissary, as will be related later in the properplace. There is also need of the chief constable, four familiars, and two notaries. [There is] a house of the Misericordia with itstemple and two seculars as chaplains, where marriages are provided[for girls]. There is another house, called Santta Pottençiana, withits chapel and secular chaplain, where the wives of those who traveland leave the islands in his Majesty's service are sheltered. Thereis a royal hospital for the treatment of Spaniards, with its chapeland secular chaplain. The convents of religious in the said city ofManila, in regard to the seniority of their establishment there, areas follows: the calced religious of St. Augustine; the discalced ofSt. Francisco, of the advocacy of St. James; those of the Society ofJesus; those of St. Dominic; and the discalced of St. Augustine--allwith convents and churches of excellent architecture. In addition, the fathers of the Society of Jesus have a seminary with some twentyfellowships under the advocacy of St. Joseph, with a university fromwhich students are graduated in all the faculties. The religious ofSt. Dominic have another seminary, with not so many fellowships, underthe advocacy of St. Thomas, where they also graduate students in allthe faculties. In both, lectures are given in grammar, philosophy, and theology. There is a convent with religious women of St. Clare, who are in charge of the religious of St. Francis; a hospital ofthe Misericordia for poor people and slaves of the Spaniards, theadministration of which is in charge of the religious of St. Johnof God, whose convent is located at the port of Cavite. There isa cabildo and magistracy, with two alcaldes-in-ordinary, a chiefconstable, regidors, and a clerk of cabildo; and an accountancy ofresults, with its accountant and officials. There are also threeroyal officials, with their employes. There are about sixty Spanishcitizens, not counting those who occupy military posts. The latteramount usually to about four hundred men. There are many servants, of various nations, amounting to more than four thousand men and women. 

Hamlets falling in the circumference of the city of Manila

Outside and near the walls of the city lies the parish of Santiagowhere one beneficed secular has charge of all the Spaniards who liveoutside the said walls. The village of San Antonio is also near thewalls, and is in charge of a beneficed secular. 

The village of Quiapo, which lies on the other side of the river, is administered by the said beneficed secular. 

The village called La Hermita, in whose temple is the venerated imageof Nuestra Señora de Guia, is two musket-shots away from the wallsof Manila, and is administered by a beneficed secular. 

The village called Parián, the alcaicería where the Chinese merchantsand workmen live--most of that people being infidels, and few of themChristian--are in charge of religious of St. Dominic. This place isclose to the walls. 

There is a small village next the walls called San Juan, which is incharge of the discalced religious of St. Augustine. 

Another village, somewhat farther from the walls than the said SanJuan, and called Malatte, is in charge of the calced Augustinianfathers. 

Another very near village, called Dilao, is where some JapaneseChristians live, separated from the natives; and their administration, as well as that of the natives, is in charge of religious ofSt. Francis. 

There is another small village contiguous to that of Dilao, called SanMiguel, which has a house of retreat for the Japanese women who areexiled from their country because they follow our holy faith. They, as well as the natives of the said village, are in charge of religiousof the Society of Jesus. 

All of the said villages, so far as the secular affairs are concerned, belong to the jurisdiction of the alcalde-mayor of Tondo, who livesin the village of that name on the other side of the river. Thatvillage is densely populated with natives and Chinese mestizos whoare in charge of calced religious of St. Augustine. 

Still nearer the river is the village of Milongo [sic; sc. Binondo]which is almost wholly composed of Chinese mestizos. It is in chargeof religious of St. Dominic. 

The religious of St. Dominic administer and care for a Chinese hospitalwhich is located on the bank of the said river. 

On the same shore of the river is a village named Santa Cruz, composedof married Christian Chinese, who are in charge of religious of theSociety of Jesus. 

Up-stream toward the lake are various villages. One is called SanSebastian, and is in charge of discalced Augustinians. 

Another is called Santa Ana and is administered by religious ofSt. Francis. 

Another, called San Pedro, is in charge of religious of the Societyof Jesus. 

Another, called Guadalupe, is in charge of calced Augustinians. 

Another, called Pasic, is in charge of calced Augustinian religious. 

The village of San Matheo is in charge of religious of the Societyof Jesus. 

The village of Taitai is in charge of the said religious of theSociety. 

The village of Antipolo is in charge of the same religious of theSociety of Jesus. 

The village of San Palo [i. E. , Sampaloc] is in charge of religiousof St. Francis. 

Coasting along from the city of Manila to the port of Cavite, wherethe ships that sail from this kingdom anchor, and across the saidriver, is the village of Parañaca, which is in charge of the calcedAugustinian religious. 

Port of Cabitte

The port of Cabitte is six or seven leguas distant from Manila by land, and three by sea, and the seamen live there with a Spanish garrison;they have their castellan, who is also the chief justice. There isa secular cura who ministers with the help of his assistant andsacristan. There is a college of the Society of Jesus; a conventof St. Francis, another of St. Dominic, and another of discalcedAugustinians, as well as a hospital in charge of the religious ofSt. John of God. The cura of that port also has charge of the nativesliving about the walls, who are almost all workmen who work at thebuilding of galleons. The same cura also has charge of the smallvillages which are located on the other side of the port. Anothercalled Cabitte el Viexo [i. E. , Old Cavite] is in charge of fathers ofthe Society of Jesus. At a distance of four or five leguas about thisport are located some cattle-ranches and some farmlands belonging tothe citizens of Manila, which are in charge of a secular cura. 

In the jurisdiction of the alcalde-mayor of Tondo, which is the placenearest to the city of Manila besides the aforesaid villages (which allbelong to him, except the port of Cabitte), is the village of Tegui, close to the lake. It is in charge of calced Augustinian religious. 

In the interior are located the villages of Silan and Ymdan whichare in charge of fathers of the Society of Jesus. 

Up-stream and next to the jurisdiction of Tondo begins the jurisdictionof the lake of Bari [sic; sc. Bay] which lies east of Manila; thisjurisdiction lies along the shore of the said lake. The chief villageis called Barii (whence the name of the said lake) and it is in chargeof calced Augustinian religious. 

The village of San Pablo, distant six leguas inland, is in charge ofthe same calced Augustinian religious. 

There is a hospital located on the bank of the said lake, which isin charge of religious of St. Francis. These religious have chargeof most of the villages of that jurisdiction with the exception ofthat of Binan and its subordinate villages. 

Coasting along Manila Bay, one comes first to the island of Maribeles, a small jurisdiction in charge of a Spaniard, who is corregidor andserves also as sentinel. Its villages are in charge of discalcedAugustinian religious, with the exception of that of Maragondon andits subordinate villages, which are in charge of religious of theSociety of Jesus. 

Leaving the bay, and pursuing the same voyage made by the ships thatgo to Nueva España, on the left and some fourteen leguas from Cavitteis the jurisdiction of Balayan or Bombon, located on a small lakewhich bears that name. It has an alcalde-mayor; most of its villagesare in charge of seculars, and the others, of calced religious ofSt. Augustine. 

Opposite the said jurisdiction and to the right, lie the islands ofMindoro and Luban, which are in charge of secular priests. They havean alcalde-mayor, to whom belongs also the island of Marinduque, which is in charge of fathers of the Society of Jesus. 

Traveling along the other side of the land of Manila, [22] oneencounters the jurisdiction of Bulacan, which is but small, and isadministered by religious of the calced Augustinians--as also is thejurisdiction of Panpanga, which is large and fertile, and containsmany large villages. 

Fourteen or fifteen leguas past the island of Mindoro to the southwest, are the islands called Calamianes, which number about seventeen. Theyare small and most of them now subdued; and they lie between theisland of Mindoro and that called Paragua, which is the third of thesaid Philipinas Islands in size. [23] A small portion of the latterisland is subject to the Spaniards; it is one hundred and fifty leguasin circumference, and its greatest latitude is nineteen degrees. 

In the islands called Calamianes is located an alcalde-mayor witha small presidio, as it lies opposite the Camucones enemy. Theadministration of all those islands, and of that called Cuio, is incharge of discalced Augustinian religious. 

Bishopric of Cagayan or Nueva Segovia

The city where the seat of the bishopric is located is called NuevaSegovia. It has a Spanish presidio and its fort, whose castellanis the alcalde-mayor of that jurisdiction. It is in charge of onesecular cura. The religious of St. Dominic have a convent in the saidcity. The jurisdiction is about eighty leguas long and forty wide. Allthe province of Cagayan is in charge of religious of St. Dominic exceptthe village and port of Viga, which is in charge of a secular cura. 

Next to that province on the side toward the archbishopric of Manila, lies the province called Ylocos. It is very fertile and abounds ingold and cotton, and is densely populated. It has an alcalde-mayor, andall its administration is in charge of calced Augustinian religious. 

The province called Pangasinan is next to the said province ofYlocos. It is densely populated, fertile, and abounds in gold. Thereligious of St. Dominic have charge of it, with the exception ofsome small villages on the seacoast, which are in charge of discalcedAugustinian religious. All those three provinces together with theislands called Babullanes belong to the said bishopric of Cagaian. Theylie north of Manila. There are many people yet to be converted, someof them being rebels who have taken to the mountains, while thereare others who pay their tributes although they are not Christians. 

Bishopric of Camarines or Nueva Cazeres

In the part opposite the bishopric of Cagayan lies the bishopriccalled Camarines or Nueva Cazeres. Its city, called [Nueva] Cazeres, is the seat of the bishopric and has a secular cura and a convent ofreligious of St. Francis which has a hospital. All that province ofCamarines, and another one called Paracale is in charge of religiousof St. Francis; and they are in the jurisdiction of one alcalde-mayor. 

The province called Calilaya or Taiabas, which has anotheralcalde-mayor, is also in the charge of religious of St. Francis, except the villages called Bondo which are in charge of seculars. Thesaid jurisdiction has another province called Canttanduanes, which hasits own corregidor; and some small islands a short distance from themainland. Those islands, which are called Burias, Masbate, and Tican, are in charge of seculars. 

The islands of Romblon and Bantton, which belong to that jurisdictionof Canttanduanes, are in charge of religious of the discalcedAugustinians. Those two bishoprics of Nueva Segovia and Nueva Cazeresare located in the island of Manila. That island is about two hundredleguas or so long and runs from the east to the north, from aboutthirteen and one-half degrees [of latitude] to about nineteen or atrifle less. In the east it has a width of about one day's journeyfrom one sea to the other, or a trifle more; and in the north isthirty or forty leguas wide. The total circumference of the islandis about four hundred leguas. 

Bishopric of Sebu or Nombre de Jesus

The see of that bishopric is located in the city called Sebu, as ittook that name from that of the whole island; the Spaniards gaveit the name of Nombre de Jesus. It was so called from the imageof the child Jesus which was found by the adelantado Miguel Lopezde Legazpe in the Indian settlement in the year one thousand fivehundred and sixty-five. It appears that that image was left in thatisland in the year one thousand five hundred and twenty-one, whenHernando de Magallanes (who died there) arrived at that place. Onlyone secular cura lives there, for although dignitaries, consistingof a dean and the others, have been assigned to Sebu, they are soonly in name; and those dignities are enjoyed by the seculars whohave charge of the places nearest to the said city of Sebu. Inthat city is located a convent of calced Augustinian religious, which was the first convent to be founded in the said PhilipinasIslands. There is a college of the Society of Jesus, and a conventof discalced Augustinian religious. As far as the secular power isconcerned, there is an excellent stone fort with a Spanish presidio, which is governed by an alcalde-mayor who generally bears the titleof "lieutenant of the captain-general. " There is a cabildo andmagistracy, with alcaldes-in-ordinary and regidors. That island issomewhat prolonged for fifteen or twenty leguas, and is eight leguaswide. It has a circumference of eighty or ninety leguas, and extendsnortheast and southwest in ten degrees of latitude. [24] The city hasa Parián or alcaicería of Chinese who are in charge of a beneficedsecular. About it are some natives who are in charge of calced anddiscalced Augustinian religious. 

The nearest island to the above island is that called Bohol, whichruns north and south for some fifteen leguas, with a width of eightor ten leguas and a circumference of forty. It is all in charge ofreligious of the Society of Jesus. As regards secular affairs, itbelongs to the jurisdiction of Sebu. 

Next the said island of Bohol lies that called Leite. It also extendsnorth and south, and has a length of some thirty leguas, and a widthin some parts of only three leguas, while its circumference is aboutninety or one hundred leguas. It is also in charge of fathers of theSociety of Jesus. 

Next the said island of Leite lies that called Samar or Ybabao, the last of the Philipinas. Its coast is bathed by the Mexican Sea, and it makes a strait with the land of Manila which is called SanBernardino. By that strait enter and leave the ships of the NuevaEspaña line. It lies between thirteen and one-half degrees and elevendegrees south latitude, in which latitude it extends for the spaceof two and one-half degrees. It is also in charge of fathers of theSociety of Jesus. That island and that of Leite have one alcalde-mayor. 

North of the island of Sebu lies the island of Negros, which extendsbetween nine and ten and one-half degrees, and has some hundred leguasof circumference. It is almost all in charge of religious of theSociety of Jesus, except one mission which the discalced Augustinianreligious have there. 

Northeast of the same island of Sebu lies the island called Bantallanwith four other islets, all of which are in charge of one secular. 

Lower down and near Manila is the island called Panai, which isvery fertile and densely populated. It is some hundred leguas incircumference, and runs east and west, and north and south in tendegrees of latitude. The city of Arebalo or Oton is located in thatisland, and an alcalde-mayor lives there--who is also the purveyor forthe fleets of those islands, and of Mindanao and its presidios. Thecura of the town is a secular; but the Spaniards of the presidio arein charge of religious of the Society of Jesus; they have a collegein the said city, and also have charge of the district called HiloHilo. The balance of the said island of Panai has an alcalde-mayor, and is in charge of calced Augustinian religious. 

There are two other districts in the said jurisdiction which are incharge of seculars. All the above islands belong to the bishopric ofSebu, as do also the great island of Mindanao, with Jolo, and theiradjacent islands. 

The island of Mindanao is the largest of all the Philipinas Islands, next to that of Manila. In its largest part that island extends fromfive and one-half degrees northeastward to nine degrees--a distance ofsome seventy leguas. Its two headlands, which are called San Augustinand that of La Caldera, bound a coast which runs east and west for somehundred and ten leguas. That island has at the port located about itsmiddle, called Sanbuangan, an excellent Spanish presidio with a stonefort which is well equipped with artillery. That fort has its governorand castellan, who is also governor and castellan of the islands ofJolo, Baçilan, and some other smaller islands. The administration ofall the islands called Mindanao, Jolo, and the others, both Spaniardsand natives, is in charge of religious of the Society of Jesus. 

From the cape of San Augustin northeastward in that islandis the jurisdiction called Caraga and Buttuan, which has itsown alcalde-mayor. Its administration is in charge of discalcedAugustinian fathers. 

Along the coast toward the vendaval [i. E. , southwest], on that sameisland is the jurisdiction of Yligan, the principal part of whichlies on a lake of the same name. It is in charge of fathers of theSociety of Jesus. 

The district called Dappitan in that same island is in charge offathers of the Society of Jesus. 

Terrenate

The islands called Terrenate or the Clove Islands are located forthe most part under the equinoctial line toward the east; and arethree hundred leguas distant from Malaca in India, and slightly lessfrom Manila, toward the southeast. The islands are five in number, extend north and south, and are quite near one another. The largest, from which the others take their name, is that of Terrenate. [25] Twoleguas from it is that of Tidore, and then comes Mutiel. The fourthis called Maquien and the fifth Bachan. All of them lie oppositethe land called Battachina. Those islands of Terrenate have variousSpanish presidios, the principal one of which is in the same islandof Terrenate where the governor lives; he is the governor of all theother presidios. The Dutch have a settlement in that island with a goodfort, all for the sake of the profit [that they obtain from the] clovesand nutmeg. The number of Christians there is small, although therewere many in the time of the glorious apostle of Yndia, St. FrancisXavier. It has always been administered by religious of the Societyof Jesus, as well as the natives of the island of Siau, who are themost affectioned to our holy faith. The Spaniards of Terrenate are incharge of a secular cura belonging to the jurisdiction of the bishopricof Cochin in Oriental Yndia; for the administration of those islandshas always been in charge of that bishopric and province of Cochin, although the ministers of the Society of Jesus have been appointedsince the time of the revolt of Portugal by the superior of the saidSociety in the province of Philipinas. The stipends of the cura andof the other evangelical workers are paid from the royal treasury ofManila, as are also the salaries of the governor and the presidios. Inthe island of Terrenate is a house of the Society of Jesus, whencethey go out to administer the other islands and presidios. It hasalso a royal hospital which is in charge of the discalced religiousof St. Francis. The cura of that island and presidio was withdrawn toManila when Portugal rebelled, and the archbishop chose a cura from hisarchbishopric; but it was a question whether he had any jurisdictionfor it, so that the appointment of cura passed again in due course tothe proprietary cura of the jurisdiction and bishopric of Cochin, whichis in actual charge of the said presidio [and will remain thus] untilthe determination and commands of the king our sovereign are known. 

The commissaries that seem necessary in the said islands, and in theplaces where such office will be desirable, are the following. 

1. In the city of Manila, with the jurisdiction of all thearchbishopric except the port of Cavitte. On account of the vesselsthat anchor in the latter place from foreign kingdoms, and becauseduring some months in the year it is not easy to cross the bay, it is advisable for that port to have its own commissary. 

2. In the said city of Manila, the said employes who are mentionedin its description. 

3. In the fort of Sanboangan in the island of Mindanao, and theislands subordinate to it. 

4. In the city of Sebu, whose commissary can serve for all the islandscalled Pinttados. 

5. In the town of Arebalo or Oton; the same person may be commissaryof its jurisdiction and of that of Panai and the island of Negros. 

6. In the presidio of Yligan and Caraga. 

7. There could also be one in the islands of Calamianes and theislands subordinate to them. 

8. Another commissary in the jurisdiction of Cagaian, Ylocos, and Pangasinan. 

9. Another in the forts of Terrenate. This is most necessary, as theSpaniards of the said forts are among Dutch and Moros, and so farfrom the city of Manila. 

DOCUMENTS OF 1660-1666

 Recollect missions, 1646-60. Luis de Jesús and Diego de Santa Theresa, O. S. A. (Recollect); [compiled from their works]. Description of Filipinas Islands. Bartholomé de Letona, O. S. F. ; 1662. Events in Manila, 1662-63. [Unsigned; July, 1663?]. Letter to Francisco Yzquierdo. Diego de Salcedo; July 16, 1664. Why the friars are not subjected to episcopal visitation. [Unsigned and undated; 1666?]. 

Sources: The first of these documents is taken from the Historiageneral de los religiosos descalzos . .. De San Agustin: part II, byLuis de Jesús (Madrid, 1681), from a copy in the library of EdwardE. Ayer, Chicago; and part III, by Diego de Santa Theresa (Barcelona, 1743), from a copy in the Library of Congress. The second is from apamphlet bound in with a copy (in the possession of Antonio Graiñoy Martinez, Madrid) of Letona's Perfecta religiosa (Puebla, Mexico, 1662), a rare work. The remainder are from the Ventura del ArcoMSS. (Ayer library), ii, pp. 401-483. 

Translations: The first and fifth of these are translated by JamesA. Robertson; the remainder, by Emma Helen Blair. 

RECOLLECT MISSIONS, 1646-60 [26]

CHAPTER SIXTH

The venerable sister Isabel, a beata, dies holily in the faith inthe province of Butuan

Only section: (Year 1646)

One of our Beatas, named Isabel, passed to the better life this yearin the village of Butuan of Filipinas. We know nothing else about herexcept that she was converted to the faith by the preaching of Ourswhen they entered that province. The Lord illumined her so that sheshould leave the darkness of their idolatries, and she was baptized andgiven the name of Isabel. She produced great fruit in a short time, forthe hand of God is not restricted to time limit. Seeing her so usefulin the mysteries of the Catholic religion, our religious sent her tobecome a coadjutor and the spiritual mother of many souls, whom shereduced to the faith and catechized thus gaining them for the Church. 

She was sent to the villages where the devil was waging his fiercestwar and deceiving by his tricks, so that she might oppose herself tohim by her exemplary life and the gentleness of her instruction. Sheestablished her school in a house in the village to which theyoung girls resorted. With wonderful eloquence she made themunderstand that the path of their vain superstitions would leadthem astray, and explained the rudiments and principles of theChristian doctrine. At her set hours she went to the church daily, and the people gathering, she instructed the stupid ones, confirmedthe converted, and enlightened the ignorant--and that with so muchgrace and gentleness of words that she seized the hearts of herhearers. To this she joined a modesty and bearing sweetly grave, by which she made great gain among those barbarians. 

Since so copious results were experienced through the agency of Isabel, both in the reformation of morals and in the many who were convertedfrom their blind paganism, the fathers sent her to preach in thestreets and open places where the people gathered to hear her--somethrough curiosity, and others carried away by her wonderful grace inspeaking. By that means many souls were captured and entreated baptism, for she was a zealous worker and an apostolic coadjutor in that flockof the Lord. She also entered the houses of the obstinate ones whodid not go to hear her in the streets. There, with mild discoursesand full of charity, she softened their hearts and inclined them toreceive the faith. 

After some years of employment in that kind of apostolic life herhusband died. Upon being freed from the conjugal yoke she desiredto subject her neck to that of religion. Father Fray Jacinto de SanFulgencio, at that time vicar-provincial of that province, gave herour habit of mantelata or beata. She recognized, as she was veryintelligent and experienced in the road to perfection, that herobligations to make herself useful were stricter, that she must livea better life and employ the talent which she had received from Godfor the benefit of her neighbor, and she did so. One cannot easilyimagine the diligence with which she sought souls; the means thatshe contrived to draw them from the darkness of heathendom. Whatpaths did she not take! What hardships did she not suffer! She wentfrom one part to another discussing with the spirit and strength, not of a weak woman, but of a strong man. The Lord whose cause shewas advancing aided her; for the solicitation of souls for God is aservice much to His satisfaction. 

She finally saw all that province of Butuan converted to the faithof Jesus Christ, for which she very joyfully gave thanks. She retiredthen to give herself to divine contemplation, for she thought that sheought to get ready to leave the world as she had devoted so much timeto the welfare of her neighbor. She sought instruction from SisterClara Calimán (whose life we have written above), and imitated herin her penitences, her fastings, and her mode of life, so that shebecame an example of virtues. 

For long hours did Isabel pray devoutly; she visited the sick; sheserved them; she exhorted them to repentance for their sins and to beartheir sorrows with patience. She devoted herself so entirely to thoseworks of charity that it seemed best to our fathers (who governed thatdistrict) not to allow her respite from them, and that she could [not]live wholly for herself. They built a hospital for the poor and senther to care for them. She sought the needy, whom she often carried onher shoulders, so great was her charity. She cared for their souls, causing the sacraments to be administered to them; and for theirbodies, applying to them the needful medicines. She solicited presentsand alms, and she had set hours for going out to beg for the sickpoor. She did all that with a cheerful and calm countenance, whichindicated the love of God which burned in her breast. Her hour cameduring those occupations and she fell grievously ill. She knew thatGod was summoning her and begged for the sacraments of the CatholicChurch; and, having received them with joy, she surrendered her soulto her Lord--leaving, with sorrow for her loss, sure pledges thatshe has eternal rest. 

CHAPTER SEVENTH

A hospice is established in the City of Mexico for the accommodationof the religious who go to the Filipinas. 

Only section: (Year 1647)

As the province of San Nicolàs de Tolentino had been founded in theFilipinas Islands by our religious, and since they had many missionsin various districts to which to attend--not only converting infidels, but comforting and sustaining those converted--they thought that itwould be necessary for them to send repeated missions of religiousand to conduct them from España to those districts. The usual route isby way of Mexico, a most famous city; and since our Recollects had nohouse there where the religious could await in comfort the opportunityto embark for the said islands, they determined to take a house orhospice in which they could live and where those who fell sick from thelong and troublesome journey could be treated. The Order petitionedit from the king our sovereign, Felipe Fourth, who, exercising hiswonted charity, issued his royal decree in this year of 1647 for thefounding of the said hospice; and it was actually founded. It doesnot belong to this history to relate the conditions that were thenaccepted; we have only thought it best to give this notice of it here. 

[The remainder of this book does not concern Philippine affairs]. 

[The following is translated and condensed from Diego de SantaTheresa's Historia general de los religiosos descalzos, being vol. Iiiin the general history of the Recollect order. ] [27]

DECADE SEVENTH--BOOK FIRST

CHAPTER I

Treats of the fifth intermediary chapter; and of some events in theprovince of Philipinas. 

[The first section treats of the fifth intermediary chapter of theorder, which was held at Madrid, May 27, 1651]. 

§ II

The convent of Tándag, in the province of Carágha of the PhilipinasIslands, is demolished

232. Tándag is located in the island of Mindanáo, and is the capital ofthe district of the jurisdiction of Carágha, where the alcalde-mayorresides. In regard to ecclesiastical affairs, it belongs to thebishopric of Zibú. Our convent which is found in that settlement hascharge of three thousand souls, scattered in the said capital and infive annexed villages called visitas. How much glory that convent hasgained for God may be inferred from the repeated triumphs which itsmost zealous ministers obtained, thanks to His grace; and the wordsof our most reverend and illustrious Don Fray Pedro de San-Tiago, bishop of Solsona and Lerida, in the relation of the voyage made byour discalced religious to the Indias are sufficient. "There was, "he says, "a powerful Indian, called Inúc, the lord of Marieta, who, waging war on the Spaniards and peaceable Indians, killed many of themin various engagements while he captured more than two thousand. Thevery reverend father Fray Juan de la Madre de Dios left Tándag, without other army or arms than his virtues. He went to meet Inúcand, by the force of the divine word, he alone conquered Inúc, whowas accompanied by squadrons; the religious conquered the soldier, the lamb the lion, and forced him to lay aside his arms and reducehimself to the obedience of the king our sovereign, and to be baptizedwith all his family. " Thus did he give in that one action, peace tothe country, a multitude of souls to heaven, and an exceeding greatnumber of vassals to the Spanish monarch. 

233. The seasons continued to pass interwoven with various incidents, now prosperous, now adverse; although as the world is a vale of tears, it gave its pleasures with a close hand and its sorrows with prodigalliberality--especially in the years 46 and 47 when the Dutch, havingbecome the ruler of the seas, forced or compelled all vessels to takerefuge in the ports. The commerce of the Sangleys or Chinese fell offalmost entirely; and according to the common opinion, the Dutch were sovictorious that their invasions, painted with those rhetorical colorsthat fear is wont to give, filled all the islands with terror. DonDiego Faxardo, knight of the Habit of San-Tiago, was then governorand captain-general of Philipinas, and also president of that royalAudiencia. He was most vigilant in defending those wretched villagesfrom the powerful invasions of the enemy, who, by the specious pretextthat they were going to set them free, induced the chiefs to [join]a general conspiracy. Don Diego tried to ascertain the forces of theenemy with accuracy; he ordered the ports to be reconnoitered and thepresidios to be fortified. He solicited truthful reports in order toobtain advice upon the best way to decide. 

234. There was at that time an alcalde-mayor in the fortress ofTándag whose name is omitted for a special reason. The venerablefather Fray Pedro de San Joseph Roxas, a religious of eminentqualities and excellent virtues, was prior of that convent. He, having concluded that the minister ought, as a teacher, to attendto the Indians in regard to instruction, and as a father, to watchover their protection, on seeing his parishioners persecuted withunjust vexations thought himself obliged to oppose the illegal actsof the alcalde. Father Fray Pedro saw the people of Tándag and itsvisitas oppressed with insupportable burdens. He saw them sufferingso great sadness that their weeping did not dare to mount from theheart to the eyes, nor could the bosom trust its respiration to thelips. The father noted that, in proportion as they were sacrificed tothe greed of another, just so much did they grow lukewarm in livingaccording to the Catholic maxims. Since there was no one to speakfor the Indians if that zealous minister became dumb, he resolvedto defeat them efficaciously in order to make so great wrong cease, even if it were at his own risk. He asked humbly, exhorted fervently, and insisted in and out of season in proportion to the cause; butseeing his petitions unheeded in Tándag, he placed them in a Tribunalwhere they would receive attention. 

235. The alcalde-mayor, resenting the father's demands, took occasionto send his reports to Don Diego Faxardo; accordingly he said thatthat fortress of Carágha was in a state of vigorous defense, althoughit had a dangerous neighbor in the convent, for that was a very strongwork and dominated the fortress. Consequently, he thought that it wasa necessary precaution to destroy it. Thereupon the governor calleda meeting of auditors, judges, and officials of the royal treasury;and on the nineteenth of December, 1647, they despatched a generalorder to all the alcaldes-mayor commanding that the stone churchesand convents built along the sea shore be demolished. The reason givenwas that if the Dutch succeeded in capturing them in their invasions, they would find in them forts enabling them to continue their raidswith greater persistency. Already the said captain had been withdrawnfrom Tándag and Don Juan Garcia appointed in his place when thatorder from the royal Audiencia was received. He called a meeting ofCaptains Juan de Sabáta and Don Marcos de Resines, also summoningSargento-mayor Don Andrés Curto and the same alcalde-mayor who hadbeen at Tándag--of whom he did not yet even know that he had given thesaid report. They recognized that the church could be burned and pulleddown in less than six hours, in case the Dutch came; for its walls werebuilt of the weakest kind of stone and the roof of nipa, which is ascombustible as straw. On the other hand, they saw the Indian nativessomewhat sad and feared that they would take to the mountains in flightin order not to be forced to work at a new building. Therefore theyresolved, by common consent, to suspend the execution [of the order]until those reasons could be represented in the royal Audiencia, andthe most advisable measures taken for the service of both Majesties. 

236. Don Diego Faxardo and the royal assembly saw that those reportswere contrary; for the first said that it was very important todemolish the convent and church, as it was a very strong work; andthat, since it was within musket-shot and dominated the redoubt, theDutch could demolish it in twenty-four hours with only two ten-libracannon: while the second report set forth the fear of the revolt andflight of the Indians, alleging that the convent and church, althoughbuilt of stone, would serve as no obstacle. But, notwithstanding thatcontradiction, a new decree was despatched ordering the demolition ofthe church and convent of Tándag. That was done immediately amid greatsorrow, although with great conformity of the religious and Indiansto so peremptory decrees. Since malice thus triumphed, vengeancewas satisfied, and a religious order so worthy was slighted; andalthough its members had more than enough reasons for anger, they neverpermitted it to pass their lips, and only employed their rhetoric inrestraining the natives so that they would not take to the mountains. 

§ III

Philipo Fourth is informed that Fray Pedro de San Joseph resisted thedemolition of the convent strongly, and that he was the cause of theinsurrection of the Indians in the village. 

237. Nothing else was thought of in the Philipinas Islands than theirdefense from the fear occasioned by the Dutch with their fleets. Thatholy province was engaged in the reparation of the ruins of theirdemolished church, and the zeal of those evangelical ministers wasworking with the same ardor, for they were wont not to become lukewarm[even] with the repeated strokes of the most heavy troubles. In May, 1651, it was learned at the court in Madrid, that the royal mind ofhis Catholic Majesty had been informed of what will be explainedin more vivid colors in the following letter, which the venerablefather-provincial of Philipinas received in the year 53. "Venerableand devout father-provincial of the Augustinian Recollects of thePhilipinas Islands: It has been learned in my royal Council of theIndias from letters of the royal Audiencia resident in the city ofManila that, in virtue of a resolution taken by the council of warand treasury of those islands, certain strong churches in the islandswere ordered to be demolished, such as those of Abucáy, Marindúque, and Carágha, so that they might not be seized by the enemy, as thoseedifices were a notorious menace and peril to the islands after theDutch attacked Cavite. It was learned that, although the church ofCarágha was demolished, it was done after the greatest opposition fromthe religious of your order who are settled in those missions. He whoinstructed the Indians there threatened that the Indians would revolt, as happened later. For the village rose in revolt, and the Indianstook to the mountains--thereby occasioning the many and serioustroubles that demand consideration. The matter having been examinedin my royal Council of the Indias, it has been deemed best to warnyou how severely those proceedings by the religious of that orderhave been censured--so that, being warned thereof, you may correctthem and try to improve them, in order that the religious may restrainthemselves in the future and not give occasion to the natives to becomerestless. For they are under so great obligation to do the contrary, and they ought to have taken active part in calming the Indians andrestraining them if they believed that they were attempting to makeany movement; since the care and watchfulness of the officials cannotsuffice if the religious of the missions fail to aid them with thenatives. I trust that you will be attentive to correct this matterfrom now on; for besides the fact that it is so in harmony with yourobligation and with the example that the religious ought to give toothers in respect to their rules, I shall consider myself as wellserved by you. Madrid, May 27, 1651. 

 I THE KING"

238. It cannot be denied that the terms of that royal letter couldserve the most austere man for no small exercise [in mortification];and more on that occasion when that holy province was laboring inthe service of his Catholic Majesty, so much to the satisfactionof his ministers that many praises of our discalced religious werepublished. .. . We confess that the king alleges that he receivedthat notice through letters from the royal Audiencia, a tribunal ofso great circumspection that it would not undertake to inform itsmonarch without sure knowledge. But we declare that the secretary ofthe king our sovereign might have been mistaken in the midst of sogreat a rush of business, in representing as a report of that mostupright assembly that which proceeds from private subjects only. Inorder that the good opinion in which our Augustinian Recollects wereheld by the cabildo, city, and royal Audiencia may be thoroughlyevident, I shall insert here their letters of April 29 and 30, 1648, those dates being somewhat later than the notice which was receivedin Manila of this entire affair. 

