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 XL, 1690-1691

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

CONTENTS OF VOLUME XL

 Preface 9

 Document of 1691

 Events at Manila, 1690-91. [Unsigned; Manila, June, 1691. ] 21

 Bibliographical Data 33

 Appendix: Ethnological description of the Filipinos Native races and their customs. Francisco Colin, S. J. ; Madrid, 1663. [From his Labor evangélica. ] 37 The natives of the southern islands. Francisco Combés, S. J. ; Madrid, 1667. [From his Historia de Mindanao, Ioló, etc. ] 99 Letter on the Filipinos. Gaspar de San Agustín, O. S. A. ; 1720 183 The native peoples and their customs. Juan Francisco de San Antonio, O. S. F. ; Manila, 1738. [From his Crónicas. ] 296

ILLUSTRATIONS

 Photographic facsimile of frontispiece to Colin's Labor evangélica (Madrid, 1663); from the copy in possession of Edward E. Ayer, of Chicago 39

 Title-page of Historia de las islas de Mindanao, etc. , by Francisco Combés, S. J. , (Madrid, M. DC. LXVII): photographic facsimile from copy in library of Harvard University 101

 Title-page of Conquistas de las islas Philipinas, by Gaspar de San Augustin; photographic facsimile from copy in Biblioteca-Museo de Ultramar, Madrid 185

 Autograph signature of Gaspar de San Augustin; photographic facsimile from original manuscript in collection of Eduardo Navarro, O. S. A. , of the Colegio de Filipinas, Valladolid facing p. 278

PREFACE

In the present volume but one document appears in the chronologicalorder of events in the islands; it is short, and is mainly concernedwith the ecclesiastical disputes which had been only partly quietedwith the death of Archbishop Pardo. The rest of the volume is occupiedby an ethnological appendix, which presents the observations of earlymissionary writers--Jesuit, Augustinian, and Franciscan--on the nativepeoples and their customs and beliefs. Due allowance being made fortheir ecclesiastical standpoint, these writers may be consideredexcellent authority on this subject--especially Combés, who was oneof the Jesuit pioneers in Mindanao. 

The document first mentioned above is a letter from a Manila Jesuit, relating events in that city during the year 1690-91. As in thelifetime of Pardo, there are dissensions between the ecclesiasticaland the secular powers, the former represented by Bishop Barrientos, acting ruler of the archdiocese; the latter by the Audiencia untilJuly, 1690, and after that by the new governor, Zabálburu. The bishopattempts to remove by force some of his prebends from the Augustinianconvent, but is foiled by the vigilance of the friars. Being opposedin this scheme by the auditors, Barrientos excommunicates them, a proceeding which they ignore. At the coming of the new governor, his favor is adroitly obtained by a military officer named Tomásde Endaya; and the auditors are for a time treated insolently byboth. Zabálburu soon shows, however, that no one can govern him;and he displays much egotism, contemns the religious, and oppressesthe Indians with exactions for public works. 

The Jesuit Colin, one of the pioneers in the Philippine missions, furnishes in his Labor evangélica (Madrid, 1663) a valuable accountof the native races and their customs. He makes some attempt totrace the origin of the Malayan tribes, which he places, for most, in the islands of Sumatra and Macasar (or Celebes), and for some inthe Moluccas. The Negritos came, he thinks, from Farther India, andpossibly from New Guinea also. A chapter is devoted to the alphabet, mode of writing, and languages in use among the Filipínos. Colinpraises their quickness and cleverness; some of them act as clerksin the public offices at Manila, and of these some are capable oftaking charge of such offices; and they are competent printers. Colindiscourses at length upon the native languages--admiring the richnessand elegance of the Tagálog--and upon their mode of bestowing personalnames. He then proceeds to describe their physical appearance, dress, ornaments, treatment of hair and teeth, and tattooing; their food, customs in eating, and modes of making wine; their songs and dances;their habits of bathing. Their deities, religious observances, and superstitions are recounted--including the worship of spirits, ancestors, idols, and phenomena of nature--and their ideas of thecreation, and of the origin of man. Their mortuary customs includethe employment of hired mourners, the embalming of the corpse, thekilling of slaves to accompany the soul of the deceased, and a tabooimposing silence. Colin gives an account of their limited form ofgovernment (its unit the barangay); their laws, criminal and civil, with their penalties (among which appears the ordeal); the differentranks of society, and the occupations of the people; their weapons andarmor; their marriages and divorces, and punishments for adultery. Healso recounts their customs in adoption of children, inheritance ofproperty, and slavery. Similar information is furnished by anotherJesuit writer of note, Francisco Combés, on the native peoples ofMindanao and other southern islands, in which he spent twelve years asa missionary. He enumerates the several tribes and their distinctivecharacteristics; of these the Lutaos (or Orang-Laút, "men of the sea"), the chief seafaring and trading tribe, have acquired an ascendancyover the others which is comparable to that of the Iroquois amongthe North American Indians. Combés describes their mode of warfare, and ascribes to their aid the supremacy of Corralat over the otherMoro chieftains, since their wars are of little importance exceptwhen waged by the sea-routes. These Lutaos of the coast hold in asort of vassalage the Subanos, or river-dwellers, who are slothful, ignorant savages, treacherous and cowardly. Combés next praises "thenoble and brave nation of the Dapitans, " a small tribe who migratedfrom Bohol to Mindanao; he relates their history as a people, and whythey changed their abode, and how they have always been the loyalfriends and followers of the Spaniards. The virtue and ability oftheir women receives much praise. Combés discusses the origin of theMindanao peoples, and sketches the general characteristics of each, and their mutual relations. According to our author, the Joloans andBasilans came from Butuan, in northeastern Mindanao; and the historyof this migration is related in some detail, as well as the way inwhich the Joloans became so addicted to piracy. 

Combés proceeds to recount the beliefs and superstitions current inthe southern islands. Paganism prevails in them; but the southerncoast of Mindanao, and Basilan and Joló, are Mahometan. Curiouslegends are related of the founder of the latter religion there, whois reverenced almost as a divinity; but those people know littleof Mahomet's religion save its externals, and are practically"barbarous atheists. " The people are largely governed by omens;they sometimes offer sacrifices to their old-time idols, but thesehave little real hold on them. Sorcery has great vogue among them, and Corralat and other powerful chiefs excel in it; this is onesource of their ascendancy. Combés describes their mode of life:their food (which is little besides boiled rice), their clothing, their houses and furniture; and their usages and laws regardingconduct, crimes, and penalties. He regrets the prevalence of slavery, which profanes all social relations, and even destroys all kindnessand charity. There is no class of freemen; all are either chiefs orslaves. All offenses are atoned for by the payment of money, savecertain unnatural crimes, which they punish with death. Among theMoros is practiced the ordeal by fire, and the burial of the livingfor certain crimes; but some escape from these in safety, throughtheir power as sorcerers. The authority and government of the chiefs isdescribed; they are tyrannical and rapacious, and treat as slaves evenchiefs who are subject to them. Combés makes special mention of somecustoms peculiar to the Subanos, or river-people. They are exceedinglyrude and barbarous, without any government; and a perpetual pettywarfare is waged among them. Their women, however, are more chastethan those of other tribes, and Lutao girls of rank are reared, fortheir own safety, among the Subanos. Among these people is a classof men who dress and act like women, and practice strict celibacy;one of them is baptized by Combés. A chapter is devoted to theirburials and marriages. In the burial of the dead they spend lavishly, clothing the corpse in rich and costly garments; but they have ceased, under Christian influence, to bury the dead man's treasures withhim. Marriages are celebrated with the utmost display, hospitality, and feasting; and with entire propriety and decorum. Another chapterdescribes the boats and weapons used by the natives. 

Next we present the famous letter on this subject by Gaspar de SanAgustín (June 8, 1720); our text is collated with other versions, andfreely annotated from these, and from comments made by Delgado and Mason San Agustín's statements. San Agustín, who had spent forty yearsamong the Filipinos, begins by expatiating on the great difficultyof comprehending the native character, which is inscrutable--"notin the individuals, but in the race. " They are fickle and false, also of a cold temperament, and malicious, dull, and lazy--due to"the influence of the moon. " They are ungrateful, lazy, rude andimpertinent, arrogant, and generally disagreeable. San Agustínrelates many of their peculiar traits, and incidents showing these, to much disparagement of the natives. He berates their ignoranceand superstition, their faults of character, their conduct towardthe Spaniards, their lack of religious devotion, etc. --exempting, however, from these censures in the main the Pampangos, who are morenoble, brave, and honorable, and are "the Castilians of these sameIndians;" and the women, who are devout, modest, and moral (althoughhe ascribes this to the subjection in which they are held by the men, and the necessity for the women to support not only their children buttheir husbands). After all these complaints, San Agustín returns tohis former position, that it is impossible to understand the natureof the Filipinos; and all that he has related is but approximate andtentative. For this reason, it is necessary (especially for religious)to know how to conduct oneself with them. He therefore makes varioussuggestions for enabling their spiritual fathers to guide themdiscreetly and successfully. No less interesting than his accountof the people are the comments made thereon by the Jesuit Delgado(himself long a missionary in the islands), and the Spanish officialMas, who spent some time there and visited many of the islands. Theformer refutes many of San Agustín's statements, sometimes verysharply; the latter often supports them, but sometimes he findsthem in contradiction to what he himself has observed. Fray Gaspar'sletter impresses the reader, at first, as being the complaint of anirritable and querulous old man (he wrote it at the age of seventy);but another cause for his mental attitude may be found toward the endof his letter, where he argues against the proposed ordination ofFilipino natives as priests--a plan which aroused great oppositionfrom the religious orders. The MS. Which we use contains a sort ofappendix to San Agustín's letter in the shape of citations from thenoted Jesuit writer Murillo Velarde. These are evidently adduced insupport of San Agustin's position, and disparage the character of theIndians in vigorous terms. Finally, we present a chapter from Delgado'sHistoria de Filipinas making further comment on San Agustín's letter, and defending the natives from the latter's aspersions; he refutes manyof these, and censures Fray Gaspar severely. He also regards MurilloVelarde's description of the native character as hasty, superficial, and exaggerated. Besides, Delgado reminds his readers of the greatservices rendered to the Spaniards by the Indians--who alone carryon the agriculture, stock-raising, trade, and navigation on whichthe support of the Spaniards (who, "when they arrive at Manila, areall gentlemen") absolutely depends--and declares that the Spaniardsthemselves are arrogant and tyrannical toward the Indians. 

Additional information regarding the native peoples is afforded bythe Franciscan writer Juan Francisco de San Antonio, in his Crónicas(Manila, 1738-44). He begins with a dissertation on the origin of theFilipino Indians, in examining which he finds many difficulties. Henotes several of the mixtures of different races which have produceddistinct types; among these he is inclined to class the half-civilizedmountain-dwellers in the larger islands--who, as he thinks, springfrom either civilized Indians who have retreated to the hill-country, or from the intercourse of native Filipinos with Japanese, Chinese, and other foreigners. The Chinese and Japanese who live in andnear Manila, and some Malabar mestizos, are desirable elements ofthe population. The Negritos are the aboriginal inhabitants; informer times they harassed the Indian natives with frequent raids, and killed all who ventured into the mountain region. In the time ofSan Antonio, the Indians secretly pay them tribute, in order to avoidtheir raids. He describes their physical aspect, costume, and mode oflife; he conjectures that they came to the Philippines originally fromNew Guinea. The civilized peoples may all be reduced to the Tagálogs, Pampangos, Visayans, and Mindanaos; all are of Malay stock. Of these, the first probably came from Malacca, as traders, remaining in Luzónas conquerors; the Pampangos, from Sumatra. The Visayans may havecome from the Solomon Islands, but this is not certain. In Mindanao, as in Luzón, the black aborigines were driven into the interiorby the Malay traders who came there. These latter show much tribalvariation, but all must have come from the near-by islands of Borneo, Macasar, or the Moluccas. San Antonio characterizes these Mindanaopeoples separately. The coast tribes are partly Mahometan, partlychristianized; the missions among them are those of the Recollectsand Jesuits. The mountain tribes are apparently the aboriginalnatives--also Malayan, according to some, but it may be from Celebesor other islands. All these our author presents as conjectures only;"God is the only one who knows the truth. " He proceeds to describe thecharacteristics and disposition of the Filipino natives, which is fullof contradictions. They are hospitable, but neglect their parents;and are deceitful and ungrateful. They are exceedingly clever andimitative, and even show much ability in many occupations and mentalexercises; but they are apt to be superficial, incorrect, indifferentto results, slothful and lacking in concentration of mind. "Theirunderstandings are fastened with pins, and attached always to materialthings. " Our writer then describes the languages, mode of writing, manners and names, that are current among these peoples; also theirphysical features, clothing, and adornments. Curiously enough, San Antonio states that the Visayans have--(in his day) given upthe practice of tattooing their bodies. He proceeds to recount thereligious beliefs and superstitions of the Filipinos, much as Colinand other early writers have done, but with somewhat more detail incertain matters, especially in regard to the omens and superstitionsof the people. Their government and social conditions (especially theformer practice of enslavement) are described in detail; also theircustoms in regard to marriages and dowries, transaction of business, weights and measures, inheritances, etc. 

 The Editors June, 1906. 