239. The letter of the royal Audiencia runs as follows--"Sire: YourMajesty was pleased, at the instance of the discalced religiousof St. Augustine, to order this royal Audiencia to report on thejustification for the continuation which they ask of the alms of250 pesos and 250 fanegas of rice for the support of four religiouswho administer to the Indians in this convent of Manila. We know theexcellent manner in which they attend to their ministry, and theirpoverty--which obliges them to beg weekly alms, for the incomes ofsome of the chaplaincies were lost in the earthquake. They are verystrictly observed in their ministries and hasten to serve his Majestyon occasions when we encounter enemies, by sea and land, where somehave been killed or captured. Consequently they are today very shortof laborers. These are causes which demand that your Majesty, withyour accustomed liberality, should be pleased to continue the saidalms and allow the Recollects to bring religious hither. May Godpreserve, etc. April 30, 1648. "

240. I find the letter of the most illustrious cabildo to be couchedin these terms--"Sire: As this see is vacant, it is incumbentupon us in obedience to your royal decree to assure your Majestythat the Augustinian Recollect religious attend to their ministrypunctually. The poverty that they suffer is great, for they are obligedto beg alms from door to door as they lost the incomes of some of theirchaplaincies in the earthquake and their convent was ruined. Theyare very observant in their rules, and in their administrations tothe natives in the missions in their charge. As those missions areamong the most unconquerable and fierce people in these districts, many of the religious have been killed and captured. Consequently, they suffer from a great lack of laborers; but they have not forthat failed in the service of your Majesty on the occasions that havearisen by sea and land--all, motives that should impel your Majestywith your royal liberality to be pleased to continue the said alms, and to concede them a goodly number of religious for these islands. MayGod preserve, etc. Manila, April 29, 1648. "

241. That of the city of Manila speaks of the Recollects in thefollowing manner--"Sire: This city of Manila has informed your Majestyon various occasions of the great importance in these islands of theorder of discalced Recollects of St. Augustine; of the apostolicmen in that order; of the great results that they obtain by thepreaching of the holy gospel; of the singular example that they havealways furnished, and do now, with their strict and religious lifeand their so exact mode of observing their rules; and of the soconsiderable effects that have through their agency been attainedin the service of our Lord and that of your Majesty, with the aidof your royal arms, in the great number of infidels whom they haveconverted to our holy Catholic faith, and how they have been broughtto render to your Majesty the due vassalage and tribute, which theyhave generally paid, and are paying, annually. [We have also toldyour Majesty] that they have engaged in all this with the spiritualaffection that belongs to their profession, with singular care--bothin the conservation of what they have attained and in their continualdesire, notwithstanding the many discomforts that they suffer, to carryon their work, steadily converting new souls to the service of ourLord and to the obedience of your Majesty. [We have also reported]the great peace and quiet which they preserve among themselves sothat they have always been and are, one of the most acceptable andwell-received orders in these islands--although they are the poorest, as all their missions are in districts very distant from this city, and among the most warlike people that are in all the provinces ofthese islands, as they are recently conquered; and the danger inwhich, for that reason, the lives of those fathers are. Indeed, somehave already risked life, at times, when those people who appearedto be peaceful have rebelled; and others have gloriously [met death]at the hands of those who were not pacified, when the holy gospel waspreached to them--besides many others who have suffered martyrdomin the kingdom of Japon, enriching with noble acts the church ofGod and the crown of your Majesty. [We have reported] that no fleethas gone out in which those fathers do not sail for the consolationof the infantry, and that, in the emergencies that have arisen, they have fought like valiant soldiers; and that they accommodatethemselves to everything with the angelic spirit that is theirs, when it is to the service of our Lord and that of your Majesty. Atthe present we inform you of the extreme poverty that the convent ofSan Nicolás of this city is suffering; for with the earthquake whichhappened on November 30 of the former year 1645, their entire churchfell, so that today they are living in great discomfort in cells ofstraw which have been built in the garden. The sick are the ones whosuffer the greatest inconveniences; and they generally have sickpeople, since the religious of the missions in their charge come, when ill, to this convent to be treated. Consequently, this city isconstrained to petition your Majesty, with all due humility, to bepleased to order that 250 pesos and 250 fanegas of rice be annuallycontributed to them on the account of the royal treasury of yourMajesty--which amount was given them as a stipend for four ordainedreligious (although there are always more)--as well as 150 pesos formedicines. [We ask for] the continuation of the extension concededby the decree of May 3, 1643, without any time-limit being set; forthe great affection with which our Lord and your Majesty are therebyserved merits it. This city petitions your Majesty to be pleased togrant the said order license to send as many religious as you mayplease from those kingdoms to these islands, in consideration of theremarkable necessity for religious in their so distant missions--where, because of the poor nourishment from the food which they use for thesustenance of human life (treating themselves like actual beggars), with the great abstinence which they observe, and where no discomfortsof sun or rain keep them back (for they go through dense forests andover inaccessible mountains in order to reduce to our holy Catholicfaith the thousands of souls in those districts who have no knowledgeof it), many have perished in that work; for in this year alone suchnumber more than twelve. To some of them no companions have come forthis vineyard of the Lord, and the increase of the royal estate andcrown of your Majesty--whose Catholic person may the divine Majestypreserve, as is needed in Christendom. Manila, April 30, 1648. "

242. These letters--which are authentic, and preserved in our generalarchives--are those written in the year 1648 by the city, the cabildo, and the royal Audiencia. The order to demolish Tándag was given in theyear 47, and it was apparent to them that the fear of the [Indians']insurrection and flight with the other motives for suspending theexecution proceeded only from that junta of the captains, and thatthere was no resistance on the part of the minister. Further, it wasclearly proved in the year 55 that that information was not writtenby the royal Audiencia (nor could it be, since that is a fount whencethe truth flows with so great purity); but that the secretary Wasmistaken in thus ascribing to so upright a tribunal what was onlysigned by an inferior, who desired to dazzle by giving the first newswhich generally arrives very much garbled. 

[Section iv is a vindication of the Recollects in regard tothe demolition of the convent and church of Tándag. Juan Garcia, alcalde-mayor and captain of the fort of that place at the time ofthe demolition, declares (July 29, 1654) that "he proceeded with therazing of the building without the religious losing their composure, or threatening that their natives would revolt; and that neitherbefore nor after was there any insurrection or disquiet in Tándag orthroughout its districts; neither did the natives desert and flee tothe mountains; neither did he see or know of any such thing whilehe was alcalde-mayor, or during the many months after that whilehe resided in the said village. " The following section treats ofthe life of father Fray Pedro de San Joseph (whose family name wasRoxas) prior of Tándag in the time of the above troubles. He wasborn in Manila (where he took the Recollect habit) April 21, 1621. Heachieved distinction in the study of moral and mystic theology. At thecompletion of his studies he was sent to various villages to preach, proving himself a successful preacher. In 1635 he was sent to theisland of Romblon, where he worked with good results in spite of thehostile attempts of the Moros in that district. At the completionof his term of service at Romblon he was sent to Tándag, where hehad to contend against the Spaniards themselves, on account of theirexcesses toward the natives. After the demolition of his convent andchurch he returned to Manila, arriving there on May 26, 1650. Thatsame year he was sent to Taytáy in Calamianes, although he desiredto remain in retreat in Manila. His death occurred in the followingyear at Manila, to which place he went as his last illness came on. ]

§ VI

The insurrection in the village of Lináo

257. It has been stated above that when the Dutch enemy came in theyear 48 to bombard Cavite, they had treated with certain Indianchiefs, saying that they would return with a larger fleet in theyear 49. They gave the Indians to understand that they only wouldtreat them as their friends and not in the domineering manner ofthe Spaniards, who (as the Dutch said) treat them as slaves; andtherefore they hoped to find the Indians prepared, so that, havingbecome well-inclined toward the Dutch power, they might be able tofree themselves from so heavy a bondage. That proposition continuedto spread from one to another; it was agreeable to them all becauseof the liberty that it seemed to promise, although it was offensiveto many because it incited the natives to seditious movements. Atthat time Don Diego Faxardo, governor of Manila, despatched a decreeordering a certain number of carpenters with their wives and childrento go to that city from each one of the islands. The effects producedby that mandate were especially fatal for the village of Palápac inthe island of Hibábao. For they refused to obey the governor, killedtheir minister, a zealous father of the Society, took their possessionsto the mountains, and commenced to gather to their following a greatnumber of rebels. 

258. That decree caused a great disturbance in the island of Mindanáo, for of its five divisions scarcely one is reduced to obedience;therefore those who live unsubdued in the mountains only wait for suchopportunities in order to foment disturbances and restlessness. Manyof the natives hid their property in the province of Carágha, andproved so unquiet that although the Butuans were the most trustworthyIndians, the father prior, Fray Miguel de Santo Thomás, had to workhard to restrain them. Those of Lináo descended to the last vileness, and it is presumed that the same would have happened in the districtof Tándag if the alcalde-mayor, Bernabé de la Plaza, had not concealedthe decree. That was afterward approved by the auditors in Manila, as they had experienced that that decree had been a seed-bed formany troubles. All that disquiet continued to operate with themanifest disturbance of the public peace, even at the news alone ofthe above-mentioned decree. Even the hint of it succeeded in Lináowhere the insurrection took place in the following manner. 

259. There are certain wild Indians in the mountains of Butuán, located in the province of Carágha, called Manóbos. [28] They havekinky hair, oblique eyes, a treacherous disposition, brutish customs, and live by the hunt. They have no king to govern them nor houses toshelter them; their clothing covers only the shame of their bodies;and they sleep where night overtakes them. Finally, they are infidels, and belie in everything, by the way in which they live, that smallportion that nature gives them as rational beings. Among so great arabble, but one village is known where some people are seen far fromhuman intercourse. They are a race much inclined to war, which they arealmost always waging against the Indians of the seacoast. There livedDabáo, [29] who had become as it were a petty king, without other rightthan that of his great strength, or other jurisdiction than that of hisgreat cunning. His wickedness was much bruited about, and he made useof subtle deceits by which he committed almost innumerable murders. Hewas often pursued by Spanish soldiers, but he knew quite well how toelude them by his cunning. For on one occasion, in order to avoid thedanger, he went to the house of an evangelical minister saying that hewished baptism, and that the minister should defend him, as it wouldbe the motive for many conversions; but he only made use of that trickto save his life. Father Fray Agustin de Santa Maria--a very affablereligious, and one who labored hard to attract the infidels--was priorof the convent of Santa Clara de Monte Falco of Lináo, a place fortyleguas up-stream from Butuán. He visited Dabáo, and won him over sowell by presents and gifts to intercourse with the Spaniards, thathe spent nearly all the day in the convent and entrusted father FrayAgustin with the education of one of his sons--being quite eager inthat in order to work out the treachery that he had planned. 

260. Dabáo went by night to the houses of the chief Christians. Helaid before them the harsh decree of the governor, the offers thatthe Dutch had made, and especially the attaining of freedom to keep uptheir old religion. Since they were not well rooted in our holy faith, those discussions were very agreeable to them. That faithless Indianwas so contagious a cancer that he infected the greater part of thevillage with his poison. Therefore, almost all of them assenting tohis plan, the day was set on which he resolved to kill the Spaniardsand the minister. He warned the people to be ready with their armsto aid him. He had previously held a meeting with his Manóbos, inwhich they decided that if the provincial sent a visitor and didnot come personally to make the visitation, it would be a clear signthat the Dutch were infesting those coasts. When they learned withcertainty that the father-provincial, Fray Bernardo de San Laurencio, had not gone out for the visitation, but that he was sending thefather ex-provincial, Fray Juan de San Antonio, as visitor, theywere confirmed [in the belief] that the hostile fleet was coming, and began immediately to stir up the country. 

261. The father visitor had already reached the convent of Butuán, and Dabáo sent his Manóbo Indians to the river Humáyan with obsequiousappearances of readiness to receive him, but with the peremptoryorder to kill him. God so arranged that the father visitor, FrayJuan de San Antonio, should pass to the convent of Cagayáng withoutstopping to visit that of Lináo. He left a letter for the fatherprior of Lináo which he sent by Juan de Guevara, one of the soldierswho was later killed in the fray. That soldier met the Manóbos whowere waiting at the river; they asked him for the father visitor, and he told them simply that he had left Butuán. They, without askingwhether the father were to pass that way, returned to their villageto inform their leader of the matter. Thus did God save the life ofHis minister for the second time, thereby allowing one to see evenin so slight occurrences the height of His Providence. 

262. At that time some hostile Indians began to harass the peacefulIndians, from whom they took a quantity of their rice and maize. Dabáooffered to make a raid in order to check so insolent boldness with thatpunishment, and he assured them that he would immediately return withthe heads of some men, from which result their accomplices would takewarning. He selected, then, eight robust and muscular Indians, whosehands he bound behind their backs, but by an artifice so cunning thatthey could untie themselves whenever occasion demanded. Thus did hebring as captives those who were really Trojan horses; for, concealingtheir arms, they showed only many obsequious acts of submission. Thecaptain ordered them to be taken to the fort where the father prior, Fray Agustin de Santa Maria, was already waiting; and when the orderwas given that the feigned captives should be set in the stocks, atthat juncture Dabáo drew a weapon which he had concealed, and brokethe captain's head. The Indians untied their bonds, the rebels camewith lances from the village, and a hotly-contested battle took placein which almost all our men lost their lives. Only the religious andfour Spanish soldiers and a corporal were left alive. It did not occurto them, in the midst of so great confusion, to take other counselthan to drop down from the wall. We shall leave the father prior, Fray Agustin, for the present, and speak only of the soldiers whoopened up a road with their invincible valor by means of their arms, in order to take refuge in the convent. But finding it already occupiedby the insurgents, who had gone ahead to despoil it, they fought therelike Spaniards, hurling themselves sword in hand on the mass of therebels. However, they were unable to save the post, for the conventand the church were blazing in all parts. Thereupon it was necessaryfor them to hurl themselves upon a new danger in order to return tothe redoubt, where they arrived safely at the cost of many wounds, although they found the fort dismantled. Thence they sent the Indiansin flight to the mountains by firing their arquebuses at them. 

263. Only the family of one pious woman remained in the village, who(although sparingly) gave them food every day. But that charity couldnot last long, for necessity forced that family to take refuge withthe insurgents, thus leaving the Spaniards destitute of all humanconsolation. They, seeing themselves wounded and without food, madea small boat of bamboo, dangerous at any time, and embarked in it inorder to go to Butuán by way of the river, after they had dismantledthe fort and spiked the artillery. In order that the so evident riskof that voyage might be more increased, their opponents pursued themwith swift caracoas, from which firing many arrows they multipliedthe wounds of the soldiers. The Spaniards, seeing that they couldnot defend themselves, entered the village of Hóot where the peoplehad not yet risen. There they met an Indian called Pálan, who wasgoing to Lináo for his daughter, so that she might not be lost amidthe confusion of that so barbarous race. He took compassion on thoseafflicted soldiers, and, availing himself of fifteen Indians who werewith him, accommodated them in his bark and took them to our convent ofButuán. They arrived there twenty days after the insurrection at Lináo, so used up and crippled that they were already in the last extremity. 

§ VII

Relation of the punishment of the rebels and their restoration totheir villages

264. As soon as father Fray Miguel de Santo Thomás, prior ofour convent of Butuán, learned what was passing in Lináo, hesent a messenger to Tándag and to the royal Audiencia of Manila;for promptness is generally the most efficacious means in suchcases. Afterward the afflicted Spaniards arrived at his convent, and he received them with great love, accommodated them in cells, set up beds for them, and gave them medicines--assisting them withthe compassion of a father, to their consolation, and with extremecharity aiding in their entertainment. One of those soldiers, who wasnamed Juan Gonzalez, had broken a leg, his body was full of wounds anda poisoned arrow had pierced his loins. When he was treated, he was solifeless that all thought that he had expired. The father prior was nota little afflicted at that, for the man had not yet been confessed, as the father had been assisting the others. In that extremity thefather applied to him a picture of St. Nicholas of Tolentino, andat its contact the dying man returned to his senses, confessed veryslowly, and received the other sacraments with fervor; and had eventwenty-four hours left in which to bewail the carelessness of his life, as he did. All held that event as a miracle worked by St. Nicholas, for whom the sick man and the religious had great devotion. 

265. That fatal news having reached the city of Manila, a generalrevolt was feared as in the former year of 1631, when our churcheswere burned, our convents pillaged, our sacred images profaned, and our ministers seized and killed. In consideration of that, Governor Don Diego Faxardo sent Captain Gregorio Dicastillo toTándag with a small band of Spanish infantry to join Bernabé de laPlaza, alcalde-mayor and captain of that fort, so that they mighttry all means to reduce the insurgents. They went to Butuán wherethey established their military headquarters. A general pardon waspublished with the warning that those who did not submit would bringupon themselves the full rigor of the war. But many of the Indians whopresented themselves were hanged, and there were very few of those whodescended the mountains to surrender who were not made slaves. Thevery persons who were under greatest obligation to fulfil the wordthat they had given in the name of their king broke that word. 

266. Our whole convent of Lináo was consumed by fire, excepttwo chalices and some vestments from the sacristy, which threeIndians were able to carry out. They presented themselves with it, thinking that they would thereby secure their freedom; but they wereimmediately thrown under the heavy yoke of slavery. With such actsof injustice, although the rebels were subdued by that expedition, their hearts were more obstinate than ever. The city of Manila andits environs were full of slaves. The Butuán chiefs who were themirror of fidelity, suffered processes, exiles, and imprisonments;and although they were able to win back honor, it was after all theirproperty had been lost. Some heedless individuals blame the superiorofficials with what their inferiors have done, and the excesses andabuses of others are considered to be done by the influence of thesuperiors. But the uprightness and honesty of the royal Audienciaof Manila can be seen in what they did. For after two years ofimprisonment of one of the Indians whom that expedition prosecuted, his property was confiscated. Another was tortured and condemned todeath by decapitation. Another was reduced to extreme poverty. Allwere persuaded that the heavy hand was entering there. Finally thegovernor committed the examination of the causes to Licentiate ManuelSuarez de Olivéra, auditor-general of war and assessor of the governorof Manila. He declared in favor of the Indian slaves, and freed themall. The wretched Indians were overjoyed at the decree, but they weretroubled because they had no one to solicit their freedom for themby attending to the necessary expenses of the court; consequently, they regarded the day of their redemption as a thing impossible toattain. They did not dare to ask the aid of the Recollect fathers, as they thought that the latter were angry at them, as they hadmurdered a religious in that insurrection. But since the Recollectfathers regarded that as [the vicissitude of] fortune, they took thepart of the Indians and did considerable in their defense. 

267. Father Fray Agustin de San Pedro was secretary of that province, who was known by the name of Padre Capitan because of his militaryfeats which will be explained in part in recording his life. He hadillumined those Indians with the light of the gospel, for which theyheld him in great affection. Therefore, he made a list of the slaveswho were in Manila, and its environs, giving the name and surname ofeach, and the village where he lived. In the list he included manyothers who were not contained in the processes. He presented thatlist to the governor and asked him to order the slaves to be set atliberty. Such a writ was despatched very promptly, and the fatherwent with the notary through all the houses in order to place theorder in execution. That was a work that caused him great fatigue, and produced violent contentions. For since those who had paid theirmoney for slaves were deprived of them, scarcely did he arrive at ahouse where some insult was not heard. The expenses were increased, but he obtained his purpose; for he secured all the slaves, and the[Recollect] order took care of them, providing them with all thenecessities of life until they were taken to their own native places. Areligious accompanied them, as it was considered necessary to havea person to defend them in case that any one attempted to injure them. 

268. That race is not so rude that it cannot be conquered by kindacts. Therefore, those Indians talked over among themselves whatthe Recollect fathers had done for them without remembering thatthe Indians had killed a religious. As they did not remain in theirvillages, the notice of our method of procedure spread to the mosthidden recesses of the mountains. In the year 1650 father Fray Josephde la Anunciacion was elected provincial; and at the beginning ofthe following year, while making his first visit to the provinceof Carágha, he arrived at Butuán where he learned that the Indianswere having some trouble with the soldiers. But they were very mildin telling them of the Recollect fathers. He became encouraged atthat, and having placed his confidence in God, directed himselfto the village of Lináo. He entered the mountains, talked with theIndian chiefs, and exhorted them to become peaceful and return tothe vassalage of his Majesty. He obtained that in a very few days, and left that region in the utmost peace. 

269. At this point we must reflect upon what was insinuated above. Isaid that the king our sovereign wrote to the father provincial ofPhilipinas ordering him to see to it that his religious did not rouseup the Indians, since they ought, on the contrary, to take part incalming their minds. His royal letter is dated May 27, 1651, andin regard to it I mentioned that at the same time when his Majestyordered it, he was obeyed in the village of Lináo, and with thatstatement is already given the proof. I add to this that on the tenthof July of the above-mentioned year, while the father provincial, Fray Joseph de la Anunciacion, was in Manila, he wrote to our fathervicar-general informing him of the visit to Carágha. Among otherthings (which do not concern the matter) he wrote the following, which is very suitable for our purpose: "I made the first visit tothe province amid remarkable sufferings and contrary winds, and thusspent about one year there. But I considered that labor as well spentbecause of the fruit that was obtained from it; for God was pleasedby my assistance to reclaim more than six hundred tributes in Lináo, who had revolted and were disturbed, without greater cost than onedecapitation and some punishments of little importance. All wasleft as quiet as it had been before, and it has been increased bysome tributes. The only thing that especially troubled me was, thatI could leave no more than one religious in each mission, while somemissions were such that two were not sufficient. These are so separatedfrom one another that the distance is at least twenty leguas. Thatdistance must be made over troublesome seas, for the winds are notalways favorable, so that one can only occasionally favor or consolethe other. It is a mercy of God that zeal for the conversion of soulshas penetrated all, so that they put away their own welfare, relief, and consolation for those of others. "

270. That section proves, first, the care of the superiors in aidingto pacify the Indians; secondly, that, to maintain them in peace, one cannot accomplish so much by the severity of punishment asby the mildness and gentleness of love; thirdly, the vast amountof hardship that those poor ministers suffer. I must only add nowthat some who had but little fear of God, seeing that the Indiansin Tándag had become quiet through the efforts of father Fray Pedrode San Joseph Roxas, ascribed the sedition of Lináo to father FrayAgustin de Santa Maria. No investigation was made in order to givethe lie to the enormity of that falsehood, for he was purified fromthat accusation by the blood from his veins, and because Heaven itselfgave some more than ordinary testimonies of his innocence. I am goingto mention them by compiling a treatise on his life. 

[Section viii treats of the life of father Fray Augustin de SantaMaria. He was born in Macan of Portuguese parents, and enteredthe Recollect order. After being ordained as a priest, he was sentto Carágha to learn the language of the natives, where he laboreddiligently. Some years later he was sent to Lináo, where he was killedby the insurgents, May 16, 1651. His body, after being treated withindignities by the natives, was finally buried by a pious nativewoman. The section and chapter close with the recitation of severalmiraculous occurrences. ]

CHAPTER II

Life of the venerable father Fray Francisco de la Resurreccion;and other events that happened in the year 1651. 

[Section vi is the only part of this chapter referring to thePhilippines. ]

§ VI

The eleventh mission goes from España to the Philipinas Islands

328. .. . Our holy province of Philipinas was burning with the mostardent desire to enlighten the wretched Indians with the rays ofthe faith; but it found itself opposed by contrary winds; theseblowing forcibly against the four corners of the house (as happenedthere with Job), God proved it in patience. The church and a greatportion of the convent of the city of Manila had been ruined byearthquakes, and the religious had no other habitation left thansome wretched cells, or rather huts, that they had set up in thegarden. Governor Don Diego Faxardo had ordered the convent of Tándagto be demolished. The insurrection of that village (which thus farhas not succeeded) was said to have been caused by our religious. Thevillage of Lináo had been withdrawn from its subjection to España, and the venerable father Fray Agustin de Santa Maria had been killedby lance-thrusts. The triennium of our father Fray Juan de San Antoniowas passing; and during that time some missionaries had been seizedand made captives--among them fathers Fray Martin de San Nicolás, Fray Miguel de la Concepcion (a native of Guadix, or as others assert, of Granada), and brother Fray Joseph de la Madre de Dios, a nativeof México. The Jolo Moros practiced the greatest cruelties on thosemen; they also pillaged and burned the convents of Cúyo, Romblón, and Marivélez. The Chinese occasioned a great fire in the conventof San Sebastian de Calumpán, and the Dutch another in the conventof Cigayán. All those unfortunate events kept that holy provinceharassed to the utmost; but their fervor did not cool one whit. Onthe contrary, the fire of their zeal always mounted high and blazedmore brightly the more they were oppressed by misfortunes, as it wasa flame that never knew other paths. 

329. In the year 1646 was celebrated the intermediary chapter of thatholy province, during the provincialate of our father Fray Juan de SanAntonio. In it the venerable father Fray Jacinto de San Fulgencio waschosen to come to España and attend, as one of the voting fathers, the seventh general chapter which was to be celebrated in the cityof Valladolid in the year 48; and especially, so that he might enlistevangelical soldiers who should go to work in the spiritual conquestof the Indians--for, since so many religious had been captured, therewas a lack of them. The said father Fray Jacinto could not embark thatsame year, because of the great disturbances caused on the sea by theDutch, as already remarked. Consequently, he did not reach the cityand court of Madrid until March, 1649, after the chapter had alreadybeen held. In that chapter, our venerable father Fray Pedro Manuelde San Agustin was elected vicar-general of all the congregation. 

330. The said our father vicar-general was outside the court visitingthe provinces, when the father commissary arrived. Accordingly, thelatter wrote to him, petitioning him to advise the convents of hiscoming so that the religious might in that way learn of the opportunitypresented to them to go to employ their talents in the new world. Ourfather vicar-general attended to that with the so holy zeal that hewas known to possess. His pastoral letter was filled with the flamesof divine love; for he inspired the souls of the religious in such amanner that, in a few days, he had the signatures of more than fifty ofthem. At that same time his Reverence received a paper from the conventof San Carlos de Turin (which belongs to our Recollect congregationin Italia) in which father Fray Celestino de San Christoval, lecturerin theology, father Fray Bruno de San Guillermo, and father FrayArchangel de Santa Maria petitioned him very urgently to admit themin that mission, binding themselves to get the permissions of theirprelates. But, praising their good intention, our father vicar-generalrefused to admit them on the ground of the royal decree that forbidsthe passing [to the Philippines] of foreigners. 

331. While all the above was happening, the father-commissary, FrayJacinto de San Fulgencio, delivered to his Majesty the letters ofthe royal Audiencia, the city, and the most illustrious cabildo ofManila, which were given above for another purpose. He obtained a royaldecree to take back eighteen religious. The king our sovereign gavehim three hundred and sixty-two thousand three hundred and ninety-twomaravedís for the journey, beside what his Majesty had assigned for themaintenance and transportation of the missionaries in Cadiz, Vera-Cruz, Mexico, and Acapulco. His Majesty also continued the alms for the fourministers of the convent of Manila, and the medicines; ordering alsothat four thousand pesos be given them in Mexico for the repair of thesaid convent, which had suffered almost total ruin in the earthquakeof the year 45. In addition to that, the father-commissary petitionedthat the father-procurator at Roma urgently request permission tosend evangelical ministers to Japon, China, Siám, and other near-bykingdoms, showing in all his great zeal for the conversion of souls. 

332. The eighteen missionaries whom the king hail conceded to thefather-commissary for that so distant harvest in the PhilipinasIslands gathered to him in a few days. He also took six more religiousat the cost of that holy province, in its name contracting many newobligations, in order not to fail in the cultivation of the vineyard ofthe Lord. Of those who had volunteered, those who appeared to be mostintelligent and zealous were chosen; and the procurator tried to getthem to Sevilla as soon as possible, where they arrived on February20, 1651. They finally embarked, and celebrated their spiritualexercises on shipboard just as if they were in the retirementand quiet of their own convents. They preached many afternoons;persuaded the sailors to be present at the prayer of the rosarydaily, exhorted them never to let the sun go down on their sins, since they had the sacrament of penitence so near at hand; and werevery urgent in teaching them all the Christian doctrine. God grantedthem the consolation of experiencing considerable fruit by that means;for morals were considerably reformed, and oaths and blasphemies werebanished, so that the ship was like a religious house. The religiousgave many thanks to God, because at their exhortation He conquered theobstinacy of a Moro who begged them to wash him with the holy watersof baptism. The Moro received those waters with great fervor, and diedshortly after, leaving all in the great hope that he attained glory. 

333. For twenty days they suffered violent and contrary winds, but Goddelivered them from that peril and from other very serious dangers. Hepreserved them also from an epidemic that was raging in the port ofVera-Cruz--a disease called vomito prieto, [30] from whose malignancythe greater part of those who had embarked died, although only one ofour religious perished. They reached Mexico all worn out, and remainedin that city until March 10, 1652. Finally they reembarked in the portof Acapulco, whence they had a fortunate passage to the PhilipinasIslands. They arrived there so opportunely that the fathers werediscussing the abandonment of some of the missions because of theirso great need of ministers. Consequently, they gave many thanks to thedivine Majesty for those religious who arrived at so suitable a season. 

[Chapter iii consists of accounts of the lives of various Recollectfathers. Those who labored in the Philippines are the following. Miguelde Santa Maria was a native of Cadiz and a son of Rodrigo Lopez deAlmansa. He professed in the Manila convent June 26, 1618, at theage of 28. Later he became prior of the Caraga mission, and foundedthe convent of Tándag. In 1624 he was elected procuratol-generalof the Philippine province. He attempted in 1629 and 1630 to goto Japan; but in the first year the vessel was wrecked, and in thesecond the governor forbade the journey. He was sent finally to themission at Cuyo, but the troubles with the Moros compelled him toflee. Reaching Manila, he refused the offer of the secretaryship to thevisitor-general, and the remainder of his life was spent in that city, his death occurring in the year 1644 or 1651. Gaspar de Santa Monicawas a native of the city of Orihuela, in Valencia, his family namebeing Padrós. He took the habit in the convent at Valencia, November 1, 1613. He joined the mission organized by Andrés del Espíritu Santo, andarrived at Manila in 1622. The following year he was appointed priorof the convent of Marivelez; and in 1624, when the first provincialchapter of the order was held in the Philippines, he was electedprior of the convent of Cuyo, where he suffered many hardships. Hebecame secretary to Andrés del Espíritu Santo upon the election ofthe latter to the provincialate in 1626; but, falling ill, he wasunable to perform the duties of that office and was made prior ofthe convent of Calumpán, in 1627. In 1629 he was one of the religiousshipwrecked in the endeavor to reach Japan surreptitiously. He becamedefinitor of the province in 1632, and in 1638 prior of the conventat Lináo. On the completion of that office in 1642 it does not appearthat he filled other posts. He died in the city of Manila in 1651. ]

[Chapter iv treats in great part of the life of Pedro de laMadre de Dios. He was born at Salamanca in 1580, and his familyname was Lopez. He took the habit in the convent at Valladolid, in 1605. Somewhere between the years 1612-1614 he was sent asvicar-provincial to the Philippines, with the brief for the separationof the Recollects from the regular Augustinians, conceded by thepope. After the expiration of that office in 1615 he spent the timeuntil 1623 in work among the novices and as prior of the conventsof Manila and Cavite. July 1623 to February 1624, he acted againas vicar-provincial. In the latter year he was chosen procuratorto Spain, and the representative of the Philippines to the generalchapter of the order to be held in 1627. Sailing from Manila in 1625, the remainder of his life was spent in Spain in various employments andin retirement. His death occurred between the years 1649-1652. Sectionvi of this chapter treats of the Recollect convent of San Juande Bagumbaya (for whose early history given in summary here, see VOL. XXI). In 1642, the governor Sebastian Hurtado de Corcueraordered all the buildings in the village of Bagumbaya to be torn downfor fear of the Dutch, among them the convent. Despite the endeavorof the religious to save their convent, it was demolished and a newfort begun there. The order had refused the 4, 000 pesos offered themby the governor, saying that their possessions were worth more than50, 000. This action of the governor was made part of the charges inthe residencia, and he was condemned to pay the order 25, 000 pesos, and the ground-plots were restored to them. Thereupon the fort wasdemolished, and a new convent and church erected. Section vii detailsthe placing of the holy image of the Christ of Humility and Patience(Santo Cristo de Humildad y Paciencia) in the Recollect convent atManila in the year 1652. ]

[Chapter v contains treatises on the lives of the following Recollectmissionaries in the Philippines. Diego de Santa Ana was a native ofZaragoza (his secular name being Ribas), and was born in 1599. Heprofessed in the convent of that city, July 26, 1616. Volunteering forthe Philippine missions in 1620, he arrived at Manila in 1622. Thatsame year he was sent to the islands of Calamianes, in company withFrancisco de San Nicolás, where he labored amid great difficulties forthe conversion of the rude people inhabiting those islands. In 1626he was sent to the village of Caviscaíl in Paragua, where he laboredfor a year; then he was appointed prior of the convent of Linacapán, the most dangerous mission of the Calamianes, which was infested bythe hostile Moros. He was in the district of Butuan in 1629 when theinsurrection of Caraga broke out, where he was in considerable dangerof losing his life. He remained in Caraga for several years after theinsurrection was put down; but asked leave to return to the Calamianesmissions. In 1652 he suffered extreme hardships while hiding in themountains from the Joloans, who had made one of their numerous raidsin the village of Dináy in the island of Paragua. Some assert thathe died in the Manila hospital, while others say that he met hisdeath in the mountains about Dináy. Lorenzo de San Facundo was bornin Calaceyte in Aragón (his family name being Valls) and professedin the convent of Zaragoza, July 8, 1618, at the age of 36. He wentto the Philippines in 1621. There he became prior of the conventof Marivelez, and afterward of Binalgában in the province of Panay, of Masíngloc in the province of Zambales, and lastly of Bacoág wherehe suffered various hardships and captivity. He especially obtainedgood results by his preaching in the island of Cuyo, and in Siargáoin the province of Caraga. He was afterward president of the chapter, definitor of the province, and procurator to Spain with a vote in thegeneral chapter (although he was unable to arrive in Spain in timefor the chapter). In company with Juan de San Joseph, he was taken byCorcuera on his Jolo campaign to look after the Caraga natives in hisarmy. The two religious penetrated the mountains alone in an endeavor(partially successful) to reduce the Joloans to peace. He died in 1652, after a long and deep-seated infirmity. Antonio de la Madre de Dios, son of Fernando Romero Pizarro of Truxillo, professed in the Madridconvent, September 24, 1615. He went to the Philippines in 1621. Hewas sent to the island Hermosa, where he remained until that islandwas abandoned by the Spaniards. On returning to the islands he wasemployed in various missions, dying in 1652 from fever contracted whilenursing a secular priest. Juan de San Joseph was a native of Granada, and took the Recollect habit in Manila. Being sent to the missions ofthe Calamianes he proved very successful in the snaring of souls. Hewas captured in 1632 by the Joloans, and was a captive among themfor more than two years. After his service in the Jolo campaign hereturned to Manila, and finally died in the mission of the island ofRomblon. Diego de San Juan Evangelista, son of Pedro de Olíte, wasa native of Zaragoza and took the habit in the convent of Manteriain Zaragoza, April 3, 1606. Shortly after, he deserted the order;but afterward returned to it. He left for the Philippine missionin the year 1622, where he became an eloquent preacher. He servedas chaplain in two fleets, missionary in the Calamianes, and priorof Cavite and Manila. Death came to him in the convent of Bagumbayain 1652. Antonio de San Agustin was a native of Manila (being bornabout 1592), where he professed. In 1634 he obtained permission to goto the Japanese mission, but the Chinese who had been hired to takethem failed to fulfil their contract. In the great Chinese revoltof 1639 he acted as minister to the Zambal archers in the Spanisharmy. He served in various capacities, among them being the officeof definitor. His death occurred in 1652. ]

[Chapter vii treats of the lives of Onofre de la Madre de Dios andAugustin de San Pedro, the famous "Padre Capitan. " The first was theson of Joseph Boquét, and was born in Perpiñán in 1584, and professedin the convent of Zaragoza, March 16, 1606. Joining the Philippinemission, he reached those islands in 1620, where he was immediatelysent to the new missions in the south of the archipelago, with theappointment of prior of Cebú. In 1624 he was elected first provincialof the order in the Philippines, serving in that office for two years, during which time he visited his province at the risk of capture fromboth Dutch and Moros. After the expiration of his term he asked andobtained permission to go to the Calamianes, and worked faithfullyin the island of Culión, where he mastered the language. In 1627 hewas sent to Spain as procurator, but did not return thence, as hewas elected provincial of the province of Aragón. His death occurredin the convent of Calatayud in Spain, in 1638 (reported wrongly tohave occurred at Barcelona in 1653, as he was confused with anotherreligious of the same name). "Padre Capitan, " the son of MiguelRodriguez, was born in Berganza, Portugal, and professed in Valladolid, in 1619. Arriving at the Philippines in 1623, he was speedily sent tothe Caraga missions, where he labored for the rest of his life in theconversion of its natives, and in defending them from the inroads ofthe Moros. He was many times prior of Butuán, Cagayáng, Lináo, Tándag, and Romblón. In Mindanao he personally baptized more than 10, 000adults. His death occurred in 1653, and he left behind a name longrevered among the natives because of his prowess. The seventh sectionof this chapter is an answer to Father Combes of the Jesuit Society(who had tried to belittle the efforts of the Recollects in Mindanao), in which the good work that the Recollects have accomplished is shown. ]

BOOK SECOND OF THE SEVENTH DECADE

CHAPTER II

The attempt is made in Philipinas to subject the religious who areparish priests to the visitation of the bishops. 

§ I

Relation of the practice that has always been followed in the spiritualadministration of the islands; and what happened when the attemptwas made to change it. 

Year 1656

[In 1654 the first mutterings of the storm caused by the visitation ofthe regulars by the bishops break in the Philippines. The dates of thearrival of the various orders are given; and the narrative continues:]

719. .. . Those holy orders, each one doing its share, declared pitilesswar against paganism, and achieved signal victories in that war, destroying the idols of Belial and planting solidly the health-givingsign of the cross; so that whatever is conquered in the islands isdue to their fervent zeal. For they planted the faith, and wateredthat land with blood so that it might produce fruit abundantly; andGod was the cause of so wonderful an increase. The system that theyhave always followed in the spiritual administration of the missionsand villages which they have formed at the cost of their sweat isthe same as that observed in América in the beginning by variousapostolic privileges. In the provincial chapters held by each order, they appoint as superiors of the houses established in the villagesof Indians who are already converted, those religious who are fit toexercise the office of cura by their learning, their morals, and otherqualities. The same is also done in regard to the residences of theactive missions, where those thus appointed continue the preaching toand conversion of the heathen, with very perceptible progress. Boththe former and the latter exercise the ministries to which theyare destined, without need of other approbation than that of thedefinitors--who entrust to these heads of houses the administrationof the sacraments and the spiritual cultivation of those souls, inthe respective territory where the convent is located, a superiorbeing elected for each convent. This is done independently of thebishops. Likewise the definitors of each order in their meetingsappoint various of the most learned and experienced men, to whom isentrusted and delegated the faculty of giving dispensation in regardto the obstacles of marriage, and the exercise of other favors andprivileges contained in the pontifical briefs. Those powers are neverexercised if the diocesans are intra duas dietas, [31] without theirpermission and approbation; and always this is done [only] in casesof evident necessity. 

720. The provincials visit their provinces annually; and the saidreligious not only in what concerns their profession and regularobservance, but also in what relates to their activities as curas. Thediocesan prelates appoint their outside vicars for those territorieswhich are in charge of the orders. They almost always avail themselvesof those same religious for that, because of the great lack of secularpriests. The religious submit to the visitation of the diocesan inmatters touching the erection of chaplaincies, charitable works, theinspection of wills, and confraternities that are not exempt. Theyresist only what includes the violation of their privileges grantedby the supreme pontiffs to the said holy orders for the purpose ofthe propagation of the faith in regions so distant. Such privileges, although not used in other parts of the Indias, ought to be maintainedin Philipinas, for reasons that will be stated below. This is whathas been observed from the discovery of the said islands until thepresent time; and the contrary has not been ordered by the king aspatron, by the royal Council of the Indias, or by the apostolic see, although they have had full knowledge of the cause. This method hasbeen practiced, both before and since the Council of Trent; and therehas been no change in it--not even since the year 1652, when specialprovision regarding it was made for Nueva España and Perú; and itwas ordered that the missionary religious of those provinces shouldreceive collation and canonical institution from the ordinaries ofthose countries, in order to continue their exercise as curas; andthat consequently they must submit to the visitation and correctionof the bishops in officio officiando et quoad curam animarum. [32] Buthowever thoroughly that was placed in execution in those kingdoms, itcould not be carried out in the Philipinas Islands; for there even thereasons which influenced the exemption of the regulars are in force. 

721. It is true that the bishops have always made the strongest effortsto subject the parish priests who are religious to their jurisdiction;but they have never been able to succeed in it, for the religious areunwilling to accept the charge with that burden. The first bishopof Manila and of all the islands, Don Fray Domingo de Salazar, tried to establish that subjection. The Observantine Augustinianfathers and the Franciscans made use of the means which prudencedictated, in order to quiet their scrupulous consciences. Seeingthat nothing [else] was sufficient, they resigned their missionsbefore the governor, as vice-patron, protesting that they would carefor the conversion of the heathen, but that they could not keepthe parochial administration of those who were converted, withoutthe enjoyment of all their privileges. Therefore, his Excellencywas forced to desist from his attempt, as he had no seculars towhom to entrust that administration. In 1654, the attempt was madeto establish in Philipinas the practice recently adopted in thekingdoms of Perú and Nueva España by petition of the fiscal of theroyal Audiencia. That body ordered that plan to be carried out, bya decree of October 22; and since the chapters of the two provincesof the order, the calced and discalced, were to be held in April of55, that decree was communicated to them, with the warning that ifthey were not obedient they would be deprived of their missions, andthe missionaries of the emoluments which had been assigned them fortheir suitable support. All the orders opposed that change, followinglogical methods in their defense, and averse to seeing the necessityof abandoning their missions. But at last, as there was no other way, the venerable fathers-provincial were reduced to handing over to thegovernor and bishops all the ministries in their charge, so that, as the former was the vice-patron and the latter were the ordinaries, they might appoint whomever they wished to the curacies. 

722. That resignation was handed to the fiscal, and in view ofit, in order that the most suitable provision might be made, withfull knowledge, he asked that writs be made out--first, to show howmany secular clergy were in the four bishoprics; second, so that theofficials of the royal treasury might attest the amount of the stipendspaid to the religious employed in the missions, and third, so thatthe provincials might send the names of their subordinates employed inthe missions. That was ordered by a decree of May 10 in the said year1655. It resulted that, in all, 254 religious were occupied in 252missions; that the royal treasury only paid stipends corresponding to141 missionaries; and that there were only 59 suitable secular priestsin all the islands. The fiscal, seeing that according to the reportthe procedure that had been taken could not be maintained, in orderto obviate the inconveniences that would ensue to the natives andinhabitants of those dominions if the religious were withdrawn fromthe villages, petitioned on January 4, 1656, that without innovationthe orders be maintained in the missions, until it should be provedthat there was a sufficient supply of secular priests to take care ofthem; and that they be assisted with the usual emoluments. He askedand charged the reverend fathers-provincial to look after the spiritualadministration with their accustomed zeal. The royal Audiencia havingso ordered in toto by an act of February 17, the holy orders returnedvery willingly to apply their shoulders to the work. Those actswere sent to the royal Council of the Indias. The cause having beendiscussed there, in view of the reports of the governor (which werethroughout favorable to the orders), and of the manifestos presentedby the orders in justification of their rights, the documents wereapproved on October 23, 1666, and the result was to make no innovationin what had been decided, and it does not appear that any other decreewas enacted against the observance and practice that the religioushave always maintained in those islands. Therefore the archbishop, having claimed that the appointments for the missions devolved on himby the form of canonical collation in cases where his Majesty didnot make use of the privilege which belonged to him as patron; andendeavoring by that means to deprive the orders of the right whichthey possess of making those appointments without the interventionof his Excellency: the royal Council by a decree of September 26, 1687, ordered that the matter be continued in the form in which ithad been administered until then, and that no change be permitted. 

723. Shortly after the archbishop of Manila, Don Diego Camacho, makinguse of the most powerful means, attempted to subject the religious tohis approbation, visitation, and correction in officio officiando. Forthat purpose he had recourse to his Holiness, to whom in the year 1697, he represented that there were many religious in the islands employedin more than seven hundred parishes, who had refused and were refusingto receive the visitation and correction of the diocesans; and he askedthat they be compelled to receive such visitation. Upon seeing that, his Holiness Clement XI decided (January 30, 1705) that the rightof visiting the parochial regulars belonged to the said archbishopand other bishops; but he made no mention of the other points whichhad been referred to him, and which were also under dispute. Thisappears from the brief despatched in this regard. This brief havingbeen presented in the Council of the Indias, it appears that it wasconfirmed on April 22 of the same year. The said archbishop orderedit to be executed (October 26, 1707) with the most strenuous efforts;but he encountered in this such dissensions and disturbances that itis considered advisable to omit the relation thereof. It was necessaryto resign the ministries once more, the superiors [of the orders]protesting that they would never agree to such a subjection, andthat the archbishop could make appointments to the curacies as hewished. By that means his Excellency was so balked that, the causehaving been fully proved, the evidence received, and the proofsadduced by both parties, the petition introduced by the orders wasallowed on March 30, 1708; and it was ordered that the necessaryofficial statements be given them. The authority of the governorwas interposed extra-judicially, and he ordered that the religiousshould occupy the abandoned curacies, and that there should be nochange. The archbishop himself, who had put forward that claim, was obliged to confess that he could not put it into practice. 

724. It was sufficiently clear by that alone that the holy orders havemore than enough reason for the independence from the bishops that theyenjoy in their parochial ministry. For if they did not have in theirprimitive being the causes and motives for the apostolic privilegeswhich exempted them, even from that of the ordinaries, it would nothave been possible for them to maintain themselves so long with thatprerogative which could not subsist in the kingdoms of América. But, since there are some persons who, as their understanding is on apar with their bodily senses, register events on the surface onlywithout going within for the reasons (from which the report has beenoriginated and spread through Europa, that the orders of Philipinashave seized all the authority without other reason than because theywish it so), I am compelled to vindicate them from so atrocious acalumny by making known some of the reasons why they have made (asthey still do) so strong a resistance to this subjection. I shallfirst discuss all the orders in common, and then our reformed branchin particular. But I give warning that I do not intend to transform myhistory into formal charges. Adequate apologetic writings, founded onlaw, have been scattered through those holy families to demonstrate theexemption that attends them. Quite recently, in the former year 1734, a formal statement was presented in the royal Council by twenty-threegraduates of the famous University of Salamanca (confirmed by eightwho are not regulars) in which their testimonies agree in affirmingthat the religious act according to the dictates of conscience inadministering the curacies without subjecting themselves to thebishops. Some add that they are bound in conscience to resist thissubjection, as it is an imposition on the regular religious. Therefore, I shall treat that matter simply as an historian, taking for grantedthe right which, according to various apostolic privileges, supportsthem in not subjecting themselves to the bishops; and, in case thelatter attempt this, in abandoning the ministries. 

§ II

Some of the arguments that support the orders in Philipinas in notsubmitting to the visitation of the ordinaries in regard to theministries. 

725. That various supreme pontiffs, especially St. Pius V, conceded tothe regulars of the Indias the privilege of obtaining their ministrieswith complete independence from the bishops, no one is so bold as todeny. The motive for that concession was the lack of secular priestsin those countries. Consequently, the question (or doubt) as towhether that indult is or is not to be observed is not one of law, but one of pure fact. Its solution depends on ascertaining whetherthere are in those regions a sufficient number of clergy suitableto serve their parishes and exercise the care of souls. For, in casethere are, it is not denied that that duty belongs to the seculars;for it is the peculiar duty of the religious to devote themselves toGod in the retirement of their cloisters. If, on this hypothesis, the regulars should desire or be permitted to take charge of thesaid spiritual administration, they ought to submit to the bishopsin officio officiando for then the cause of that indult would notexist. The fact of the exemption having ceased for the great part inthe kingdoms of Nueva España and Perú, did not arise from the saidprivileges having been revoked (for they are not, especially thatof St. Pius V) but only and necessarily because the impelling causefor conceding such exemption did not actually exist. For, in thosekingdoms, the number of secular ecclesiastics increased so greatlythat enough of them were found to administer the holy sacraments totheir inhabitants. Since the motive has ceased, the privilege cannotendure. Now then, I suppose that there are more than two millionsof people in the Philipinas Islands who confess the name of Christ, through the influence of the fervent zeal of the religious. In the year1655, as was stated in the preceding paragraph, for two hundred andfifty-two missions in charge of the orders there were only fifty-ninesecular priests. In 1705, when that subjection was attempted soearnestly by Archbishop Don Diego Camacho, the parishes were extendedby his deposition to the number of more than seven hundred. For thoseparishes, according to the certification of the secretary of thatprelate, only sixty-seven secular priests were found in his diocese;and of those only ten were suitable for administering the missions, as the rest were occupied in the duties of necessary residence. Atpresent, the number of seculars is not much greater nor will it everbe--partly because those of Europa do not have any inducement to goto those islands, and partly because, since the Spaniards there are sofew, there cannot be many persons sprung from these kingdoms who riseto the priesthood; further, because the Indians are generally unfit forthat holy ministry. In view of all the above, who does not see thatthe orders avail themselves of their right in resisting the burdenof the visitation which the bishops are trying to impose on them?

726. Nor does it avail the opposition that Pope Clement XI determinedand declared, at the petition of the said archbishop, on January 30, 1705, "that the right of visiting the regulars in what concernsthe care of souls and the administration of the holy sacramentsbelongs to the archbishop of Manila and the other bishops of thePhilipinas Islands. " For besides the defects of misrepresentation andsurreptitious measures [obrepcion y subrepcion] which were then mademanifest, contained in that brief, the said pontifical declaration, whether it be conceived as a law, as an order, or as a sentence, cannot fail to be appealed from. This is what the orders did, appealing to his Holiness, alleging before the archbishop who putthe brief into execution the motives which, according to law, theyrightfully had for resisting that visitation. In order to establishthe truth that the religious had many arguments in their favor, it isnot necessary to adduce other proof than what results from the factthat the said archbishop, who was the person most interested, desistedfrom the execution of the brief. Other diocesans of the islands who, notwithstanding the above-cited brief, have tolerated and tolerate theexemption of the orders for no other reason than the actual scarcityof secular priests, have authorized that procedure. Therefore, theypractically admit that the indult of St. Pius remains in force, andthat the mandate of Clement XI is impossible whenever the religiousabandon the curacies. 

727. Besides, the same fact that the said metropolitan did not putinto execution the above-cited brief of Clement XI as its natureand authority demanded, gave one to understand either that it wasnotoriously surreptitious, or especially grievous and productive ofsome scandal, or of irreparable injury to the Catholic religion;for only through such motives can the mandates of the pope besuspended. If the first be correct, it is an implied or virtualdeclaration that the said order is null and void; therefore, the regulars can legally proceed with the administration of themissions without subjecting themselves to the ordinaries, making useof their former privileges. If the second or third--his illustriousLordship having offered in that same act in which he provided for thesuspension of the brief, to inform the pope of the predominant reasonsthat determined him to supersede the said brief--in the meantime, until the said information shall reach him, and the effect that isproduced by it on his Holiness's mind shall be made known to thereligious, the fact that they avail themselves of their privilegesin the administration of the parishes cannot be imputed to them asguilt. The reason for that is, that they cannot believe that thatprelate will neglect to inform his Holiness of the motives why hedid not proceed with the execution [of the brief]. The fact that theRoman court has not made any new provision in regard to that mattershows that, just as in virtue of the allegations of the regularsthe said archbishop found it necessary not to carry his pretensionfarther, so likewise the supreme pontiff has tacitly approved and hasleft the religious with the exemption that they enjoyed before theabove-mentioned brief. Therefore, in regard to either law, they willsafely be able to proceed with the administration of the churches intheir charge without the intervention of the bishops. 

728. Much less can the said brief of Clement XI stand in regardto the decree that "the regulars cannot resign from the missionsor parishes under penalty of censures, loss of benefices, andother arbitrary penalties. " For this clause alone is sufficient topersuade one that the representations that were made to obtain thatdecision from the pope were not ruled by truth. For had his Holinesswell understood all the circumstances, how could he have issued anorder from which would follow the inference of injuries terrible andirremediable to the holy orders? If those religious, in so far asthey are curas, were to become subject to the bishops, they wouldnot hold their curacies as a reward after serving his Majesty somuch, but would regard their position as lower than that of thosewho remain free from responsibility in their communities. For thelatter have no other obligation than to obey their superior or histwo subordinates, so that there can never be any contrariety in theorders or any doubt for the religious of what he is to do; whilethe former, after all their anxiety, have to study very carefullyover obeying their legitimate superiors and in keeping the bishopscontent (which, as will be said, would both be impossible things), whence must originate many disturbances and much restlessness. Andif it is intolerable that he who serves his king with faithfulness benot rewarded, the order would be inverted on this occasion; for afterso much labor they could only succeed in multiplying subjections, andbe less free in their ministries. The orders would receive as theirreward the abolition of the exemption which the holy see conceded tothem as a recompense for the noble fruits which they have gatheredin the universal Church by their virtue and holiness--preserving itfresh and beautiful by watering it with the blood of so many martyrs, by which they made it illustrious; and increasing it with new worlds, provinces, and millions of children whom they have subjected to it, of which the histories are full. They will be obliged to place in thecuracies those who solicit them the most urgently, importuning by meansfrom which the more retiring and the more worthy shrink. They willexpose their religious to danger even after they have well fulfilledthe obligations of their ministries, in case that they are not tothe liking of the ordinary--besides many other annoyances which willinevitably come upon the regulars. And if the orders have no othermeans to avoid that and the rest which will be stated below than toresign their missions, how could the benign pontiff oblige them tostay therein if he knew those circumstances fully?

729. It cannot be denied that the office of parish priest even withthe exemption from the ordinary is altogether accessory, and a heavyresponsibility superadded to the religious estate. For in order thatthey might administer in the said form, an apostolic dispensationhas been necessary which is founded on grave reasons--and that withattention to only what the religious estate demands from him who hasentered it, according to what is taught by common law and the doctrineof the saints. If that method of administering with exemption fromthe ordinary is changed, and the regular who has charge of a parishshould as such become subject to the correction and visitation ofthe ordinary, and in other respects to the heads of his order, it iscertain that it would be an innovation so great that they would bequite changed in their respect for public opinion, and in their modeof life; and the religious would be like a man cleft in two, thosein some houses being subject to one superior and those in othersto another, all of different hierarchies, and with the dangerousconsequences that will be stated. Will the piety of the pope bindthe religious to so great a cross?

730. Let us suppose (as is feasible) that the bishop were to becomedispleased with any order, or with any missionary. In such casehe could maintain or remove the missionary against the will of hisprovincial by very specious pretexts. If necessary, he could eventhreaten the latter with censures, in order to make him submit tohis authority. How fecund a source of perdition and total ruin thatwould be for the orders, any one can conceive; but only those whohave experience in those islands could perfectly comprehend it. Letthe regulars of América tell how they have to tolerate it throughcompulsion. If a religious is found lacking, and the offense hasthe appearance on one side of belonging to morals and life and onthe other to the office of cura, the poor missionary is left in thesane position as those goods which the law styles mostrencos [i. E. , goods which have no known owner], and shall belong to the first onewho seizes them; and even he is in much worse condition, becauseof the contests that must necessarily ensue. For, if the provincialcommences to form a process and it comes afterward to the notice of theordinary, the latter will issue an act--and, if it should be necessary, a censure--ordering the said provincial to quash the entire process, to deliver it to him, and to desist from the cause by saying that healone has the power to try it. The provincial appeals to the judgedelegated by his Holiness and he, as he has entire jurisdiction ofthe case, commands the ordinary with the warning of censure to leavethe cause alone and deliver up the acts. The latter not obeying, the matter may be carried to such an extreme that two ecclesiasticalprelates excommunicate each other, and threaten each other withinterdict and the cessation of divine service. This is not fancy, for that has happened in like case in Manila. That is the greatestdanger since, because of the great distance, redress moves withvery dilatory steps. But in the meanwhile the suits concerning thereligious are proceeding from tribunal to tribunal, contrary to theclearly expressed privileges of his exemption. 

731. But let us suppose that the regular parish priest is unworthyto persevere in his mission because of secret sins, and that, evenif he remain in it, he may run some risk of his salvation. Theprovincial learns of the matter secretly. In such a case, justicerequires two things--one, the punishment of the guilty person; andthe other, that the delinquent shall not lose his reputation by thedeclaration of his fault. Charity urges him to remove his subordinatefrom danger. If that regular administers without canonical institutionand subjection to the ordinary, everything will be settled very easily, and justice and charity will be satisfied without any infamy to thecriminal or any dishonor to the order. But if he is subject to theordinary, the provincial cannot remove him by his own authority; buthe must have recourse to the ordinary himself, and to the vice-patron, and then those two agree on the removal. In that case, what can theprovincial say to them? If he should say that he will impart to themin all secrecy the [nature of the] crime of his subject, that meansis harsh and less safe. The ordinary and the governor, as the fatherand the master, may correct and punish the faults of their inferiorswithout the least wound to their honor; and must a provincial do so bydis-accrediting his subordinate with the heads of the community? Ifit is decided that the superior do not tell the kind of crime, butthat he asseverate in general terms that there is cause to remove thereligious from that place, the trouble is not avoided. First, they maythink that he speaks thus in order to go ahead with his oldtime custom;second, because even though the cause of removing him be not a fault, it can easily be alleged to be one, and the fact that he does not offermore explanation in that case comes to be the same as manifestingits gravity by his silence. Finally, honor is very delicate and islessened by rumor and suspicion. Since God made the religious exemptfrom the secular judges, and the apostolic see exempted them fromthe ordinaries, the religious, when they have not professed as curas, will find themselves without courage to assume that charge with so manydangers and burdens. And will the apostolic see force them to that?

732. The fact that common law decides that the regular parish priest, as such, is subject to the visit of the ordinary furnishes no argumentagainst my statement. For, leaving aside the fact that the supremepontiff may abolish such a law--as in fact was done by Pius V, afterthe holy Council of Trent, while Urban VIII confirmed this actionafterward; and various statements of the most eminent cardinalsfavor this when there is a lack of secular priests as happens in thePhilipinas--it is answered that common law which orders such subjectionis only in point when they wish to persevere in being parish priests;but does not order that they be so under compulsion. If a secularpriest to whom the curacy has been given permanently by canonicalinstitution can resign it, and the law does not therefor disqualifyhim, why cannot the regulars make that same resignation in order notto live with the risks from having so many superiors? The regularsare not curas for justice, but for charity, and they have takencharge of the missions for lack of other ministers. They do notadminister them through right of proprietorship, but are removableat will. Consequently, they can be deprived of those missions eventhough they live like saints. Is it possible that when the will ofanother is sufficient to remove them from their curacies, their ownvolition will not suffice with the knowledge of the dangers whichwill follow from such a charge? Further, is the regular incapableof being a proper parish priest, or is he not? If he is, why, if thesecular cura is perpetual--so that, if he does not become unworthy, neither the ordinary nor the vice-patron can remove him--will not theregular also remain a cura, supposing the incumbrance of collation andcanonical institution? Why does that institution give all favorablethings to the secular and deprive the regular of all relief? Itimposes upon the regular the duty of feeding the sheep. It binds himto the territory, so that the provincial cannot remove him withoutthe consent of the vice-patron and of the ordinary. He loses in greatmeasure the privilege of the exemption, and with those duties doesnot have the comfort of being secure in his curacy, for he does nothold it for life. Neither is he master of the emoluments which theparish yields, unless it be imagined that he be dispensed from hisvow of poverty. Consequently, he only gets the burdens by reason ofthe collation, and nothing to his advantage. If it be said that heis not capable of being a parish priest, why the pledge in this newform of administration?

733. Those who are striving for the subjection of the regularsas parish priests generally oppose the fact that that form ofadministration has been introduced into América, and that therefore itmight serve as an example for the Philipinas Islands. But that argumentis not convincing, and contains many remarkable disparities. First, because there are plenty of secular priests in Peru and Nueva España;therefore the bishops rightly compelled the religious either to abandonthe administration of the parishes, or to submit to the visitation. Forthe motive of the privilege of St. Pius V was lacking, not by anyrevocation that he made of it, but because its force had ceased, its object not being realized. Second, because no one will say thatthe orders of América were obliged to remain in the charge of souls, with the insupportable burden of the visitations. On the contrary, they agreed to it willingly in order not to abandon the parishes. Thefact that they consented to it there is no proof that they have to dothe same in Philipinas. Third, because the experience of what happenedin Mexico and Perú in regard to the diminution of strict observanceby the regulars, which originated beyond doubt from that subjection, ought to open the eyes of the superiors of orders in Philipinas toprevent such harm in their houses. This is not to cast blame on thosewho are now enjoying the curacies in this manner in the said kingdoms;we ought to consider them all as very excellent religious. But itis an undoubted fact that, with the practice by which the missionsare maintained, in a manner almost perpetual, the provincials notbeing able to dispose of their subordinates with complete liberty, that oldtime strict observance which was planted in those provincesat their first erection has been greatly obscured. Human natureis easily inclined to what promotes liberty; and as St. Bernardteaches, the same ones who love retirement because of their austeretraining in the rigors of the order from childhood, when they cometo taste the life that is not so well regulated, desire, procure, and solicit it. Nothing of that has been seen hitherto in Philipinas, where, however much they have the parishes in charge, the holy ordersflourish in the most strict observance--for no other reason than that, if a religious sins, the remedy is quite near at hand since it isadministered solely by the head of the order. 

734. Fourth, because there are things more to be wondered at than tobe followed. Although the religious orders are alike, we see that, while the Church is also one and the same, one person elects onecondition which the other does not adopt. From the same order some goto the Indias, and others do not go. Then why cannot the same thinghappen in regard to being parish priests subject to the ordinary? Letthe histories of the Indias be read. All of them consider earnestlywhether the religious are to be curas of souls, and much more whetherthey are to be curas of justice. Resolutions of entire provinces willbe found on the question whether they should abandon the missions;generals and illustrious men of the same orders will be found whoapproved it; and the reader will find bitter complaints for havingadmitted such a burden, recognizing it as the seminary of interminablediscords. For, if those on the mainland, seeing a furious hurricaneon the sea which is dashing the ships to pieces and endangering thelives of those who are sailing, fear to embark, how much shouldthe regulars in Philipinas take warning from the new practice inAmérica? How can one wonder that they follow the example of thosewho abandoned the missions joyfully, rather than of those who nowlive sorrowfully because they adopted the new method? The fact is, that no one can take it ill that each one procures what he thinksbest so long as he uses means that are not unlawful in order to getit. This is what the religious are doing in the present case, takingcare that no detriment follows to their estate and profession. For, before the souls of others, one ought to watch over his own. Letit not be (as says St. Paul) that we, preaching to others, beholdourselves in the irreparable danger of becoming reprobates. 

735. Fifth, because the provinces of Philipinas are not, nor canthey be, like those of América, but are as distinct as they areseparate. The latter include, besides the ministries, many communityconvents where there are plenty of religious, who greatly exceedthe parish priests in number. The former have but one convent apiecein Manila, which enjoys an adequate community as do the convents ofEuropa. The other houses are located in the villages of the Indianswhere those who have charge of the spiritual administration live, andthere is no more community at times than the head of the house alone;and at the most he has one or two associates, if they are considerednecessary for the exercise of the duties of the mission. Since thatis true, an undeniable inconvenience will follow, namely: if theyare subjected to the visitation and correction of the bishops all cancall themselves not regulars--those outside, because they are parishpriests; and those of Manila, because they have to go to take theplaces of the others in case of absence, sickness, or death. Theycannot be excused from that by either the actual definitors of theoutgoing provincials, and all to have to be employed if there is alack of ministers. Since the provinces are composed of them almostentirely, and the consent of the ordinary and the vice-patron wouldbe necessary for their removal, there would be some provinces whichwould have the name of religious government and in reality would beunder the secular government, dependent on those two wills, to whichthey would make no vow of obedience. It is a fact that it would bea real change which those religious would have to endure, from freeand unhindered evangelical ministers to seculars bound in justice tothe care of souls. Can it be considered ill that they resist so greata transformation, and leave the missions if they find no other way?

736. Sixth, and last, because in América the practice of presentingthree religious for each mission in the form ordered by the king canbe easily observed, as there are many religious. But that presentationis mortally impossible in Philipinas because of the great scarcity ofreligious. For although the orders make the most painstaking effortsto get them from España, they succeed in this with difficulty. Forlack of workers, they are often obliged to entrust the administrationof many villages to one person, and sometimes to abandon districts intoto. Then how can three be presented for each ministry when thereis scarcely one for each mission? Besides, since there are so manylanguages, there is no order which does not minister in four or fivelanguages; and although all of them apply themselves to the studyof the languages, few attain them so perfectly that they can explainentirely the height of the mysteries of our holy faith; and since thereare so many missions, what order can present three times the number ofministers who will worthily serve the missions? Let us suppose a casealso where there would be a sufficient number of capable religious. Onthat account there would be no assurance of better results; forof the three who would be presented, it is possible that the leastcapable would be chosen, as there would be no accurate informationof his being less competent. That would be known better within hisown order, where by continual intercourse it is learned who is mostsuitable for the ministry. Besides that, there might be a religiouswhom it would be proper to retire because of his demerits, but byvirtue of the fact that the prelates have to present three religiousfor each mission, they are obliged to include him in the presentationfor the sole purpose of completing the number. Who will prevent afroward one from slandering the electors, discrediting the worthy, and gaining the favor of friends and relatives by putting forth allhis efforts to attain the desired liberty in order to escape from theobservance and the cloister? Oh, beginning so full of troubles! Ifone had to describe all the troubles, it would be necessary to usemuch paper. Let the above suffice, so that it may be recognized thatthe reason why the holy orders resist subjection to the bishops isnot so much for the sake of preserving their authority, as becausethey see the grave dangers that must ensue for them. Finally, theyexercise their right in that, of which no one can complain, for theyare doing wrong to no one. 

§ III

Continuation of the matter of the preceding section, with especialbearing on our discalced Recollect branch. 

737. The reasons thus far advanced touch all the orders in common. Letus now pass on to speak of our own in particular. There is no doubtthat St. Pius V conceded the above-mentioned exemption to the regularsbecause they were employed in the conversion of the Indians, and sothat they might proceed in their apostolic missions. That reason isclearly expressed in the bull; consequently, whenever it is found toexist, the orders ought to be maintained in the possession of thatgrace so long as it is not annulled by express revocation. Hence itis that, until the present, the bishops have not attempted to subjectthe missionaries who are laboring to allure the heathen to our holyfaith and withdraw them from the darkness of their infidelity; for inorder to effect those ends they acknowledge in its force the privilegeof St. Pius V. I agree then that all the missions held by our holyreformed branch in the said islands ought to be considered as activemissions, where the religious, although as parish priests they ministerspiritually to those already converted, exercise also the arduousemploy of missionaries, as the villages are surrounded by infidels, whose conversion they secure by the most diligent efforts. Therefore, the parishes of our jurisdiction ought to be considered not as villagesof converts [doctrinas] already formed, where the only care is toadminister the holy sacraments, but as new conquests where the flockof Christ is continually increased by apostolic attempts. 

738. There are at present one hundred and five villages (besidesthose called active missions, which do not enter into this account)at present in the charge of our holy discalced branch, and theylie in more than twenty islands. In the principal island of Luzón, where the city of Manila is located, the order administers fifteenvillages; in that of Mindanao, the second in size, thirty-four;in that of Parágua and others of the Calamianes, twelve; in that ofMindóro, twenty-four; in that of Romblón and its outlying islands, eleven; and in that of Masbáte and its intermediate islands, nine. Itis seldom that one of those villages has no infidel inhabitants;and the religious are kept quite busy in converting them. Forbeginning with the island of Luzón and the mountains of Zambáles, the villages of Marivélez, Cabcáben, Móron, and Bagác are surroundedby blacks who are there called "de Monte" [i. E. , "of the mountain"][33] who are being constantly converted to our holy faith, for theyare of a very peaceful disposition. Súbic is a new conquest, wherevarious Indians are settling who wander about and are forgotten by theChristianity of those districts. The settlements that follow from thatpoint to Bolináo are so near to the black Zambals and Aetas that, when the latter revolt, one cannot go there without running greatrisk of his life. But when peace makes them tractable, some soulsare obtained for God. The villages of Uguit and Babáyan, which haverecently been founded in this century with the converted blacks andwild Indians, [Zimarrónes] clearly attest that fact. In Mindanaothe territory conquered by our religious, namely, the district ofCagayáng and the province of Carágha, ought to be considered as therose among the thorns, oppressed by Moros, Mindanáos, and Malanáos, and by infidel Tagabalóyes and Manóbos. Of those peoples, the formerkeep the evangelical ministers in continual fear, because of theirpersecutions; the latter keep us in a perpetual mission for convertingthem to our holy Catholic faith. As proof of the great and continualadvance of Christianity there, it suffices to state that at the endof the last century the tributes which those who have been subduedpaid to the king did not equal the expenses occasioned to the royaltreasury by the maintenance of the said province; in the year 1720, the expenses and collections were equal; but now the royal incomeexceeds the expenses necessary for conservation. [34] Since theexpenses have not decreased--for there is always the same numberof infantry forces in the presidios of Tándag, Catél, and Lináo, to which all the expense is reduced--it is inferred that the royaltributes have increased, and consequently the number of Christians. 

739. There are so many heathen in the islands of Calamiánes, especiallyin the island of Parágua, that at least one hundred heathens will befound for each Christian. In the island of Mindóro only the coasts areconquered, and heathen fill all the interior of the island. The samesuccess as I said was obtained in the province of Carágha has also beensecured in the above two provinces; although a very notable decreaseof Christianity has taken place in them because of the invasionsof the Moros of which I shall speak later. The island of Zibuyán, whose mountains are peopled by infidels--who, as they are exceedinglyobstinate in regard to conversion, give us considerable anxiety, although some converts are obtained among them--is located in theRomblón district. The island of Mæstre de Campo, formerly peopledby Indians who were almost all apostates from religion, has now ingreat part embraced the faith through the efforts of the religious, who scarcely ten years ago founded a new village peopled by familiesof the said Indians. It is not many years since the wild Indians[Zimarrónes] were feared in the island of Masbáte but these are now sofew, through the persuasions of the religious, that one can cross theisland without danger. The villages have increased greatly with thepeople who have been reduced to a Christian life and civilization. Thevillage of Camasóso is a new colony peopled by that before indomitablepeople; and the same has happened in the island of Burías. Now then, I ask, since this is so (and it is a fact, and one that can be provedwhenever necessary), in what are these ministries or curacies differentfrom those in Nueva España and Perú, when St. Pius V conceded theexemption of the regulars? What difference is there between thosemissions or parishes and those founded in the Philipinas Islandswhen they began to be subject to the crown of España? There appearsto be no difference. If the privilege conceded to the religious inAmérica with those circumstances was considered justifiable, and wasalso observed in the said islands at the beginning, our discalcedreligious will proceed quite conformably with right in resisting anychange with all their strength, as long as their individual parishpriests are also, as stated, engaged as missionaries. 