DOCUMENT OF 1691

 Events at Manila. [Unsigned; June, 1691. ]

Source: This document is obtained from the Ventura del Arco MSS. (Ayerlibrary), iv, pp. 53-67. 

Translation: This is made by Emma Helen Blair. 

EVENTS AT MANILA, 1690-91

 Relation of what occurred in Manila from June 24, 1690 to the present month of June in this year, 1691. 

The tragedy which for years has been enacted in this city of Manila hashad some variation this year, from the time when the galleon "SantoCristo de Burgos" set sail for Nueva España up to the present monthof July, in which the galleon called "Nuestra Señora del Rosario, San Francisco Javier y Santa Rosa" has been fitted up for the saidnavigation. By it is [sent] this written relation, which will containthe most notable events which have occurred in Manila, omitting manyothers, on account of not having secured information of them becausethey occurred outside of Manila. 

I have already written, last year, of the condition in which theaffairs of the bishop of Troya remained; to wit, that the necessarydecrees were issued by the royal Audiencia that the bishop shouldrestore the [ecclesiastical] government to the cabildo, to whom itbelonged, as appears from the acts which the cabildo had presentedin the Audiencia--not only by way of appeal from fuerza, but also onbehalf of the right of the royal patronage, which resided in that body, since the said Audiencia was exercising the civil government in theseislands. These efforts were hindered by the efforts of the auditorDon Alonso, former commander of the troops, and Don Tomas de Endaya, master-of-camp of the army in Manila for which I refer to the accountwhich was given to his Majesty. 

This, then, by way of preliminary. When the galleon "Santo Cristode Burgos" set sail for Nueva España, there was little respite fromnegotiations of this sort, as we had hoped would be the case until thearrival of the new governor, [1] who thought that he would certainlyarrive that year. Thus ran the talk of all. But, as the said bishopis so peculiar in his decisions, he made an astonishing resolution;this was, to go in person to the convent of San Agustin, a littleafter two o'clock in the afternoon, having crossed a great part ofthe city on foot, accompanied by two clerics (it is evident that theymust have been among the most unassuming ones), laden with pistolsand other weapons, in order to take away from the said convent thedean, the cantor, and other prebends from the place where they hadtaken refuge--their safety being, for fear of the bishop, protectedby royal decrees. 

This performance gave much material for gossip, in which the blame waslaid upon the commander of the troops and his favorite Don Tomas, andeven on the Augustinian friars themselves, for having all left the citythat day in order that thus the bishop could carry out his purpose, without its being easy to secure recourse from the violence which heintended; for the commander of troops had gone to take supper at acountry house, the provincial of St. Augustine had betaken himselfto a resort on the river, and the prior had left the convent just attwo o'clock. 

This scheme, if it were one, was not carried out; for the choristersand the vicar of the convent, being informed how the bishop intendedto remove thence the persons who were protected by his Majesty andentrusted to their care, made it a point of honor that such an accidentshould [not] happen, since neither the provincial nor the prior was inthe convent; accordingly, by the time the bishop arrived they closedthe gates of the convent, not permitting him to enter. Thereuponvarious colloquies took place between the two parties, making the casemore plausible by the detention of the bishop and his satellites atthe gate opening into the street. Meanwhile the friars had time tonotify the prior and inform the gentlemen of the royal Audiencia. 

With the arrival of the prior, entrance into the convent was made easyfor his illustrious Lordship, to whom the friars set forth that theycould not gratify his wishes without first making the auditors awareof his claims. The bishop agreed to this, but on condition that theynotify only Don Alonzo, of whom his illustrious Lordship must have beensure. In short, the fact is that the case first reached the auditors'ears; and they, assembled in session, issued the decrees which, asI mentioned above, they left to the efforts of Señor Fuertes--whoin all haste went to the palace, and finding the auditors in thecouncil-chamber, displayed much anger that they should have made sucha decision without his presence and counsel. 

Since there is no remedy, when a thing has been done, except patience, as the common saying goes, it was now arranged that Señor Fuertesand Señor Ozaeta should go to San Agustín to pacify the bishop, inwhich task they spent the greater part of the afternoon. The unjustthings said by the bishop to Señor Ozaeta, and the uncivil languagewhich he tolerated from the bishop, are not fit to relate. At fiveo'clock in the afternoon, the bishop went away from San Agustin quiterebuffed but very respectfully treated by the two auditors and theirnumerous companions. In front of his illustrious Lordship walkedhis provisor and faithful Achates, Master Don Geronimo Caraballo, bitterly lamenting the miserable condition in which Manila was, since they were hindering their prelate in a resolution so just, since it was to punish those wicked clerics who had taken refuge inSan Agustin. It is well to note the pious exclamation of this prebend, for it will be quite important to the case afterward. 

This chimerical attempt turned out badly for his illustrious Lordshipin the end; and he undertook to be revenged when one was least lookingfor it. For the news having arrived, on July 30, that one of thetwo galleons which were expected on the return voyage from NuevaEspaña had reached the Embocadero, and that in it was coming thegovernor, there was discussion whether his illustrious Lordship wasproceeding in the execution of his designs. But it was not thus; forhis illustrious Lordship, a few days after this information arrived, posted the auditors as excommunicated, saying that they had incurredthis by the bull De cena, forasmuch as they had tried cases which byright belonged to the ecclesiastical jurisdiction, as the law statesthat these are not separated from that jurisdiction. Notwithstandingthe publication of their names, the auditors ignored the censure, aslaunched a non judice [i. E. "by one who is not a judge"]; but it wasnot on this account that not only they but the entire city yielded tothe pressure of great anxiety. For they feared lest the new governor, whose coming was daily expected, would be tinctured with the sameopinions as those held by Don Gabriel, the deceased governor--whichwere based on the same sort of case as was then occurring. For, theysaid, since a new governor (who is the only arbiter for all classesin Manila) was at the gates of the city [he might] without searchinghis own mind, have taken a resolution so unusual that even Don FelipePardo had not ventured to execute it against the corporate body ofan Audiencia. It is not possible that there should be any secretinformation. People confirmed it when they learned how Don Tomas deEndaya had sent a despatch to the ship by a person who stood high inhis regard, in a very swift champan, so that he could in the nameof Don Tomas give his letters and welcome to the governor who wasexpected, with a valuable present. It was well known that the saidchampan had been wrecked; but it was also learned that the person whobore that commission had landed, before the wreck of the champan, inone of the provinces there; but it was not known whether the present[that he carried] was landed, and for this reason it was uncertainwhether the determinations of the bishop were the results of theassiduity of Don Tomas de Endaya, who was a supporter of the bishop. 

The talk went further; for inasmuch as the first news which reachedthese islands that the ship had arrived at the Embocadero was sentto Don Tomas de Endaya by his brother Don Bernardo--whom, they said, he had made alcalde of Catbalongan, which is the first passage andentrance into these islands--[they said that this was done], first, that he might place in safety the thousands of pesos which he expectedwould be brought to him by the patache which he had sent to NuevaEspaña, laden with goods belonging to himself and Don Gabriel deCuruzealegui, which was coming on its return voyage; and second, that he might gain the good-will of the new governor with giftsand favors. The latter opinion prevailed, and on this ground peopleconsidered the action of the bishop of Troya as not so bold. Thesealone were the topics discussed, proceeding from the beginningswhich they fancied to be facts. But after they experienced some ofthe actions of the new governor, they regarded as certain that whichbefore they had only considered probable. For, the royal Audienciahaving decided that Auditor Don Juan de Sierra should go in theirname to welcome the governor, the said auditor went up the riverto fulfil his commission, and, having met the piragua in which thegovernor was coming with his family, the auditor went close to it, to present his message; but neither did the governor open the curtainof the pavilion or stern-cabin of the vessel, nor permit the auditorto speak to him, but obliged him to sheer off from the side of thepiragua. At this rebuff, the said auditor was obliged to join theother vessels which accompanied the governor, following the piragua, which was very swift--for from the ranch of Don Tomas de Endaya(where the governor had been entertained as a guest) to Manila isa journey of at least one day, but the piragua made it in much lesstime. Thus the foresight of Don Tomas gained not only the privilegeof entertaining the governor, but the opportunity of becoming hisfavorite, for which purpose he acted thus. 

The governor arrived at Manila about four o'clock in the afternoon;the wind was blowing violently, and the rain fell in torrents, heavier than have been seen for many years in these islands. Allthese discomforts were overcome by the bold and impetuous dispositionof our new governor; but I am not surprised at such haste, sincehe came for more than to obtain a bishopric. He was lodged in thebuildings which the city had made ready for him, where he was awaitedby Don Tomas de Endaya, with other citizens of his following, andthey retired to his room, which had been prepared for him. He shuthimself up there with Don Tomas, and gave orders to the guard thatno one should be allowed to enter. At the same time the auditor DonJuan de Sierra arrived to acquit himself of his embassy; he had beenthoroughly wet on the river, but the captain of the guard detainedhim, telling him of the order that he had, not to allow any one toenter. The auditor replied that these orders ought not to apply to anauditor who came in the name of the royal Audiencia. The captain ofthe guard then carried word to the governor, telling him how AuditorDon Juan de Sierra was there, who had come on behalf of the royalAudiencia to welcome his Lordship. The governor answered that hehad come there fatigued, and that he was not ready for visits; andthen he continued to walk up and down, hand in hand with Don Tomas, and shut in his room, until the night had well begun. Then the said[Don Tomas] took his leave, returning to his house within Manila, with much contentment, and explained to several confidants how he hadfirmly established himself, and that they had formed a close alliance;but that it would be more veiled than that which had existed betweenthe said Don Tomas and Don Gabriel--the new governor promising tofavor his affairs in every way. Such was the judgment formed at thetime, and that opinion is further strengthened every day. 

On the following day, early in the forenoon, Don Alonso--who isthe person charged with the direction of military affairs--went tovisit the new governor, by whom he was very kindly and graciouslyreceived. They spent several hours in conversation, alone or incompany with the said Don Tomas; and Don Alonso informed him of allthe troubles that he and his associates had experienced in regardto matters connected with the bishop of Troya; for this was theprincipal design which both sides had--the friendly reception of thenew governor. The Audiencia did not go to visit the governor until theyascertained whether he would receive them, fearing, on account of thereasons which have been mentioned, that the excommunication which thebishop had made known to them had been imposed through the influenceof the governor. But this turned out better than they expected, for he received them with much friendliness; he took a seat below, with them all, trying to treat all with kindness, and gratifying notonly Don Tomas and his faction but the Audiencia. Various events andcircumstances occurred at the time when he was making arrangementsfor his entry into the city, which tended to persuade all that noone would govern him, and that his proceedings would be those of anupright judge. 

He made, then, his entry, and soon displayed the energy of his nature, and a hasty and vehement disposition. One day, when the soldiers in theguard-room of his palace were talking loudly at a gaming-table, he camedown in person, and with his blows broke a cane on the men; with this, he gained among the soldiers the surname of "the good sergeant. " Heissued numberless proclamations, which no one now observes, becausethe man's disposition has been recognized. He was very solicitous aboutthe night patrols, not only within but without Manila--obliging thosewithin the walls to go about at night with torches; and ordaining tothe people outside that after eight o'clock no one should go out ofhis house, under penalty of two years in the galleys and two hundredlashes. A Dominican religious who did not know of these new orders, going to hear a confession in his ministry outside the walls ofManila, encountered the patrol within his own village--at which hewas surprised, as it was not customary for the patrols to enter thevillages outside the walls, on account of the knavish acts which thesoldiers are wont to commit under pretext of making the rounds. Forthis reason the said religious ordered them to depart from the said hisministry, and to patrol in their accustomed beat; but, although theydid not obey him, they informed the governor next day of the oppositionwhich the religious had made to the patrol. At this the new governor, being angry without good reason, gave orders that if any minister triedto forbid the patrol, they should notify him three times, and, if hepersisted in his opposition, they should seize him by the collar andcarry him a prisoner to a fort, until they could report to him on thenext day. It is to be noted that these patrols, commanders as well assoldiers, are usually native mulattoes, and mestizos from Nueva España. 

At the fiesta of the naval battle, at which the governor was present, he showed extreme resentment, and uttered sharp complaints becausehe who recited the epistle turned his back on the governor'swife--doubtless thinking that he who recited the gospel had hisface turned toward her not because the rubrics require that it beread while facing the people, but in order to show her the attentionthat was due her; and therefore he criticised him who had recited theepistle. Not less absurd was his assuming that he ought to be namedin the prayers at mass, after the king, as is done with the viceroy;and as this was not done at a fiesta at which he was present, he wasso vexed that there also he chose to display his resentment. It waswith some difficulty that the auditors pacified him at the time, andafterward made him understand how unreasonable he was in the matter. 

He prides himself on being very learned, and that he needs no advicefrom any one, holding it as an established maxim that the religious lieto him in whatever they say or propose in favor of the Indians. Fromthis results the extreme contempt in which the religious now findthemselves [held by him], and the grievous oppression which the poorIndians experience; for, from the very month in which this governorentered Manila, the Indians have not ceased their labors [on publicworks] to this day, without any attention being paid to the times whenthey ought to attend to their farming, or to the inclemency of therainy seasons--not even in a sort of pestilence which has prevailedin this [province] of Tagalos among the Indians. Sick as they were, [the officials] obliged them with blows to go to their toil intimber-working, where not a few fell dead from the labor and theirillness; and all this, only to build one ship (a very small one), onaccount of the unnecessary destruction of the galleon "Santo Niño, "which Don Juan de Bargas had constructed in his term as governor. 