740. More force is given to this argument if one considers that, even in carrying on missions in infidel lands, our religious couldnot suffer greater hardships than those which they endure in thesaid ministries. That it may be seen that this is not imagination, I shall give a rough outline of what happened recently from theyear 1720 until the present. I shall do it as briefly as possible, for those regrettable tragedies will occasion great extension to thishistory in due time. It is well known that our villages are the mostexposed to the invasions of the Moros; consequently, they alwaysserve as the theater of war and as the object of disasters. In thesaid year, then, they attacked the province of Calamiánes with apowerful fleet. Landing on the island of Linacapán they burned thevillage, convent, and church; outraged the sacred images; and killedwith lance-thrusts the venerable father, Fray Manuel de Jesus Maria, a native of Lupiana in Alcarria--while another religious who was therewas able to escape miraculously, at the cost of incredible hardshipsthat he suffered, by hiding in the mountain. In the year 1721 they didthe same thing in the village and island of La-Agutáya, [35] and inManàol, which is located in the island of Mindóro. The evangelicalministers fled thence in a small boat and thus saved their lives, although after very prolonged hardships; and from there they tookrefuge in the mountains, in order to endure, without other reliefthan that of God, the discomforts that one can imagine. In the year1722 the Moros landed on the island of Cúyo, and although they couldnot take the redoubt, for the Indians (captained by our religious)defended it bravely, one can imagine what the latter suffered in asiege so immeasurably prolonged. In the year 23, the Moros borderingon the province of Carágha besieged the presidio of Catél. FatherFray Benito de San Joseph, son of Casál de Cáceres in Estremadura, who, as its minister, undertook to attend to its defense, was left soexhausted from the fatigues of war in which no relief came, that afterthe retreat of the Moros, he lived but little longer; for he gave uphis soul to God amid the plaudits of victory. Almost at the same time, in the island of Camiguín, the religious were compelled to hide inthe mountains, where they were besieged by many fears. In Parágua, they killed father Fray Juan de la Purificacion (a native of Atéa inthe kingdom of Aragon) with an insidious poison. The invasions of thesaid Mahometans were continual until the year 30 through Calamiánesand other districts; for, although they were not seen in large fleets, a great number of pirates were never lacking, and they caused thosepersecuted ministers repeated troubles. But in the above-mentionedyear they had the boldness to assault the presidio of Taytáy [36]with such swiftness and fury that two of the three religious whowere there succeeded by great good luck, and without any preparation, in retiring afoot to the mountains; while the other, only saving thechalices and ciborium, retired to the redoubt where he suffered thehardships of the siege. 

741. In the year 31 they attacked the village of Culión; in 32, thatof Linacapán and all the villages of Parágua, where they committedinnumerable acts of cruelty. In 33 they ruined the village of Calatán;and father Fray Antonio de Santa Ana (whose death I shall relatelater), had no other opportunity than to flee to the mountain afootand naked as he was in his bed, so that one can imagine what hesuffered. In the year 34 they destroyed the villages of Malampáyan, Dumarán, and Linacapan. Father Fray Domingo de San Agustin, a nativeof Aldeguela near Teruel, while escaping to the mountain remained forfive days in a cellar with the water up to his waist without eatinganything else than herbs. As a consequence of that and other hardshipsthat he suffered on various occasions, various illnesses came uponhim which finally ended his life, he refusing to turn his back on theevangelical enterprises, although he could have done so. Father FrayJuan de la Virgen de Moncayo (a native of Añon in Aragon) retiringfirst to the redoubt of Taytáy and then to the mountains, as he haddone at other times, became so ill that he surrendered his soul, though always fighting, in the island of Mindóro. The Moros went tothat island also in the above-mentioned year and attacked severalvillages, and the religious remained in the mountains for a long time;this caused father Fray Joseph de San Agustin (a son of Azarét, in thesaid kingdom of Aragon) to contract his last illness, and he retiredto Manila, where he ended the miseries of this life in order to passto life eternal. In the year 35 they became masters of the villages ofParágua, whose Christian faith is little less than lost. In the year36 they again besieged the presidio of Taytáy; and although it waspossible to defend it at the cost of miracles, in one of the assaultsa bullet took away the life of father Fray Antonio de Santa Ana, anative of Gandia in the kingdom of Valencia. In the years 37 and 38the Moros, already masters of the sea, filled Calamiánes and Mindórowith horror. In the year 39 they had so closed the passage from thesaid islands to Manila that for more than six months nothing could beheard from the religious living in those fields of Christendom. In theyear 40 they went to the coast of Mindóro opposite Luzón, where theyinhumanly killed father Fray Leon de San Joseph (a son of Peraléda inCastilla) and captured another religious who was going as missionary toMindanáo; and it was a miracle that they did not capture all those whowere returning from the chapter-meeting. In that same period, althoughI do not know definitely the year, they also landed at Hingoóg, avillage of the province of Carágha; in the island of Camiguín, whichbelongs to the alcaldeship of Zibú; and on the coast of Zambáles atthe boundaries of the village of Cabangán. The inference from theabove is that the missionary religious had to hide in the cavernsof the mountains in all districts; to look for their sheep in thedeserts; go without food, or live on herbs of the field; to sufferthe inclemencies of the weather, which is a martyrdom in Philipinas;and always to flee from one part to another without other reliefby sea or land than fears and fatigues. What is lacking, then, to those ministers of the evangelical doctrine to enable them tosay that they are toiling in apostolic missions? Now, did those whobegan the conquest of América or those of Philipinas endure the moregrievous and continual persecutions? Therefore, if those were worthyof receiving the exemption, because they were employed at the costof their lives in the promulgation of the faith, no change ought tobe introduced in these missions. 

742. The procedure of our religious in resisting the subjectionof the ordinaries is justified even more by that which causes theanxiety of the ministers, if one considers the fact (on which theirresistance is founded) that the proper administration of those soulsis morally impossible. For that we must assume that the king assignsone missionary to each five hundred tributes or families. But ourdistricts, especially those of the islands of Luzón, Calamiánes, and Mindóro, although each does not exceed three hundred tributes;need each one or two religious in order that they may be looked afteras is necessary for the preaching and for the [spiritual] food ofthe holy sacraments. This arises from the fact that each missionis extended over a distance of twenty or thirty leguas, withoutits being possible to make any other arrangement. For although thereduction into large settlements has been attempted, for the moresuitable spiritual administration it has been impossible to attainthat. On the contrary, whenever it has been attempted, Christianityhas decreased. In the islands of Mindanáo, Romblón, and Masbáte, the missions have more people, for they contain from six to eighthundred tributes. But, for the same reason, each one needs three orfour religious; and even that number must be on the road continuallyin order to fulfil their obligations as parish priests. Hence itresults (the stipends not being received in proportion to the numberof the religious but in proportion to the tributes), that they have tomaintain three and sometimes four religious with what the king assignsfor one minister. It is endured with the greatest kind of poverty, and they even lack the necessities for the maintenance of life. 

743. I suppose also that, when once the new form of administrationwould be established according to the subjection that is claimed, it would follow that each ministry would have a prior appointed inthe chapters, and a cura assigned by the ordinary with canonicalinstitution. For this is the observance in América, in order to savethe freedom of the elections in what concerns the regular superiors, and in order to prevent the religious who are curas from being freefrom the vow of obedience. Of these, the parish priest cares forthe administration, the prior looks after matters pertaining to theregular estate but cannot assist in what pertains to the instruction[doctrina], for generally he does not know the language. The formerhas increased expenses with the visit of the bishop and other mattersrelating thereto; and the latter, with the journeys to the chapterand the visitation of the provincial; and all these expenses must bepaid by the stipends of the mission, for there is no other sourceof income. Consequently, it is inferred that it would be necessaryin this case, to reduce the ministries to a new form and assign onesingle cura to each five hundred tributes. It would be doing well ifthe product of those tributes sufficed for the maintenance of thetwo religious, prior and parish priest, with the other unavoidableand necessary expenses. But if at present two priests scarcelysuffice to administer two hundred families well in our villages, how could a single one look after five hundred families? Then, if(and this could be proved with exactness) the children or neophytesbegged the bread of the teaching of the faith, there would be noone to attend to that need. Therefore, our holy reformed branchforeseeing so formidable and unavoidable consequences do very wellin abandoning the missions. For there is no reason why they shouldload injuries upon themselves which cannot be corrected afterward, and of which their prelates must render account to God. 

744. Let us conclude this matter by stating one other motive for thejustification of our religious in resisting exercise as parish priests, when one tries to subject them to the visitation and correction of thebishops. It is a constant fact that the Christianity of the PhilipinasIslands cannot maintain itself unless numerous missions be continuallytaken thither from Europa. For there are few sons of Spaniards there(to whom only the habit can be given), and of those few the smallestnumber are inclined to the religious estate. I state then, that in caseof the said subjection it would be impracticable to take missionariesthere, especially those of our holy discalced branch. Consequently, the administration of the missions could not be cared for, as isalready seen, when affairs are going to the prejudice of the Catholicfaith. In order to prove the aforesaid, we must take it for grantedthat each religious causes an expense of practically one thousandpesos from the time he leaves his convent in España until he sets footin Manila--about one-half of which is paid from the royal treasury, while the remainder is supplied by the order. To realize that sum, which amounts to huge figures, the ministries contribute with somevoluntary offerings, and the province applies all its incomes andalms. Compare this now with that alleged in the preceding number, and it will be seen that in the said case it would not be possiblefor the missionary religious to attend to that necessity. For, even atpresent, they have to live like beggars in order that they may assist, taking from their necessary support what they give, so that they maysupport that expense. On the other hand, the province would not beable to employ its incomes in this either, for it would have to usethem in establishing solidly the convents which are not ministries, There are five of these, namely: in Manila, in Bagumbáya, in Cavíte, in San Sebastian, and the convent of La Concepcion in Zibú. Of thatnumber only the first has a community at present, for the others canscarcely support two religious apiece. But in the said case it wouldbe indispensable, so that the province might maintain itself as such, to place communities in the convents and to apply to them the incomesthat it possesses; and on that account it could not attend to theexpenses of the missions. 

745. But let us suppose that some funds existed for those expenses. Thetrouble remains that the religious of España would not consent togo to the islands, if they were informed that they had to be curas, and submit to the bishop in what they have not professed. Thus hasexperience shown by what has happened to our province, because noreligious went from these kingdoms from the year 1692 until that of1710, during which time Archbishop Camacho was attempting to bringabout the subjection. That is a precedent which induces the strongsuspicion that no one could be found who would voluntarily submit tocorrection by a strange prelate, and at times be accused and denouncedin a foreign jurisdiction as he had only promised obedience to his ownsuperiors. Grant that some would be allured, but those would be theleast capable who would be incited by the perverse desire for greaterfreedom. As a rule, when a mission for those islands is now proclaimed, those who volunteer in their desire for the conversion of souls areso many that one may choose laborers of excellent qualifications; fortheir zeal for the propagation of the gospel and for the spiritualhealth of those poor Indians impels them. But were that subjectioninaugurated, what timorous religious after that would leave his cell(a safe port whither to escape during storms) only to serve in theemploy of cura? That is, any change is accompanied by a very greatalteration; and he who attempts to introduce it must be responsible forall the consequences, in order to prevent and forestall them. Nor isit prudent not to oppose oneself to the foregoing, when one foreseesthe sequel of conclusions so fatal. Therefore, our holy order opposesitself to the innovation of this subjection, for it considers theinevitable injuries that must result. In view of that and many otherlosses, it acts most holily in abandoning the missions, in order thatthey may remain in the full charge of the bishops. 

[Chapter iii deals with the life of certain Recollect religious, of whom the following labored in the Philippines. Jacinto de SanFulgencio, the son of Vicente Francisco Claramonte, was born inCocentayna, and was received in the convent of Valencia January 17, 1614. He joined the mission to the Philippines which was organizedin 1619; and on his arrival at Manila began to study the languages, becoming fluent in the Tagálog, Zambal, Bisayan, and Calamian. In 1622he was sent with Juan de San Nicolás to Caraga, where he worked togood effect. Later, accompanied by one religious and some converts, he ascended the river for fifty leguas to Lináo, where his laborswere crowned successfully. He was appointed prior of the convent ofSan Joseph in Butuan in 1624, where he continued his work, with theevident approbation of heaven. In 1626 he became prior of Bacoag, andlater was the first prior of Iguaquét. He was the first to preach tothe Caragas, among whom he remained for ten years, during which timehe erected six convents. In Butuan he worked for four years, where heconverted three thousand people and erected three convents. In 1635he went to the island of Negros, where he converted six thousandIndians; and the same year was appointed prior of Tándag, where hebrought order out of chaos. In 1638 he was elected definitor, and in1640 became prior for the second time of Tándag, and vicar-provincialof Caraga. He was elected procurator to Spain in 1646, and definitorwith vote in the general chapter in that country, which he reachedin March 1649. His mission which he took from Spain reached Manilain 1652 and consisted of twenty-one religious. In the next chapterhe was again elected procurator, but he died at Manila in 1656. Hehad served as chaplain for the Spanish fleets, and as ambassador tothe natives, in addition to his mission work proper. ]

[Section ii of chapter v contains an account of the life of Salvadordel Espiritu Santo, who had formerly been an Augustinian of theObservant branch, but who joined the Recollects. He went to Manilain 1634 with the desire to go to Japan, learning some little ofthat language for that purpose. After much entreaty he obtainedpermission from the provincial of the order to go to Japan in 1635, but he was unable to effect his purpose. He served as prior inthe Cavite convent, was twice superior of the convent of San JuanBautista in Bagnumbáya, prior of the Manila convent, twice definitor;twice visitor of Calamianes and Mindoro. He was elected procurator inplace of Jacinto de San Fulgencio, and after various setbacks arrivedin Mexico in 1657, where he died in December of that same year. ]

[Chapter vi deals with the life of Andrés del Espiritu Santo. Thatvaliant worker was born in Valladolid in January 1585, his fatherbeing Hernando Tanégo. He made his vows in the convent of Portilloin 1601, and joining the first Philippine mission arrived at theislands in 1606. There he was sent immediately to the Zambales coast, where he founded the village of Masinloc, from which as a center hecarried on his work. In 1609 he was elected vicar-provincial, whichoffice he kept until 1612. He was elected vicar-provincial for thesecond time in 1615; and on the completion of that office in 1618, being elected procurator, he went to Spain for new missionaries, of whom he obtained a fine band, returning to Manila in 1622. Thefollowing year he was elected vicar-provincial for the third time, and in 1624 first definitor. The highest office of the province, namely, that of provincial, came to him in 1626 and at the end ofhis provincialate he asked permission to go to Japan, but in vain; hetherefore continued the work among the Philippine missions until 1632, when he was again elected provincial. In 1635 he was again definitor, and at the expiration of that office he was appointed prior of theManila convent; thence he retired to the Cavite convent where heworked with the most vigorous men, although worn out by his excessivetoil. He finally retired to the Manila convent, where he died at theend of 1657 or the beginning of 1658, at the age of 78. ]

[Chapter viii records the death, in 1659, of Nicolás de la Madre deDios, who had labored in Cagayán, where he had accomplished most inquieting an insurrection that had broken out under a native heathenpriest called Salúr. ]

[Chapter x contains a bull promulgated by Alexander VII, dated August5, 1660, confirming a decree of the congregation Propaganda fide ofJune 28, 1660 (inserted in the bull) forbidding Recollect religiouswho had been sent to the Philippines from turning aside on the wayor unnecessarily delaying their journey. The penalty imposed by thedecree is that such fugitives are to be deprived of all active andpassive vote, and can never hold any dignity or honorary charge in theorder. That same year of 1660, a mission left Spain for the islandsbut did not arrive there until 1664. ]

DESCRIPTION OF FILIPINAS ISLANDS

[After a prolonged address to Fray Diego Zapata, a high official ofthe Franciscan order and of the Inquisition, Fray Letona proceeds witha description of the Philippines in numbered sections. No. 1 statesthat it is written for Zapata's information; no. 2, that the voyagefrom Acapulco to Manila is more than 2, 500 leguas in length. Thecourse of the ships in that voyage is given in no. 3. Such parts ofthis description as are useful for our purpose are here presentedin full; other parts are omitted, in each case stating the nature ofsuch matter. ]

3. Acapulco, in Mexico, which is the eastern port for the South Seaand for navigations from Nueva España to Filipinas, is in sixteen andone-half degrees of latitude. If in voyaging from Acapulco to Filipinasthe ships sail in a straight line from the rising toward the settingsun, from east to west, without change of latitude, they will arriveat Baler, [37] a village in the northern part of the further coast ofManila Island, which is in the same latitude as Acapulco. But usually, as soon as they set sail from Acapulco, they descend to the eleventhor the tenth parallel in order to find the winds with which they cannavigate; then they again go northward and follow their former courseto a point five hundred leguas from Manila, and one hundred from theLadrones Islands--among which they pass, in a latitude of fifteendegrees. Thence they sail again to lower latitudes, descending tobarely thirteen and one-half degrees--on which line is the Embocaderoof San Bernardino, one hundred leguas from Manila. Thence the voyageis made between that same island of Manila--which extends as faras the Embocadero, and remains on the right hand--and other islandswhich lie on the left, to the port of Cabite which is two leguas fromManila. Ordinarily this voyage is made in three months, although thereturn trip is usually much longer--sometimes requiring more thanseven months; while in this year, sixty-two, it lasted eight months. 

Distribution of these islands

4. Although they are innumerable, hardly more than forty of theinhabited Filipinas Islands are subject to the monarchy of España. Thefirst and chief of these, and the head of all, is that of Luzon. It islarge, being almost three hundred and fifty leguas in circumference;and has more than twenty bays and ports where ships of all sizescan anchor. It is the frontier [of the islands] toward Great China, which is a hundred leguas distant from Manila. The island lies betweenthirteen and one-half and nineteen degrees of latitude, and it hasthe form of a square with two narrow arms--one of which extends fromsouth to north, the other from west to east. 

5. In that which points northward lie, on its western coast, fourdistinct conquered provinces. The first and nearest of these on thebay of Manila (and belonging to the archbishopric of that name), andin latitude 15°, is Pampanga; it is very populous, and abounds in riceand other products of the soil; and it contains some gold-placers. Itsnatives have the reputation of being the best and bravest, andmost faithful to the royal crown [of all in the island]; they havea language of their own. On the western outskirts of this provinceamong its mountains, and within the archbishopric of Manila are someNegrillos; they are heathen, and natives of the country (which is yetto be conquered) that is called Zambales. They are very barbarous, resembling the Chichimecos of Nueva España who eat human flesh. 

6. Next at 16° latitude and on the western coast [of Luzon], followsPamgasinam; it belongs to the bishopric of Cagayan, and is rich ingold and other products of the soil. The natives have a language oftheir own. 

7. Ylocos is a province of the same bishopric, and lies next [toPamgasinam] on the same coast; it also abounds in the same productsand is very populous. The natives have their own language. Itslatitude is 17°. In the year 1661, these two provinces rebelled;they were conquered and pacified with extraordinary valor and skill, by General Francisco de Esteybar with three hundred soldiers. Hepunished thirty persons with death and five hundred with slavery. 

8. Cagayan is the last province in this arm of the island, and the mostnorthern, lying in 18° to 19° latitude. It contains many Indians whoare good soldiers. Here is the city of Nueva Segobia, which has fewSpanish residents. It has a bishop and cathedral; an alcalde-mayor, and a garrison of Spanish soldiers. This province yields the sameproducts [as the others], and has a distinct language. Almost oppositethis province, to the northeast (that is, between north and east)is Xapon, a noted empire. It is distant three hundred leguas, andthis voyage is made in sight of land, that of various islands. 

9. This arm of land is almost a hundred leguas long and fifty orsixty wide; on its eastern coast the province of Baler is conqueredand pacified. The region midland of all these five provinces iscalled Ytui, and is peopled by heathen Indians, not yet subdued. Onthe south lies Pampanga; northward, Cagayan; to the east, Baler;to the west, Ylocos and Pangasinan. All these provinces have theiralcaldes-mayor. The ports on the eastern coast are mentioned belowin section 91. 

10. In the eastern arm of this island of Luzon there are two provinces;both abound in rice and other products, and are very populous; and eachone has its own distinct language. The first is Tagalos, which beginsat the city of Manila, and belongs wholly to that archbishopric. Itcontains the environs of the city; and the lake of Bay (a freshwaterlake, of many leguas in circumference), and extends along the coastsof this arm, both northern and southern, more than fifty leguasin a direct line, southeast and northeast--that is, from Manila toSilangan, which is an island very near to that of Luzon. There endsthe archbishopric [of Manila]; also the Tagal province (which isdivided into six or eight districts of alcalde-mayor and corregidor)and the Tagal language. 

11. The second and last province of this eastern arm is Camarines, which has a different language, and belongs to another bishopric. Itbegins at the village of Paracali, which is on the northern coast andhas some rich gold mines. It is distant from Manila sixty leguas, and extends almost forty eastward, as far as the extremity of thisisland. Here is the city of Nueva Caceres, where there is a bishopricand a cathedral, and an alcalde-mayor; the Spanish populationis very small, but there are many Indians, as also in the entireprovince. Inland from these two provinces there are some ÇimarronIndians, who are not yet conquered. This arm [of land] is almost ahundred leguas long, and ten to twenty wide; its northern ports arementioned below in section 91. 

12. At the center where these two arms of land meet, in the middleand on the shores of a beautiful bay--closed in from the sea; thirtyleguas in circumference, and eight wide; and everywhere clear, soundable, and safe--at the mouth and on the banks of the greatriver of Bay [i. E. , Pasig River] (which, having flowed four leguasfrom its own lake, empties into this sea) is built the distinguishedcity of Manila, the capital and court of Filipinas. It is, for itssize, the richest in the world; a special account of it will soonbe given. Entrance into this bay is furnished by a passage on itswestern side, four leguas in width. In the middle of this passage, eight leguas from Manila and opposite this city, is an islet calledMaribelez; it is inhabited, and is two leguas in circuit in 14 1/2°latitude. It serves as a watch-tower to look for foreign ships, which can be seen fifteen leguas at sea. 

13. The "Modern Geographer, " which was printed at Amsterdam in fourlarge volumes in Latin and Castilian, containing the geographicalmaps of the world, does not present a map of these islands, althoughit gives a special one of the Molucas or Ternate Islands which areadjacent to the Filipinas. For lack of facilities, I do not insert herea map of these islands, which I have drawn by hand, with the greatestexactness, from my personal knowledge. In place thereof, I will writea description so clear that any geographer can reduce it to a map;and for greater clearness the above-mentioned island of Maribelez willbe the center of this description--which is divided into four partsor voyages: to the east, southeast, south, and north, respectively. 

14-28. [These paragraphs contain data for the map that Letona wouldhave made--the location, latitude, size, and names of islands, with distances and direction by compass. We note a few points ofinterest which contain new information. In Mindoro is "El Baradero, a celebrated bay and a very safe harbor. " With the island of Burias"ends the archbishopric of Manila; the next lands [i. E. , Banton]belong to the bishopric of Zebu. " In Catanduanes reside a beneficedcurate and a corregidor. "The interior of Mindanao is still unsubdued;its natives are heathen in the eastern part, and Mahometan piratesin the west. They have been reduced to his Majesty's obedience andto the Church, and among them are four garrisons of Spaniards--onein the east, at Tandag; two in the north, at Bacilan and Malanao;and another in the west, at Samboanga. In this island some cinnamonis collected. " "Sanguil, or Calonga, is a small island under a pettyking--who is a Catholic Christian--named Don Juan Buntuan. At hisrequest, I sent thither in the year 1651 with my credentials andinstructions father Fray Joseph de Truxillo, a deserving son of ourfather St. Francis in this convent of La Puebla; . .. Who, with hisexcellent example, preaching, and instruction--aided by his companionfather Fray Mateo Rodriguez, a man of his own spirit--establishedand renewed the faith, built a church, and converted and baptizedmany infidels, both children and adults. " "Macazar is an islandyet to be conquered; its people are Mahometans and heathen, andare very numerous. It is 180 leguas in circuit; in its eastern partit has a powerful Mahometan king, who has at his capital factoriesfrom Europa and Assia; and he has the utmost devotion and reverencefor the king our sovereign. " The four islands of Bolinao form theboundary of the archbishopric of Manila; from these extends thebishopric of Cagayan. The following islands are depopulated (someof them being mentioned in earlier accounts as having inhabitants):Ticao, San Bernardino, Maesse de Campo, Cimara, Panaon, and Capones(fifteen leguas from Maribeles); islets near Luban, Panay, Bantayan, Mindoro, and Cuyo; and islets between Leyte and Cebú. ]

Climate, population, and products

29. The climate of these islands is, for sensible people, for themost part reasonably healthful and temperate. On the coasts it ishot; in the mountains it is cool, pleasant, and refreshing. There isno certain knowledge of the time or source of their settlement. Thenearest mainland is Great China, the eastern end of Assia (one ofthe first which were inhabited after the general deluge). On the westof China is the gulf and kingdom of Bengal, from which (through thestrait of Sincapura) it seems very probable that the first settlers ofthese islands came, [38] to judge from the similarity in their color, customs, and language. They are of average size, light-colored, andhave well-shaped features and much intelligence. They live in highwooden houses, and support themselves by tilling the soil, fishing, and other industries. At the time of this writing, there are morethan 600, 000 Christians here, vassals of the king our sovereign;and the Catholic piety of his Majesty maintains them in the holyfaith, although they are 5, 000 leguas from his court, at the costof immense expenditures from his royal treasury. It appears fromthe books of the royal accountancies that his Majesty has, in onlytwenty years, expended more than 300, 000 ducados in sending religiousto Filipinas--from which it will be seen that incalculable treasurehas been spent for this purpose during only the ninety-eight yearssince the islands were discovered. 

30. Their products are: Rice in great abundance, which is thewheat of that country and the usual food of its people, servingas their bread. Everywhere, whether in mountains or plains, thereis abundant growth of cocoanut palms. These nuts are as large asaverage-sized melons, and almost of the same shape; the shell ishard, and contains a sweet liquid which makes a palatable beverage, and a meat which is a delicious food. This is the most useful plantin the world; for not only are food and drink, and wine and oil, obtained from it, but innumerable other things--comprising all thatis necessary to human life, for the dwellings, food, and clothingof man. There are plantations of these trees, as in España there arevineyards--although the former are at less cost and labor. In theseislands there is abundance of salt, fowls, and cattle, besides swine, deer, and buffaloes; there are also several kinds of beans, and othervegetables. With these foods not only do the people support themselves, but the fleets and garrisons, and the ships that make long sea-voyagesare furnished with provisions. On all the coasts, and in all therivers and lakes, excellent fish are caught in abundance; and in themountains the people gather much honey and wax. In the gardens, theyraise a great deal of delicious fruit, and much garden-stuff. Orangesand bananas not only grow in abundance, but are of the best quality inthe world. In some of the islands nutmeg, pepper, cloves, and cinnamonare found. The country is everywhere fertile, and green and pleasantall the year round; and in some places wheat is sown and harvested. 

31. In these islands grows much cotton, from which the people makeYlocan blankets, lampotes, white cloth, medriñaques, material for hose, and other useful fabrics. In many (indeed in most) islands are foundamber and civet, and gold mines--these especially in the mountainranges of Pangasinam and Paracali, and in Pampanga; consequently;there is hardly an Indian who does not possess chains and otherarticles of gold. Besides these products (which are peculiar tothe country), others are brought to Manila from Great China, Xapon, and numberless other kingdoms and islands of this archipelago--wheat, iron, copper, some quicksilver, tin, and lead; cinnamon (from Zeilan), pepper, cloves, nutmeg, musk, and incense; silks (both raw and woven), and linens; Chinese earthenware, ivory, and ebony; diamonds, rubies, and other precious stones; valuable woods; and many uncommon anddelicious fruits. In Manila, gunpowder is manufactured, and excellentartillery and bells are cast; and various articles are exquisitelywrought in filigree of gold and silver. All things necessary to humanlife [are found there] and even articles of superfluity, ostentation, pomp, and luxury. 

The city of Manila

32. This city was conquered and founded by its first governor on May19, the day of St. Potenciana the virgin, in the year 1571. It wasbuilt on a site naturally strong on the shore of the sea, and at themouth of a great river--which flows four leguas from the lake of Bay, and here loses itself [in the sea]--on a strip of land formed betweenthe sea and the river. Thus half of the city, that on the north andwest, is surrounded by water; and the other half, toward the east andsouth, by land and a ditch. It is entirely surrounded, almost in acircular form, by a rampart wall of stone; this is high and strong andso thick that in some parts it is more than three varas wide, and onecan walk on top of it everywhere. It extends three-quarters of a legua, and is adorned and furnished with battlements and merlons in modernstyle; with towers, cavaliers, and Hankers at intervals; and with twocastles and some bulwarks. It is furnished with excellent artillery, and a force of six hundred (sometimes more) Spanish soldiers--withtheir master-of-camp, sargento-mayor, captains, wardens, and othermilitary officers. There are five gates and several posterns. 

33. The streets of the city are beautifully laid out, and level, likethose of Mexico and Puebla. The main plaza is large, rectangular, andwell proportioned. Its eastern side is occupied by the cathedral;the southern, by the government building, which is a splendidpalace--large, handsome, and very spacious; it was built by a merchant, the favorite [39] of a governor, for his own use. The northern sideof the plaza (opposite the palace) contains the cabildo's house, the jail, and other buildings that belong to private persons (whichalso occupy the western side). 

34. The houses in the city, before the earthquakes of the years 45and 58, numbered six hundred (many of which must be by this timerebuilt), most of them of hewn stone with handsome iron balconies androws of windows, and built in costly style. In them resided variousgentlemen and nobles, and two hundred citizens who were merchants(who themselves form a commonwealth); there were also soldiers, royal officials, prebends, and other citizens. Much of its materialgrandeur and beauty was destroyed by the earthquakes above mentioned, but it lost not the essential greatness which it has and always hashad as a court and an illustrious commonwealth. In the villages ofBagunbaya and others of its suburbs there are probably six hundredhouses more--not counting those of the Parian, which number many morethan those of the city and suburbs together. Along the river are agreat many country houses for recreation--some very costly, and allvery convenient and pleasant, with gardens, orchards, and baths. 

35. It is the capital of all these islands, with its governor, who isthe captain-general, and president of the royal chancilleria, which iscomposed of four auditors and one fiscal who have cognizance of casesboth civil and criminal; then there are the other employes of theroyal Audiencia, and the royal officials with their tribunal. Thejurisdiction [of this audiencia] is the most extensive in theSpanish monarchy; for it extends to all territories that arediscovered and pacified in that great archipelago (the largest inthe world)--extending more than four hundred leguas in a straightline, and more than a thousand in circumference--and to all yet tobe discovered and pacified, an immense region. The city has twelveperpetual regidors, who on the first of January in every year electtwo alcaldes-in-ordinary; these have jurisdiction throughout thedistrict of the municipality, which has a radius of five leguas. 

36. On the eastern side of the city, but outside of it and in frontof its walls, at the distance of a musket-shot is a silk-market whichthey call Parian. Usually 15, 000 Chinese live there; they are Sangleys, natives of Great China, and all merchants or artisans. They possess, allotted among themselves by streets and squares, shops containingall the kinds of merchandise and all the trades that are necessary ina community. The place is very orderly and well arranged, and a greatconvenience to the citizens. It is [an indication of] their greatnessthat although they are so few, they have so many workmen and servantsassigned to their service. The Sangleys live in wooden houses; theyhave a governor of their own nation, and a Spanish alcalde-mayor andthe other officers of justice, with a notary; also a jail. They havea parish church, where the sacraments, the divine word, and burialare administered to the 4, 000 Christians among these Sangleys; therest of them are heathen. 

37. Accordingly the commerce of this city is extensive, rich, andunusually profitable; for it is carried on by all these Chineseand their ships, with those of all the islands above mentioned andof Tunquin, Cochinchina, Camboja, and Sian--four separate kingdoms, which lie opposite these islands on the continent of Great China--andof the gulfs and the numberless kingdoms of Eastern India, Persia, Bengala, and Ceilan, when there are no wars; and of the empire andkingdoms of Xapon. The diversity of the peoples, therefore, who areseen in Manila and its environs is the greatest in the world; forthese include men from all kingdoms and nations--España, Francia, Ingalaterra, Italia, Flandes, Alemania, Dinamarca, Sueçia, Polonia, Moscobia; people from all the Indias, both eastern and western; andTurks, Greeks, Moros, Persians, Tartars, Chinese, Japanese, Africans, and Asiatics. And hardly is there in the four quarters of the worlda kingdom, province, or nation which has not representatives here, onaccount of the voyages that are made hither from all directions--east, west, north, and south. 

38-58. [These sections are devoted to brief biographical notices ofthe governors of the islands--information already presented in ourVOL. XVII. Letona says (no. 58) of Diego Fajardo's government:]In the year 51, the governor withdrew his favor from his pettedfavorite, whom, after confiscating his goods (which were many), he imprisoned in the castle of Santiago--in the same quarters where(at his own instance, as people say) the five years' captivity ofGovernor Corcuera was accomplished. Then Faxardo opened his eyes, so that he could recognize the serious troubles which result from thefavorite's having great power in the government. "For, " Fajardo said, "he did not regard the vassals of the king with the affection that heought; nor did he attend to their welfare, but to his own advantage andprofit. " Imitating him, the subordinate officials, he said, "committedacts of violence in the provinces that they governed, harassing themwith various oppressions, and failing to administer justice to thepoor--levying on them repartimientos of many products that were notnecessary, and at exorbitant prices; and, although the commodity mightbe had in another district for half the price, the natives must notbuy it there, but only from the agent of the magistrate, who wouldnot allow any one else to traffic or trade in all the province. Fromthese practices, " said this gentleman, "arise irreparable injuriesto the poor vassals, and to his Majesty's alcabalas [i. E. , excisetaxes]. Nor have those vassals any redress, since the door is closedto them by the favor shown to the minion. " For this same reason, he gave no office of justice to a relative or servant of his own, judging that no aggrieved person would dare to utter a complaint onaccount of his fear lest the governor would take ill a suit againsthis relative or servant. These and other very just opinions wereexpressed by this governor during the last year of his rule. 

59. [Of Manrique de Lara, Letona says:] "He governed for ten years, a longer term than that of any predecessor of his. Many of thesehe surpassed not only in the period of service, but in his care andefficiency--personally assisting in the despatch of the armed fleets(although this had to be done at a distance of twenty leguas fromManila), and attending to the shipbuilding and the timber-cutting;crossing seas, rivers, and mountains, and overcoming great dangers andhardships, in order to serve the commonwealth and his Majesty, and thatthe royal revenues might be spent with due faithfulness, and withoutoppressing his Majesty's poor vassals. He opened up the commerce of thekingdoms of Tunquin and Cochinchina, and extended that of Great China;and he brought to terms the king of Tidore. He repressed the invasionsof the Mindanaos, Xoloans, and Camucones through the instrumentalityof Andres de Zuloeta, a valiant captain--who was sargento-mayor ofManila, admiral, and commander of the fleet that carries suppliesto Ternate. In the year of 61 there were disturbances in Pampanga, the finest province in this government, and inhabited by a people whoare valiant and very skilful in the use of arms. This governor withcourage and tact went to Pampanga, and pacified the province withoutshedding blood, thus acquiring a great reputation. He subdued also theprovinces of Pangasinan and Ilocos, which had rebelled, he punishedsome with death, and others with slavery, bestowing on the rest ageneral pardon. This campaign increased the reputation of the Catholicarms throughout that archipelago, a renown that is still maintained. "

The ecclesiastical estate

60. In April of the year 1565, there was founded in Zebu (afterwardbeing transferred to Manila) the church and ecclesiastical communityof these islands; and its ordinary jurisdiction was allotted to thesuperiors of the Order of St. Augustine, who were the founders andapostles of this kingdom; they held that dignity up to the year of77, in which it passed to the fathers of the order of our fatherSt. Francis. It remained in their keeping until the year 82, inwhich Don Fray Domingo de Salazar--a Dominican, the first bishop ofall the Filipinas--with a bull from his Holiness Pope Gregory XIIIfounded the cathedral of Manila, dedicating it to the most immaculateConception of the Virgin. It was established with five dignitaries, four canonries, and four other prebends; they are appointed by hisMajesty, or ad interim by the governor. The cathedral has a good choirof singers, also chaplains and many able clerics, and two curas andtwo sacristans. It is the only parish church of the city, althoughoutside in the suburbs there are two others--that of Santiago, andthat of San Antonio--administered by learned and exemplary clergymen. 

61. Within the city, on the Plaza de Armas and opposite the castle ofSantiago, is the royal chapel founded by Governor Corcuera. It is amagnificent church (containing the most holy sacrament), and is richlyadorned with altars, reredos, pulpit, and sacristy ornaments of silver, with a monstrance of pure gold which is worth 11, 000 ducados. It hasa choir, an organ, and a famous chorus of singers; also chaplains, sacristans, and other ministers, who serve it with much proprietyand pomp. These clergymen are independent of the parish church, andgo through the public streets, wearing their copes and carrying thecross aloft, to the royal hospital for the bodies of dead soldiers, which they solemnly convey to the royal chapel for interment. 

62. In the midst of the city is the Misericordia's seminary for orphangirls with its church dedicated to the Presentation of the Virgin, which was founded in the year 1594. It is of beautiful architecture, handsomely adorned, and served by clerics with the utmost careand propriety. Since the year 1653, this church has served for acathedral. It is in charge of the brotherhood and congregation ofthe holy Misericordia, which is directed by a manager and twelvedeputies with the same rules as that of Lisboa; its mission is to aidthe poor. In the best part of the city is another seminary for theshelter of girls, with its church of Santa Potenciana, served by acleric. There are two hospitals--the royal, for the soldiers; and thatof the Misericordia, for the other poor. There are two others in theenvirons--one of San Juan de Dios for the Spaniards; and another forthe Indians in Dilao. There is also a noted sanctuary, that of NuestraSeñora de Guia, besides the two parish churches above mentioned;and the convents and colleges, which will be enumerated below. 

63. Most of the clerics of this archbishopric are learned men, excellent preachers and distinguished in all branches of study, on account of the opportunity which this city affords in twouniversities--in which they employ their abilities, emulating andrivaling one another in letters. They administer many benefices andcuracies in the islands of Luzon, Luban, Mindoro, and others--besidesthe above-mentioned curacies and chaplaincies, both within andwithout Manila. 

64-84. [These sections are occupied with biographical notices of thearchbishops and bishops in the various dioceses, which we here omit, intending to present data of this sort in a later volume. ]

Religious orders in Filipinas

85. The Order of St. Augustine entered the islands in the year 565;its first superior, and first prelate of all the islands was FrayAndres de Urdaneta--a Vascongado, [40] and a son of the convent andprovince of Mexico; he was the apostle who unfurled the gospel banner, and he planted the faith in the island of Zebu and others. They havein Manila a notable convent, with fifty religious--counting novices, students, and men of mature years; it was founded in the year 71. Itis the head of eighty other parish convents, most of them havingcostly buildings; and in all these the sacraments are most watchfullyadministered to more than two hundred thousand Christians. They arelocated on the river and in the environs of Manila; along the lake ofBay, and in its mountains; throughout Pampanga, and in Pangasinan andIlocos; and in the islands of Pintados, whose vicar-provincial is theprior of Zebu. In all times this order has possessed illustrious menof distinguished virtue, and martyrs in Xapon, and zealous ministersof the gospel. Next followed the order of our father St. Francis, which is left for the end. 

86. The Society of Jesus entered Manila in the year 1582, in whichwas founded their college of La Concepcion, which is one of the mostcostly and magnificent buildings of this city. Its first superiorwas Father Antonio Zedeño. It is a university, where instruction isgiven in reading, writing, and accounts; and in grammar, rhetoric, thearts, theology, and literature--with the earnestness, thoroughness, and care which is customary in the [colleges of the] Society. Itsrector confers the degrees of bachelor, licentiate, and doctor, with very rigorous courses of lectures, examinations, and literarytheses, as in Salamanca and Mexico. Near, this great college theSociety has another, that of San Joseph, with lay students; theywear tawny mantles and red bands. In Cabite, Zebu, and Mindanao theSociety has also colleges, which are most useful for the education ofthe youth and of the entire commonwealth. Its fathers are in chargeof many conversions and parish ministries about Manila, and in theislands of Marinduc, Ybabao, Panay, Negros Island, Bohol, Leyte, Imaras, and Mindanao--all belonging to the bishopric of Zebu--and inothers; all these are administered with admirable exactness, courage, thoroughness, and zeal. In all the languages spoken therein, grammarsand vocabularies have been prepared. The Society has, and alwayshas had, some very learned writers, and other members distinguishedin all branches of knowledge; and it has many martyrs, not only inXapon but in Mindanao. This province is one of the most illustrious, and most worthy of imitation, belonging to the Society, and in it isevident much austerity and excellence. 

87. The Order of St. Dominic entered Manila in the same year of 82;but its first convent was founded in the year 87, and its firstsuperior was father Fray Juan de Castro, provincial of Chiapa. Thatconvent had a magnificent building; but in the earthquake of 645, and in those of 51 and 52, their church was ruined. It was rebuiltwith greater splendor and thoroughness than the old one; the authorof this work (at that time prior) being the illustrious master DonFray Francisco de la Trinidad y Arrieta, most worthy bishop ofSanta Marta in Peru, and the first bishop who was a son of thisconvent. Without having any fixed income, this convent supportsmore than thirty religious. It is the head of a province, the mostreligious one in the entire order. In the environs of Manila thesefathers have the parishes of the Parian and of Binondoc; a hospital, and a church at San Juan de Letran; and Batan in Pampanga. They havemany Indian missions in the provinces of Pangasinan and Cagayan. InXapon and China this order has had many and resplendent martyrs; andit now has in China some gospel ministers. In Manila it has a notablecollege, that of Santo Tomas, which is a university. There with greatability are taught grammar, the arts, and theology, and both higherand lower degrees are conferred. It has lay students, who wear greenmantles and red bands. They train many able men there, of whom manyhave been martyrs in Xapon. The order has had and has some writers, who have by their erudition ennobled this new church. The commissaryof the Holy Office in Manila always belongs to this province. 

88. The discalced fathers of St. Augustine entered Manila in theyear 606, at which time they built a large convent, that of SanNicolas. It is the head of a very religious province which containseleven other convents. Four are in the archbishopric--San Juan, SanSebastian, Cabite, and Bolinao; and seven in that of Zebu--Romblon, Paragua, Zebu, Siargao, Bacilan, Tangda, and Catel. There are threein the province of Caraga in the island of Mindanao (where they havehad four martyrs). All their convents are of very strict observance, and devoted to an apostolical administration of the sacraments. Theyhave had some martyrs in Xapon, and always have members who are wellversed in all branches of learning. Their first superior was fatherFray Juan de San Geronimo, who directed twelve others, his companions, the founders and apostles of this province. 

89. The order of our father St. Francis entered Filipinas in theyear 1577, when fifteen religious arrived at Manila, all apostolicmen. Of these, six came from the province of San Joseph, two fromthat of Santiago, one from La Concepcion, another from Mechoacan, and five from the province of Santo Evangelio in Mexico. The superiorof all was father Fray Pedro de Alfaro, of the province of Santiago(incorporated into that of San Joseph). On the second of August in thesame year was founded the convent of Manila, with the title of SantaMaria de Los Angeles; their first guardian was father Fray Pedrode Ayera, a man in every respect remarkable. He was provincial ofMechoacan, and bishop-elect; and he was provisor and ecclesiasticaljudge of Filipinas. This convent usually has more than thirtyreligious--novices, students, and graduates; and it is the head of avery religious province of Discalced, who have more than fifty convents(which will soon be enumerated), in which they religiously administerthe sacraments to one hundred and thirty thousand Christians. 

90. This province during the first fourteen years was a custodia, subject to the province of San Joseph; and it was governed byfour custodians, up to the year 1591. It was then erected intoa province, and its first provincial elected; this was fatherFray de Jesus, a Catalan from the province of San Joseph, a mostaccomplished religious. From then until this year of 662 there havebeen twenty-three provincials. This province has the followingconvents, most of which have very substantial buildings of hewnstone, and handsome churches well adorned with altars, reredoses, and ornaments, with much silver--and with singers, organs, and othermusical instruments, and ecclesiastical jewels. 

91. Cabite, two leguas from Manila, is the chief port of Filipinas;it is safe, and very convenient for all the ships of that region. Withsoldiers, pilots, and mariners, it numbers one hundred and fiftySpanish citizens; there are also many Indians, and it has a wardof Mahometan Lascars, and another of Chinese. It has a parochialchurch, with secular priests, a hospital, and convents; that of SanFrancisco is the second of this [Franciscan] province, the thirdbeing that of Ternate. The rest of the convents are in missionparishes, each one with a religious or two teachers. There are sixin the environs of Manila--Dilao, Santa Ana, Sampaloc, Polo, Bocaui, and Meycahuayan. There are ten [sic] along the lake of Bay--Moron, Tanay, Pililla, Mabitac, Siniloan, Pangil, Paete, Lumban, SantaCruz, Pila, and Baños. There are seven in the mountains or tinguesof that lake--Nacarlan, Lilio, Mahayhai, Cabinti, Luchan, Tayabas, and Sadiaya. On the seacoast between east and north are six--Baler, Casiguran, Binangonan, Mauban (or Lampon), Atimonan, and Silanga(an island), where end the archbishopric and the use of the Tagáloglanguage. The same coast extends through the province and bishopric ofCamarines; and journeying by way of the eastern point to the southerncoast, there are twenty convents--Paracali, Indan, Daet, Ligmanan, Quipayo, Naga (which is Caceres), Bula, Iriga, Libon, Polanguin, Oas, Camarines, Albay, Tabaco, Malinao, Bacon, Casiguran, Nabua, Quipia, and Bolosan. For just reasons, I omit the administration of Ilocos, Panay, and other districts. In Great China the order now has fatherFray Antonio de Santa Maria, a man who is great in learning andin the religious life; with another companion, a learned preacher, he aids in the propagation of the gospel in that great empire. 

92. This province is the only one of these Indias that has six of itssons as holy canonized protomartyrs in Xapon--besides twenty-sevenother martyrs here and in other islands. This province has also gainedgreat distinction by having in Manila the convent of Santa Clara, and in it Mother Geronima with many others who have inherited muchof her spirit. 

93-94. [In these sections Letona enumerates some of the holyFranciscans who have been canonized from the Indias. ]

EVENTS IN MANILA, 1662-63

Relation of the events in the city of Manila from the embassy sentby Cotsen, [41] captain-general of the coasts of China and king ofHermosa Island, with father Fray Victorio Ricio his ambassador, inthe year 1662, until the second embassy, which his son sent with thesame father, and which was despatched on July 11, 1663. 

On the fifth of May the ambassador of Cot-sen made his entry; thiswas father Fray Victorio Riccio, [42] a Florentine, a religious ofthe Order of Preachers. He was attired in the garb of a mandarin'srank, which the barbarian had conferred on him to equip him for thisembassy. Little pomp was displayed in his reception, for the unfriendlynature of his errand was already known. Don Sabiniano Manrrique deLara received the letter which he brought; it was full of arrogance, ostentatiously boasting of Cot-sen's power, and declaring that hischampans were many thousands in number and his perfect soldiershundreds of thousands; (it is a fact that those champans, countinglarge and small, amount to 15, 000, as is known by eyewitnesses);and, in virtue of this pompous and noisy declaration, he demandedthat these islands should pay him tribute, threatening us with theexample of the Dutch. [43]

The insolence of this demand angered all the Spaniards, and ourresolute attitude filled the Sangleys with anxiety; for, as itcould not be imagined that a less generous one [would be taken], they feared the injuries that would be caused by the war, and thatthey would be the first to suffer from these. The governor, as piousas prudent, commanded that in the church of the Society of Jesus theblessed sacrament should remain exposed, in order that the archbishop, the three auditors, the superiors of the religious orders, and themilitary chiefs might assemble in a devout public supplication; andordered that, at about the same time, a council should be summoned(in order to give the Sangleys less cause for blame), where Cot-sen'sletter should be read and such decision made as in the opinion ofthe council ought to be adopted. 

In regard to the principal point in the letter, there was littlediscussion; for, as the Spanish blood was coursing impetuously in theheart of every man there, all gave angry reply to Cot-sen's demand, showing the courage and resolution that was to be expected fromtheir noble blood, and feeling shame that [even in] imagination [he]could dare to cast so black a stigma on the Spanish name. Resolvedto die a thousand times rather than consent to such humiliation, and regarding war as certain, as being our honorable decision, the members of the council discussed the question of drawing offbeforehand the unwholesome humor from the body of this commonwealthby expelling the Sangleys--who in an emergency would dangerouslydivide our attention and our forces. Most of the speakers were infavor of driving away all the infidels, leaving only the Christians, who would in part render to the community the many services in whichthe men of that nation are employed for its benefit; and, since theChristian Sangleys were few, it would be easy to secure ourselvesfrom them. Moreover, we could, profiting by our experience of theirprocedure, easily get rid of them if that should be expedient for ourdefense in such an emergency. The council came to the conclusion thatthe merchants should be allowed to carry their property with them, andreturn [to China] in peace with their merchandise--not only becausethey had come here in confidence and on the security afforded by thepeace, but because this generous conduct of ours would pacify theirresolute attitude, and Cot-sen would feel more anxiety at seeing howlittle importance we attached to increasing his forces with the menwhom we were sending away, and at our contempt for his resources innot appropriating the property of his people. 

As this sudden change might cause some disturbances when it shouldbe put into execution, the publication of the council's decisionwas delayed until as many of the cavalry horses as possible could beconveyed to the stock-farms; for, after the military authorities hadseized the roads promptly with their troops, they could check anyrash attempt, and the infidels could be peaceably sent to the shipsas had been decreed. It was resolved by unanimous vote to withdrawthe garrisons from Ternate, Zamboangan, Calamianes, and Yligan, since everything was at risk in the principal fort [i. E. , Manila], which had not more than six hundred soldiers--and of these hardlytwo hundred were in condition to endure the hardships of a campaignor of service on the walls. [44]

These conferences, and the activities that necessarily followed fromthem were perfectly known by the Sangleys (whose fear kept them veryattentive to everything), and the lack of secrecy in the membersof the council gave them exact knowledge [of its proceedings];consequently, they were fully assured of a war and of their owndanger. This fear was increased by the haste with which the citizenswho had wealth in their possession undertook to hide it away. Theirdesperation was completed by the interpretation which the commonpeople gave to everything--irresponsible soldiers, with mestizos, mulattoes, and blacks, telling the Sangleys that they were tohave their heads cut off, as if they were men already sentenced todeath; and inflicting on them many injuries and uttering a thousandinsults. Such circumstances as these concurring in the insurrectionof the year 1603 necessarily caused it, as Doctor Morga observes;and on this occasion their fear of the like proceedings led themto a similar desperation. They heard that the twenty-fifth day ofMay was to be that of their destruction, because the cavalry troopswere to arrive on the day before. Some of them--the most worthlessclass, as butchers and vegetable-sellers--began to talk of extricatingthemselves from he danger; but those in the Parián displayed no couragefor any measures, for, as their interests are so involved in peace, they never have incurred the hazard of war except under compulsion. 

On the night of the twenty-fourth, the governor received informationfrom the castellan of Cavite that the Parián was to revolt on thenext day; but on that very night it was quite evident that theirdetermination was not to revolt, but to flee as best they could fromthe death which they regarded as certain. For on that night all thetalisays [45] (which are the fishermen's boats) departed in flight;and although General Don Francisco de Figueroa talked to the Sangleys, endeavoring to calm their minds, it was not possible to remove theirfear. They excused themselves by saying that they knew that on thenext day all their heads would be cut off. They said that in planningthe insurrection it had been agreed that they would not separate;but they had formed an organization to be prepared, their shops madesecure, and such weapons provided as they could find for this purpose. 

On the next day, May 25, his Lordship being anxious at this went outwith only four captains to stroll through the Parián, to learn theirintentions by observing what arrangements they had made. He foundthem all very peaceable, and their shops open; they were furnishingsupplies therein, and most of them were eating breakfast. In variousplaces they entreated him very submissively to protect them, becausethe blacks threatened them, saying that they were to be slain. HisLordship reassured them, and offered to send a force of soldierswho should protect and defend them from the insolent acts of theblacks. In order to obtain further security, his Lordship orderedthat the [Sangley] ship-captains be summoned and that a bell be rungto assemble them, in order to provide for the guard and defense ofthe Parián. When they saw the captains enter the city, they regardedthe arguments of their fear as confirmed; and the entire Pariánturned out to watch what was done, all being doubtful of theirown courage. Finally, thirty Sangleys from those who were uneasy, seeing the last captain enter, ran toward the gate to detain himand laid hands upon him when he was near the portcullis--either toobtain by this service means to ingratiate themselves with Cot-sen, or to secure a person who at all events could direct them. The menstationed at the gate, who saw the haste with which they approached, seized their arms and shot down some of the Sangleys. The guard onthe walls suspected them of greater designs; and from the bulwark ofSan Gabriel Sargento-mayor Martin Sanchez, without the order that heshould have had for this, fired two cannon. At the noise of the shotsthe people in the Parián, who were in suspense waiting to see how thistragedy would end, without further delay raised an outcry; and havingheard that all Manila was coming to attack them flung themselves intothe river--those who could, in bancas; most of them held up by somepiece of bamboo. Others, more alarmed, took to swimming, and as theywere confused by fear, went down the current, and many of them weredrowned. The multitude of bancas hurried to a champan which was aboutto depart, which lay outside the bar with only two soldiers to guardit; and the Sangleys going aboard it hoisted sail. The [rest of the]crowd crossed to Santa Cruz where they halted; they talked with thefather minister of that village (who was minister to the Chinese), Father Francisco Mesina, and gave him an account of their flight, saying that they feared that our people intended to cut off theirheads. The father calmed them and offered to obtain for them pardonfrom his Lordship, for which purpose he immediately set out. Themerchants and peaceable people in the Parián, some 1, 500 in number, remained in their houses--in hiding, so that it seemed as if there wasnot a soul in the Parián--awaiting their doom. Considering that inthe hills they would not better their condition, but that this withexcessive hardships would only delay their end, many fore-stalleddeath by inflicting it upon themselves--some by hanging, and othersby plunging into the river. 

Without delay his Lordship went to the gate, most fortunately forthe Sangleys and with great benefit to the community, as the resultshowed; for if he had not been present at the gate, the fear of beingbesieged which all felt, would have led them to engage in hostilitieswith the Parián and use their arms, compelling the governor togive them his entire attention. But his Lordship in so difficult acrisis which demanded prompt and resolute action, took counsel withpast experiences and present necessities, his keen and quick mindattentive to everything. Knowing well that this disturbance was causedby fear, he was unwilling to make it greater in the outcome withoutdissuading [the Sangleys from revolt] by acts of clemency--since anencounter with the Parián must of necessity make both [parties amongthe Sangleys] declared enemies, and desperation would render themterrible as had been experienced in former insurrections. Moreover, our people would be obliged to use time and people when both werescanty for the emergency that we were expecting of further conflict;since the guards necessary for fortifying the city were inadequate, on account of our pursuing the rest of the fugitives. Accordingly, thegovernor prudently preferred to leave them uncertain and in expectancyrather than in declared and resolute attitude, since in the formercondition they were easy to subdue, which in the other case wouldinvolve a great expenditure of military supplies--which would ofnecessity be greatly impaired when, for a long siege, all abundanceis moderation. [For economy is needed:] of provisions, when there areno funds in the treasury, and no harvest in the villages with whichto supply the city with food; and of men, when there are not enoughto man the walls--to say nothing of the severity of fighting and ofthe inclemencies of the weather with their exposure to the rains. 

His Lordship left the Sangleys reassured, and the rage of the Spaniardschecked; he retired to the storehouses from which he immediatelydespatched a champan with a strong force of men in pursuit of the onethat the Sangleys had stolen, and furnished all the military postswith abundance of supplies. It was past one o'clock when he returnedto the palace; and before he took any rest or sat down at his table, he appointed General Francisco de Esteibar as chief master-of-camp, to act if occasion should arise for a military campaign, and thatthere might be, either for that purpose or for affairs in the city, an officer to take his own place when absent. 

While the governor was at the warehouses the first embassy sent bythe Sangleys found him; it came by Father Francisco Mesina, who saidthat those who had crossed over to Santa Cruz were in the greatestuncertainty, and would return to their obedience if he would pardonthem. During the time which the father spent in this mission thescoundrels who had approached the gate, and in the first onslaughthad killed two Spaniards, finished crossing the river; these fledin confusion by way of the Parián, and completed the terrorizationof the other Sangleys, most of whom therefore went out to Sagar andothers to Meysilo. 

Father Mesina returned with pardon for them and found it necessaryto pursue them. He continued his endeavors by means of the fathermandarin, [46] giving him a paper written in the Chinese language [toassure them] of entire safety. Although the latter set out with it, he did not reach the Sangleys, and Father Francisco Mesina sent hisdespatch by a messenger whom he encountered, placing it in the handsof a boy who carried it; for lack of a horse, he himself remainedat Meyhaligue. 

Fathers Nicolas Cani and Bartolome Vesco, who mounted on good horseshad been pushing ahead since noon, went as far as San Franciscodel Monte where they encountered some troops. They fell in withthe soldiers and talked with them about bringing in the Sangleys;it was finally decided that Father Francisco Mesina should go ahead, and that the matter should be settled with him. 

While the religious were making these efforts, his Lordship tookall suitable measures by way of preparation for any event. He sentfor Master-of-camp Don Juan Macapapal, who in the disturbances inPampanga had proved his constancy and devotion in his Majesty'sservice, and ordered him to bring three hundred picked bowmen, the best in his villages; and he commanded that two hundred veteransoldiers be selected from the villages of Pampanga. From two o'clockwere continually arriving the cavalry which the governor had orderedto be brought from the ranches [47] in order to relieve the Sangleysof the Parián from their fears; for the coming of these horsemen wouldguide the fugitives from the mountains in their decision. His Lordshipcharged the religious orders to send some fathers in order that theymight assist the Spaniards, and by their authority check the insolentacts of those who might try to harm the Sangleys, in order that thelatter might not be further upset by their misfortunes. This was aprudent decision; for, even with all this foresight, it was almostimpossible to defend the Sangleys from the robberies which wereattempted by negroes and base fellows at the risk of frustrating hisLordship's pious efforts. Among these were not lacking some personsfrom whom more might be expected, who--some in person, and some bymeans of their servants--furnished their own houses very well [fromthe spoils of the Sangleys]. 

That afternoon, his Lordship walked through the Parián; the Sangleyscame to their doors, and kneeling before him with faces like thoseof dead men entreated mercy from him. His Lordship consoled them, telling them that they had no cause to fear; that his anger was notdirected against them, and that he was their father; that only thefoolish ones who would not submit would find him severe, while thosewho were discreet and peaceable would experience his great clemency. 

From the time when the disturbance began until it was entirely quieted, his Lordship had much to do in defending his prudent decision againstthe many Spaniards who desired to break entirely with the Sangleysand make an end of them--not considering that such proceedings wouldruin the colony, all the more as, since we had to prepare for the warthat we regarded as certain, we needed more of the Sangleys' industryfor the many labors required for defending and fortifying the walls, erecting temporary defenses, and harnessing so many horses; for itis they who bear the burdens of the community in all its crafts, notably in those that are most necessary. 

The debate became hotter when, at nightfall, our people found the bodyof Fray José de Madrid, [48] a Dominican whom the seditious Sangleyshad slain in that morning's outbreak in order to crush the rest bythe horror of that crime--making the other Sangleys think that afterso atrocious a deed there remained for them no hope of pardon, andno other means of saving their lives than to follow [the dictates of]their desperation. There is no doubt that if this murder had been knownin the morning, it would have injured the interests of the Sangleys;and that between the scruples of prudence and justice [on the onehand], and the boldness of the counsels given by all the rest of themilitary men [on the other], the piety of so just a vengeance wouldhave strongly prevailed. But the corpse was quickly buried--eitherby the father's assailants, repentant; or by the peaceable Sangleys, in fear--and, detected either by the odor or by the signs made bysome servants who, hidden in the convent of the Parián, witnessed theoccurrence, the body was found that night. The news, which quicklyran through the Parián, filled all with horror and caused some of theSangleys to flee from that quarter. Accordingly, by morning affairsassumed a worse aspect, and the more influential personages and themilitary leaders became less friendly to the Sangleys. All directedtheir efforts to persuading his Lordship to have the heads of all theSangleys cut off, commencing at the Parián and conducting a campaign inpursuit of the rest of the fugitives. His Lordship, seeing that theyhad allotted the Sangleys but a short respite, that they had the daybefore left the settlement of matters with Father Francisco Mesinaand that more time than this was necessary for securing the properdegree of order, resolved to hasten the negotiations for peace andto go to see the father with the Sangleys in company with a Sangleynamed Raimundo, an agent of Cot-sen in this city. 

At this time so many lies were current against the behavior of theSangleys, and these were so well received by those who desired todestroy them--persons who were actuated more by avarice and selfishnessthan by interest in the welfare of the community--that they causedhesitation among even the most cautious and prudent. On one hand theysaid that a battalion of Sangleys had entered the village of Tondo(which is distant a cannon-shot from the city) and had already setfire to the church. Again, the fugitives had retreated upon Sagar, andhad fitted up many forges in order to make weapons, and were workingthese eagerly day and night. But his Lordship--who was well informedregarding the available forces, and knew that he could send hardlyone hundred strong men into the field out of the six hundred whomhe had in the city, and how important it was to reserve his entirestrength for the greater danger; and who very correctly judged thatinconsiderate desires for an assault [on the Parián] had fabricatedthese inventions, and that the more discreet gave credit to these talesin order to oppose his own steadfast determination--instantly went inperson to satisfy himself regarding this story about Tondo. Findingthat it was imaginary, he realized how little credence should be givento novelties brought from afar when some one had dared to concoctsuch things under his very eyes; and he therefore allowed the peacenegotiations to proceed by the agencies which had commenced them. 

There is no doubt that the successful outcome of this affair is duesolely to the prudent management of the governor; and that, if he hadallowed himself to be dragged along by the opinions which prevailedin popular estimation, an insurrection would have been contrivedthat would have fatigued the soldiery in a campaign of many months, and caused much destruction in the villages; for the insurrectionsthat we keep in mind in these islands included no more [favoring]circumstances [than did this one], nor did this lack anything exceptthe actual assault. But his Lordship knew how evil advisers are theindividuals concerned in this matter, in which one seldom finds aperson who is not interested in the ruin of the Sangley--some onaccount of the loot [that they may obtain]; the rest, because thereare few persons who do not hold property of the Sangleys in trust, orelse owe for much merchandise which they have bought on credit. Manyhave become depositaries for their acquaintances, who, fearing theremoval of their property to other hands, give it to their intimatefriends to keep; and by slaying the Sangleys all render account withpayment. Accordingly, in the insurrection of 1639 it was found byexperience that those in whom the Sangleys placed most confidence werethe first and most importunate voters for their ruin. In this decisionit is only the king who hazards his treasure, and his governor whorisks a point of honor; for finally the very persons who, througheither self-interest or greed, advised the assault [on the Sangleys]cast on the governor the blame of the insurrection, as happened toDon Sebastian Hurtado de Corcuera. The very persons who, censuringhim as a coward and representing to him instances of boldness forced[by desperation] on the part of the Sangleys as causes for employingarmed force against them, afterward, when at their importunitieshe had kindled the fire, declared that by this act he had causedthe revolt, compelling the innocent and peaceable to become enemiesagainst their own will. Here this class of persons was protected, and the way left open for [the return of] the others; for with theburning of the Parián these would have been enemies, and all wouldhave despaired of reconciliation. This was seen by the response madeto Father Francisco Mesina the first time when he went to confer withthem about their submission; they said, "To whom shall we turn if theParián is burned now?" But when he assured them that the affair hadnot reached that stage, they were astonished and readily discussedsubmission--as those who had gone away, fleeing from our arms whichthey supposed to be declared against them; and the haste of theirflight had not given them leisure to ascertain our decision, as theyregarded their own imaginations as facts. 

In their mode of action they plainly showed their intentions--thatthey were not rebels, but terrified fugitives; nor did they injureeither life or property, whether of Spaniards or of natives. Nordid they avail themselves of the privilege which the necessity ofsupporting life gave them, to use the rice, for they used what theyneeded of the food which the Sangley farm-hands had in their houses;while in the insurrections attested as such they did not leave avillage without burning it, or property that was not pillaged in allthis province of Tondo--sparing not even what was holy, profaningthe churches and the sacred images. 

In consequence of his agreement with the Sangley fugitives, FatherFrancisco Mesina set out again on the twenty-sixth of the month incompany with the Sangley Raimundo; and at night he reached Sagar inthe fields of which the Sangleys were encamped. Many of them (mostlyChristians) hastened toward the father bewailing their misery andasking permission to go down to the Parián. So great was their anxietythat, on that very night, they undertook to carry out this plan. Howimportant was the preservation of the dove-cote, in order that thesedoves might not complete their flight to the mountains and mighteasily recover their domesticated tranquillity! The father delayedtheir journey until morning, and on the next day, the twenty-seventh, sent to Manila four hundred of them whom he found most inclined to goand who showed least distrust in the company of Father Nicolas Cani, so that he could assure their safety from any misfortune. On the sameday he went with Father Bartolome Besco and the Sangley Raimundo tothe place where the fugitives were encamped. On the way he encounteredsome companies of seamen from the champans and other riff-raff, whowere ignorant of the agreement for the submission of their fellows;and these would not allow the fathers to pass. But when this was knownat their camp two of their leading men went down to the father and toldhim that they all would follow his advice; but that Raimundo was nota suitable person for settling the matter with them, because many ofthe Sangleys were suspicious of him on account of his long residenceamong us. They told the father to bring two of their ship-captains, so that this business might be concluded with them. The father retiredto San Juan del Monte, in order to say mass there the next day, thetwenty-eighth (which was the feast of Pentecost), and sent word tohis Lordship of what the Sangleys demanded. 

In accordance with this his Lordship on the twenty-eighth summonedthe ship-captains, and after he had conferred with them they wentback to the father and told him that it was not necessary that heshould fatigue himself by going to the [Sangley] camp, since allthe fugitives had already agreed to come down. They only asked thatthe ships might go to Nabotas, from which place all the Sangleys whohad to embark for China would sail; and that the father would, forthis purpose, go there in company with the regimental master-of-camp, Domingo de Ugarte, who was very acceptable to them and well known forhis kindness to them. On the thirtieth they came down with this reply;and on the thirty-first the father went back with it to confer with hisLordship. The latter was ill pleased with the stipulation of embarkingat Navotas on account of the lack of confidence that they displayed;but the father set out to bring them over to whatever his Lordshipshould ordain, as he finally decided it--departing on the firstof June accompanied by Master-of-camp Domingo de Ugarte and threeship-captains. They arrived that night at the village of Taytay, thenearest village to the place that the Sangleys had occupied; and thatvery night they despatched the ship-captains fully instructed. On thenext day, June 2, the captains came down with the reply and decisionof all the Sangleys--that they would come down to the Parián fromwhich they would embark in the champans which were ready to depart;while the Christians would come down to the villages of Santa Cruzand Binondo, or as his Lordship should command. This they carriedout in the time which they asked, which was two days. 

Their resolution was much aided by the one which his Lordship hadtaken ever since May 26, when he ordered that one of the champansshould be made ready for the voyage, promising its captain beforehand athousand Sangleys, whom he must without fail transport. He commandedone of the three champans that were at Cavite to come to Manila;this was to open the door wide in the face of their mistrust, and itshowed that his intention was only to make the country safe and notto avenge on them (as they had believed) the insolence of Cot-sen. 

The fugitives thereupon came down in all haste and especially on theday that had been set, June 4; yet notwithstanding this, so greatwas the anxiety to feed on the wretched Sangleys that [some peopleattempted to] persuade his Lordship that the whole arrangement was asham; that all the Sangleys were still in the field, and that they onlycame down from their camp on this pretext, in order to search for whatthey needed and to carry away the few who remained in the Parián. HisLordship, giving another day of vigilance, apparently yielded tothe importunate outcries of the many who clamored for the punishmentof the Sangleys--who had committed no crime except their terrifiedflight; and ordered the soldiers to be made ready in order that hemight freely select the troops who were to go out for the campaign. 

The bowmen of Master-of-camp Don Juan Macapagal had already arrived, also the 200 Pampango veteran soldiers in charge of Master-of-campDon Francisco Lacsamana. He [i. E. , his Lordship] commanded them tobe mustered on June 6; and when all were expecting [that he wouldselect] a strong battalion of Spaniards, Pampangos, Mardicas, [49]Japanese, and creoles, he left them all mocked and humiliated who hadattributed to cowardice the forbearance dictated by his prudence. Heset aside only the regiment of Pampangos, arquebusiers and bowmen;and committed the exploit to the Pampango master-of-camp, Don FranciscoLacsamana--leaving in the lurch those who attached so much importanceto the enterprise, and who attributed his delay to fear. Unaffectedby considerations of mere policy, his Lordship moved in accordancewith right and the light of truth which belongs to those free fromprejudice; he had carefully considered the enterprise and saw that butlittle [poisonous] humor remained to be corrected. He therefore choseto make it evident that his delay was not for the sake of temporizingbut to show clemency; and that, able to resist no longer, he was usingrigor against those who in so many days had not availed themselves ofhis clemency. And, to show how great was his courage and how superiorhe regarded his forces, he did not vouchsafe to send out Spaniardsbut entrusted the issue to the Pampangos. 

This was information which by one act, his discretion gained withgreat results. He made trial of the fidelity of the Pampangos, whosecommotions and recent punishments had left their fidelity uncertain;and he put them on their honor with this so honorable commission, toact then with valor and afterward with constancy. It would make themhated by the Sangleys, to oblige them to become enemies; and would giveCot-sen to understand how little importance the governor attached tothe latter's men, since he was attacking them with natives alone. Hecould ascertain thus what was the disposition of the Pampangos, andhow much courage they had for resisting that pirate; for himself, the injury which the islands had experienced in so many disturbancesof the natives gave him some confidence. 

He gave them their orders--that they should march to the camp ofthe Sangleys without doing harm to any peaceable Sangleys whom theymight encounter on the way, who should be going to the city; and whenthey should arrive there, giving the troops a rest, they should makethe assault on the next day cutting off the heads of all [whom theyshould find there]. At the same time his Lordship despatched ordersto the alcaldes-mayor of Bay and Bulacan--through whose provincesthe Sangleys would necessarily have to disperse after they wererouted--to go out with three hundred bowmen from each province tooccupy the roads against them; so that wherever they should seeka route to safety they should meet destruction. The Pampangos leftthe city before noon; his Lordship anticipating all possible eventsthree hours later commanded two companies of horsemen to make ready, who should set out at daybreak for the [Sangley] camp--in order thatif the Pampangos met bad luck they might have sufficient protection, and could thus recover their courage and renew the attack in fullassurance of victory. 

The Pampangos encountered on the way many bands of Sangleys, whowere coming to the Parián, and allowed these to pass them without anyharm. About five o'clock in the afternoon they came in sight of thecamp; and, in order not to divide the merit of the exploit with theSpaniards--who, as they knew, were to go thither at daylight--theywould not wait until the daylight watch as they had planned. Withouttaking any rest and unarmed they closed with the Sangleys who numberedsome 1, 500 men; and in two assaults they routed the enemy without anyloss save a captain of their nation who fell dead, and some soldierswho were wounded. The Sangleys left in their camp more than sixty deadmen, and all their provisions and baggage remained in the possessionof the Pampangos; the latter did not follow in pursuit, partly as thehour was now very late, partly that they might satiate themselveswith the booty. But on the morning of June 7 the cavalry appeared, who, learning of the defeat, pursued the fugitives until they entereda region that was rocky and overgrown with thickets, where most ofthem perished--some from hunger, and many from the cruelty of theNegrillos of the mountains. Then, as the alcaldes-mayor of Bay andBulacan attacked them with their troops, hardly a Sangley could escapewho did not perish either at their hands or those of the Negrillos. 