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL DATA

The documents contained in this volume are obtained from the followingsources:

1. Events at Manila, 1690-91. --From the Ventura del Arco MSS. (Ayerlibrary), iv, pp. 53-67. 

2. Native races and customs. --From Colin's Labor evangélica, booki, chap. Iv, xiii-xvi; from a copy of original edition (1663) inpossession of Edward E. Ayer, Chicago. 

3. Natives of the southern islands. --From Combes's Historia deMindanao, Ioló, etc. (Retana and Pastells's reprint), chap. Ix-xviii. 

4. San Agustín's Letter. --From an early MS. Copy in possession ofEdward E. Ayer. 

5. Native peoples and their customs. --From San Antonio's Crónicas, i, pp. 129-172; from a copy in possession of Edward E. Ayer. 

APPENDIX: ETHNOLOGICAL DESCRIPTION OF THE FILIPINOS

 Native races and their customs. Francisco Colin, S. J. ; Madrid, 1663. 

 The natives of the southern islands. Francisco Combés, S. J. ; 1667. 

 Letter on the Filipinos. Gaspar de San Agustín, O. S. A. ; 1720. 

 The native peoples and their customs. Juan Francisco de San Antonio, O. S. F. ; 1738. 

Sources: The material for this appendix is obtained from thefollowing works: Colin's Labor evangélica (Madrid, 1663), booki, chap. Iv, xiii-xvi; from a copy in the possession of EdwardE. Ayer, Chicago. Combés's Hist. De Mindanao, Ioló, etc. (Madrid, 1667)--reprinted by Retana and Pastells (Madrid, 1897), chap. Ix-xviii;from a copy of the latter in the possession of the Editors. SanAgustín's letter, from an early MS. Copy in the possession of EdwardE. Ayer. San Antonio's Crónicas (Manila, 1738), i, pp. 129-172;from a copy in the possession of Edward E. Ayer. 

Translations: The above matter is compiled and translated by JamesAlexander Robertson. 

NATIVE RACES AND THEIR CUSTOMS

[This so-called ethnological appendix does not presume to present inexact scientific detail the various races and tribes inhabiting thePhilippines; but to give in their own words what the earliest writersespecially have themselves observed and experienced concerning someof those races and tribes, in so far as such observations have nothitherto appeared in this series. The accounts contain much of valueas showing how the Filipino was gradually transformed in many ways byhis contact with his conqueror. For early ethnological information ofthe Philippines, see Vols. V, VII, XII, XIII, and XVI of this series. ]

[Colin in his Labor evangélica (Madrid, 1663) devotes pp. 15-19and 53-75 (comprising chapters iv, and xiii-xvi of book i) to theFilipinos. Those chapters here follow. ]

CHAPTER IV

 Of the origin of the nations and peoples who inhabit these islands

25. Although these are islands it will not be necessary to fatigue themind by discussing (as do San Agustin and other authors in respect toother islands and to America) whence and how people and animals cameto them. For if some of these islands have been, at any time sincethe flood, part of a continent, from that time men and animals couldremain in them; while if they have always been islands, the nearness ofsome of them to others, and of some of them to the mainland of Asia, whence began the propagation of the human race and the settlementsof the descendants of Noah, is sufficient reason why some of themcould come to settle these regions. And that this was really so, and that the principal settler of these archipelagoes was Tharsis, son of Javan, together with his brothers, as were Ophir and Hevilathof India, we see in the tenth chapter of Genesis, which treats ofthe dispersion of peoples and the settlement of countries, as weestablish in another place. 

26. Now then, coming to our theme, when the conquistadors and settlersarrived at these islands and subdued that of Manila, they foundthree varieties or kinds of people in them. Those who held commandof it [i. E. , the island of Manila], and inhabited the seashore andriver-banks and all the best parts round about, were Moro Malaysof Borney (according to their own report). That is an island also, and is larger than any of these Filipinas and nearer the mainland ofMalaca, where there is a district called Malayo. [2] This place isthe origin of all the Malays who are scattered throughout the mostand best of all these archipelagoes. From that nation of the Malayssprings that of the Tagálogs, who are the natives of Manila and itsneighborhood. That is proved by the Tagálog language, which resemblesthe Malay closely; by the color and lines of the whole body; by theclothing and habit that they wore at the arrival of the Spaniardshere; and lastly by the customs and ceremonies, all of which werederived from the Malays and other nations of India. The occasion oftheir coming to these parts might have been either that they weredriven by chance through these seas (as we have seen in our days, borne to these islands people from other unknown islands, who spoke alanguage that no one understood, and who had been driven by the sea);or they could have come hither purposely in the search for new lands onwhich to settle, because their own were too crowded, or some disasterhad overtaken them which caused them to leave their home forever. Butit is very likely that greed and commercial interests attracted them, as occurred in the parts of India with regard to the Moros, Persians, and Arabs. The Portuguese say in their histories that when they reachedthose kingdoms they found the Moros uppermost and masters of all, by reason of the commerce which they introduced among the heathenkings and rulers, the natives of the country, whose goodwill theMoros contrived to secure with rich and valuable presents. Littleby little they continued to remain in the land and pay the royalduties, until they became so powerful that they revolted againstthe real rulers and deprived them of the best of their lands. Barros[3] says that the first Portuguese found that that had happened inthose districts of India some hundred and fifty years before theirarrival. In the same way one may imagine the passage of the Malaysto Borney to have occurred, and of the Borneans to Manila; and thatalong with the arms and temporal commerce would come some caciques, [4] or priests of the cursed Mahometan religion, who introduced thatreligion into the villages and maritime nations of these parts. Asfor me I can readily believe that that great island of Borney in pastcenturies was continued on the northeast by Paragua, and on the south[5] by the lands near Mindanao, as is indicated by the shoals andislets of Paragua on the one side, and those called Santa Juana andother islets and shoals which extend toward Jolo and Taguima, oppositethe point of La Caldera on the Mindanao shore. If this assumption betrue, as is affirmed by aged Indians of those parts, the opportunityfor the Borneans to scatter through the Filipinas is very evident. 

27. It is probable that the inhabitants would come to Borneyimmediately from Samatra, which is a very large land quite near themainland of Malaca and Malayo. In the midst of that great islandof Samatra there is a large and extensive lake [6] whose marge issettled by many different nations, whence, according to tradition, the people went to settle various islands. A Pampango of sense (oneof these nations) finding himself adrift and astray there throughvarious accidents (and from whom I learned it), testified that thosepeople [of Sumatra] spoke excellent Pampango, and wore the oldtimedress of the Pampangos. When he questioned one of their old men, the latter answered: "You [Pampangos] are descendants of the lostpeople who left here in past times to settle in other lands, and werenever heard of again. " It can also be believed that the Tagálogs, Pampangos, and other civilized nations, analogous in language, color, clothing, and customs, came from parts of Borney and Samatra, somefrom certain provinces or neighborhoods and some from others. Thatis the reason for the difference of the languages, according to thecustom of these uncivilized lands, for every province or neighborhoodhas a different language. 

28. The nations of the Bisayas and Pintados, who inhabit theprovinces of Camarines in this island of Luzon, and those of Leyte, Samar, Panay, and other neighborhoods, came, I have heard, from thedistricts of Macasar, where it is said that Indians live who makedesigns on and tattoo the body, in the manner of our Pintados. PedroFernandez de Quiros, in the relation which he wrote of the discoveryof the Salomon Islands in 1595, says that an island called Madalenawas found in ten degrees north latitude, at a distance from Pirù ofone thousand eight hundred leguas (which is nearly the same latitudeand distance as the Filipinas) where Indians of good proportion, but taller than the Spaniards, and all naked and bearing designs ontheir bodies, legs, arms, and hands (and some on their faces), inthe manner of our Visayans, were found. Consequently, it is apparentthat there are other nations of Pintados to be discovered. We haveas yet not enough data, nor even a well founded conjecture, to saywhether ours originated from the latter, or on the contrary bothfrom some mainland. We know well that people who tattoo the bodyhave been seen in Brasil and Florida. Then, too, this custom wasformerly seen in some nations of Scythians in Asia and of Britonsin Europa. But we cannot yet determine the legitimate origin of ourVisayan Pintados. If some of the natives of Mindanao, Jolo, Bool, and part of Cebu, who are lighter-complexioned, braver, and of betterproportions than the pure Visayans, are not Borneans, they might beTernatans--as may be inferred from the neighborhood of the lands andthe communication of one with another; and because in what concernsthe worship and religion of the cursed Prophet, even today they aregoverned by Terrenate; and when they find themselves beset by thetroops from Filipinas, they make an alliance and help one another. 

29. All those whom the first Spaniards found in these islands with thecommand and lordship over the land are reduced to the first class, the civilized peoples. Another kind, totally opposed to the above, are the Negrillos, who live in the mountains and thick forests whichabound in these islands. The latter are a barbarous race who live onthe fruits and roots of the forests. They go naked, covering onlythe privies with some articles called bahaques, made from the barkof trees. They wear no other ornaments than armlets and anklets andbracelets, curiously wrought after their manner from small rattansof various colors, and garlands of branches and flowers on theirheads and the fleshy parts of the arm; and at the most some cockor sparrow-hawk feather for a plume. They have no laws or letters, or other government or community than that of kinsfolk, all thoseof one line of family obeying their leader. In regard to religionand divine worship they have but little or none. The Spaniards callthem Negrillos because many of them are as much negroes, as are theEthiopians themselves, both in their black color and in their kinkyhair. There are still a number of those people in the interior inthe mountains. In one of the large islands there are so many of them, that it is for that reason called the island of Negros. Those blackswere apparently the first inhabitants of these islands, and they havebeen deprived of them by the civilized nations who came later by way ofSamatra, the Javas, Borney, Macaçar, and other islands lying toward thewest. If one should ask whence could come the Negros to these islandsso distant from Africa and Ethiopias, where negroes live, I answerthat it was from nearer India, or citra Gangem, which was formerlysettled by Ethiopic negroes and was called Etiopia. [7] From there, it is more probable, went out the settlers of African Etiopia, as weprove in another place. Moreover, even today does India have nationsof the negro race. Also they could easily pass from the districts ofthe mainland of India to the nearest islands, and could come fromone to the other even as far as these Filipinas. In Nueva Guinea, which is quite near Terrenate, the natives are negroes like those ofGuinea, and on that account the first explorers gave them that name;and they could also pass from those to these districts. 

30. There is another kind of people, neither so civilized as thefirst, nor so barbarous as the second. They generally live aboutthe sources of the rivers, and on that account are called in somedistricts, Ilayas. They are the Tingues, and are called Manguianes, [8] Zambals, or other names, for each island has a different namefor them. They generally trade with the Tagálogs, Visayans, andother civilized nations who are commonly settled near the sea andriver mouths. Although those Ilayas or Tingues are not Christians, they pay some sort of recognition or tribute, and have their systemof policy or government. It is thought that they are a mixture of theother barbarous and civilized nations, and for that reason they aremidway between the other two classes of peoples in color, clothing, and customs. 

We do not pretend to deny by the above that some people could havecome from other parts and kingdoms of India extra Gangem (such asSian, Camboja, Cochinchina), and from China itself, and even Japon, toconquer and settle in parts of these islands--especially the Chinese, from whose histories, and their remains found in various parts, it is learned that in former times they were masters of all thesearchipelagoes. [9] If they were the first settlers of the Javas (asis told by Juan de Barros) they could still more easily have settledin some parts of these islands which are nearer to them. 

Persons who know the provinces of Ilocos and Cagayan, in the northof this island of Luzon, assert that they have discovered there thegraves of people larger than the Indians, and the arms and jewels ofChinese or Japanese, who, it is presumed, conquered and settled inthose parts, led on by the desire for gold. [10]

CHAPTER XIII

 Of the nature, languages, and letters of the Filipinos

In accordance with the origin which we ascribed to the civilizednations of these islands in chapter four, so also are their capacity, languages, and letters. They are descendants of the Malays of themainland of Malaca, whom they also resemble in their capacity, languages, and letters. 

92. From the shape, number, and use of the characters and letters ofthis nation it is quite evident that they are all taken from the MoroMalays and originated from the Arabs. The vowel letters are only threein number, but they serve for five in their use; for the second andthird are indifferently e, i, y, o, and u, according as is requiredby the meaning or sense of the word which is spoken or written. 

The consonants are thirteen in number, and serve (except at thebeginning of the phrase or initial letter) as consonant and vowel; forthe letter alone, without a dot above or below, is pronounced with "A. "

If a dot be placed above, the consonant is pronounced with "e" or "i. "

If the dot be placed below, it is pronounced with "o" or "u. " Thus the"B" with the dot above is pronounced "bi" or "be, " and with the dotbelow, "bo" or "bu. "

For example, in order to say "cama" [i. E. , bed] the two letters "C"and "M" are sufficient without a dot. 

If a dot be placed above the "C", it will be "quema" [i. E. , "fire"]. 

If dots be placed below each, it will be "como" [i. E. , "as"]. 

The final consonants are supplied in all expressions. Thus in orderto say "cantar" [i. E. , "to sing"], one writes "cata, " only a "C"and a "T. " To say "barba" [i. E. , "beard"], two "B's" are sufficient. 

With all the supplements, he who reads in that language will, if he beskilful, have no trouble in pronouncing the words or phrases correctlyby substituting the letters that must be substituted according to thesense. But since that always occasions difficulty, those who know ourcharacters are studying how to write their own language in these. Allof them have now adopted our way of writing, with the lines fromleft to right; for formerly they only wrote vertically down and up, placing the first line to the left and running the others continuouslyto the right, just opposite to the Chinese and Japanese, who althoughthey write in vertical up and down lines, continue the page from theright to the left. All that points to a great antiquity; for runningthe line from the right to the left is in accordance with the presentand general style of the Hebrews; and the style of running the linesvertically from the top to the bottom, is that of the oldest nationof the Chinese--which doubtless greatly resembles the method of theHebrews, whose characters have much resemblance to theirs. Those ofthe Moro Arabs resemble those of the Syrians. Diodorus Siculus, [11]who wrote in the time of the emperor Cæsar Augustus, in making mentionof an island which lay in our middle region, or torrid zone (whitherIamblicus [12] the Greek went in the course of his adventures), saysthat they do not write horizontally as we do, but from top to bottomin a straight line; and that they use characters which, althoughfew in number, make up in their use for many, for each one has fourdifferent transformations. Consequently, one may see that that methodof writing, and the characters of those nations, are very old. [13]

93. Before they knew anything about paper (and even yet they do inplaces where they cannot get it), those people wrote on bamboos oron palm-leaves, using as a pen the point of a knife or other bit ofiron, with which they engraved the letters on the smooth side ofthe bamboo. If they write on palm-leaves they fold and then sealthe letter when written, in our manner. They all cling fondly totheir own method of writing and reading. There is scarcely a man, and still less a woman, who does not know and practice that method, even those who are already Christians in matters of devotion. Forfrom the sermons which they hear, and the histories and lives ofthe saints, and the prayers and poems on divine matters, composedby themselves (they have also some perfect poets in their manner, who translate elegantly into their language any Spanish comedy), theyuse small books and prayerbooks in their language, and manuscriptswhich are in great number; as is affirmed in his manuscript historyby Father Pedro Chirino, [14] to whom the provisor and vicar-generalof this archbishopric entrusted the visit and examination of thosebooks in the year one thousand six hundred and nine, for the purposeof preventing errors. That was a holy proceeding, and one that wasvery proper among so new Christians. 

The Filipinos easily accustom themselves to the Spanish letters andmethod of writing. They are greatly benefited thereby, for many ofthem write now just like us, because of their cleverness and quicknessin imitating any letter or design, and in the doing of anything withthe hands. There are some of them who commonly serve as clerks inthe public accountancies and secretaryships of the kingdom. We haveknown some so capable that they have deserved to become officials inthose posts, and perhaps to supply those offices ad interim. Theyalso are a great help to students in making clean copies of theirrough drafts, not only in Romance but also in Latin, for there arealready some of them who have learned that language. Finally, theyare the printers in the two printing-houses in this city of Manila;and they are entirely competent in that work, in which their skilland ability are very evident. 

94. Coming now to the other point, that of their languages, there aremany of these. For in this island of Manila alone there are six ofthem, which correspond to the number of the provinces or civilizednations; the Tagálog, Pampanga, Camarines (or Visayan), Cagayan, and those of the Ilocans and Pangasinans. These are the civilizednations. We do not yet know the number of the nations of the Negrillos, Zambals, and other mountain nations. Although the civilized languagesare, strictly speaking, dissimilar, they resemble one another, so thatin a short time those people can understand one another, and those ofthe one nation can converse with those of another--in the same wayas the Tuscan, Lombard, and Sicilian in Italia; and the Castilian, Portuguese, and language of Valencia in España. The reason why theselanguages resemble one another so closely is the same as in Italiaand España. For as the latter languages originated from the Roman, just so do these originate from the Malay. For proof of that it isnecessary to do nothing else than to compare the words and idioms, or the modes of speech, of each one of these languages with theMalay, as will be seen in the following table, in which is madethe comparison of the three most important languages, the Tagálog, Visayan, and Pampanga. Since for the sake of brevity the comparisonis made in a few words, whoever is interested can with but slightlabor extend the comparison through many words. 

Spanish Malay Tagálog Pampanga Visayan

cielo [i. E. , sky] langriet lañgit banoa laguitsol [i. E. , sun] mata ari arao aldao arlaoluna [i. E. , moon] bulam Bouan bulan bulan

Of these languages the two most general are the Tagálog, which isused through the greater part of the coast and interior of the islandof Manila, and the islands of Lubang and Mindoro; and the Visayan, which is spoken throughout all the islands of the Pintados. Of thetwo without doubt the most courteous, grave, artistic, and elegantis the Tagálog, for it shares in four qualities of the four greatestlanguages in the world, namely, Hebrew, Greek, Latin, and Spanish:With the Hebrew, besides the resemblance already noted in the mannerof its vowels and consonants, it has the roots of the vocables andtheir hidden and obscure meaning [sus preñezes, y misterios] and somegutturals; with the Greek, the articles in the declension of nouns, andin the conjugations the abundance of voices and moods; with the Latin, the abundance and elegance; with the Spanish, the fine structure, polish, and courtesy. As a proof of this, Father Pedro Chirino hasinserted in his printed relation of these islands an example in theprayer of the Ave Maria, [15] as a short and clear instance, with hisexplanation, with notes in the following manner. It should be notedthat the father, belonging to a past age, wrote it in the old style, which has changed here somewhat since then, although not substantially. 

 THE AVE MARIA IN THE TAGÁLOG LANGUAGE

 Abe Guingoong Maria matoua ca na Ave Señora Maria alegra tu ya Hail Lady Mary be joyful thou now

 Napopono ca nang gracia Llena tu de gracia Full thou of grace

 Ang Pañginoong Dios na saiyo El Señor Dios està contigo The Lord God is with thee

 Bucor cang pinagpala sa babaying lahat Singular tu bendita entre mugeres todas especially, thou blessed among women all

 Pinagpala naman ang yyong Anac si Jesus Bendito tambien el tu Hijo Jesus blessed also he thy Son Jesus

 Santa Mariang Yna nang Dios Santa Maria Madre de Dios Holy Mary, Mother of God, Ypanalangin mo caming macasalanan ngayon Seamos intercedidos de ti nosotros pecadores agora May we be for by thee we sinners now interceded

 At cum mamatay cami, Amen Jesus. Y cuando muramos nosotros. [Amen Jesus]. And when shall die we. Amen Jesus. [16]

The first word, "Aba" is a mysterious one in the Tagálog, and has theforce of a salutation, as has "Ave" in Latin; and the same is true of"Bucor" which means "diversity, " "distinction, " and "singularity. " Thearticle is [seen in] "si Jesus. " Its abundance lies in the fact thatit has many synonyms and turns of thought. Consequently, the aboveprayer, over and above being elegant, could also be expressed inseveral other ways just as elegant, and the same sense and meaningwould be kept. Its polish and courtesy consists in not saying "AveMaria" as does the Latin--for that would be a lack of courtesy anda barbarism in the Tagálog--but by the interposition of that politeword "Guinoo. " The Visayan [version] does not contain that word, as being a less polished language. However, I am not trying to casta slur on the latter for that reason, for each language has a beautyand elegance for its natives which does not strike the foreigner. 

95. Among the uncivilized nations, although the people are fewer, thelanguages are more; for almost every river has its own language. InMindoro (and the same will be true of other districts more remote) wesaw the barbarous Manguianes assembling from places but little distantfrom each other, who did not understand one another. They were sobarbarous that they had never seen a Spanish face. The things sent themto attract them were hawk's-bells, nails, needles, and other similarthings. They thought that the sounds of the harp and guitar werehuman voices. When a mirror was held up before them, they exhibitedsingular effects, in one of fear and in another of joy. The lack ofcivilization and communication is the reason for the multiplicity oflanguages. For just as in the primitive multiplication of languageswhich took place in the tower of Babel, the doctors observe that thelanguages equaled the number of the families of the descendants ofNoah, so among the barbarous nations each one lives to itself alonewithout any recognition of or subjection to public laws. They arealways having petty wars and dissensions among themselves; and, sincethey lack communication, they forget the common language, and eachone has so corrupted its own language that it cannot understand theothers. We observed in some districts that one language was spoken atthe mouth of a river and another one at its source. That is a greathindrance to the conversion and instruction of those peoples. 

96. The polish and courtesy, especially of the Tagálogs and thosenear them, in speech and writing are the same as those of verycivilized nations. They never say "tu" [i. E. , "thou"] or speak in thesecond person, singular or plural, but always in the third person:[thus], "The chief would like this or that. " Especially a woman whenaddressing a man, even though they be equal and of the middle class, never say less than "Sir" or "Master, " and that after every word:"When I was coming, sir, up the river, I saw, sir, etc. " In writingthey make constant use of very fine and delicate expressions of regard, and beauties and courtesy. Their manner of salutation when they met oneanother was the removal of the potong, which is a cloth like a crown, worn as we wear the hat. When an inferior addressed one of higher rank, the courtesy used by him was to incline his body low, and then liftone or both hands to the face, touch the cheeks with it, and at thesame time raise one of the feet in the air by doubling the knee, andthen seating oneself. The method of doing it was to fix the sole ofthe feet firmly, and double both knees, without touching the ground, keeping the body upright and the face raised. They bent in this mannerwith the head uncovered and the potong thrown over the left shoulderlike a towel; they had to wait until they were questioned, for itwould be bad breeding to say anything until a question was asked. 

97. The method of giving names was the following. As soon as achild was born, it was the mother's business to name it. Generallythe occasion or motive of the name was taken from some one of thecircumstances which occurred at the time. For example, Maliuag, whichmeans "difficult, " because of the difficulty of the birth; Malacas, which signifies "strong, " for it is thought that the infant will bestrong. This is like the custom of the Hebrews, as appears from HolyWrit. At other times the name was given without any hidden meaning, from the first thing that struck the fancy, as Daan, which signifies"road, " and Damo, signifying "grass. " They were called by those names, without the use of any surname, until they were married. Then the firstson or daughter gave the surname to the parents, as Amani Maliuag, Ynani Malacas, "the father of Maliuag, " "the mother of Malacas. " Thenames of women are differentiated from those of men by adding thesyllable "in, " as Ilog, "river;" Si Ilog, the name of a male; SiIloguin, the name of a female. They used very tender diminutivesfor the children, in our manner. Among themselves they had certaindomestic and delicate appellations of various sorts for the differentdegrees of relationship--as that of a child for his father and mother, and vice versa. In the same way [they have appellations] for theirancestors, descendants, and collaterals. This shows the abundance, elegance, and courtesy of this language. It is a general thing in allthese nations not to have special family names which are perpetuatedto their successors, but each individual has the simple name thatis given him at birth. At present this name serves as surname, and the peculiar name is the Christian name of Juan or Pedro whichis imposed at baptism. However, there are now mothers so Christianand civilized that they will not assign any secular name to theirchildren until the Christian name has been given in baptism, [17]and then the surname is added, although it has already been chosenafter consultation with the parents and relatives. In place of our"Don" (which indeed has been assigned to them with as much abuse asamong ourselves), in some districts they formerly placed before theirnames, Lacan or Gat: as the Moluccans use Cachil, the Africans Muley, the Turks Sultan, etc. The "Don" of the women is not Lacan or Gat, butDayang, Dayang Mati, Dayang Sanguy, i. E. , "Doña Mati, " "Doña Sanguy. "

There is general distaste among our Tagálogs to mention one anotheramong themselves by their own names alone, without adding somethingwhich smells of courtesy. When they are asked by the Spaniards "Who isSo-and-so?" and they cannot avoid naming him by his own name, they doit with a certain shamefacedness and embarrassment. Inasmuch as themethod of naming one is "the father of So-and-so, " as soon as he haschildren, for him who had no children (among persons of influence)his relatives and acquaintances assembled at a banquet, and gave hima new name there, which they designated as Pamagat. That was usuallya name of excellence by some circumlocution or metaphor, based ontheir own old name. Thus if one was called by his own name, Bacal, which signifies "iron, " the new name given him would be Dimatanassan, signifying "not to spoil with time. " If it were Bayani, which signifies"valiant" and "spirited, " he was called Dimalapitan "he to whom noone is bold. " It is also the custom among these nations to call oneanother among themselves, by way of friendship, by certain correlativenames based on some special circumstance. Thus if one had given abranch of sweet basil to another, the two among themselves calledeach other Casolasi, the name of the thing given; or Caytlog, he whoate of an egg with another. This is in the manner of the names offellow-students or chums as used by us. These are all arguments infavor of the civilization of these Indians. 