Up to the twenty-fourth of June the troops, both cavalry and infantry, remained in active service--partly to put an end to the remainingfugitives, partly to keep the retirade occupied in case of anydisturbance in Manila, since it was a place near that point to whichthe Sangleys resorted on such occasions. After that date the troopsgradually withdrew, his Lordship showing great kindness and manyfavors to the Pampangos. To those who had shared in this exploit hegranted exemption from paying tributes; and, honoring them by theconfidence which he had in their fidelity, he gave up to them onthe twenty-sixth the guard-room in the palace--with which they leftservice well content and full of courage for greater enterprises. 

Afterward, the regiments from Pangasinan and Ylocos entered Manila, brought by General Don Felipe de Ugalde. After they had been musteredin Manila, so that the Sangleys could see the force that had beenprovided against Cot-sen, they were ordered to return to theirown country so that they could attend to the cultivation of theirgrainfields; for, as they were nearest to us, they could easily besummoned for an emergency. The same orders were given to the Pampangosand to the men from the provinces of Bay and Bulacan; also that theyshould keep the picked and trained men separate, so that these mightbe found ready without confusion or disturbance at the first warning. 

The cavalry, a suitable number for 600 horses, were finally assembledby General Don Francisco de Figueroa whom his Lordship had honored withthis command. They were divided into six companies each containingtwenty-five Spaniards, the remainder being cowherds, negroes, andmulattoes--men very suitable for this service as being dextrous andinured to hardship. They were mustered in the city and along thebeach in sight of the champans; and were at once divided among theposts that were most suitable--two companies in Cavite, and the restin the environs of Tondo. 

All the Sangleys in the provinces of this mainland [of Luzón] who hadnot taken refuge in the Parián in time were decapitated. Those whothus took refuge were confined to the point of Cavite or to the Pariánof the city, so that we might keep them within range of our guns, and where they would be of advantage for whatever had to be done forthe fortification of both posts and the protection of the shore. HisLordship commanded that lists be made of [the Sangleys engaged in thedifferent] crafts, reserving as many of these as were deemed sufficientfor the needs of the city and service; and he ordered that of all therest as many as space could be found for should be shipped [to China], compelling the captains to transport them. There was one champan whichtook aboard 1, 300 of them; they were so crowded together that theycould hardly sit down; but in this the captain had no small profit, for they exacted from each one ten pesos as passage-money. 

When the champans were ready to weigh anchor, his Lordship wasinformed that the two chief leaders of the people who had fled to themountains had come down in the last bands. These two were infidels;one was the contractor for the slaughterhouses, named Barba, and theother a shopkeeper named [blank space in MS. ]; and by the help ofsome of their followers they had been hidden, so that they could goaway in the first champans. We had certain information that thesemen were among the people on shipboard, but all the efforts ofthe officials were frustrated by the dissimulation of the Sangleysuntil his Lordship resorted to direct measures, and, summoning theship-captains, commanded them to find and surrender those two men, saying that if they did not he would order their heads to be cutoff. All were terrified and within a few hours they dragged out the twoculprits by the neck--one from the champan on which he had embarked;the other from a hut in which he had hidden himself. On the followingday they were executed between the Parián and the city in sight of theSangleys. They had ruled tyrannically, and with their deaths our fearpassed away, having inflicted due punishment with so little bloodshed. 

The champans departed one after another; and on the day when the lastthree--those of the ambassador and two others which he carried in hisconvoy--were to set sail, which was June 10, his Lordship ordered thatthe chimes should be rung as a token of rejoicing over false newsof the ships from Nueva España (which he caused to be published), artfully brought in by an advice-boat. This was done in order thatthe ambassador and the Sangleys, persuaded that we had receivedsuccor of men and money, might with this belief aid in repressing thefierceness of the barbarian, artfully supplying what was lacking in ourreputation for strength. But God, who directs the hearts of rulers, made the bells ring for true news, bringing to port on that very daythe patache which came from Nueva España, July 13, when people werebecoming discouraged by the delay of the second advice-boat. 

His Lordship gave orders to collect in the Parián all the remainingSangleys under penalty of death to any who should leave it;and although in a few days he gave them more space, it did notextend beyond the range of the artillery. With the same severity hecompelled them to sleep within the Parián; and as the regiment fromCagayan came unexpectedly--a warlike people, who, as they belongto a province so remote, cannot wait for news of the necessity, but can only forestall it--he lodged these near the Parián in fullreadiness for any disturbance. The regiments of Caragas, Cebuans, andBoholans arrived; the Caragas were sent to the point of Cavite, andthe rest were quartered in La Estacada, [50] the Cagayans proceedingto Santa Cruz. With these forces the river was thoroughly occupiedfrom the bar to the upper reaches, and its passage was closed tothe Sangleys. The same plan was observed with the cavalry, the twocompanies at Cavite being quartered in the fields there and the restin Binondo and Meyhaligue. The Sangleys were thus more thoroughlyimprisoned than if they were in the jail. 

From the first day [of the commotion] his Lordship directed allhis efforts to supplying the city with provisions, and succeeded inbringing in 120, 000 cabans of rice with meat, fish, and vegetables. Nowwith greater energy he attended to its fortification, personallyovercoming the difficulties: in [procuring] the lime--which were great, for the rains had begun and the lime was brought so far (from Bulacanand Bacolor)--and in the construction itself, for eleven defenseswere begun in different places. His Lordship gave personal attentionto those which were most important--eating his meals and despatchingbusiness on the beach in a straw hut that was built for him, so lightthat it was carried on men's shoulders from one place to another asthe importance of the work required; and was watchful on every side, not only on account of the ardor which caused him to give his aid, but also for the sake of his example. He was the first and moststeadfast in the work of conveying earth and stones for earth-worksand masonry; and his example was followed by the citizens with themen in their service. Besides this fatigue he was overburdened withthe minor cares of the work, sending in all directions for the lime, and himself allotting it as if he had no other matters to attendto. In order that the dissensions among the military leaders might notdelay the execution of his plans, he suppressed the office of chiefmaster-of-camp and sargento-mayor--which had been created to divide hiscares, and when necessary, to supply his place when absent, since hemust render aid in all quarters--and took upon himself all those cares, in order that those who were working should find no obstacle thatwould delay them. Thus he finished in a short time and with less than6, 000 pesos of expense, works which would have consumed half a million[pesos] and caused ten years of hardships to the provinces--availinghimself of the opportunity to attain his endeavor, and arranging thatthe Sangleys should be exchanged in shifts, 300 together in these. The[various native] peoples [were exchanged] by companies in the samemanner as were the Spaniards; and the people of the neighboringvillages with longer time for resting their relays, so that they mightnot be hindered from attending to their grain-fields. And in thisthere was much latitude in the execution of orders, the neglects andomissions which are so usual to the sloth of those peoples beingoverlooked--although the way in which the people were treated, their willingness, and their consideration of its importance, allfacilitated so difficult an enterprise as the repair of the castle, which toward the river was threatening to fall. A fausse-braye [51]was applied to it, which commenced at a cupola and ended at the bar, with a very handsome platform; and five redoubts were erected whichran from that point toward the sea as far as the bulwark at the foundry(which defends the gate on the land side), as the wall was there veryweak and its defenses were far apart and not very convenient. Fromthis bulwark to the gate was built a covert-way, and in front of it aravelin, from which again ran the covert-way until it connected withthe bulwark of Dilao, and met the estuary which crosses from Malosathe land as far as the moat. At the gate of Santo Domingo anotherredoubt was erected, and another at the postern of the Almacenes[i. E. , magazines], so that these shook hands with the cupola at theriver. At the gate of the Parián a spacious ravelin was made with itscovert-way toward the bridge over the river, cutting the land betweenthe inner and outer ditches, and leaving a passage sunken around theditches for a movable bridge. The wall was strengthened toward theriver and Bagumbayan by its fausse-braye. A fine bridge was builton the estuary of Santa Cruz, so that the cavalry and troops couldreconnoiter unhindered the other side of the river, as well as Sagarand Antipolo. [52]

At the same time, public prayers were offered. The Augustinianreligious began this with the opportunity afforded by the fiesta ofthe canonization of St. Thomas of Villanova. They were followed by thefathers of the Society of Jesus with the triumphal reception of thebodies of Sts. Martial and Jucundus and the relics of other martyrs, which were deposited in the cathedral, and were carried in a grandprocession to the church of the Society; the governor, the Audiencia, the cabildos, and the citizens, with the regiment of soldiers (whofired a salute) took part in this. The governor paid the expenses of anoctave festival in the cathedral in honor of the archangel St. Michaelon the fourteenth of January; it began with a procession which marchedthrough the Calle de Palacio, past the house of the Misericordia, the convent of San Agustin, and the college of the Society; thence itturned toward the Recollects by way of the convent of San Franciscoto that of Santo Domingo; and by the college of Santo Tomas returnedto the cathedral. The said prayers were continued until Lent. 

In the midst of these pious exercises the ambassador from China foundus: this was the same religious as before, Fray Victorio Riccio. Tothe salute which he fired his Lordship commanded answer to be madewith ball, as one who, having been challenged, awaited the envoy ona war footing; and despatched to the shore the sargento-mayor of thegarrison to tell him that, on account of the hostilities which hehad announced in the name of Cot-sen, we had expected him to come asan enemy and were prepared to receive him with the sternness that iscustomary in war, and that he must inform the governor of the natureof the despatches that he carried. The ambassador answered that hecame in peace; and by the news which he at once related it was learnedthat, only a few days after his Lordship had placed his forces underthe powerful protection of the holy archangel, Cot-sen had died. 

That ruler was ready in all the strength given by ships, men, andprovisions to deliberate according to the news that he should receivefrom here upon the measures that would have to be taken, when the firstSangleys [from Manila] arrived. They, driven by fear and urged on bydesperation, scorning the cannon-shots that were fired from the castle, seized a royal champan which was ready to sail; and those Sangleys whohad left [the Pasig River] in the talisays, for whom there was no room, seized other champans in the channels of Mariveles. These fugitivesregarded as already executed that of which their fear persuaded them;and they told the corsair that the governor had commanded that allthe Sangleys should be slain, not only the traders but those who wereliving in this city. At this he was kindled to such anger that heimmediately undertook to sally forth for vengeance without heeding theobstacles that he would now meet in the expedition from unfavorableweather. It seemed to the Chinese that with only half of their fleet, even though the other half should perish, they could carry abundantforce for the enterprise. Upon this disturbance of his mind came therebellion of his son whom he had commanded to be slain; [53] and themandarins of his city, Vi-cheo, [Fuh-chau, or Foo-chow] protected theson, having resolved to defend him. With these anxieties Cot-sen waswalking one afternoon through the fort on Hermosa Island which he hadgained from the Dutch. His mind began to be disturbed by visions, whichhe said appeared to him, of thousands of men who placed themselvesbefore him, all headless and clamoring for vengeance on the crueltyand injustice which had been wreaked on them; accordingly, terrifiedat this vision (or else a lifelike presentation by his imagination)he took refuge in his house and flung himself on his bed, consumedby a fierce and burning fever. This caused him to die on the fifthday, fiercely scratching his face and biting his hands--without anyfurther last will than to charge his intimate friends with the deathof his son, or more repentance for his cruelty than to continue itby the orders that he gave for them to kill various persons; thusGod interrupted by his death many cruel punishments. 

Moreover, some mandarins were pacified who were resentful becausethe alcaldes of Pangasinan and Cagayan had seized some goods fromtheir agents; and the father ambassador made satisfactory answersto the complaints made on account of the incorrect reports of thefugitives. The Chinese therefore solicited peace, and the continuanceof the trade. This was a piece of good-fortune so timely that itenabled us to send this year a ship to Nueva España for the usual aid, the building of this ship having been stopped for lack of iron; for, since the iron which came in three ships from China had been boughton his Majesty's account, it became necessary to beg iron from thereligious orders and the citizens and to tear out the few iron gratingswhich such emergencies as these had left in the city. This necessarilymade evident to that [Chinese] nation how greatly we depend on themfor our means of support. 

The ambassador, Fray Victorio Riccio, finally came hither on April 8with news of the peace; it had been concluded so much to our favorthat no further conditions were imposed beyond the restitution ofthe property which had remained here placed in the hands of privatecitizens, and that which the alcaldes-mayor had withheld in Cagayanand Pangasinan. Thus the country was quieted, and all its peoplewere freed from the affliction which the haughty and cruel kingdomof China had caused us by its threats. 

The people who followed this corsair amounted to over a millionof men of war alone. The champans (which are their ships), largeand small, numbered 15, 000 and many of them carried forty piecesof artillery. So arrogant was the corsair with his power, that heaspired to gain the kingdom from the Tartar king (who is also rulerof Great China) and be crowned at Nanquin, assured that, as Fortuneshowed herself friendly to him, the entire empire would follow him asthe man who maintained the authority of it all--not only as he wascaptain-general for the dead king but because he had been confirmedin this office by the king now living, who is called Ens-lec. [54] Healso intended to maintain the superstitions, dress, rites, and customsof his ancestors--especially the garments and [mode of wearing] thehair, to which the Chinese are excessively attached. This purposehad caused them to endure his cruelty, which had been so greatthat more than three millions of men had died for his satisfactionalone. This fierce captain would have succeeded in that enterprise, if he had not been drawn off from it to gain the neighboring cities, nine in number (the smallest one containing 200, 000 souls), thusgiving the Tartar king time for better preparation. Nevertheless, he had the courage to invest Nanquin, the court city of Great China, which is defended by three walls two leguas distant from one another, the circuit of the first being thirty leguas. [55] He gained the firstwall and brought affairs to such a crisis that the king, fearing hisfierce determination, talked of fleeing from his court of Pequin. Themandarins warned him that by such a course he would lose the entirekingdom; for the inhabitants of the city, dispirited by such tokensof weakness, would instantly surrender in order not to experiencethe corsair's ferocity. They said that this victory would give him somuch reputation that he would easily subdue the entire kingdom; thatit was most important to make all the rest of their power effective, withdrawing all the troops from other strongholds to increase theroyal forces with a multitude of veterans and well-disciplinedsoldiers. The king did so and attacked the enemy with 400, 000horsemen; and as Cot-sen on account of having left his islands hadno cavalry worth mention, he was compelled to yield to a power soformidable. With the loss of 80, 000 men and most of his champans, he left the river on which the court city stands, and returned to hisown town, Vi-chen. But this blow left him so little inclined to profitby experience and his strength so little diminished that, when theentire Chinese force pursued him in a fleet of many ships, he wentout to meet them at a legua's distance from his principal island, [56] and fought with them the greatest battle that those seas haveever seen. Cot-sen sent most of their champans to the bottom, andcaptured many; few escaped, and those were damaged. This filled thatcountry with such fear that their precautions [against him] wroughtmore destruction than his cruelty could have accomplished; for theseobliged the king of China to depopulate the extensive coasts of hisentire kingdom, a strip of land six leguas wide embracing cities of100, 000 or 200, 000 inhabitants, in order that they might not be theprey of the conqueror. [57] This was a measure tending to the latter'sprosperity; for all those many people, finding themselves withoutland or settled mode of life, crowded into the corsair's service tospend their lives and to maintain themselves on the abundant bootyoffered to them by his power as absolute master of the seas. 

The intention of this barbarian [Cot-sen] was to become the masterof China, profiting by the hatred of the Chinese to the Tartars, and on the present occasion by the fact of the king's death. Butas Cot-sen needed land whereon to maintain so many people, he wasminded to conquer Hermosa and these islands. Accordingly, he landed[on Hermosa] first in April, 1660, with 100, 000 men, a hundred cannonfor batteries, and a still larger number of field-pieces; the cannonscarried balls of forty to fifty libras. At first the Dutch scoffedat their forces, calling them "men of the paypay"--that is, "of thefan, " which all of that nation use, as if they were women. Confidentin the impregnable nature of their fortress (into which they gatheredthe feeble garrison of the island), and in the large and splendidforce of men which defended it, more than two thousand in number, although they had nineteen ships, they did not take these out ofthe river when they could; and the Sangleys attacked them on thesea to great advantage overcoming the Dutch with their champans, andinflicting much injury on them--for these champans are lighter vessels[than those of the Dutch], and their people are very skilful in themanagement of artillery. The Dutch at once sallied out with 300 mento prevent them from occupying the islet in the Mosamboy entrance, [58] on which the Chinese expected to plant their battery; but themultitude charged upon the Dutch and cut off the heads of all, exceptone or two who escaped by swimming. This humbled the pride of theDutch and dispirited their men. As soon as the Chinese landed theirmen they attacked the eminence, where the Dutch had a fort calledChiacam garrisoned with sixty soldiers; but it surrendered on the thirdday, and the Chinese used the Dutchmen for handling the artillery, assigning them to various stations. In the harbor they burned threeships and boarded one; and such was the fear that filled the heartsof the timid of falling into the hands of so bloody and savage anenemy, that twelve Dutch fugitives with other people went to him[as those who surrendered] with five brigantines which the [Dutch]fort had employed for many purposes. 

The Chinese began their enterprise with as much fury as if theyhad lacked time for the attacks of their batteries; but in theirassurance and the manner of their encampment they acted as iftime were of no importance, since it was the chief enemy of thebesieged. Palmo by palmo they steadily gained the [surrounding]country, carrying with them branches, and baskets [of earth], untilthey established themselves near the fortifications of the Dutch;and during the ten months while the siege lasted they did not ceasefiring all their artillery, night or day. In another direction aninnumerable throng of laborers were continually at work cultivatingthe soil, as if they were already its owners; and before the fortsurrendered, the Chinese were already enjoying the produce of theirfarming. For the proud corsair went [to Hermosa] so confident in hisstrength that among the 500 champans which he took with him for thisenterprise many went loaded with plows, seeds, and the other thingsused in cultivating land with innumerable workmen who were set asidefor this service alone. Consequently, while he fought he peopled andcultivated the island without any one being able to prevent him; and, as he is so rich, he carried a great quantity of cloth, in order toattract the poor natives and bring them over to his side, in whichhe has succeeded. 

Only one other engagement was a success for the Dutch, who undertook, when the Chinese first encamped, to bombard them with all their cannonat once; and, having thus demolished their huts and fortifications, the Dutch made a bold sortie, spiked six of the enemy's cannon, cut to pieces the garrison, 3, 000 in number, and were carrying awaynineteen pieces of artillery to the fort. But another Sangley officerhurried up with his regiment and attacked the Dutch with such furythat they were obliged to leave the captured cannon behind, and indisorder, take refuge within the fort. With the twelve Dutchmen theyput the fortifications in better shape, and their bombardment beganto be more effective. Finally they demolished the redoubt with allthe fortifications outside, and approached the fort so closely thatthe men on the walls talked with those in the enemy's camp. Theydemolished the second height of the wall, which had no terreplein;the governor of the place was killed by a cannon-ball; and every daythe enemy came up to the walls to drink the health of the Dutchmenand display other soldierly civilities. 

They had now demolished all of the wall that rose above theterreplein, and talked of making a general assault. The Dutch beganto be disheartened by the death of the governor and the loss of somany soldiers; and when they saw the preparations for the assaultthey talked of negotiating fur surrender, in order that they mightnot be left exposed to the enemy's cruelty--since for that arroganttyrant it was the same to slay five or six thousand men as one. Hetherefore at once replaced twice the number in a post [which hadlost its defenders], as he was so near to his island of Vicheuwhere he kept the main body of his followers, from which they werecontinually coming and going; and for every one who died a thousandfresh men came to his camp. They now set out to engage the Dutch withsix hundred scaling-ladders, fourteen of their men being allotted toeach ladder; but the besieged hung out a white flag, and came outto propose terms of surrender. This was granted with the conditionthat only the property of private persons should be removed, andthat they must surrender intact the property of the [East India]Company, which was done. It is computed according to the Company'sbooks, that with the military supplies and the artillery of the fort, [this capture] had a value of five millions--an amount which willnot cause surprise to any one who knows that this place was themagazine for the two richest traffics in the Orient, those of Chinaand Japon. The artillery found there [by the Chinese] included 150pieces; the firearms, 4, 000; and there were provisions and militarysupplies for years. The slain in this war, for the entire period, were: of the Dutch, 630; of the Chinese, 10, 000 men. The vanquishedleft the fort on the day of the Purification of our Lady, six hundredin number, and embarked in nine ships which had remained in the harbor. 

In short, this [i. E. , the Chinese] people is the most ingenious inthe world; and when they see any contrivance in practice they employit with more facility than do the Europeans. Accordingly, they arenot now inferior in the military art, and in their method of warfarethey excel the entire world. No soldier is hindered by providing hisfood; every five men have their own cook. All are divided into tens, and every ten have their own flag, and on it are written the namesof its soldiers. These tens are gathered into companies and regimentswith such concert and such ease in governing them that Europeans whohave seen it are astonished. 

Consider the anxiety that must be caused by a nation so ingenious, sohardy, so practiced in the military art, so numerous, so haughty andcruel, in a city where all the forts together could not call to arms2, 000 Spaniards--and these of so many colors that not two hundred pureSpaniards could be picked out from them--and occupying so much spacethat for its suitable garrison it needs 6, 000 soldiers. From this maybe inferred the joy that was felt throughout the city [at his death]and the so special kindness of God in putting an end to this tyrantin the prime of his life--for he was only thirty-nine years old, andhad spent his time in continued military practice from the year 1644until that of 1662, when he conquered Hermosa Island. He was alwaysfavored by fortune, and there was no undertaking in which he did notsucceed except the siege of Nanquin--which would be considered foolishtemerity by any one who will consider the strength and greatnessof that city--an enterprise in which he had to entomb or submergein blood his fortune and his acquired glories; yet it weakened himso little that he quickly restored the losses, victorious over theentire naval force of China. 

At the beginning of June his Lordship gave permission to all the[native] tribes to return home; they went away well satisfied andloaded with praises. He gave the Chinese more freedom, permittingthem to remove to the villages adjoining the city, and releasingthem from serving on the ships [de las faginas] on account of thegreat labors which they had performed before his Lordship's eyes incompleting, with so much readiness and with so little expenditureof time and money, [public] works which [otherwise] could not havebeen finished in ten years of hard labor, with half a million pesos, and the exhaustion of the weak natives of the neighboring provinces. 

His Lordship summoned a council, in which by his command were readthe letters from the mandarins who were directors and guardians ofCot-sen's estate, written by order of his son, in which was discussedthe stipulation which they made a condition of peace--the restitutionof the property which their agents had left here in trust, andother merchandise which the alcaldes-mayor of Ylocos and Cagayan hadwithheld. In accordance with the [decision of the] first council, thisone ordered that such restitution be made. Therein was also discussedthe question whether the Sangleys should be permitted to live in theislands; this was done by a few ecclesiastics (only three in number), who opposed such permission; they had attempted, both in the pulpit andin private conversation, to persuade the rest to their opinion. All ofthe council agreed with only one dissenting voice, that the Sangleysought to be allowed to remain here up to the number which the decreesof his Majesty regarding this matter have prescribed--that is, 6, 000men--provided that they be not allowed to spread into other provinces, nor go beyond the villages included in the jurisdiction of Tondo(which is in the territory of this city) conformably to the royalordinances which have fixed these limits. All recognized our need ofthat [Chinese] nation, in the lack and scarcity of all things to whichwe see ourselves now reduced--all because the number of the Sangleyshas been diminished, since the natives have neither energy nor strengthto support the burdens that the Chinese carry; and much more on accountof our dependence upon their trade, for everything. For not only doeseverything necessary for life come to us from China--as wheat, cloth, and earthenware--but it is the Sangleys who carry on all the crafts, and who with their traffic maintain the fortunes of the citizens(without those other products of vineyards and olive-groves thatare furnished in the industries carried on in Nueva España) fromthe merchandise of China, having secured in their hands the entirecommerce of these islands, since that of Yndia and Japon failed. HisLordship, having handsomely entertained the ambassador, dismissed him, with letters for the prince and the mandarins; and we here remain inpeace, affairs settled as they were before, and the fear [removed]that an enemy so powerful and at our very gates must occasion us. 

LETTER FROM GOVERNOR SALCEDO TO FRANCISCO YZQUIERDO

Summary of this letter, written from Manila, dated July 16, 1664, giving information regarding the condition of the islands at hisarrival, and the measures that he had taken. 

He states therein that he set sail from the port of Acapulco onMarch 25, 1663; and after a prosperous voyage they sighted thecape of Espiritusanto. There a vendaval storm came against them, soviolent that it carried them to Cape Engaño; and on July 8 he landed, made the ship secure, unladed all the money sent for the situado, and made arrangements for its transportation to Manila. The governorwas gladly received there, and took possession of the government andthe authority of captain-general, on September 8, 1663. 

He found the islands in most wretched condition--the Spaniards asyet hardly reassured after the insurrections of the years 61 and 62, and the natives irritated by cruel punishments. The royal treasurywas so exhausted that it contained no more than 35, 000 pesos; themagazines were destitute of provisions, ammunition, and other suppliesfor the relief of the fortified posts and the soldiers. A few monthsbefore, the soldiers had received part of their pay--each one whohad eight pesos of wages being paid one peso, and others receivingonly a ration of rice and meat. But the governor found the officialsof all classes still unpaid; and he had no ship to send to NuevaEspaña, because the vessel sent thither by his predecessor had putback to port. The commerce [of the islands] with all the neighboringcountries was paralyzed, and the said commerce must again be revived, for without it Manila could not exist. 

He states that he had ordered timber to be cut for repairing the shipthat would go to Nueva España, and for the construction of the fortygalleys that were needed for the defense of the islands from theMoro pirates that infested them--who were still more daring sincethe abandonment of our forts on account of our fear of the ChineseCotseng. The governor ordered that wheat shall be sowed, since this isso necessary to the manufacture of sea-biscuit for the ships, and inorder not to depend upon foreigners for the supply of this article. Forthe same reasons, he caused an engineer (whom he had carried to theislands at his own expense) to make examination of the iron mines;this reconnaissance had given satisfactory results, for the engineerhad begun to work the mines with so good success that he had taken outnearly 600 arrobas [of iron], and was continuing to operate the mines. 

In another (but undated) letter on the same subject, he mentions theimprovements that he had had to make in the walls of Manila; and saysthat he had ordered four forts to be built in the interior of Luzon, in order to push forward the conquest of the infidel peoples. He alsorepeats much of what he had said in the preceding letter. [59]

WHY THE FRIARS ARE NOT SUBJECTED TO EPISCOPAL VISITATION

The reasons that the governor and the royal Audiencia of the FilipinasIslands apparently might have had for suspending the execution of theroyal decrees, which were repeatedly ordered to be observed in favorof the right of the royal patronage, from the year 1624 to that of 1656[sic] have been as follows. [60]

First, the consideration of the zealous observance of [their rulesby] all the orders in those islands; the zeal with which they busythemselves in their ministries; the new conversions that are made dailyin certain portions of the islands; and because if the religious areforced to that subjection [to the diocesan authorities] they willsurely fall into laxity, and consequently, will lose the zeal thatthey today exercise, as experience shows in the orders throughoutAmerica that have entered that subjection. 

Second, because of the few seculars that there have always been in theislands to take charge of those missions; for when these were mostnumerous here was in the years 24, 28, and 34, for then the city ofManila had 400 citizens, and Cebu, Oton, Nueva Segovia, and Arevalo hadnearly 200 more. Now the representative citizens throughout the islandsdo not number 60. Then if in that time, when the islands contained mostSpaniards, there were no secular priests, how can there be any todaywhen there are not 60 citizens in all the islands, while the numberof priests is steadily growing less in America, where the Spanishsettlements are large and populous and are continually increasing?

So great is the lack of the secular clergy that they cannot eventake care of the missions in their charge. For there is no districtbelonging to the seculars, especially outside of the island of Manila, that does not need two or three priests; for most of the villagesof their jurisdiction are 10, 20, or 30 leguas distant from thechief mission station--from which, as they find themselves alone, they do not go out to visit their districts as a rule, except once ayear. Consequently many must necessarily die without the sacraments, and even the children without baptism, because of the laziness of theIndians and the little esteem in which they hold the faith because ofthe lack of instruction. Even the ministers themselves run the riskof dying without confession, and there are not few examples of thatin those islands. That occurs because they can do no more, and haveno priests who can aid them in their ministries. In order to havethese, they must maintain them at their own cost, in order to meetthe obligations of their consciences. But the regulars in all theirdistricts which consist of many villages (they have three or fourpriests in each district), are ever traveling unceasingly by sea andland, visiting their villages. Consequently the villages instructedby the religious are frequent in their use of the holy sacraments, because of their good opinion of our holy Catholic faith, and theirstricter observance of it. 

The ministries of those islands need at least 400 priests who arereligious; for I assume that there must not be only one to a district, as are the seculars in regions so extensive as these, but three orfour, and sometimes more, and that is a matter involving a question ofconscience, because of their ministries and their own souls; for thereis a district belonging to the seculars where a priest does not arrivefor a whole year, and if one reaches some parts, it is only by chance. 

For the above reasons I believe that the governor and the royalAudiencia of Manila, as those who have the matter in hand, in the pastyear of 1665 suspended the execution of the said decrees, giving atime-limit of four years to the Order of St. Dominic to present thesaid reasons to his Majesty and his royal Council of the Yndias. Forit is to be believed that if they found it advisable for the royalservice (as they are so attentive to it) to carry out the exact royalorders in the matter, they would not have delayed the execution ofthe orders for four years, nor have allowed any more replies. 

The reasons that the regulars have for petitioning his Majesty tobe pleased not to change the method that they have followed for thespace of one hundred years in their administration of the Indians inthe islands, are as follows:

First, because the Indians are not yet well rooted in the faith, and there are still a great number of heathen and Moros to be newlyconverted--for the sacred Order of St. Dominic has many heathenin the provinces of Cagayan, Pangasinan, and Ytui. The Order ofSt. Augustine has still many heathen among the Yglotes (who belongto the province of Ylocos) and in the island of Panay. The Society ofJesus has all the island of Mindanao, those of Jolo, and the islandsadjacent to them, which are for the most part inhabited by Moros andto a less extent by Christians and heathens. They have abandoned theMaluccas, where they have labored for so many years; and at presentthey administer only the island of Siao which is all Christian. TheRecollect Augustinians administer the Negrillos of Masinlo and manyof the Caragas bordering upon the Mindanaos. The Order of St. Francisis not lacking in Aetas (who are still heathen) in their districtsof La Laguna and the mountains there to be converted. 

Second, because the missions of the Filipinas are suitable forhim who is looking for hardship and not ease. How is it possiblefor missions in the islands of old infested by infidel pirates, and[now] having new conversions of Moros and heathen, not to be full ofhardship? For as a rule, those missions outside the island of Manilaare visited by sea by their ministers; and that brings them no littletrouble besides the constant danger of being killed by the Moros. 

Third, because the regulars in those islands now and those who havealways been there have almost all come from España, and have goneto them, not for the purpose of any temporal advantage, but withthe design of reducing infidels to the bosom of the Church. Most ofthem are desirous of going thence to Japon, as the reduction of thatempire as well as a portion of that of China belongs to the crown ofCastilla. Since, then, the missions and doctrinas of those islands areso apostolic, and the zeal of the regulars in going there is expendedonly in the direction of promulgating the gospel among heathen, one caneasily infer how necessary it is that the regulars be maintained therein the strict observance and spirit with which they left España. Theyfear, and with great reason, that if that subjection be accepted theregulars in those islands will relax, as has been experienced in theprovinces where the orders have bowed to that subjection, paying heedperchance rather to not leaving the comforts of the fatherland thanto the observance of their rules. But since the religious in theFilipinas Islands are not rooted in their fatherlands, but on thecontrary regard themselves as exiled therefrom, it is impossible forthem to return thither. Subject there to hardships and sickness (forthe climate of Filipinas is less favorable and healthful to Europeans), they will not have the difficulty in quitting their ministries thathas been experienced in America--where, in order not to leave theirministries, they have become subject, thus losing their positions;and they will not be willing that the most religious and those mostzealous for their rules should at least keep away from the missions andministries of the Indians through the imposition of that burden, andthat no others should be found. Consequently, with that subjection theydesire again to journey to parts so remote; so that in such case, inthose provinces which are today so religious, their courage would growless and that not without danger to those ministries, which by theirvery nature demand zealous persons and those of a very superior virtue. 

For it is sufficient to consider that, if serious men of learningand virtue subject themselves to the ordinary in order to ministerin a doctrina, it may happen that they will be punished for a slightomission or neglect, perhaps one that they could not avoid--such as notbeing able to arrive in time to hear the confession of a dying personor to give him the holy oil; or to baptize a new-born infant. It ispossible that this fear alone would make some refuse the ministriesof the islands with such a risk. For although the ordinary cannotpunish them as religious, he can punish them as curas; and in sucha case it is difficult to proceed between cura and religious. 

In the first place the religious's definitorio may assign him also toa house with a vote, all of which have ministries in the Filipinas;and an ambitious man may by the exercise of skill, and by influence, intercessions, and presents deprive him of the place, and perhapsmay impute to him faults and defects that he does not possess inorder to attain his purpose better and to justify his action. Thatcan not fail to be a cause for sorrow, and more so to one who hasno foundation in the islands, but who is rather disgusted at beingthere; and it will be a sufficient cause for him to retire from hisministries and even to attempt to return to España. 

And even though the superiors may order the religious to live intheir missions with that subjection, it may be that they cannotobtain it by entreaty from them, and that the religious will excusethemselves by saying with St. Paul: Unusquisque enim in ea vocationequa vocatus est permanet. [61] They may also say that they wish topersevere in the vocation to which they were called by God, and thatthey did not enter religion to recognize two superiors, one a regularand the other a secular, but rather one of their own profession--bywhom they would willingly allow themselves to be visited, censured, and punished; but not by two distinct in profession. For if thereare two superiors who are unequal in profession, it is quite possiblethat they will be at variance in the matters of orders and obedience;and that such subordinate may be in doubt without the power to helpit lest obedience to one be an offense to the other. Consequently, placed between two extremes, he will come to obey the more powerfuland to disobey his regular superior, who is the one from whom he canfear less. 

And one might doubt whether the superior could impose on thosewho should be thus firm in their purpose the precept of obedience, so that they should subject themselves as curas to an ordinary andto tho choice of a governor. And if for the above reasons those whoare zealous for their rules should be lacking in the provinces andministries, the men who are less religious would become the mainstayof the provinces and would administer the missions--men whom neitherambition nor their slight attachment to the observance calls away [fromthe order]. Consequently, such men coming in time to rule the provincesand to possess the ministries in those islands, the end will be thatthere will be no religion, observance, or examples in them to invitethe Indians, but only scandals by which they will stumble; for, as afoolish people, they embrace what they see rather than what they hear. 

Besides the above, the orders fear lest the governors and theordinaries will make use of that subjection to harass them, especiallyif by any accident some collision should occur between them and theauthorities. For if the governor had the selection of the [religiousof the] villages in his control, who could prevent him from removingor appointing whomever he wished, or choosing those whom he consideredbetter for his own purposes and even molesting the good? For since allthe houses with votes in those islands except the convents of Manilaare doctrinas, he could place in them the men satisfactory to himself;and these would not fail him in the following provincial chapters inaccepting from his hand a provincial who would be most advantageousto him, or most inclined to agree with him. Consequently, he wouldbecome absolute master of the monastic government of the orders. If theordinaries wished to molest those religious whom they did not like, who could prevent them from fulminating penalties for the slightestcauses? and this especially where the witnesses are Indians who wouldswear against their missionaries at any threat or for any profit, whatever the ministers or the visitors of the bishops wished. 