CHAPTER XIV

 Of the appearance, features, clothing, and other ancient customs of the natives of these islands

98. The ordinary stature of these Indians is medium, but they arewell built and good-looking, both men and women. Their complexion isyellowish brown, like a boiled quince, and the beard is slight. TheTagálogs wear the hair hanging to the shoulders; the Cagayans longerand hanging over the shoulders; the Ilocans shorter, and the Visayansstill shorter, for they cut it round in the manner of the oldtimecues of España. The nation called Zambals wear it shaved from thefront half of the head, while on the skull they have a great shock ofloose hair. The complexion of the women in all the islands differslittle from that of the men, except among the Visayans where someof the women are light-complexioned. All of the women wear the hairtied up in a knot on top of the head with a tasteful ribbon. Bothmen and women, universally, consider it essential that the hairshould be very black and well cared for. For that purpose they uselotions made of certain tree-barks and oils, prepared with musk andother perfumes. Their greatest anxiety and care was the mouth, andfrom infancy they polished and filed the teeth so that they mightbe even and pretty. They covered them with a coating of black ink orvarnish which aided in preserving them. Among the influential people, especially the women, it was the custom to set some of the teeth mostskilfully with gold which could not fall out, and gave a beautifulappearance. The men did not glory in their mustaches or beards, but quite the contrary; and consequently they pulled them out onpurpose. And just as it is an amusement or custom of some of us tognaw our finger-nails, they get amusement in pulling out the hairs ofthe beard with certain little bits of cleft bamboo [cañuelas hendidas]or with little shells in the form of pincers. All the women, and insome places the men, adorn the ears with large rings or circlets ofgold, for that purpose piercing them at an early age. Among the womenthe more the ears were stretched and opened, so much greater was thebeauty. Some had two holes in each ear for two kinds of earrings, some being larger than others. 

99. The men adorned the head with only cendal [18] or long and narrowthin cloth, with which they bound the forehead and temples, and whichthey call potong. It was put on in different modes, now in the Moorishmanner like a turban without a bonnet, and now twisted and wrappedabout the head like the crown of a hat. Those who were esteemed asvaliant let the elaborately worked ends of the cloth fall down upontheir shoulders, and these were so long that they reached the legs. Bythe color of the cloth they displayed their rank, and it was the badgeof their deeds and exploits; and it was not allowed to anyone to usethe red potong until he had at least killed one person. In order towear it embroidered with certain borders, which were like a crown, they must have killed seven. The personal clothing of those men was asmall garment or short loose jacket [chamarreta] of fine linen whichbarely reached the waist. It had no collar and was fitted formerlywith short sleeves. Among the chiefs those jackets were of a scarletcolor, and were made of fine Indian muslin. For breeches they wore arichly colored cloth, which was generally edged with gold, about thewaist and brought up between the legs, so that the legs were decentlycovered to the middle of the thigh; from there down feet and legswere bare. The chief adornments consisted of ornaments and jewelsof gold and precious stones. They had various kinds of necklaces, and chains; bracelets or wristlets, also of gold and ivory, on thearms as high as the elbow; while some had strings of cornelians, agates, and other stones which are highly esteemed among them. On thelegs, instead of garters, they wear some strings of the same stones, and certain cords of many strands, dyed black. The fingers of thehand are covered with many rings of gold and precious stones. Thefinal complement of the gala attire was like our sash, a fine bit ofcolored cloth crossed over the shoulder, the ends joined under thearm, which they affected greatly. Instead of that the Visayans wore arobe [marlota] or jacket [baquero] made without a collar and reachingquite down to the feet, and embroidered in colors. The entire dress, in fine, was in the Moorish style, and was truly rich and gay; andeven today they affect it. 

The dress of the women, besides the small shirt with sleeves alreadymentioned, which was shorter for them, for their gala dress hadlittle modesty, was a skirt as wide at top as at bottom, which theygathered into folds at the waist, allowing the folds all to drop toone side. This was long enough to cover them even to their feet, andwas generally white. When they went outside the house they wore for acloak certain colored short cloaks, those of the principal women beingof crimson silk or other cloths, embroidered with gold and adorned withrich fringe. But their principal gala attire consisted in jewels andornaments of gold and stones which they wore in their ears, and on theneck, the fingers of the hand and the wrists of the arms. But now theyhave begun to wear the Spanish clothes and ornaments, namely, chains, necklaces, skirts, shoes, and mantillas, or black veils. The men wearhats, short jackets [ropillas], breeches, and shoes. Consequently, thepresent dress of the Indians in these regions is now almost Spanish. 

110 [i. E. , 100]. Besides the exterior clothing and dress, some ofthese nations wore another inside dress, which could not be removedafter it was once put on. These are the tattooings of the body sogreatly practiced among the Visayans, whom we call Pintados for thatreason. For it was a custom among them, and was a mark of nobility andbravery, to tattoo the whole body from top to toe when they were of anage and strength sufficient to endure the tortures of the tattooing, which was done (after being carefully designed by the artists, andin accordance with the proportion of the parts of the body and thesex) with instruments like brushes or small twigs, with very finepoints of bamboo. The body was pricked and marked with them untilblood was drawn. Upon that a black powder or soot made from pitch, which never faded, was put on. The whole body was not tattooed atone time, but it was done gradually. In olden times no tattooing wasbegun until some brave deed had been performed; and after that, foreach one of the parts of the body which was tattooed some new deedhad to be performed. The men tattooed even their chins and about theeyes so that they appeared to be masked. Children were not tattooed, and the women only on one hand and part of the other. The Ilocans inthis island of Manila also tattooed themselves but not to the sameextent as the Visayans. The dress of both men and women among theIlocans is almost alike in that province. Thus far the dress. Weshall now say somewhat of the food and their customs in eating. 

101. Their usual sustenance is as stated above, rice, well hulled andcleaned, and boiled only with water, which is called morisqueta by theSpaniards, as if to call it "food of the Moors. " The meat is that of asmall fish which is lacking in no part. That is also boiled in water, and with the broth from it, they give a flavor to the morisqueta. Forlack of rice and fish they use the herbs and many kinds of nativepotatoes, and fruits, by which they are sustained well enough. At theirbanquets they add venison, pork, or beef, which they like best whenit has begun to spoil, and to smell bad. Their manner of eating is, to be seated on the ground. Their tables are small and low, round orsquare, and they have no tablecloths or napkins; but the plates withthe food are placed on the same tables. They eat in companies of fourwhich is as many as can get around a small table. On the occasionof a wedding or a funeral, or similar feasts, the whole house willbe filled with tables and guests. The food is placed all together onvarious plates. The people do not shun all reaching out to the sameplate, or drinking from the same cup. They relish salt, and saltyand acid foods. They have no better dainty for the sick than vinegarand green or pickled fruits. They eat sparingly but drink often; andwhen they are invited to a banquet, they are asked not to eat but todrink. They waste much time in both eating and drinking. When theyhave enough and are drunk, the tables are taken away and the house iscleared. If the banquet is the occasion of a feast, they sing, play, and dance. They spend a day and a night in this, amid great racketand cries, until they fall with weariness and sleep. But rarely dothey become furious or even foolish; on the contrary, after they havetaken wine they preserve due respect and discreet behavior. They onlywax more cheerful, and converse better and say some witty things;and it is well known that no one of them when he leaves a banquet, although it be at any hour of the night, fails to go straight to hisown house. And if he has occasion to buy or sell, and to examine andweigh gold or silver he does it with so great steadiness that thehand does not tremble, nor does he make any error in the weight. 

102. The wine commonly used among them is either that made frompalms, as it is throughout India, or from sugar-cane, which they callquilang. The latter is made by extracting the sap from the canes, and then bringing it to a boil over the fire, so that it becomes likered wine, although it does not taste so good. The palm wine is made byextracting the sap or liquor from which the fruit was to be formed. Foras soon as the palm begins to send out the shoot from the end of thetwig, and before the flower is unfolded, that flower-stock is cut, and a bit of bamboo is fastened to it and is tied to the stalk orshoot. Since the sap naturally flows to that part, as in the prunedvine, all the sap that was to be converted into fruit, flows intothat bamboo, and passes through it to vessels, where, somewhat sourand steeped with the bark of certain trees which give it color, heat, and bite, they use it as a common drink and call it tuba. But thereal and proper palm-wine is made from the same liquor before it turnssour, by distilling it in an alembic in ovens that they have preparedfor it. They give it a greater or less strength, as they please;and they get a brandy as clear as water, although it is not so hot[as our brandy]. [19] It is of a dry quality, and, when used withmoderation, it is considered even outside Filipinas as healthful andmedicinal for the stomach and a preventive of watery humors and colds. 

The Visayans also make a wine, called pañgasi, from rice. The methodof making it is to place in the bottom of a jar of ordinary size(which is generally of two or three arrobas, with them) a quantityof yeast made from rice flour and a certain plant. Atop of that theyput clean rice until the jar is half full. Then water is added to it, and, after it has stood for a few days, it is fermented by the forceof the yeast, and is converted into the strongest kind of wine, whichis not liquid, but thick like gachas. [20] In order to drink it theypour water into the jar. It is a cause for surprise that even thoughwater be poured in again and again, the liquor is pure and liquidwine, until the strength vanishes and is lost, and then they leaveit for the children. The method of drinking it is with a tube, whichthey insert clear to the bottom where the yeast is. They use threeor four of those tubes, according to the number of the persons whocan find room around the vessel. They suck up as much as they wish, and then give place to others. 

103. The banquets are interspersed with singing, in which one or twosing and the others respond. The songs [21] are usually their oldsongs and fables, as is usual with other nations. The dances of menand women are generally performed to the sound of bells which are madein their style like basins, large or small, of metal, and the soundsare brought out quickly and uninterruptedly. For the dance is warlikeand passionate, but it has steps and measured changes, and interposedare some elevations that really enrapture and surprise. They generallyhold in the hands a towel, or a spear and shield, and with one and theother they make their gestures in time, which are full of meaning. Atother times with the hands empty they make movements which correspondto the movements of the feet, now slow, now rapid. Now they attackand retire; now they incite; now they pacify; now they come close;now they go away: all the grace and elegance, so much, in fact, thatat times they have not been judged unworthy to accompany and solemnizeour Christian feasts. [22] However, the children and youths now dance, play, and sing in our manner and so well that we cannot do it better. 

They had a kind of guitar which was called coryapi, which had two ormore copper strings. Although its music is not very artistic or fine, it does not fail to be agreeable, especially to them. They play itwith a quill, with great liveliness and skill. It is a fact that, by playing it alone, they carry on a conversation and make understoodwhatever they wish to say. 

104. All of these islanders are extremely fond of the water for bathingpurposes, and as a consequence they try to settle on the shores ofrivers or creeks, for the more they are in the water the better theylike it. They bathe at all times, for pleasure and cleanliness. Whenan infant is born, it is put into the river and bathed in cold water;and the mother, after having given birth, does not keep away from thewater. The manner of bathing is, to stand with the body contractedand almost seated, with the water up to the throat. The most usual andgeneral hour is at sunset, when the people leave work or return fromthe field, and bathe for rest and coolness. Men and women all swimlike fish, and as if born and reared in the water. Each house has avessel of water at the door. Whenever any one goes up to the house, whether an inmate of it or not, he takes water from that vessel towash his feet, especially when it is muddy. That is done very easily;one foot is dried with the other, and the water falls down below, for the floor there is like a close grating. 

CHAPTER XV

 Of the false heathen religion, idolatries, superstitions, and other things, of the Filipinos

105. It is not found that these nations had anything written abouttheir religion or about their government, or of their old-timehistory. All that we have been able to learn has been handed down fromfather to son in tradition, and is preserved in their customs; and insome songs that they retain in their memory and repeat when they go onthe sea, sung to the time of their rowing, and in their merrymakings, feasts, and funerals, and even in their work, when many of them worktogether. In those songs are recounted the fabulous genealogies andvain deeds of their gods. Among their gods is one who is the chief andsuperior to all the others, whom the Tagálogs call Bathala Meycapal, [23] which signifies "God" the "Creator" or "Maker. " The Visayanscall him Laon, which denotes "antiquity. "

They adored (as did the Egyptians) animals and birds; and the sun andmoon, as did the Assyrians. They also attributed to the rainbow itskind of divinity. The Tagálogs worshiped a blue bird as large as aturtle-dove, which they called tigmamanuquin, to which they attributedthe name of Bathala, which, as above stated, was among them a name fordivinity. They worshiped the crow, as the ancients did the god Panor the goddess Ceres, and called it Meylupa, signifying "master ofthe earth. " They held the crocodile in the greatest veneration, andwhen they saw it in the water cried out, in all subjection, "Nono, "signifying "Grandfather. " They asked it pleasantly and tenderly notto harm them, and for that purpose offered it a portion of what theycarried in their boat, by throwing it into the water. There was noold tree to which they did not attribute divine honors, and it was asacrilege to think of cutting it under any consideration. Even thevery rocks, crags, reefs, and points along the seashore and riverswere adored, and an offering made to them on passing, by stoppingthere and placing the offering upon the rock or reef. The river ofManila had a rock that served as an idol of that wretched people formany years, and its scandal lasted and it gave rise to many evils, until the fathers of St. Augustine, who were near there, broke it, through their holy zeal, into small bits and set up a cross in itsplace. Today there is an image of St. Nicholas of Tolentino in thatplace, in a small shrine or chapel. When sailing to the island ofPanay, one saw on the point called Nasso, near Potol, a rock uponwhich were dishes and other pieces of crockery-ware, which wereoffered to it by those who went on the sea. In the island of Mindanao, between La Caldera and the river, there is a great point of land, ona rough and very high coast. The sea is forever dashing against theseheadlands, and it is difficult and dangerous to double them. Whenthe people passed by that one, as it was so high, they offered itarrows, which they shot at the cliff itself with so great force thatthey stuck there, offering them as if in sacrifice so that it wouldallow them to pass. There were so many of those arrows that, althoughthe Spaniards set fire to them and burned a countless number of themin hatred of so cursed a superstition, many remained there, and thenumber increased in less than one year to more than four thousand. 

106. They also adored private idols, which each one inherited fromhis ancestors. The Visayans called them divata, and the Tagálogsanito. Of those idols some had jurisdiction over the mountains and opencountry, and permission was asked from them to go thither. Others hadjurisdiction over the sowed fields, and the fields were commended tothem so that they might prove fruitful; and besides the sacrificesthey placed articles of food in the fields for the anitos to eat, in order to place them under greater obligations. There was an anitoof the sea, to whom they commended their fisheries and navigations;an anito of the house, whose favor they implored whenever an infantwas born, and when it was suckled and the breast offered to it. Theyplaced their ancestors, the invocation of whom was the first thing inall their work and dangers, among these anitos. In memory of theirancestors they kept certain very small and very badly made idols ofstone, wood, gold, or ivory, called licha or laravan. Among their godsthey reckoned also all those who perished by the sword, or who weredevoured by crocodiles, as well as those killed by lightning. Theythought that the souls of such immediately ascended to the blestabode by means of the rainbow, called by them balañgao. Generally, whoever could succeed in it attributed divinity to his aged fatherat his death. The aged themselves died in that presumptuous delusion, and during their sickness and at their death guided all their actionswith what they imagined a divine gravity and manner. Consequently, theychose as the place for their grave some assigned spot, [24] like oneold man who lived on the seacoast between Dulac and Abuyog, which is inthe island of Leyte. He ordered himself placed there in his coffin (aswas done) in a house standing alone and distant from the settlement, in order that he might be recognized as a god of navigators, who wereto commend themselves to him. Another had himself buried in certainlands in the mountains of Antipolo, and through reverence to himno one dared to cultivate those lands (for they feared that he whoshould do so would die), until an evangelical minister removed thatfear from them, and now they cultivate them without harm or fear. 

107. They mentioned the creation of the world, the beginning of thehuman race, the flood, glory, punishment, and other invisible things, such as evil spirits and devils. They recognized the latter to beman's enemy, and hence feared them. By the beginning which theyassigned to the world and the human race, will be seen the vanityof their belief, and that it is all lies and fables. They say thatthe world began with only the sky and water, between which was akite. Tired of flying and not having any place where it could alight, the kite stirred up the water against the sky. The sky, in order torestrain the water and prevent it from mounting to it, burdened it withislands; and also ordered the kite to light and build its nest on them, and leave them in peace. They said that men had come from the stemof a large bamboo (such as one sees in this Orient), which had onlytwo nodules. That bamboo, floating on the water, was carried by thewaves to the feet of the kite, which was on the seacoast. The kite, in anger at what had struck its feet, opened the bamboo by picking itwith its beak. When it was opened, out of one nodule came man and fromthe other woman. After various difficulties because of the obstacleof consanguinity in the first degree, one of the gods namely, theearthquake, after consulting with the fish and birds, absolved them, and they married and had many children. From those children came thevarious kinds and classes of people. For it happened that the parents, angered at having so many children idle and useless in the house, took counsel together; afterward the father one day gave way to hisanger, and was desirous of punishing them with a stick which he hadin his hand (a thing which they can never do). The children fled, so that some of them took refuge in the chambers and innermost partsof the house, from whom they say came the chiefs; others escapedoutside, and from them came the freemen, whom they call timauas;others fled to the kitchen and lower parts, and they are the slaves;others fled to various distant places, and they are the other nations. 

108. It is not known whether there was any temple [25] in all theseislands, or any place assigned in common for worship; or that thepeople ever assembled for public functions. In private they werewont to have in their own houses (and not outside them in any caveor like place) some kind of altars, on which they placed their idols, and before them a small brasier with burning aromatics. But althoughthey had no temples, they did not lack priests or priestessesfor the sacrifices, which each one offered for his own purpose ornecessity. The Tagálogs called those cursed ministers catalonan, and the Visayans babaylan. Some were priests by inheritance andrelationship; others by the dexterity with which they caused themselvesto be instructed and substituted in the office of famous priests bygaining their good-will. Others were deceived by the devil with hiswonted wiles, and made a pact with him to assist them, and to holdconverse with him through their idols or anitos; and he appeared tothem in various forms. The method of making the sacrifices hingedon the different purposes for which they were intended. If it werefor a feast of ostentation and vanity that was being made to somechief, they called it "the feast of the great god. " The method ofcelebrating it was near the house of the chief, in a leafy bowerwhich they erected especially for that purpose, hung round aboutwith hangings in their fashion, namely, the Moorish, which were madefrom odds and ends of pieces, of various colors. The guests assembledthere, and the sacrifice having been prepared (on those occasions ofa feast usually some good fat pig), the catalona ordered the girl ofthe best appearance and who was best adorned, to give the spear-thrustto the animal, amid the ceremony of certain dances of theirs. When theanimal was dead it was cut into bits and divided among all the people, as is the blessed bread. Although other animals were killed and eaten, and other viands and refreshments peculiar to those people were used, that animal was the one esteemed and was reverently consumed. Thechief part of the feast was the drinking, accompanied, as ever, with much music and dancing. 

109. If the sacrifice was because of the danger of death in thehouse of sickness, the minister ordered that a new, large, andcapacious house be built at the expense of the sick person, in whichto celebrate the feast. That work was performed in a trice, as thematerials were at hand and all the neighbors took part in it. Whenit was finished, the sick person was taken to the new lodging. Thenpreparing the intended sacrifice--a slave (which was their custom attimes), a turtle, a large shellfish, or a hog--without an altar oranything resembling one, they placed it near the sick person, whowas stretched out on the floor of the house on a palm mat (whichthey use as a mattress). They also set many small tables there, laden with various viands. The catalona stepped out, and, dancingto the sound of gongs, wounded the animal, and anointed with theblood the sick person, as well as some of the bystanders. The animalwas then drawn slightly to one side and skinned and cleaned. Afterthat it was taken back to its first location, and the catalona therebefore them all, spoke some words between her teeth while she openedit, and took out and examined the entrails, in the manner of theancient soothsayers. Besides that the devil became incarnate in her, or the catalona feigned to be him by grimaces, and shaking of thefeet and hands, and foamings at the mouth, acting as if out of hersenses. After she had returned to her senses, she prophesied to thesick person what would happen to him. If the prophecy was one of life, the people ate and drank, chanted the histories of the ancestors ofthe sick person and of the anito to which the sacrifice was beingmade, and danced until they fell through sheer exhaustion. If theprophecy was one of death, the prophetess bolstered up her bad newswith praises of the sick person, for whose virtues and prowess shesaid the anitos had chosen him to become one of them. From thattime she commended herself to him and all his family, begging himto remember her in the other life. She added other flatteries andlies, with which she made the poor sick person swallow his death;and obliged his relatives and friends to treat him from that time asan anito, and make feasts to him. The end was eating and drinking, for that marked the termination of their sacrifices. Each person whoattended the sacrifice was obliged to offer something--gold, cotton, birds, or other things--according to his capacity and wish. Theoffering was given to the priest or priestess who had performed thesacrifice. Consequently, the latter were generally quite rich andwell dressed, and had plenty of ornaments made of various kinds ofjewels. On that account, however, they were not honored or esteemed;for they were considered as an idle lot, who lived by the sweat ofothers. After their duty was once performed no further attention waspaid to them, unless they united with their office nobility or power. 

110. To give a list of the omens and auguries would consume much timeand be useless. If the owl lit on the roof at night it was a sign ofdeath. Consequently, when a house was built some sort of scarecrowwas set up to keep that bird away, so that the house might not belost; for a house would under no circumstances be lived in if thathappened. The same was true if any serpent was seen in it after it hadbeen newly built. If they came across a serpent in any road they wouldnot proceed farther, even if their business was very pressing. Thesame was true if they heard any one sneeze, a rat squeal, a dog howl, or a lizard [26] sing. Fishermen would not make use of the first castof the net or a new fish-corral, for they thought that they would getno more fish if they did the opposite. Neither must one talk in thefisherman's house of his new nets, or in that of the hunter of dogsrecently purchased, until they had made a capture or had some goodluck; for if they did not observe that, the virtue was taken from thenets and the cunning from the dogs. A pregnant woman could not cutoff her hair, under penalty of bearing an infant without hair. Thosewho journeyed ashore could not mention anything of the sea; and thosewho voyaged on the sea could not take any land animal with them, oreven name it. When a voyage was begun they rocked the boat to and fro, and let it vibrate, and if the vibrations of the right side were morepronounced the voyage would be good, but if bad they were less. Theycast lots with some strands of cord, with the tusks of swine, the teethof crocodiles, and other filthy things, at the ends; and their good orevil fortune would depend on whether or not those ends became tangled. 

111. The oaths of these nations were all execrations in the form ofawful curses. Matay, "may I die!" Cagtin nang Buaya, "may I be eatenby the crocodile!" Maguin Amo, "may I turn into a monkey!" The onegenerally used is Matay. When the chiefs of Manila and Tondo sworeallegiance to our Catholic sovereigns, in the year one thousand fivehundred and seventy-one, they confirmed the peace agreements and thesubjection with an oath, asking "the sun to pierce them through themiddle, the crocodiles to eat them, and the women not to show themany favor or wish them well, if they broke their word. " Sometimesthey performed the pasambahan for greater solemnity and confirmationof the oath. That consisted in bringing forward the figure of somemonstrous beast asking that they might be broken into pieces by it ifthey failed in their promise. Others, having placed a lighted candlein front of them, said that as that candle melted and was consumed, so might he who failed in his promise be consumed and destroyed. Suchas these were their oaths. 

112. It remains for us to speak of their mortuary customs. As soon asthe sick person dies, they begin to bewail him with sobs and cries--notonly the relatives and friends, but also those who have that as a tradeand hire themselves out for that purpose. They put into their songinnumerable bits of nonsense in praise of the deceased. To the sound ofthat sad music, they washed the body. They perfumed it with storax, orbenzoin, and other perfumes, obtained from tree-resins which are foundthroughout these forests. Having done that they shrouded the corpse, wrapping it in a greater or less number of cloths, according to therank of the deceased. The most powerful were anointed and embalmedaccording to the manner of the Hebrews, with aromatic liquors whichpreserve the body from corruption, especially that made from the aloeswood, or as it is called, eagle-wood. That wood is much esteemedand greatly used throughout this India extra Gangem. The sap fromthe plant called buyo (which is the famous betel of all India) wasalso used for that purpose. A quantity of that sap was placed in themouth so that it would reach the interior. The grave of poor peoplewas a hole in the ground under their own houses. After the rich andpowerful were bewailed for three days, they were placed in a box orcoffin of incorruptible wood, the body adorned with rich jewels, andwith sheets of gold over the mouth and eyes. The box of the coffin wasall of one piece, and was generally dug out of the trunk of a largetree, and the lid was so adjusted that no air could enter. By suchmeans some bodies have been found uncorrupted after the lapse of manyyears. Those coffins were placed in one of three places, according tothe inclination and command of the deceased. That place was eitherin the upper part of the house with the jewels, which are generallykept there; or in the lower part of it, raised up from the ground;or in the ground itself, in an open hole which is surrounded with asmall railing, without covering the coffin over with earth. Near itthey generally placed another box filled with the best clothing of thedeceased, and at suitable times various kinds of food were placed ondishes for them. Beside the men were placed the weapons, and besidethe women their looms or other instruments of labor. If they weremuch beloved by those who bewailed them, they were not permittedto go alone. A good meal was given to some slave, male or female, and one of those most liked by the deceased; and then he was killed, in order that he might accompany the deceased. Shortly before theentrance of the faith into the island of Bool, one of the chiefs ofthat island had himself buried in a kind of boat, which the nativescall barangay, surrounded by seventy slaves with arms, ammunition, and food--just as he was wont to go out upon his raids and robberieswhen in life; and as if he were to be as great a pirate in the otherlife as in this. Others buried their dead in the open country, andmade fires for many days under the house, and set guards so that thedeceased should not return to carry away those who had remained. 

113. After the funeral the lamentations ceased, although the eatingand drunkenness did not. On the contrary, the latter continued for agreater or less time, according to the rank of the deceased. The widowor widower and the orphans, and other relatives, who were most affectedby grief, fasted as a sign of mourning, and abstained from flesh, fish, and other food, eating during those days naught but vegetables, andthose only sparingly. That manner of fasting or penitence for the deadis called sipà by the Tagálogs. Mourning among the Tagálogs is black, and among the Visayans white, and in addition the Visayans shave thehead and eyebrows. At the death of a chief silence must reign in thevillage until the interdict was raised; and that lasted a greater orless number of days, according to his rank. During that time no soundor noise was to be heard anywhere, under penalty of infamy. In regardto this even the villages along the river-bank placed a certain signalaloft, so that no one might sail by that side, or enter or leave thevillage, under penalty of death. They deprived anyone who broke thatsilence of his life, with the greatest cruelty and violence. Thosewho were killed in war were celebrated in their lamentations and intheir funeral rites, and much time was spent in offering sacrificesto or for them, accompanied with many banquets and drunken revels. Ifthe death had happened through violence--in war or peace, by treason, or any other manner--the mourning was not laid aside nor the interdictraised until the children, brothers, or relatives, killed an equalnumber not only of their enemies and the murderers, but also ofany strange persons who were not their friends. Like highwaymen androbbers they prowled on land and sea, and went on the hunt for men, killing as many as they could until their fury was appeased. Thatbarbarous kind of vengeance is called balàta and in token of it theneck was girt with a strap which was worn until the number of personsprescribed had been killed. Then a great feast and banquet was made, the interdict was raised, and at its proper time the mourning wasremoved. In all the above are clearly seen the traces of heathendomand of those ancient rites and customs so celebrated and noisedabout by good authors, by which many other nations, more civilized, were considered as famous and worthy of history. 