It is well seen that all those troubles, so possible, would ceaseif the governors would govern according to the pious zeal and mostChristian intention of his Majesty, and the ordinaries accordingto the obligation of their estate. But, nevertheless, in parts sodistant and remote from the heart of the monarchy, not all thegovernors and ordinaries work in harmony. For even the good andthose regarded as such in España are wont to become changed inthe Yndias, and to act very differently from what was expectedof them; for power and opportunity generally change the purposesand disorder the expectations of those who are by nature covetous, revengeful, or subject to other passions. What may not [therefore]be feared? On account of all those things the fears of the orders arenot ill founded. Would that experience did not testify to all thesepossibilities. Since even without that subjection the governors andordinaries are wont to give the regulars causes for merit for veryslight causes, what would it be if they held the regulars as subjectsand had absolute power to be able to punish them as criminals and todepose them as guilty?

If the regular superior should decide that he ought in conscienceto remove any occasion for scandal, or one who was a discredit tohis profession, in the case of any of his subjects; and it should benecessary for that reason to remove him from his mission: in such case, if he went to the governor to impart his purpose as he is obliged todo by the right of the royal patronage, the governor having heard thereasons would have a copy of the charges given to the party; and thesuit having been brought to trial the defense might even manage withcrafty pleas to frustrate the zeal of the superior. In such cases(which are quite ordinary where the said subjection to bishops andviceroys is allowed) the superior will come out disaccredited andjustly angry, and the accused triumphant; for his evil conscienceand the zeal of his prelate will put him on his guard, and he willbe forewarned of each attack. 

How many scandals will follow from this, and how many discords, edicts, and enmities! how many expenses in money, and how muchbribing of witnesses and intercessors! both of servants and friendsof the governors, who are usually benefited by religious of thatsort. They are generally aided as much by cunning as by what theyspend in order to succeed in their designs, without considering thatthey are trampling upon all the three essential vows of the estatewhich they profess--namely, poverty, obedience, and chastity. 

Therefore, if the desires of his Majesty are that the regulars shalllive in accordance with their own laws; that the natives of the Indiasbe well instructed; and that they be not molested by the officialsof the two estates: the remedy for that is to leave the regulars totheir observance without obliging them to become more subject thanthey have been hitherto. If this is either not advisable or cannotbe done, it would be better for the orders that the secular clergyshould administer those missions. 

For how is it possible that such missionaries should not be covetousif they are inclined to that vice as an efficacious means to maintainthemselves in their posts, to attain others that are larger and morewealthy, to defend themselves from the zeal of their prelates? Suchwill have the power of loading the Indians with pecuniary fines andof doubling the fees; and even perhaps there will not lack some whowill avail themselves of trade and commerce to attain that end. 

The subjection will result only in advantage to the governors andordinaries, in trouble to the Indians (for the latter furnish thewealth of such ministers) and disservice to his Majesty; since it meansthe ruin of religious discipline. The Indians being harassed and thegovernors and ordinaries being interested parties, all contrary to hisMajesty's holy intent, the Indians will come to have disinclinationinstead of love to affairs of the faith and religion. And I dareaffirm that Christians thus instructed will be Christians rather byforce than in their hearts. 

In no part of the Yndias can one more intelligently expect that theregulars will be strict of observance than in the Filipinas Islands;for all their missions, even those in the suburbs of Manila, aresurrounded by heathen and Moros--Chinese, Japanese, Mindanaos, Joloans, and Borneans, and people of almost all the other kingdomsof the Orient whose conversion is so anxiously desired. For if thoseheathen and Moro nations, who have before their eyes the conduct ofthe Christians, come to observe it as not at all in accord with right, not only among the secular clergy but among the regulars--who are bytheir profession teachers of the law and are bound to furnish a goodexample as the rule of their observance--what would they think, orwhat notion would they form of it? It is learned from some mandarinsof Great China who were converted to our holy faith because they sawin all the ministers of it for many years a conformity of morals thatwas regulated to natural law, that they prudently conclude therefromthat the law which taught such actions could not be other thantrue. If the Chinese and Japanese who live in those islands shouldsee the evangelical ministers acting against all natural dictates, they would come to a contrary conclusion, for they have no greaterarguments for belief than those which come through their eyes. 

The regulars of the Filipinas Islands have well understood how just itis that the right of his Majesty's royal patronage be observed thereinaccording to his orders. Therefore, they do not petition for exemptionfrom the choice by the governors and the collations by the ordinariesunder any other title than that of a favor from the greatness of hisMajesty, if perchance their merits have deserved it. For, as is wellknown, there are no missions more distant throughout the monarchynor more seas to pass nor seas so endangered by the enemies of thefaith--which can be affirmed by those who administer outside thesuburbs of Manila and their environs, who continually bear death orcaptivity before their eyes. 

If his Majesty has been pleased to give privileges to the citizens ofthose islands with the honorable title of hidalgos and nobles--themunificence of his Majesty supplying what birth denied to many, aprivilege not conceded to any others of the Yndias--as a reward forhaving been willing to become citizens in regions so remote from theirfatherland without any other service, in order that by such kindnessothers might be encouraged to do the same, not less do the regularsmerit some special privilege and reward from your Majesty, and thewelfare of the souls of the natives. This is the chief object of yourMajesty in conserving the Filipinas Islands and all that conducesto this is only a means--namely, that it is inhabited by Spaniardsand garrisoned with soldiers, and the expenses which are incurred inall this. Therefore if his Majesty exercises so great munificence inorder that the means may not fail so that the end may be attained, in order that it may be more completely and perfectly executed, theregulars may hope for greater favor from the piety of their king. Andif laymen are rewarded for the services that they have rendered inthose islands with military honors and with great encomiendas ofIndians, one can trust that the services rendered to his Majesty byall the orders during a hundred years in the islands will merit somerecompense in immunity (even though it be not due for their services)from his gratitude and liberal hand, as they hope from the grandeurof their king and sovereign. 

APPENDIX: JUDICIAL CONDITION OF THE PHILIPPINES IN 1842

Source: This is from Sinibaldo de Mas's Informe de las Islas Filipinas, ii, no. 12. 

Translation: This is by James Alexander Robertson. 

APPENDIX: JUDICIAL CONDITION OF THE PHILIPPINES IN 1842

[In addition to the following account by Mas, the student desirousof pursuing the subject will find much data in the various Guiasde Filipinas. Some statistics are also presented by Montero y Vidal(Archipielago Filipino, pp. 194-203) for the years 1883-1884. Muchof value and interest will also be found in the various reports ofthe Philippine Commission, and in the numerous pamphlets issued bythe United States Government. ]

Justice is administered by means of an Audiencia, which has thetitle of royal, and resides in Manila, being composed of one regent, and five judges; by means of alcaldes-mayor who govern the provinces;and by the gobernadorcillo whom each village has and who is equivalentto our alcalde de monterilla. [62] The latter proceeds in criminalcases to the formation of a verbal process, and tries civil causesup to the value of two tailes of gold or 44 pesos fuertes. 

The royal Audiencia is a court without appeal in Filipinas. Thealcaldes-mayor cannot terminate by their own action civil questionsthat have to do with a sum of greater value than 100 pesos fuertes, orimpose any corporal punishment without the approval of the Audiencia, and then only imprisonment for one week. But they are judges of thefirst instance for every kind of litigious or criminal cases. 

In order that one may obtain the post of alcalde-mayor, it is notnecessary that he should have studied law. Hence, the greater partof the heads of the provinces are laymen in that respect. Generallythose posts are given to military men. Consequently, this is theorigin that for every process which is prosecuted in a lawsuit orcause, the alcalde has to have recourse to an assessor, in order toobtain the opinion of that one on which to base his action. But sincethe advocates reside in Manila, the records have to make at timesmany trips from the province to the capital. From this results theinconvenience of delay, the liability of theft, or the destructionof the mail. For, in the many rivers that must be crossed, the papersbecome so wet that they are useless (as happened with several lettersof a post which was received in the chief city of a province whenI was there, the envelopes of which it was impossible for us toread), and the malicious extraction in order to obscure the courseof justice. The defect of this system can only be understood if onereflect that the various provinces of the colony are not situatedon a continent, but in various islands, and that by reason of theperiodic winds and the hurricanes which prevail in this region, thecapital very often finds itself without news of some provinces fortwo or three months, and of that of Marianas for whole years. 

It appears that what we have said ought to be sufficient to show thenecessity of radical reforms in this department, but, unfortunately, there are other more grave reasons for such reform. The alcaldes-mayorare permitted to engage in business. [63] The author of Les Estritsdes Lois [64] said many years ago that the worst of governments isthe commercial government; and surely, for those who have studied thescience of government, all comment on this point is superfluous. Thealcalde who is permitted to engage in business naturally tries, ifpossible, to monopolize it by all means in his power. This vice ofthe system leads some greedy men to the greatest excesses, which laterare attributed to all alcaldes in general. Upon my arrival at Manila, I asked a very respectable Spaniard who had been in the country formany years about what happens in the provinces. He replied to me:"You know that the alcaldeships are reported to be worth 40, 000 or50, 000 duros, and he who seeks one of those posts very earnestly hasno other object or hope than to acquire a capital in the six yearsfor which the government confers them. Before going to his province, he borrows 8, 000 or 10, 000 duros from one of the charitable fundsat such and such a per cent. Besides, he has to pay an interest tothose who act as bondsmen for him, both to the government for the royaltreasury, and to the charitable funds which supply him with money. Whenhe arrives at his province he acts according to conditions ruling inthat province, for not all provinces are alike in their productionsand circumstances. He generally establishes a supply store, and, consequently, from that moment, any other storekeeper is his rival andenemy. If such storekeeper has a creditor whom he tries to hurry upand goes to the alcalde, he gets no protection. If any theft happensto him the same thing more or less occurs; for, although the alcaldeorders efforts made to ascertain the thief, far from taking thosemeasures earnestly, he is secretly glad of the losses of his rivals, and it has even been asserted that there are cases in which the alcaldehimself has been the instigator of the crime. Who is your enemy? Thatof your trade. But does the alcalde himself sell the goods? Sometimeshe sells and measures them, at other times he keeps an agent in thestore; the most usual thing is, if he is married, for his wife to takecharge of the expense, especially of those goods of any value. Buthis greatest gain consists in making advances of money at the timeof the sowing, the period when the Indians need it and try to get itat any cost, for their negligence and their vices do not allow themto foresee such a case and be prepared for it. For example: a farmersigns a paper for the alcalde which obliges him to deliver at harvesttime ten measures of sugar, which are worth at least two and one-halfduros, and he himself receives only one and one-half, consequently, bythat operation alone of advancing money, the alcalde-mayor sometimesgains 40 per cent. But what generally happens is that the Indian isso short sighted and is so indifferent to the future that he signsany burdensome obligation provided he gets some money, and he onlytakes account of what they give him without thinking of what they aregoing to get from him. For example, the alcalde gives him 60 durosas an advance for forty measures of sugar at the harvest time. Theharvest is bad and he can only give 20. In such case the reckoning isafter the following fashion: 'The sugar has been sold for 4 duros, andhence 20 measures will amount to 80 duros. You cannot pay them to me, consequently they can just as well remain as an advance for the comingyear at one and one-half. ' In consequence of that the farmer signs apaper by which he enters under obligation to deliver 53 measures at thenext harvest. Harvest time comes, and if it is bad, he only presents, say, 13. Therefore, 40 measures at 4 duros amount to 160 duros of debt, and at one and one-half make 108 measures for the following year. Inthis way the man keeps on adding more and more until all his goodsare at the disposal of the alcalde. Besides, there are innumerableother vexations to which he must subject himself. For instance: he hasto deliver to the alcalde 100 cabans of rice; when he presents themthe alcalde measures them out with a larger measure than that usedin the market. Hence, in reality, the alcalde exacts from him morethan he is bound to pay. The same thing happens with indigo. For, adiscussion arises as to whether the indigo is, or is not, very damp, and some libras must be taken off for waste; or, whether it is ofpoorer quality than the Indian promised, and so on. " "But surely itmust needs be that it is fitting to take money advanced, since thereis one who seeks it, and it is worth more for a farmer to cultivatehis land in this way than that he leave it without cultivation forlack of the necessary capital. In regard to the tyrannies which thealcalde tries to commit, it seems to me that they might be avoided bythe countryman borrowing the money from a private person who is notin position to annoy him. " "That is all very well thought out, butI will tell you what happens. The Indian borrows money very easily, but it is very difficult to get him to pay it, and he generally avoidsdoing so, if possible. If a private person lends him money and doesnot collect it when due, he has to go to the alcalde in order thatthe latter may force payment. The latter either does so coldly, orpays no attention to the whole matter, since his intention is thatsuch private persons take warning and never again lend to anyone;for, it is evident, that if many come to speculate in this kind ofbusiness, the alcalde will soon be shut out, or at least will haveto submit himself to the general rules. Consequently, the result isthat capitalists draw back from him, saying, and very rightly, thatit is only fitting for the alcaldes who possess the means to causethemselves to be paid when a debt is due. The alcalde, then, remainsmaster of the field, and monopolizes this department at his pleasure, for he who needs funds has to go to him, for there are very few whoenjoy enough credit to get them elsewhere. Many other advantages alsofavor the alcalde. The parish priests aid him, and many times takecharge of the division of the money of the alcalde in their villages, for they know that that is the sure means of keeping on good terms withhim, and obtaining the measures which depend on his will in the mattersof their villages. The gobernadorcillos and officials of justice areother instruments of which the alcalde makes use to apportion andcollect his funds. " "Why is it that these do not occupy themselvesrather in their affairs than in those of the alcalde?" "The alcalde canalways, whenever he wishes, make trouble for the gobernadorcillo bymaking him go to the chief village with innumerable pretexts, and byvarious other methods which it would take a long time to enumerate, and which it is very easy to conceive. Besides, it is importantfor the alcalde to keep the gobernadorcillo satisfied. Suppose now, that a road has to be built, or a bamboo bridge, or any other workfor which the people of the village who have to do it, according totheir obligation called polos and services, are summoned. As someof them are busy in their fields or other business, they wish to befree from such a burden, and they give the gobernadorcillo two orthree reals and he excuses them on the ground of sickness. A partyof troops or a Spaniard passes by and asks for some beast of burden, or an aid in food. That is also an occasion for the gobernadorcillo toget even with those whom he dislikes and obtain part of his demands;for some give him presents in order that he may not give the beastsof burden, while others do not receive the pay for that food. Duringthe days of tiangui or village fairs, such and such a sum is exactedfor each post in the market place. In general there are some men ofservice called bantayanes who are a kind of sentinel placed at theentrances of villages. Many of them also pay to be excused fromthat burden when their turn comes or when they are told that itcomes. In general he has ten or twelve men called honos, manbaras, etc. , given to him, who are exempt from polos and services, and theyserve the ayuntamiento to send papers, conduct prisoners, etc. , andthe gobernadorcillo gives them permission so that they may cultivatetheir lands, by collecting from them a contribution. " "But it seemsto me that the gobernadorcillo will have to give account, if not forall, at least for many of the taxes that you have mentioned. " "Itought to be so, and in fact, some enter into the communal treasury, but they are the fewest and those connected with the legal matters, for of the others there is nothing to be said. For example: I have seenan order enclosing a fine as a punishment on the gobernadorcillo forsome fault or misdeed that he had committed. He assembles the cabezasde barangai; the whole sum is apportioned among the people of thevillage. The amount of the fine is collected and the gobernadorcillohas still something left for his maintenance and revelling. " "Whydo they not complain to the alcalde?" "Because, sir, of just what Itold you. The alcalde needs the gobernadorcillo so that he may usehim in his business, and for all such things he is a very far-sightedman. Besides, the alcalde who tries to investigate those snares ofthe tribunals (ayuntamientos) will lose his senses without derivingany benefit from it. He does not know the language. As interpreterhe has the clerk, who is an Indian, and the entangler-in-chief, andalmost always in accord with the Indian magnates. " "If the clerk is abad man, will he not be hated?" "I do not say that he is beloved, butsome fear him, and others are his accomplices. Since the alcalde is, in reality, a business man, he naturally takes more interest in hisbusiness than in that of other people, and leaves all court mattersin charge of the clerk, who comes to be the arbiter in that matter, and here is where the latter reaps his harvest. One of the membersof the tribunal (ayuntamiento) steals, or causes to be stolen fromsome man his buffalo. The man finds out where it is; he complainsto the gobernadorcillo; they begin to take measures; at last theanimal is returned to him, but if it is worth five duros, they makehim pay ten duros in expenses so that the man either considers hisbeast as lost and the thieves keep it, or the latter get from himtwice as much as it is worth. Hence, if I were to tell all thatpasses in this wise, my story would be very long. One of the thingswhich they are accustomed to do is to let the prisoners go out ofthe prison for several days without the government knowing it. Ihave seen that done this very year of 1841 in the province of---, in regard to some prisoners whom the alcalde-mayor believed to be inprison; but they were working on the estate of the clerk, and one ofthose prisoners had committed very serious crimes. " "But why do notthe curas remedy all that? I have heard it said that they are reallythe ones who govern the villages. " "In reality, when the curas takethat matter upon themselves, those abuses are remedied, at leastin great measure, for they know the language well, and every onein their village knows the truth, if the cura wishes to ascertainit. That is what happened in former times. And also at that timethe communal funds were deposited in the convent, and [thus] manytricks and tyrannies were avoided. But for some years the governorswho have come from España have desired that the parish priests shouldkeep to their houses and say mass and preach and not meddle with thetemporal government; without taking heed that in a whole provincethere is no other Spaniard who governs than the alcalde-mayor himself, who generally comes from Europa and goes without reflection to takehis charge without any knowledge whatever of the country or knowingeven a single word of its language. Consequently, many religious, in order to avoid trouble, see and keep still, and allow everythingto take what course God wills. This is one of the chief causes of thedisorders of the villages, and of the increase of crime. " "Now tell me, do the alcaldes make all the wealth that they are accustomed to acquirewith the kind of trade which you have explained to me?" "They have manymeans of hunting [buscar] for that is the technical expression used inthis country, but those means vary according to circumstances. In someprovinces great efforts are made to obtain posts as gobernadorcillosand officials of justice, and that department generally is worth a goodsum annually. Those are things which the clerk or secretary manages. Inthe province of--- while Don--- was alcalde-mayor, that gentleman wasin collusion with the manager of the wine monopoly and they practicedthe following. The harvesters came with their wine, but they weretold that it was impossible to receive it. There was a conflictwithin themselves, for they had to return to their village. Thenthey were told that if they wished to deposit the wine they wouldput it in certain jars which had been provided in the storehouse, bypaying such and such a rent until the administration could introduceit. The harvesters, who needed the money, thereupon sold the wine tothe agents of the alcalde, at any price at all in order to return totheir homes. Finally, as he who had come to be an alcalde, has hadno other object than to acquire wealth, every matter which does notcontribute to that object, such as the making of a bridge, or a road, the prosecution of evil doers, or any occupation purely of governmentor justice, distracts and troubles him. On the contrary every meansof attaining his end appears to him fitting and good. This method ofthought is a little more or less in the minds of all; and thus youobserve that no one says here, not even excluding the religious, whoare those who know the country best, 'I have such or such reasons forgaining this suit, ' but, 'I have so many thousand pesos to gain thesuit. ' But to tell the truth, it is not to be wondered at that thealcaldes-mayor work without much scruple. In the space of six yearsthey have to pay their passage from and to España; to satisfy the highinterest on the money which they have borrowed; to acquit themselvesof the amount which their alcaldeship has often cost them; and besidesthey make their fortunes. Not more or less is done in Turquia. "

In the same way as this good man talked, the majority talk. The faultsand vices of some are attributed and laid to all. It is certain thatthis system is fatal, for governors of such sort must be essentiallyinterested in turning down the attempt of private speculators, and to frighten away instead the attraction of capital. That has, as a natural consequence, the increased interest on money whichso endangers production, and, consequently, exportation and theencouragement of the islands. But not less fatal is the opinion thatthe authorities of Manila themselves are fed on such abuses. Complaintsare continually presented against the alcalde, at times very captiousand filled with falsehood and absurdity. The Audiencia and office ofthe captain-general receive those complaints kindly and very easilydictate measures humiliating for the alcalde, and impose fines on him, of which a copy is given to the complaining parties. Rarely is itthat one leaves his alcaldeship without having paid many fines. TheFilipinos make the greatest ado, as is natural, over those triumphsagainst authority, but authority loses decorum and moral force. Allthis comes from the bad system established, for, since the governorfrom the moment that he becomes a merchant, must be a bad governor anda usurer and tyrant, the government of Manila is predisposed againsthis acts, and declares itself the protector of the Filipinos. In thisway one evil is remedied by a worse. The supreme authority insteadof supporting and sustaining the subordinate government punishes anddegrades it. Illusion, respect, and fear vanish. It is believed thatthat severity against those who rule is advantageous in making ouryoke loved, and that the natives will say, "The government is kind forit punishes the alcaldes, " while it would be better for them to say, "The government is kind because it gives us good alcaldes. "

Shortly after my arrival in the islands, being at the feast ofCavite, distant four hours from the capital, I wished to go thitheron horseback, but all who heard of it dissuaded me from the idea, asserting that I was about to commit a rash act. Another time whenI was coming from Laguna, on passing through Montinlupa, the managerof the estate of that name was so greatly alarmed that he wished toaccompany me with his servants until we came near the city, and infact I learned soon that I was running a great danger on that road, and that shortly before a Spanish sergeant had been murdered onit. Then I was very much surprised to find that it was dangerous togo near the capital without an escort, but later I have been muchmore surprised to see that in provinces distant from the capital acomplete security is enjoyed. In order to show the condition of thecriminality of the island we shall present the following data drawnfrom the clerk's office of the Audiencia. 

Criminal causes sentenced in the Audiencia of Filipinas between theyears 1831-1837

[not inclusive]

 Years Causes

 1832 75 1833 83 1834 43 1835 102 1836 108

 411

Report of the criminal causes sentenced between the years 1836-1842[not inclusive]

 Crimes=====+=======+======+========+=======+=====+=======+=======+======+====== |Rebell-| |Robbery | |Mobs |False- |Immor- |Wounds|TotalYears|ion or |Murder|Theft |Incen- |and | hood | ality | and |no. Of | Con- | |and Im- |diarism|Lam- | and | and |rough |Causes |spiracy| |position| |poons|Perjury|Scandal|usage |-----+-------+------+--------+-------+-----+-------+-------+------+------1837 | | 43 | 54 | 2 | | 2 | 8 | 5 | 1141838 | | 108 | 145 | 6 | 4 | 7 | 52 | 60 | 3821839 | | 74 | 149 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 45 | 41 | 3171840 | 2 | 83 | 106 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 41 | 54 | 2951841 | | 131 | 216 | 12 | 6 | 5 | 66 | 67 | 499-----+-------+------+--------+-------+-----+-------+-------+------+------ | 2 | 439 | 670 | 26 | 16 | 19 | 212 | 227 | 1609=====+=======+======+========+=======+=====+=======+=======+======+======

 Penalties ==========+=======+==============+================+=========== | | | Deprivation of | [Years] | Death | Imprisonment | Office and | Total no. | | | other | of | | | correctives | Sentences ----------+-------+--------------+----------------+----------- [1837] | 6 | 99 | 17 | 122 1838] | 6 | 140 | 169 | 313 1839] | 6 | 192 | 46 | 244 1840] | 7 | 131 | 19 | 157 [1841] | 3 | 173 | 77 | 253 ----------+-------+--------------+----------------+----------- | 28 | 735 | 328 | 1089 ==========+=======+==============+================+===========

 Total number of causes sentenced in the first five years 411 Idem 1607 Increasing the latter 1196

[Here follows a report in tabular form showing the number of causesin each province for the years 1840 and 1841. This table is compiledat least in part from the guide of Manila for the year 1840; thepopulation of each province being taken therefrom. Thirty-threeprovinces are enumerated. The total number of causes for 1840 was 295, and for 1841, 499. ]

The first thing which arrests the attention in these reports is theincrease of crime. The fiscal, whom I questioned in regard to thismatter, told me that now many causes are elevated to process whichwere before finished in the interior courts, and that during theselatter years many old causes had been sentenced. This may be true, butin regard to the accumulation of back cases that have been sentenced, I believe that that can only be understood from the year 1838, or evenfrom that of 1839, because of the lack of judges in which the courtfound itself in 1837. No matter how it is considered, the increase ispalpable, for the causes alone for murder of last year amount to morethan all those of any of the years of the first five years, and it isincredible that at that time they neglected to try people for homicide, although they did dissimulate in regard to lesser crimes. The secondthing which arrests the attention is the tendency to theft, sincethe greater part of the homicides have been committed by robbers, and further one sees a great multitude of causes for theft. Foramong those two kinds of crime are found two-thirds of all kinds ofcriminality. This is a matter well worthy of reflection in a countrywhere the means of existence can be procured so readily. The third[thing that arrests the attention] is the mildness of the sentences. Inthe last five years, when there were 439 homicides, only 28 haveascended the scaffold, one-third of those tried have been set atliberty, and 328 condemned to light punishment. One would not believethat those treated with so great mercy are (at least always) criminalsfor insignificant faults. A man of the village of Narbakan was triedin the year 1840 for having begotten children twice by his daughter, the second time that having been done by means of assaulting her witha dagger. The attorney asked for ten years of imprisonment, but theAudiencia did not impose any penalty and did not even condemn him tothe costs, nor did it take the measure in honor of public morality ofcausing them to separate, but allowed them to live together as theyare still doing. At the beginning of the same year, 1840, MarianoSan Gerónimo, a servant from youth to a Spanish tailor called Garcia, stole one hundred pesos fuertes from his master, and another hundredfrom Captain Castejon, adjutant of the captain-general of the islands, who was living in his house; by extracting them from the trunks ofeach one. That of the captain-general he opened with the key whichthe latter's own assistant gave him. The greater part of the moneywas delivered to that assistant, his accomplice; the rest was lostat play. This deed served the defender of San Geronimo, Don AgustinRuiz de Santayana, to petition his acquittal, alleging in his favorthe incapacity and irreflection which that individual had shown withthe said thief. Both the criminal and his accomplice confessed, and noobstacle was presented to substantiate this verbal process. However, it lasted for more than one year. They troubled the master Garciaso much with notifications and accounts of the maintenance of theprisoner that at last he refused to have anything more to do with thematter, and abandoned the charge. The alcalde-in-ordinary sentenced SanGerónimo to six months' imprisonment. When the Audiencia examined thatclause, March 31, 1841, it ordered the prisoner to be liberated. InInglaterra, that violator of his own daughter, and the domestic thiefwould have been given the death sentence on the gallows. 

This impunity for crimes is, to my understanding, very fatal, notonly because of the encouragement which it gives on that account tocriminality, but also because of the fear which gobernadorcillos andalcaldes have in arresting the guilty, for they know that they will besoon liberated and will soon take vengeance on them by robbing them, cutting down their trees, and burning their places of business. Anemploye of estimable qualities in the department of taxes told me thatonce grown tired in a certain province of seeing that no one daredto arrest a thief who had terrified the entire village, he himselftook the trouble to waylay and seize him in the very operation ofcommitting a theft. He had him bound, and sent him to the alcalde withthe general complaint. In a few weeks he saw him again in the villageand had to reckon with him. I have been in the estate of Buena-Vistain the outskirts of which live very many robbers. However, they do notsteal there, but they go to do that in other places, bringing thereafterward horses, buffaloes, and whatever they can lay their handson. The manager does not dare to wage war against them or to denouncetheir thefts, although he knows them. One night when I was there attwelve o'clock, appeared a cavalry troop sent from the neighboringprovince of Pampanga by Alcalde Urbina and commanded by LieutenantLao. With them they brought several persons who had been robbed, andtook them before the official. He had a list of many whom he was toarrest. It had already been given to the justice of the village. Weamounted to four or five Spaniards in that place. One of those wholive there came within a few minutes to tell us secretly that thosewho were to do the arresting had already advised those who were to bearrested so that they might get out of the way, and so that no onecould be caught. That person and the manager were silent in ordernot to compromise themselves, and I did the same, because the evilwas already done, and in order not to abuse the confidence whichthey had in me. In fact, the officer and his men, and the guides, went away without having arrested a single one. A fortnight afteranother official, named Dayot, who knows the language of the countrywell, returned. Warned by what had happened the first time, he wentdirectly to the houses where his guides took him; and, consequently, he seized some of them. Later he came to the estate and asked us fora very notorious fellow who was said to be absent. We assured him thatwe had seen that man less than an hour before. I advised Dayot to havethe soldiers put aside their arms and uniforms, and send them dressedlike the natives together with the guides, and if they surprised anyoneto take him to the barracks; since, to imagine that the justice wouldaid him to arrest the criminals was to imagine something that couldnot be. In fact, he did that, and within three days he marched awaytaking five or six prisoners with him. A great state of consternationreigned throughout that district, which was good evidence of the moralcondition of the inhabitants. In a few months I asked and learned thatthey were back already and in quiet possession of their homes. One dayI was talking in Manila to the regent of the Audiencia, Don Matíasde Mier, about that system of impunity which I had observed in theislands. That gentleman remarked to me: "It is not possible to takesevere measures here, Señor Mas, for it is necessary to govern herewith mildness. " I praise and esteem most sincerely the benevolentideas and the good heart of Señor Mier, but it seems to me that hiswords might be answered somewhat by those of Jeremias Bentham: [65]"How many praises are wasted on mercy! It has been repeated, timeand time again, that that is the first virtue of a sovereign. Surelyif crime consists only in an offense to one's self-love, if it is nomore than a satire which is directed against him or his favorites, themoderation of the prince is meritorious. The pardon which he grants isa triumph obtained over himself! But when one treats of a crime againstsociety, the pardon is not an act of clemency, it is a downrightprevarication. .. . Every criminal who escapes justice threatens thepublic safety and innocence is not protected by being exposed tobecome the victim of a new crime. When a criminal is absolved allthe crimes that he can perpetuate are committed by his hands. " In noarmy are there so many executions as in that in which slight faultsare disregarded. How many charges can be laid to the door of the onewho carried away by a poorly understood charity, contributes to theincrease, in any society, of assault, theft, assassination, tears, and executions. "Every pardon granted to a criminal, " says Filangieri, [66] "is a crime committed against humanity. " I cannot conceive howthere is anyone who can imagine that the exercise of kindness to evildoers is useful or agreeable to the good. I believe, on the contrary, that those are lamented by the people who are unsafe in their houseswhile they are paying contributions to the government which is obligedto protect them. [Other reflections of a similar nature follow. ]

The tribunal might declare that it works in accordance with the spiritof the Leyes de Indias, but be that as it may, it is, in my opinion, certain that with this system of tolerating everything from thenatives, and of punishing and degrading the subordinate authorities, the Audiencia of Manila is losing the islands. 

So far am I removed from being a bloodthirsty individual that I wouldlike to see the death sentence removed from our criminal code. It wouldbe useless to repeat in support of my opinion the ideas expressedby many celebrated socialists in regard to the abolition of capitalpunishment, but I will make one observation only, which I have readin no author. The criminal ought always to inspire public scorn andhorror, but from the instant in which he is seen on the scaffold, the aversion of people becomes calm, and he is converted into anunfortunate fellow and an object of compassion. This impression doesnot seem proper to me. Further, restricting myself to Filipinas Ishall say that since the penalties are imposed so that fear of themmay keep others from committing the crimes, the death penalty does notcause in that country the same effect as in others, for its nativeshave a distinct physical organization from us, and their instinct oflife is much less strong than that of the Europeans. Consequently, outside of cases in which one treats of questions vital for the colony, I believe that the death penalty is a useless cruelty. To mark thosecriminals well, and to use them in public works, or in agriculture, would be much more advantageous, and would better conserve the realobject to which laws should tend, namely, the common good. 

One of the things which contributes to the increase of crime is theprohibition in which the chiefs of the provinces find themselvesfrom applying corporal punishment, without the approval of theAudiencia. For if a cause were to be made for the theft of buffaloes, horses, etc. , it would be an interminable matter. To put the Filipinoin jail is to move him to a better dwelling than his own. Thenhe is given his food there, which, however little and poor it be, will never be less than that to which he is accustomed daily. Hedoes not work; on the contrary he lies stretched out all day, andthat is his happiness. Besides, he finds in the same dwelling otherfellow-countrymen with whom to converse and to chew buyo. Consequently, in the country, the idea of going to prison is very far from theimpression that it gives in España where men are always animated bythe spirit of activity and love to society. It has happened manytimes and I have seen it, that prisoners escape to attend a feastor go on a pilgrimage, and as soon as that is over they return topresent themselves. I am of the opinion that the prison ought aloneto be used as a means of detention, and that for light punishments, the lash should be applied. The idea of beating a man is repugnant tomany philanthropic persons, for they say that such punishment is forbeasts. However, for certain people who do not know what self esteemand honor mean, material punishments are necessary. How can one infusefear and aversion to crime in one who despises that powerful stimulusfor well doing? Who will tell us? This question is still disputed incultured Europa and the civilized English have not dared to banishthe rod from their military code. The first thing which is seen inthe hut of any Filipino is the rattan for bringing up their children, and whoever has been in the country for some years thinks that allthe provinces would be most tranquil and free from highwaymen if lesspapers were written and more beatings given. 

There are over 80 advocates in Filipinas. The majority havestudied in Manila in the same manner as they did a century ago inEspaña. It might be said that they belong to the casuist school. Thepreparation for any lawsuit is consequential and the superfluouswrits innumerable, as our system has always been to open all thedoors to the innocence of the natives; and many of the advocatesare of that same class or are Chinese mestizos. The language whichthey use is often indecorous, bold, lacking in purity and idiom, and even in grammatical construction. The Audiencia endures it as itis the old style custom, for in times past there were few advocatescapable of explaining themselves better. The Filipinos believe thatcomposed and moderate writs can have no effect at court, and theyare only contented with those which are full of invective, reticence, interrogation, and exclamation. 

Since the alcaldes of the first instance are laymen, they have toappoint an assessor and very often when one party sees that his suitis badly prepared, he challenges the assessor even three times. It isan abusive matter, and to the prejudice of justice, for in case ofchallenge of the assessor, that ought to be done at the moment thathe is notified of his appointment, and not after seeing that whichis not favorable to him, and that judgment is near. 

The Leyes de Indias, compiled in 1754, and all the previous decreesand royal orders before that time still rule in Filipinas, in additionto the decrees and edicts of the governor-general. Of all this thereis nothing, or very little, printed. The advocates generally knowthe laws in force by tradition and hear-say, but when they need anyof the laws they have to look for it in the house of some friend, or, if not that, in the secretary's office of the government, whencevery frequently it has disappeared, or in the office of the fiscal, orthat of the intendant; because some orders are communicated by graceand justice, and others by the treasury or by other ministries. Hewho has no relatives or is new in the country is ignorant of therules in force, or has not the means of acquiring them. Besides sofar as they are not overthrown by the Leyes de Indias the laws of theSiete Partidas have as much force as do the latest Recopilación, [67]Roman law, royal and old law, and, in fact, all the confused mass ofthe Spanish codes. Consequently, it is a vast sea in which are foundabundantly the resources necessary to mix up matters and stultifythe course of justice. In English India, a book is printed annuallyof all the orders which have been communicated to the tribunals andgovernors. This forms a collection which is entitled The Regulations, which is now being translated into the language of the natives byorder of the government. 