CHAPTER XVI

 Of the government and political customs of these peoples

114. There were no kings or rulers worthy of mention, throughout thisarchipelago; but there were many chiefs who dominated others lesspowerful. As there were many without much power, there was no securityfrom the continual wars that were waged between them. Manila had twochiefs, uncle and nephew, who had equal power and authority. Theywere at war with another chief, who was chief alone; and he was sonear that they were separated from one another by nothing more thana not very wide river. The same conditions ruled in all the rest ofthe island, and of even the whole archipelago, until the entranceof the faith, when they were given peace--which they now esteemmuch more than all that they then obtained from those petty warsand their depredations. They were divided into barangays, as Romainto districts, and our cities into parishes or collations. They arecalled barangays, which is the name of a boat, preserving the name fromthe boat in which they came to settle these islands. Since they camesubject to one leader in their barangay, who acted as their captainor pilot--who was accompanied by his children, relatives, friends, and comrades--after landing, they kept in company under that leader, who is the dato. Seizing the lands, they began to cultivate themand to make use of them. They seized as much of the sea and near-byrivers as they could preserve and defend from any other barangay, orfrom many barangays, according as they had settled near or far fromothers. Although on all occasions some barangays aided and protectedothers, yet the slave or even the timaua or freemen could not pass fromone barangay to another, especially a married man or a married woman, without paying a certain quantity of gold, and giving a public feastto his whole barangay; where this was not done, it was an occasionfor war between the two barangays. If a man of one barangay happenedto marry a woman of another, the children had to be divided betweenthe barangays, in the same manner as the slaves. 

115. Their laws and policy, which were not very barbarous forbarbarians, consisted wholly of traditions and customs, observedwith so great exactness that it was not considered possible to breakthem in any circumstance. One was the respect of parents and elders, carried to so great a degree that not even the name of one's fathercould pass the lips, in the same way as the Hebrews [regarded] thename of God. The individuals, even the children, must follow thegeneral [custom]. There were other laws also. For the determinationof their suits, both civil and criminal, there was no other judgethan the said chief, with the assistance of some old men of thesame barangay. With them the suit was determined in the followingform. They had the opponents summoned, and endeavored to have themcome to an agreement. But if they would not agree, then an oath wasadministered to each one, to the effect that he would abide by whatwas determined and done. Then they called for witnesses, and examinedsummarily. If the proof was equal [on both sides], the difference wassplit; but, if it were unequal, the sentence was given in favor of theone who conquered. If the one who was defeated resisted, the judgemade himself a party to the cause, and all of them at once attackedwith the armed hand the one defeated, and execution to the requiredamount was levied upon him. The judge received the larger share ofthis amount, and some was paid to the witnesses of the one who wonthe suit, while the poor litigant received the least. 

In criminal causes there were wide distinctions made because of therank of the murderer and the slain; and if the latter were a chiefall his kinsmen went to hunt for the murderer and his relatives, and both sides engaged in war, until mediators undertook to declarethe quantity of gold due for that murder, in accordance with theappraisals which the old men said ought to be paid according totheir custom. One half of that amount belonged to the chiefs, and theother half was divided among the wife, children, and relatives of thedeceased. The penalty of death was never imposed by process of law, except when the murderer and his victim were common men and had no goldto satisfy the murder. In such a case, if the man's dato or maginoo(for these are one and the same) did not kill him, the other chiefsdid, spearing him after lashing him to a stake. 

117. In a matter of theft, if the crime were proved, but not thecriminal, and more than one person was suspected, a canonicalclearance from guilt had to be made in the following form. Firstthey obliged each person to put in a heap a bundle of cloth, leaves, or anything else that they wished, in which they might discoverthe article stolen. If the article stolen was found in the heap, at the end of this effort, then the suit ceased; if not, one ofthree methods was tried. First, they were placed in the part ofthe river where it is deepest, each one with his wooden spear inhis hand. Then at the same time they were all to be plunged underthe water, for all are equal in this, and he who came out first wasregarded as the criminal. Consequently, many let themselves drownfor fear of punishment. The second was to place a stone in a vesselof boiling water, and to order them to take it out. He who refused toput his hand into the water paid the penalty for the theft. Thirdly, each one was given a wax candle of the same wick, and of equal sizeand weight. The candles were lighted at the same time, and he whosecandle first went out was the culprit. 

118. There are three kinds and classes of people: the chiefs, whomthe Visayans call dato and the Tagálogs maginoo; the timauas, whoare the ordinary common people, called maharlicà among the Tagálogs;and the slaves, called oripuen by the Visayans and alipin by theTagálogs. The last are divided into several kinds, as we shall relatesoon. The chiefs attain that position generally through their blood;or, if not that, because of their energy and strength. For even thoughone may be of low extraction, if he is seen to be careful, and if hegains some wealth by his industry and schemes--whether by farming andstock-raising, or by trading; or by any of the trades among them, suchas smith, jeweler, or carpenter; or by robbery and tyranny, which wasthe most usual method--in that way he gains authority and reputation, and increases it the more he practices tyranny and violence. Withthese beginnings, he takes the name of dato; and others, whether hisrelatives or not, come to him, and add credit and esteem to him, andmake him a leader. Thus there is no superior who gives him authorityor title, beyond his own efforts and power. Consequently, might wasproclaimed as right, and he who robbed most and tyrannized most wasthe most powerful. If his children continued those tyrannies, theyconserved that grandeur. If on the contrary, they were men of littleability, who allowed themselves to be subjugated, or were reducedeither by misfortunes and disastrous happenings, or by sicknessesand losses, they lost their grandeur with their possessions, as iscustomary throughout the world; and the fact that they had honoredparents or relatives was of no avail to them, or is of no avail to themnow. In this way it has happened that the father might be a chief, andthe son or brother a slave--and worse, even a slave to his own brother. 

119. Their manner of life and ordinary conduct from the days of oldis trade, in all sorts of things by wholesale, and more by retailin the products of the earth, in accordance with what is producedin each district. The maritime peoples are great fishers with net, line, and corral. The people who live inland are excellent farmers andhunters. They are always cultivating rice, besides other vegetablesand garden products, quite different from those of Europa. The womenalso are shrewd in trading, especially of their weaving, needlework, and embroideries, which they make very neatly; and there is scarcelyone who cannot read and write. Sometimes the husband and wife gotogether on their trading, and, whether for this or for any otherthing, she must always go ahead; for it is not their custom to gotogether. Even if it be a band wholly made up of men or of women, or of men and women mixed, and even if the road be very wide, theygo in single file one after the other. 

120. The maritime peoples were accustomed to make many raids, and those of the interior to set ambushes for such depredations, wasting life in this. Their weapons consisted of bow and arrow;a spear with a short handle, and a head shaped in innumerable ways, most often with harpoon points; other spears without any head, withthe point made on the shaft itself (which is now of bamboo and nowof wood), a vara long, hardened in fire. They had swords; large, sharp daggers, made very beautifully; and slender, long blowpipes[ceruatanas], through which they shot most dangerous poisoned arrows, in the manner of the inhabitants of Samatra. Such are their offensiveweapons. Their defensive weapons are wooden shields and rattan orcorded breastplates, and other armor helmets of the same material. 

121. What justice, what fidelity, what honesty should there be amidso great cruelty and tyranny? Virginity and purity were ignominious, which is the general vice of idolaters. Whether married or single, the woman who had no lover could not be safe; and by regarding thatas an honor, they considered it a dishonor to give their personsfree. When men children were born in certain provinces, the mothersthemselves performed on them a certain form of circumcision, quitedifferent from that of the Jews and Moros, and only in order to renderthem more skilful in their lewdness. Yet with all this, they abhorred, and chastised, and rigorously punished incest. 

122. In the celebration of their marriages, espousals, and divorces, and in the giving and receiving of dowries, they also proceededaccording to reason. In the first place, they agreed as to the dowry, which is promised and given even now by the man, in the sum named bythe parents. When it is determined the betrothal takes place, generallywith a conventional penalty which is rigorously executed. However, neither men nor women take it for an insult or grieve greatly ifthe betrothal be refused, because then they benefit by the fine. Thetruth is, that if those who are bound by the fine were the parents, after their deaths the children are free to break the contract withoutincurring the penalty, by only the restitution of the amount receivedas dowry. 

Matrimony at present includes, besides the above, the delivery ofthe person and the dowry. The latter is not received by the woman butby her parents or relatives, as it were selling their girls, in themanner of the Mesopotamians and other nations. The parents convertthe dowry into their own estate, and it is distributed with the otherproperty, at their deaths, among all the children equally. But ifthe son-in-law has been very obedient to his parents-in-law; thenthe latter generally return the dowry to their children. The otherrelatives are only depositaries of what they must again deliver to thechildren. Besides the dowry, the chiefs formerly gave some presentsto the parents and relatives, and even to the slaves, to a greateror less amount according to the rank of the bridegroom. 

The pagan ceremony and form of marriage had to be authorized bya sacrifice; for after the marriage had been agreed upon and thedowry paid over, the catalona came, and a hog was brought to her. Theceremonies were performed as in other sacrifices. The lovers havingseated themselves in their bridal chamber, each in the lap of an oldwoman who acted as godmother, the latter gave them to eat from oneplate and to drink from one cup. The bridegroom said that he tookthe woman to wife, and, accepting her, the catalona or babaylanaimmediately gave them a thousand benedictions, saying to them: "Mayyou be well mated. May you beget many children and grandchildren, all rich and brave, " and other things of this sort. Thereupon the hogwas slain, and the lovers were married; and when the others becametired of dancing and singing, all became intoxicated and went tosleep. If the recently-married couple did not suit each other, anothersacrifice was ordered, in which the bridegroom himself danced and slewthe victim--the while talking to his anito, and offering himself toit for the sake of peace and harmony with his wife. That having beendone, he calmed himself, confident that then and thenceforth the twowould live in harmony, and enjoy their married life in peace. 

These nations consider it important to take a wife only from theirown family, and the nearer the better. Only they except the firstgrade [of kinship], for they always considered that as a dissolvingimpediment. But what marriages were those in which the contract wasnot indissoluble, and could be dissolved by the woman, if she were toblame, merely returning the dowry! If the husband were to blame, itwas not returned; and the marriage could be repudiated by themselves, without any solemnity of law. That was done daily for very slightcauses, and new marriages were formed with others. Polygamy was notthe fashion among the Tagálogs. However, if the wife bore no children, the husband could with his wife's permission have them by his slavewomen, in accordance with the example of the ancient patriarchs. Amongthe principal Visayans, the ministers of the gospel found establishedthe custom of having two or more legitimate wives, and large dowries, which was a great obstacle to Christianity. 

123. Thus far in regard to marriage. As to the children and theirsuccession and inheritance, if they were legitimate they inheritedequally in the property of their parents. For lack of legitimatechildren the nearest relatives inherited. If there were illegitimatechildren, who had for example been had by a free woman, they had theirshare in the inheritance, but not equally with the legitimate children, for the latter received two-thirds, and the illegitimate one-third. Butif there were no legitimate children then the illegitimate receivedall the inheritance. The children of a slave woman who belonged tothe man were given some part of the household effects, according tothe will of the legitimate children. In addition the mother becamefree for the very reason that her master had had a child by her. 

There were also adopted children, and the practice was that the oneadopted bought his adoption. For the natural parent gave a certain sumto the adopted parent in order to have his son or daughter adopted, and thereupon the latter was adopted without any other subtletyof law or of paternal power. It was done only to the end that theadopted child, if he should outlive the one adopting him, shouldinherit double the sum that had been given for his adoption. Thus, if ten were given, he must inherit twenty. But if the adopted parentoutlived the adopted child, the adoption expired as well as the rightof inheritance, which was not given to the heirs of the adopted one, either in whole or in part. But if, on the contrary, the parent diedwhile his own child was living, he left him by way of addition to thesum for adoption doubled, some jewel or slave woman, as a reward forhis good services. But, on the other hand, if the child was ungratefuland acted badly, the adoptive parent gave him up, by restoring thesum that had been given for his adoption. 

Adultery was not punished corporally, but by a pecuniaryfine. Therefore the adulterer, by paying to the aggrieved partythe sum of gold agreed upon between them, or given by the sentenceand judgment of the old men, was pardoned for the injury that hehad committed; and the aggrieved party was satisfied, and his honorwas not besmirched. Also he continued to live with his wife withoutanything more being said on the subject. But those children had bya married woman did not succeed to the nobility of the parents orto their privileges; but were always reckoned plebeians, whom thosepeople call timauas. Likewise those children had by a slave woman, although they were free, as was the mother, were always regarded asof low birth. These who succeeded to the nobility were the legitimatechildren. In the barangay, when the father was lord of it his eldestson inherited that office; but, if he died, then he who came next inorder. If there were no male children, then the daughters succeededin the same order; and for want of either males or females, thesuccession went to the nearest relative of the last possessor. Thusno will was necessary for all those successions; for wills were neverin vogue among these nations in the form and solemnity of such. Asfor legacies it was sufficient to leave them openly, in writing orentrusted by word of mouth, in the presence of known persons. 