There are orders and even articles of the ordinances of goodgovernment to specify the price of food. These schedules are veryoften, as is evident, the cause of the disappearance of things, and, as they are not found in the market it is necessary to petition thegobernadorcillo to provide food which he is obliged to furnish atthe price named in this schedule; and at times where there are manySpaniards and soldiers, that amounts to hundreds of fowls, eggs, etc. , which the village must supply monthly and even daily. This isnot only an odious task, but also the reason for infamous vexationson the part of the cabezas de barangai, for the unhappy cailianes arethose who have to furnish it all without even collecting a thing. Itmust be well known that cheapness in articles proceeds only fromcollecting those articles and this proceeds only from abundance, and abundance only from freedom in the market; and the assigning ofa low price to any article by schedule is the most direct method ofrestricting its production and heightening its price. 

After all that we have set forth, one can well say that the departmentof the administration of justice is what needs the most promptand speedy reform. From that, then, it is obvious that all thealcaldes-mayor ought to be jurisconsults. The custom of allowinggovernors to trade is not suitable for the age in which we live, surely, although there are some who do not abuse their position, and today there are some who can be presented as models of honor andnobility, especially Don Juan Castilla who governs in Samar, and DonFrancisco Gutierrez de los Rios in Laguna. Not only is the latterfree from the avarice and other faults which are so common to otheralcaldes, and does not make use of the permission to trade, but alsorecognizes the defects of the present administration, and declaimsin the bosom of his friends against them, since he is imbued with thesane principles of justice and political economy. But in such mattersone must not reckon on virtue but always with human nature. One dayhappening to question one of the most judicious and kind persons whomI have known in the islands, how Alcalde Peñaranda had happened tolose his money, he answered me: "He gave it to an agent to use, he toshare in the profits, and then paid no attention to it for three yearsafter. He gave up his time very greatly to the building of bridgesand roads, and while he was busy in such bits of foolishness, theother made the most of his time and consumed it all. " Another person, of whose philanthropy and gentlemanliness I have positive proofs, toldme that if he obtained the government of a province, he would assembleall the influential men and make them an offer to renounce all tradeprovided that they gave him a certain annual sum. I replied to himthat that was an impracticable project and stated my reasons. "Then, "replied he, "I would harass everyone who engaged in trade until heceased it, or left the province, and it would be all the worse forhim. " Such are the evils of a bad system. One becomes accustomedto the idea that a government post offers the opportunity of makingmoney and nothing else. The moment that one has obtained office, hebelieves that he has a right to make money, without considering themeans to any extent; while he who is careless of his own interests andbusies himself in the progress of the province, like Señor Peñaranda, is ridiculed and called a fool. 

Many believe that to prohibit the alcaldes from trading would beuseless, because they would do it by all means through a secondperson. There might be some fraud, but there is no doubt but that theevil would be remedied, if not wholly, in great measure, especially ifany contract in regard to business interests signed by the alcaldesin Filipinas be declared null and void; for it is very difficult tofind in the country persons to whom to hand over a capital and be sureof their good faith, and it is not easy to take them with him fromEspaña. And even leaving aside these disadvantages, it will alwaysresult from the prohibition that the agent of the alcalde will haveto manage his money with great secrecy and as if it were his own, inwhich case there would be no trouble. The government of India was a fewyears ago entirely commercial, but since the commerce was prohibited, none of its dependents engage in it. Those who have savings depositthem in one of the banks or in one of the good commercial houses thereat four or five per cent, or indeed they buy public stock or speculatewith them. Alcaldeships in my opinion ought to be divided into threeclasses and given to individuals, all of them advocates, who wouldform a body of civil employes. When an alcaldeship of the first classfell vacant, it would be given to the senior advocate in charge ofthose of the second class, and so on. The regulation that alcaldeswere to remain in the country only six years was founded certainlyon the fear that they might acquire a dangerous influence over thecountry. To the degree that the precaution is not unfounded, the termis very short for so long a distance, for among other obstacles itcontains the one that when a chief is beginning to know the country hehas to leave it. Fifteen or twenty years would be a more fitting time. 

In English India all the civil and military employes know the languageof the country. That extreme, however advantageous it be, and is, infact could be brought about here only with difficulty. It would havebeen easy if one of the dialects of the islands had been establishedfrom the beginning as the language of the government and of the courts;for a Visayan learns Tagálog very quickly, and any other idiom ofthe country, and the same thing is true of the other natives. 

[If that had been done] all would at this moment show well or poorlythe dominant language, just as in Cataluña, Valencia, the BalearesIslands, and the Basque provinces, Castilian is known. But this isnot a matter which can be remedied in a brief time. Consequently, ifan alcalde who is beginning to administer justice in Cagayan has togo immediately to Cebú, he will surely arrive there without knowingthe language, although he had given himself to the study of it fromthe very beginning. But if this is an evil, this evil is now beingendured, for the alcaldes arrive from España, and since they know thatthey have to return in six years, they do not take the least troubleto learn the language, and they leave the government in this regardjust as when they entered it. 

In the capital and its suburbs, justice is administered by means oftwo lay alcaldes, who are appointed annually by the ayuntamiento fromthe citizens of the city. When the appointees are men of wealth, theyresign, for this charge alone occasions them ill-humor and seriousoccupations which distract them from their business. Those who acceptor desire it, can have no other stimulus than that of vile interest, tolerating prohibited games, etc. It is, then, necessary to appointtwo lawyers with suitable pay to be judges of first instance. 

Everyone knows what the Leyes de Indias are, the epoch in which theywere made, and the distinct regions for which they were dictated. Itis, then, indispensable and peremptory to make the civil codes oflegal processes, of criminal instruction, and of commerce especiallyfor the country. 

In India there is a commission of the government composed of fourvotes and a president, charged with making and revising the laws ofIndia. For the same purpose, in my opinion, three persons who hadstudied or should study the country would be sufficient here. Insuch case I would be of the opinion that they be not allowed todo their work together, but that each one work alone and presenthis results. Another commission ought to be appointed immediately(there would be no harm in those same men forming it) to examinethe codes and present a résumé of the points in which they differedessentially. These would be few and in regard to them the governmentcould take the best resolution. 

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL DATA

The following document is obtained from a MS. In the Archivo generalde Indias, Sevilla:

1. Letter from the archbishop of Manila. --"Simancas--Eclesiastico;Audiencia de Filipinas; cartas y espedientes de arzobispo de Manila;años 1579 á 1697; est. 68, caj. 1, leg. 32. "

The following document is obtained from a MS. In the Real Academiade la Historia, Madrid:

2. Jesuit protest. --"Papeles de los Jesuitas, to. 4o. , no. 259. "

The following document is obtained from a MS. In the Archivo general, Simancas:

3. Paz's Description of Philipinas. --"Consejo de Inquisicion, libro 786. " (We present such part of this document as relates tothe Philippines. )

The following are taken from the Ventura del Arco MSS. (Ayer library):

4. Condition of Philippines, 1652. --Tomo ii, pp. 385-390. 

5. Jesuit missions, 1655. --Tomo ii, pp. 391-399. 

6. Events in Manila, 1662-63. --Tomo ii, pp. 421-480. 

7. Letter from Salcedo. --Tomo ii, pp. 481-483. 

8. Friars and episcopal visitation. --Tomo ii, pp. 401-419. 

The following is obtained from Retana's Archivo:

9. Royal funeral rites. --Tomo ii, pp. 105-158. 

The following are taken from Pastells's edition of Colin's Laborevangélica:

10. Aid asked for Jesuits. --Tomo iii, pp. 786, 787. 

11. Two Jesuit memorials. --Tomo iii, pp. 804, 805. 

The following is taken from Historia general de los religiososdescalzos . .. De San Agustin:

12. Recollect missions, 1646-60. --Part ii, by Luis de Jesús (Madrid, 1681), pp. 371-373, from a copy in the possession of Edward E. Ayer, Chicago; and part iii, by Diego de Santa Theresa (Barcelona, 1743)pp. 134-558, from a copy in the Library of Congress--using only suchmatter as relates to the Philippines. 

The following is obtained from an old pamphlet not usually includedin Philippine bibliographies:

13. Description of Filipinas, 1662. --From a pamphlet published atPuebla, Mexico, in 1662; it is bound in with Letona's Perfectareligiosa (Puebla, 1662, a rare work), in the copy possessed byAntonio Graiño y Martinez, Madrid. 

The following is obtained from Sinibaldo de Mas's Informe de lasIslas Filipinas:

14. Administracion de Justicia (1842). --Vol. Ii, no. 12. 

NOTES

[1] Evidently a reference to the "Relation" of Father Fayol, q. V. , Vol. XXXV, pp. 212-275. 

[2] This was the mother of the dead prince Baltasar Cárlos--Isabel (orElizabeth) of France, daughter of Henri IV; she died October 6, 1644. 

[3] i. E. , "The crown of our head has fallen. "

[4] Spanish, una media naranja, literally, "a half orange. "

[5] The original verses are given for this and following stanzas, because of the plays on words which cannot be perfectly renderedin English. 

[6] Codal: A short thick wax candle, one cubit in length. 

[7] Upon the occasion of the death of the late pope Leo XIII, a richcatafalque was erected in the great cathedral of Sevilla, betweenthe choir and the high altar, and services were conducted somewhatin the same manner as here described. 

[8] Diego Patiño was born June 1, 1598, at Tarancon, in the dioceseof Cuenca, and entered his novitiate March 22, 1613. After teachinggrammar he went to the Philippines in 1622. He had charge of missionsin Catubig, Malanao, Iligan, and Dapitan; was afterwards associateto the provincial, rector of Catbologan and Manila, and provincialof the Philippines; and was finally sent to Rome as procurator. Hewas versed in the various dialects of the Bisayan Islands. SeeSommervogel's Bibliothèque, and post, note 9. 

[9] The archbishop of Manila, Miguel Poblete, wrote to the king inlike terms under date of July 8, 1654, as did also the bishop ofNueva Cáceres, under date of December 15, 1654. When Father DiegoPatiño reached Mexico, he obtained permission from the viceroy there(June 26, 1656) to go to Madrid and Rome. Patiño died of suffocationfrom hernia, in Tenerife at the convent of the Dominicans, July 26, 1657, and was succeeded in his office by Brother Francisco Bello, whopresented his licenses, authorizations, and memoranda to the Council, September 30, 1659 [sic. In Pastells, but probably 1658. ] Recruitsfinally reached the Jesuits in 1662. The above document is only oneof many written by various persons, detailing the need of the Jesuitmissions and petitioning aid. See Pastells's Colin, iii, pp. 787-790, where some of these letters are given with press-marks. 

[10] Magino Sola was born at Girona, April 22, 1605, and was admittedinto the Society of Jesus, August 15, 1624. He went to the Philippines, where he labored among the natives for three years, was procuratorof his province for four years, minister at Manila for three years, rector of Silang, and after 1659 procurator for the Philippines inSpain. He died at Cadiz, October 31, 1664. Sommervogel mentions twoletters written by him. 

[11] A note of Ventura del Arco, the transcriber and synopsizer ofthis document, says: "It is not exact to say that this was the causeof the insurrection of the Sangleys either in 1639 or in 1603. "

[12] Miguel Solana was born in Castilla, June 1, 1594; at the ageof eighteen he entered the Jesuit order, and ten years later (1622)came to the Philippines. During twenty years he ministered to boththe Spaniards and the natives, and later was (twice) provincial, andprocurator-general at Madrid. He died at San Miguel, December 21, 1669. 

Cf. This document with "Jesuit missions in 1656" (Vol. XXVIII of thisseries, pp. 78-103), both being written by royal command. 

[13] This information is obtained by Montero y Vidal from a reportmade in 1654 by the Jesuits, at the order of the colonial government;it is probably one of the local reports used by Solana in compilingthe preceding account. 

[14] Murillo Velarde says of the Lutaos (Hist. De Philipinas, fol. 73b): "They are capable and alert, and remind me of the gypsiesin España. "

[15] Montero y Vidal adds: "It is seen, then, that the Christianpopulation in charge of the Jesuits in Mindanao and adjacent regionswas at that time 50, 000 souls. The discalced Augustinians, who hadgone to aid the Jesuits in 1621 in extending their jurisdictions ofButuan and Caraga, had 20, 000 more or so in charge. As the entirepopulation of the island was, according to Father Colin, calculatedat that time at 150, 000, it follows that more than two-fifths hadembraced Christianity and were obedient to Spanish authority. "

[16] Before embracing a religious life, Brother Francisco Bello (orVello) had been a fine business man and merchant, and had a thoroughknowledge of the Orient. See Pastells's Colin, iii, p. 806. 

[17] Considerable legislation took place in regard to these twomemorials. They were submitted to Sebastian Hurtado de Corcuera, who indited his reply from Santander, November 22, 1658, in which hecorroborated the statements of Vello, and advises that the suggestionsin both be followed. They were also submitted to one LicentiateAntonio de León Pinedo, because of his knowledge of such matters, who answered under date of Madrid, January 10, 1659, advising thatthe forts of Terrenate be annexed to the spiritual jurisdictionof the Philippines. The fiscal, reporting on the matter at Madrid, February 11, 1659, also favors the establishment of a tribunal of theInquisition at Manila and the merging of the Terrenate forts in thearchbishopric of Manila. On March 11, 1659, the council resolved thatthe viceroy and Audiencia of Nueva España report pro and con on thefounding of a tribunal of the Inquisition in Manila, after conferringwith the inquisitor of Mexico; also that the governor and archbishopof the Philippines report on the means of supporting a tribunal of theInquisition without royal expense. A royal decree of April 24, 1659, directed to the governor and Audiencia of the Philippines, orders themto report pro and con on the separation of the Terrenate forts fromthe bishopric of Malacca and their addition to the archbishopricof Manila. Another decree of like date addressed to the viceroyand Audiencia of Nueva España orders a report on the establishmentof a tribunal in Manila. Although the memorials are without date, it is probable that they were presented to the royal Council in thelatter part of 1658; for Bello succeeded Patiño as procurator-generalat Tenerife, July 26, 1657. See the original documents presented byPastells (Colin, iii, pp. 806-810). 

[18] Mateo Bermudez was one of the Dominican mission that arrivedin the islands in 1626. He ministered in Formosa, and in the Pariánof Manila; and was afterward procurator at Madrid and Rome, andvisitador to the American provinces. In 1658 he returned to Mexico, remaining there until his death (1673), at the age of eighty. 

[19] In the MS. This latter clause is separated from the preceding one, but obviously refers to it. The argument of Solana is: The Dominicanschool requires the teachings of St. Thomas, "the Angelical Doctor, "to be maintained. But St. Thomas opposed the belief and doctrine ofthe immaculate conception of the blessed Virgin Mary. In Solana's daythe dogma of the immaculate conception had not yet been defined by theChurch; it then was a moot question. But in that day the belief in andteaching of the immaculate conception was common, though not (as said)of duty--Dominicans only, one may say, holding to the contrary. Thepupils, then, of Santo Tomas had to swear to uphold what was not commonbelief, although it was not then heretical. --Rev. T. C. Middleton, O. S. A. 

[20] Many passages in this document are very involved and elliptical, and in some places the sense is not at all clear. The translationis necessarily somewhat free, at times, in wording; but it isbelieved that the author's meaning is, as a rule, accuratelyrendered. --Rev. T. C. Middleton, O. S. A. 

[21] This description of the Philippines appears in a manuscriptbook of an itinerary of the district of the Inquisition of Mexico, made by the order of the bishop of Plasencia, Diego de Arce Reynoso, amember of his Majesty's Council and inquisitor-general of his kingdomsand seigniories, and given to Pedro de Medina Rico, visitor of theInquisition of the City of Mexico and its districts. The Philippineshave place in this itinerary, as they were under the Inquisitionof Mexico. This general visit or itinerary was to include a generalreview of all things affecting the Inquisition, its establishmentsand employees. 

[22] That is, along the bay shore in the other direction--northwardfrom the city of Manila. 

[23] This is a misstatement, for the three islands of Samar, Negros, and Panay are larger than Paragua, the areas of the four islands insquare miles being respectively, 5, 031, 4, 881, 4, 611, and 4, 027. SeeCensus of Philippine Islands, ii, p. 30. 

[24] The island of Cebú has an area of 1, 762 square miles; Bohol, 1, 441; 2, 722; 5, 031; Samar, 5, 031; Negros, 4, 881; Bantayan (theBantallan of the text), 47; Panai, 4, 611; Mindanao, 36, 292. See Censusof Philippine Islands, ii, p. 30. 

[25] Bachian, not Ternate, is the largest of the Moluccas, its areabeing 800 square geographical miles, while that of Ternate is only11. 5. See Crawfurd's Dictionary. 

[26] The following two sections are taken from the Historia de losreligiosos descalzos (Madrid, 1681) of Luis de Jesús, pp. 371-373. 

[27] The title-page of this book, translated, reads as follows:"General history of the discalced religious of the Order of thehermits of the great father and doctor of the Church, St. Augustine, of the congregation of España and of the Indias. Volume third:which was written by the very reverend father Fray Diego de SantaTheresa, pensioned lecturer, ex-definitor, and chronicler-generalof the said congregation; arranged and enlarged by Father FrayPedro de San Francisco de Assis, pensioned lecturer, calificadorof the Holy Office, definitor of the holy province of Aragon, andchronicler-general. Dedicated to Nuestra Señora del Pilar [i. E. , "ourLady of the Pillar"] of Zaragoza. Containing apologetic additionsto the first volume in defense of the discalced Augustinians, inanswer to what was written against them by the father master FrayAlonso de Villerino; and one decade, namely, from the year 1651 tothat of 1660. With license. In Barcelona; at the press of the heirsof Juan Pablo and Maria Martí, under the management of Mauro Martí, in the year 1743. " The heading of the dedication is as follows:"To the sovereign queen of heaven and earth, on her throne ofthe pillar in Zaragoza" and it is followed by a long and curiousletter of dedication. We translate and condense from a copy ownedby the Library of Congress, which bears the following inscription:[This book] belongs to the Library of the convent of the discalcedAugustinian fathers of Valladolid. Fray Tomas de San José, Librarian. "

[28] Manobos: This name is applied to several pagan Malay tribes innorthern and eastern Mindanao, the word meaning "man"--just as manyother savage tubes in all parts of the world designate themselves as"men" ("the men, " par excellence); but Santa Theresa's descriptionof them does not accord with that of Dr. Barrows. (See Census ofPhilippine Islands, i, pp. 461, 462. )

[29] The same name as Dávao, that of the province occupying thesoutheastern part of Mindanao. 

[30] i. E. "Black vomit;" a reference to the yellow fever, which isstill prevalent today in that region. 

[31] i. E. , "within two days' journey. "

[32] i. E. , "When officiating in his duties, and as far as it relatesto the care of souls. "

[33] The Negritos (who have been frequently mentioned in previousvolumes of this series), or Aetas, form part of the Eastern divisionof the pygmy race of blacks. In the Philippines, the Negritos aretound mainly in Luzón and Panay, and in northeastern Mindanao; insmaller numbers they also inhabit districts in Palawan and Negros, and in some small islands besides. As in our text, they are, inLuzón, often mentioned in connection with the Zambals--who "werethe most indolent and backward of the Malayan peoples, " and "who, in the days before the arrival of the Europeans, were in such closecontact with the Negritos as to impose on them their language, andthey have done it so thoroughly that no trace of an original Negritodialect remains. " See W. A. Reed's study of the "Negritos of Zambales, "vol. Ii, part i of Ethnological Survey Publications (Manila, 1904);it contains valuable information, based on actual field-work amongthose people, regarding their habitat, physical features, dress, industrial and social life, amusements, superstitions, etc. , withnumerous illustrations. 

[34] Apparently this comparison of financial statements was insertedby Fray Pedro de San Francisco de Assis, the editor of Santa Theresa'swork. 

[35] Agutaya is the principal island of the northern Cuyos group, and contains a town of the same name. 

[36] There are several places of this name in the islands; thereference in the text is probably Taytay, the chief town of northernPalawan. 

[37] Baler is capital of the subprovince of Príncipe, in Luzón;its latitude is 15° 40' 6" North. 

[38] The following statement by Dr. David P. Barrows--who is chief ofthe Bureau of Non-Christian Tribes, Manila, and is probably our bestauthority on this subject--presents the latest view regarding theorigin of the Filipinos, adopted after much patient and enthusiasticresearch in that field by him and other American ethnologists. It maybe found in the recently-published Census of the Philippine Islands, i, pp. 411-417. 

"Ethnologically, no less than geographically, the Philippines belongto the Malay archipelago. With the exception of the aboriginal dwarfblacks, the Negritos, who are still found inhabiting the forests ina great number of localities, all the tribes of the islands, whetherChristian, Mohammedan, or Pagan, are, in my belief, derived fromthe Malayan race. We probably have in these tribes two types whichrepresent an earlier and a later wave of immigration; but all camefrom the south, all speak languages belonging to one common stock, and all are closely related in physical type and qualities of mind. Asrepresentative of the first migratory movement may be named the Igorot, the mountain head-hunter of Northern Luzón; and of the latter almostany of the present Christian or Mohammedan tribes. The migratoryperiod of this latter type, which constitutes the great bulk of thepresent population of the islands, is almost covered by the earlyhistorical accounts of the exploration and settlement of the Far East. 

"Four hundred years ago, when the Portuguese discoverers andconquerors reached southeastern Asia, they found the long peninsulain which the continent ends, and the islands stretching south andeast in this greatest and most famous of archipelagoes, inhabited bya race which called itself Malayu. On the island of Java this racehad some ten centuries before been conquered by Brahmin Hindus fromIndia, whose great monuments and temples still exist in the ruinsof Boro Budor. Through the influence and power of the Hindus theMalay culture made a considerable advance, and a Sanskrit element, amounting in some cases to twenty per cent of the words, entered theMalayan languages. How far the Hindu actually extended his conquestsand settlements is a most interesting study, but can hardly yet besettled. He may have colonized the shores of Manila Bay and the coastof Luzón, where the names of numerous ancient places show a Sanskritorigin. The Sanskrit element is most pronounced in the Tagálog andMoro tongues. (Pardo de Tavera, El Sanscrito en la lengua Tagala. )

"Following the Hindus into the Malay archipelago came the Arabs. Theycame first as voyagers and merchants, and here as always the Arabwas a proselyter, and his faith spread rapidly. Long before thePortuguese arrival Islamism had succeeded Brahminism and the Arab hadsupplanted the Hindu. .. . Mohammedanism gradually made its way until, on the arrival of the Europeans, its frontiers were almost the sameas those of the Malay race itself. 

"The people who carried this faith, and who still rank as the typeof the race, were the seafaring population, living in boats as wellus on the shore, who control the islands of the straits betweenSumatra, the Malay Peninsula, and Borneo. These people received fromthe Portuguese the name of Cellates, a corruption of Orang Salat(Sea Folk). Under the influence of Mohammedanism this race, whichseems to have originated in Sumatra, improved in culture, formedmany settlements and principalities, and because of their seagoinghabits, their enjoyment of trade, and their lust for piracy, carriedtheir name (Malayu), their language, and their adopted Mohammedanreligion throughout the Malay archipelago. Probably as early as1300 these adventurers established a colony on northwest Borneo, opposite the island of Labuan, which colony received the name ofBrunei, from which has been derived the name of the whole island, Borneo. The island was already inhabited by Malayan tribes of moreprimitive culture, of which the Dyak is the best known. From thissettlement of Borneo the Mohammedanized Malay extended his influenceand his settlements to the Sulu archipelago, to Mindanao, to Mindoro, and to Manila Bay. " The people of Sulúan, whom Magellan encounterednear Sámar, "were almost certainly of the same stock from which thepresent great Visayan people are in the main descended. Many thingsincline me to believe that these natives had come, in successivelyextending settlements, up the west coast of Mindanao from the Suluarchipelago. .. . To the present day the physical type and the language, persisting unchanged in spite of changes of culture, closely relate theVisayan to the Moro. In addition to these arrivals from the archipelagoof Sulu there was probably a more primitive Malayan population, whomthe later arrivals already had more or less in subjection, as the Moroseven now control the pagans on the mainland of Mindanao. .. . Thus we mayinfer that at the time of the discovery there were on these centralislands of the archipelago, a primitive, tattooed Malayan people, related on the one hand to the still primitive and pagan tribes of thePhilippines, and on the other hand to the wild head-hunting tribesof Borneo; and in addition intruding and dominating later arrivals, who were the seafaring Malays. "

Interesting in this connection is the following remark on the Negritosby Taw Sein Ko, in his "Origin of the Burmese Race, " published in themagazine Buddhism, (Rangoon, Burma), in March, 1904: "There remainsthe question as to the autochthonous races which were displaced bythe Burmese, Talaings, Shans, Chins, and Karens in Burma. Before theadvent of these nations, the Negrito race appears to have occupiedsoutheastern Asia, including Burma. Remnants of it are still foundin the Andaman Islands, Philippines, Borneo, and Malaya. "

[39] Apparently a reference to Manuel Estacio Venegas, a favorite ofFajardo's, whose downfall Letona relates in sect. 59. 

[40] Vascongado: a term applied to the people or products of theSpanish provinces of Alava, Guipúzcoa, and Vizcaya (or Biscay). 

[41] A phonetic rendering of one of the numerous names of a notedChinese corsair--generally known as Kue-sing or Ko-xinga; La Concepciónalso gives, as his original Chinese name, Tching-tching-cong, and Coseng and Punpuan (in Diaz, Cogsin and Pompóan) as otherappellations. He also says that Kue-sing (the name meaning "adoptedson of a king") was adopted by the emperor Congun, who had no sons. Theaccounts of various writers do not agree regarding the early history ofthis adventurer; but that given by our text is apparently corroboratedby other accounts of Kue-sing's achievements and exploits during hislater years. Detailed relations of his career, and of his attemptupon the Philippines, may be found in Diaz's Conquistas, pp. 461, 551-555, 616-637; Santa Cruz's Hist. De Filipinas, pp. 271-278, etc. ;Murillo Velarde's Hist. De Philipinas, fol. 270b-275; La Concepción'sHist. De Philipinas, vi, pp. 345 (sc. 355)-359, and vii, pp. 38-56;Ferrando's Hist. PP. Dominicos, iii, pp. 12-17, 29-41, 47-67, 78-98;Montero y Vidal's Hist. De Filipinas, i, pp. 313-322, 329. Ferrandocalls Kue-sing the "Attila of the East. "

[42] Vittorio Ricci (Spanish Riccio) was a relative of the notedJesuit, Mateo Ricci. He made profession as a Dominican in 1635, and was a student and afterward a teacher in the Dominican collegeat Rome. Meeting there (1643) the noted Fray J. B. Morales, Riccidecided to return with him to the East, and arrived at Manila in1648. There he ministered to the Chinese for seven years, when he wassent to the China mission. He was much favored by the noted Kue-sing(or Ko-xinga), who obliged him to become his ambassador to Manila(1662). Returning to China, Ricci found that Kue-sing was dead, and persuaded the latter's officers that it was to their interestto maintain peace and commerce with the Spaniards--for which purposethey sent him again to Manila, as here narrated. In 1664 a persecutionarose in China, and the missionaries were summoned to Peking. Fearingto obey, as he had been on Kue-sing's side, Ricci fled to Formosa, andafterward (March, 1666) returned to Manila--where he was imprisonedfor some time. Afterward he held various important offices in hisorder, and aided in the compilation of Santa Cruz's continuationof Aduarte's history. He died at the Parián, February 17, 1685. SeeReseña biográfica, ii, pp. 461-464. 

[43] The letter of Kue-sing, and the governor's reply, may be foundin Diaz's Conquistas, pp. 625, 626, 629-631; and Murillo Velarde'sHist. De Philipinas, fol. 271, 274. 

[44] The order to abandon Zamboanga arrived there on June 19, 1662;but this was not accomplished until April, 1663. The commandant ofthis fort at that time was Fernando de Bobadilla. Paquian Bactial, king of Joló, as soon as he heard of the proposed abandonment, plottedto kill all the Spaniards in Zamboanga, and make it his own capital;he asked Corralat to aid in this enterprise, but the latter refusedto break his peace with the Spaniards. Royal decrees at various timesordered that fort to be again occupied; but this was not done until1718, under the rule of Governor Bustamente. (See Murillo Velarde'sHist. De Philipinas, fol. 275, 276. )

[45] Probably thus named from the tree called talisay (Terminaliacatappa), as perhaps constructed from its wood. Its bark is used fordyeing; and its seeds are edible, resembling almonds. See Blanco'sFlora (ed. 1845), p. 264; and Official Handbook of Philippines, pp. 309, 356. 

[46] Referring to the Dominican Riccio, who with the title of mandarinhad brought Kue-sing's message. 

[47] "From the cattle-herds on the ranches, and other men who wereskilful in managing horses, he formed a cavalry troop of 400 men, in command of Don Francisco de Figueroa" (Murillo Velarde, Hist. DePhilipinas, fol. 273). 

[48] José de Madrid, a native of Cebú, was a student and later ateacher, in the college of Santo Tomás at Manila, having entered theDominican order in 1646. He went to China, but, fearing to lose hislife, returned to Manila, only to die, as here related, at the handsof the Chinese (May 25, 1662). 

[49] These were Malays who had accompanied the Spaniards from Ternate, where they formed a village, their name meaning "free people"(Pastells's ed. Of Colin's Labor evangélica, iii, pp. 266, 812). LaConcepción (Hist. De Philipinas, vii, p. 102) says: "Under this name[i. E. , Mardicas, or Merdicas] are included natives of Ternate, Tidore, and Siao; of Manados, Cauripa, Celebes, and Macasar. They were allotteda dwelling-place at Marigondon, on the great bay of Manila . .. Andtheirs is the island of Corregidor, from which they give warningof the ships that they descry, by signal-fires. " He says that theyspeak three languages--Spanish, Tagálog, and their own dialect; and"regard themselves as the spiritual sons of St. Francis Xavier, to whomthey are singularly devoted--a feeling inspired by their forefathers, who had known him and witnessed his marvelous works. " Ferrando says(Hist. PP. Dominicos, iii, p. 94) that these people have preservedtheir own dialect, usages, and customs; and up to recent times hadnot intermarried with the Filipinos of neighboring villages. 

[50] La Estacada (literally "the stockade") was on the same side ofthe Pasig River as Binondoc, but separated from that village by thelittle estuary which leads to the village of Tondo. See Muñoz's mapof Manila and its suburbs (1671) in Pastells's edition of Colin'sLabor evangélica, iii, p. 824; this map will be reproduced in thepresent series. 

[51] Spanish falsabraga: "a parapet constructed at a lower elevationthan the main parapet, and between the parapet and the edge of theditch. It was used only in permanent fortification, and has long beenobsolete;" see Wilhelm's Military Dictionary (Phila. , 1881), p. 158. 

[52] Cf. With this description the fortifications indicated on Muñoz'smap, mentioned ante, p. 243, note 50. 

In order to prevent the enemy from fortifying large buildings outsidethe walls, "orders were issued to demolish the churches of Santiago, Bagumbaya, Hermita, Malate, Parañaque, Dilao, San Lazaro, the Parian, and Santa Cruz--besides various country houses which the Spaniards ownin those environs. " (Murillo Velarde's Hist. De Philipinas, fol. 272. )

[53] This son was called Kin-sié, also known as Tching King-may andSipuan; La Concepción says (vii, p. 55) that he, "who had been rearedin the study, among books, did nothing to cultivate the countrywhich his father had acquired with so many dangers and fatigues, and the troops therefore became, in his service, lax and cowardly. "

[54] The references in this document to the rulers of China canhardly be satisfactorily identified; the various names given to thesame person, the conflicting claims of various usurpers or temporaryrulers, and the struggle between the dying Ming dynasty and the Manchuconquerors, cause great confusion and uncertainty in the history ofthat period. The actual ruler of China was then the Manchu Chuntche(1646-61); he was succeeded by his second son, Kanghi. 

[55] Nanking was, under some early Chinese dynasties, the capitalof the empire. This name signifies merely "Southern Court;" theproper appellation of the city is Kianningfu. Odoric of Pordenoñe, who visited it near the year 1325, says that its walls had a circuitof forty miles, and in it were three hundred and sixty stone bridges, the finest in the world (Yule's Cathay, i, pp. 120, 121). 

[56] This was Hia-mun, or Emuy (known by the English as Amoy); it liesoff the province of Fuh-kien, at the mouth of the Lung-kiang ("Dragon")River. On it lies the city of Amoy, a large and important commercialport; it has one of the best harbors on the coast. (Williams's MiddleKingdom, i, pp. 114, 115. )

[57] Diaz relates this (Conquistas, p. 619) in greater detail. "TheTartar [i. E. , Chuntche], seeing himself reduced to so great straits. .. Resolved to command that all the [inhabited places on the] maritimecoasts should be laid waste and dismantled, for a distance of threeor four leguas inland, throughout the more than eight hundred leguasof coasts which that empire possesses. This, to the great injuryof the empire, left demolished and razed to the ground innumerablesettlements and cities, enough to compose several kingdoms. This wasthe greatest conflagration and havoc that the world has seen, . .. Andonly populous China could be the fit theater for such a tragedy, and only the cruel barbarity of the Tartars [could make them the]inventors and executors of such destruction. The upheaval which theexecution of this so unexampled cruelty caused cannot be described; theloss of property is incalculable; and human thought cannot conceive thehorror produced by the sight of so many thousands of towns and citiesburning. At last this general conflagration was completed, the firelasting many days--the clouds of smoke reaching as far as Hia-muen, more than twenty leguas, and the sun not being visible in all thatbroad expanse. Stations were established at suitable distances foreasily rendering aid, well garrisoned with soldiers; and watch-towerswere erected a legua apart, to keep a lookout over the sea-coasts. Apublic proclamation forbade any person to pass the bounds assigned, four leguas distant from the seashore. With these precautions, ifKue-sing's ships landed there, a great number of soldiers were quicklyassembled to dispute his entrance into the country--thus keepingwithin bounds Kue-sing, who now did not encounter sleeping men. "

[58] Referring to the bay whereon was situated the chief settlementand fort of the Dutch in Formosa, that of Tai-wan, in the southwesternpart of the island. 

[59] Apparently referring to the usual despatch of several copies ofa letter, to ensure its safe receipt. The form of this summary wouldindicate that it is made by Ventura del Arco; and it is followed bya tracing of Salcedo's autograph. 

[60] Either this date or the date 1665 (see post, p. 266) is doubtlessa transcriber's error. 

[61] I Corinthians, vii, 20. 

[62] Alcalde de monterilla: An ironical and descriptive qualificationof petty judges (Dominguez's Diccionario). 

[63] As appears from a note by Mas, the alcaldes paid a certain sumfor the privilege of trading. Their salaries in 1840 were variouslyfor the sums of 300, 600, and 1, 000 (one instance) pesos. The tradingprivilege cost from 40 to 300 pesos. 

[64] This is the famous philosophical treatise on political science, which was published by Charles de Secondat, baron de la Brède deMontesquieu, in 1748, and was the product of twenty years' work. 

[65] Jeremy Bentham, the English jurist and philosopher wholived in the years 1748-1832. 

[66] Probably referring to La scienza della legislazione of GaetanoFilangieri, the Italian jurist, who lived 1752-88. He was influencedsomewhat by Montesquieu. 

[67] i. E. , Of the Leyes de Indias.