125. A great part of the wealth of these Indians consisted inslaves. For, after gold, no property was held in greater esteem, because of the many comforts that were enjoyed for their mode ofliving through a multitude of slaves. Thus our Spaniards when theyentered the islands found so many slaves that there were chiefswho had one, two, and three hundred slaves, and those generally oftheir own color and nation, and not of other foreign nations. Themost general origin of those slaveries were interest and usury. Thatwas so much practiced among them, that no father would aid his son, no son his father, no brother his brother, and much less any relativehis relative, even though he were suffering extreme necessity, withoutan agreement to restore double. If payment was not made when promised, the debtor remained a slave until he paid. That happened often, forthe interest or increase continued to accumulate just so long as thepayment was deferred. Consequently, the interest exceeded the wealthof the debtor, and therefore the debt was loaded upon his shoulders, and the poor creature became a slave; and from that time his childrenand descendants were slaves. Other slaveries were due to tyrannyand cruelty. For slaves were made either in vengeance on enemies, inthe engagements and petty wars that they waged against one another, in which the prisoners made remained slaves, even though they were ofthe same village and race; or as a punishment which the more powerfulinflicted on the weaker ones, even for a matter of little importance, of which they made a matter of insult. For instance if the lesser didnot observe the interdict on talking and noise, usual in the time ofthe burial of the chiefs; if he passed near where the chief's wife wasbathing; or if any dust or any other dirt fell from the house of thetimaua upon the chief or his wife when passing through the street:then in these and numberless other similar cases the powerful onesdeprived the poor wretches of liberty, and tyrannically made themslaves--and not only them but their children, and perhaps the wife andnear relatives. The worst thing is that all those who had been madeslaves by war, or for punishment of debts, were rigorously regardedas such, as slaves for any kind of service or slavery, and servedinside the house. The same was true of their children, in the mannerof our slaveries, and they could be sold at will. However, the masterswere not accustomed to sell those born under their roof, for theyregarded them in the light of relatives. Those slaves were allowedto keep for themselves a portion of any profit which they made. TheTagálogs called such true slaves sanguiguilir, and the Visayans halon. 

Other slaves were called namamahay, for they did not serve theirmaster in all capacities, nor inside his house; but in their ownhouses, and outside that of their masters. They were bound, however, to obey their master's summons either to serve in his house when hehad honored guests, or for the erection of his house and its repair, and in the seasons of sowing and harvest. They [had also to respond]to act as his rowers when he went out in his boat, and on other likeoccasions, in which they were obliged to serve their master withoutany pay. 

126. Among both kinds of slaves, sanguiguilir and namamahay, it happensthat there are some who are whole slaves, some who are half slaves, and some one-fourth part slave. For if the father or the mother werefree, and had an only son he was half free and half slave. If they hadmore than one child, these were so divided that the first followedthe condition of the father, whether free or slave, and the secondthat of the mother. So did it happen with successive pairs. But ifthere were an odd number of children, the last was half free and halfslave. Those who descended from them, if they were children of a freefather or mother, were slaves only in the fourth part, as they were thechildren of a free father or mother, and of one half slave. Sometimes, because it happened that two people had agreed to marry and the manhad no wealth for the dowry--or rather, nothing with which to buy hiswife--he became her slave. In such case the children were divided inthe said manner, and the first, third, and fifth, and the remainingones in the same way were slaves, inasmuch as they belonged to thefather, who was also a slave of the mother--and not only slaves to her, but also to her brothers and sisters and relatives, in case of herdeath and the division of her property. On the contrary the second, fourth, and others in the same way, were according to their customfree, inasmuch as they belonged to their mother who was free; andthey were masters and rulers over their own father and brothers andsisters. The same thing happened in the case of interest, a thingof so great importance among them that, as already remarked, thefather would not pardon the debt and interest even to the son, northe son the father, even in case of necessity, until the one had madea slave of the other for it. Consequently, if one brother ransomedanother brother, or a son his father, the latter remained a slave, as did his descendants, until the value of the ransom was paid withinterest. Consequently, the captive was gainer only by the change ofmaster. Such as the above are the monstrous things that are seen wherethe law of God and Christian charity are lacking. In the division madebetween heirs, when a slave belonged to many, the time of his servicewas divided and each of the masters had the share that belonged to himand was his in such slave; and the division was made by months, or aswas convenient among the masters. When a slave is not a whole slavebut only a half or fourth part, he has the right to compel his masterto give him his freedom for the just price at which he is appraised, according to the rank of the slavery, sanguiguilir or namamahay. Butif he be a whole slave, the master cannot be compelled to ransom himat any price, even though he should have become a slave for debt, if already the day set for the payment of the debt has passed. 

127. There was another kind of service which was not of a truthservitude, although it appeared to be such. It was generally seen amongcertain persons called cabalangay. Whenever such persons wanted anysmall trifle, they begged the head chief of their barangay for it, and he gave it to them. In return, whenever he summoned them theywere obliged to go to him to work in his fields or to row in hisboats. Whenever a feast or banquet was given, then they all cametogether and helped furnish the tuba, wine, or quilan, such beingtheir method of service. 

128. The ancient custom in manumission was for the whole sanguiguilirslave to pay ten taes of gold, and the namamahay the half; and, in addition to that, he had to give the half of whatever thingshe owned. For instance, if he owned two large jars he had to giveone. In order to make that conveyance, the slave must make a banquet, at which were present masters, relatives, and friends. At the height ofthe banquet the delivery of the gold and household articles was made, those present being witnesses that the master had received them. Thelatter was thereupon satisfied, and the slave was set free. 

Even today the Tagálogs are wont, at death, to grant freedom to thechildren of their slaves who are born in their house, no matter howyoung they be. However, they do not free the parents of those childrenno matter how old they be, and even if they have been served throughoutlife by them. That seems absolutely illogical. 

129. To what has been said of dowries and marriages, it must be addedthat in some districts, besides the bigaycaya and those presents madeto the relatives, there was panhimuyat. This was a kind of presentthat was given to the mother of the bride, merely in return for thebad and watchful nights that she had passed in rearing her. Thatpanhimuyat signifies "watchfulness and care. " If the dowry was equalto five taes of gold, the panhimuyat was equal to one tinga, which wasequivalent to one tae, or five pesos. That was a custom which wellshows the harshness and greed of these nations, since the motherswished to be paid even for the rearing of their daughters. 

Also, whenever a chief married any daughter of his and asked a largedowry of his son-in-law, as, for instance, eighteen or twenty taes ofgold, the father was obliged to give his daughter certain gifts calledpasonor, such as a gold chain, or a couple of slaves, or somethingproportional to the dowry. It was very shameful to ask a large dowrywithout giving a pasonor. This is still done, resembling the giftswhich among us the father presents to his daughter præter dotem, [27] which the civil law calls bona paraphernalia. [28]

THE NATIVES OF THE SOUTHERN ISLANDS

[Francisco Combés, S. J. , [29] in his Historia de las islas de Mindanao, Iolo, y sus adjacentes (Madrid, 1667), devotes a number of pages tothe peoples of Mindanao and other islands. This matter we translatefrom the reprint issued (Madrid, 1887) by Pablo Pastells, S. J. , and W. E. Retana, book i, chapters ix-xviii. ]

CHAPTER IX

 Of the nations of these islands and those adjacent to them

Four nations have renown in this island, the Caragas, [30] Mindanaos, [31] Lutaos, [32] and Subanos. [33] That of most renown is the nationof Caraga, which, although it is the smallest numerically, has beenthe greatest in deeds. In times past that nation was the scourge ofthe islands, as is today proclaimed by the depredations that stillare fresh in memory in the islands of Pintados--especially so in thatof Leyte, where there is scarce a village which has not bewailed itsruin. A good part of this ruin extended to Ours, the pirates havingpillaged our town of Palo and destroyed all the villages of the coast, taking prisoner the father ransomer, [34] who exercised that officefor all the jurisdiction, and obliging those who lived in the villagesto retire into the mountains. Those nations maintained themselves bytheir own valor, without protection of the pagan kings; they werebold against all, and no one dared to do anything to them. Theyare a brave nation on sea and land, and on land they are the firstnation of the islands; and by their aid great exploits have beenaccomplished, as was seen in the conquest of the lake of Malanao, and in all others that have occurred since they were subdued by thegospel and the Catholic arms. 

The second nation in estimation is the Mindanao, which includes thekingdoms of Buhayen; for in olden times they were all one nation, and today, although various petty rulers govern them, they are one incustoms and language. They are a nation of some valor, and with theirpolicy of being subject to kings they have acquired esteem among theother nations, whom they have united under one political governmentfor achievements that are too great for their own courage. They aretreacherous and of little faith, as they are now swayed by the impiousworship of Mahomet. 

The third nation is the Lutaya. It is a nation common to these islandsof Mindanao, Jolo, and Basilan. In all these islands it preservesthe name of Lutao, for since that is their vocation it well explainstheir nature. For Lutao means, in those languages, "he who swims andgoes floating over the water. " Such is the nature of these people thatthey know no other house than the ship. In the villages which they haveformed they well show the inclination with which they were born; forthey are so fond of living on the sea that their houses are built init, in places which the low tide leaves exposed. In that way they canset upright the trunks of the trees with which they must form theirhouses, driving them down according to the load which they have tosustain. When it is high tide the houses are very far from the shore, and the water in between is so deep that brigs and craft of heaviertonnage can sail there. These people hate the land so thoroughlythat they do not trouble themselves at all about its cultivation, nor get any benefit from it. All their labor lies in fishing, andthey get from that the means of barter for whatever they need, evenfor the wood that they burn and the logs from which they build theirhouses and craft. Since they are so slightly attached to the land, they easily move to other parts, and know no fixed abode except thesea; for although they recognize villages, in which they assemble, they seldom live in these, for they are scattered through the baysand beaches suitable for their fishing. They live under the kings ofMindanao and Jolo, and the chiefs of the same, and those of the islandof Basilan; today with some, tomorrow with others, according to thedistrict in which they are. Those of this island are scattered alongall the coast which extends from Samboangan to the river of Mindanao, and have no fixed dwelling in any other part--except some of them whohave settled in the city of Cebú and a few others in the village ofDapitan. They are equally esteemed in all parts as being the sinewsfor the wars of these regions (their campaign field being the sea), and also for their skill in constructing vessels fit for the wars ofthese regions, and their skill in managing them. 

By their constant communication with, all the nations (as they goto all parts for their advantage), and because of their method ofliving--which is so in the manner of traders, enjoying the fruits ofthe land--and by the alertness of their intelligence, they are themost capable, the most clear-sighted, and the most crafty people ofthese islands. Therefore, they maintain the supremacy in everything, and, although they are the smallest in number, and everywhere themost foreign [of all these peoples], they are today the kings, andhold the rulers as their slaves; for now by loans, now by violence, and now by private vengeance, they have established the entire slaveryof these islands. 

As their work causes but little exertion, naturally they grow up lazy, and only shake off their laziness for the gains and advantages of anindustry like trading and sea piracy. And since the gains derived fromthat source are sure, both because the cunning employed by them isthat of finished robbers, and because their wings are those of royalfalcons, they are most eager for that exercise, as they are assuredby these advantages from all danger; for, whether it be because ofthe swiftness of their ships or because of their skill in rowingthem, no ship of ours has ever been able to overtake them. Assuredon that point, they have pillaged whatever their greed has dictatedto them. Their method of attack is for all of them to land at oncewith a terrifying and barbaric cry, the awfulness of which strikesterror to the people as they are caught defenseless and separatedand thus incapable of resistance. 

They are more circumspect on the sea, when danger does not obligethem to make resistance. For since these natives do not fight forreputation, but only for gain, they seek to assure that, and not tobuy it too dear with their blood. Therefore, when they meet a shipwhich they think cannot make any resistance they go to it in certaintyof making it a prize, and that they will catch it a half-legua fromshore. However small it be, they do not care to seize it if thereis any danger. They continue to row about it, until they cause it towaste its powder in spectacular warfare, and then, when they see itweakening, they attack it with great valor throwing by hand so manymissile weapons that no man can [safely] show his face; and when theyget within range there is rarely a man who is not wounded, for theyhurl these missiles in showers. No matter how well equipped a boatmay be, if once it gets within their range it has to surrender;for then their men, both sailors and soldiers hurl their arrowswith both hands, so that they confuse those who uncover themselvesfor the fight. But by startling them from a distance, that dangeris not imminent, and less resistance suffices. In order that thismay be better understood, I shall relate some attested incidents ofsuch encounters. One happened to an inhabitant of Dapitan, with whomI sailed for many days. He, when going toward his village in a smallboat, met the fleet of the Joloans. A ship with one piece immediatelyleft the fleet to pursue him. The Indian carried a musket, and afterhe had discharged it the enemy, recognizing it, moderated their zeal, and coming within range discharged their own piece. Then they backedwater in order to load again and repeated the attack, always keeping aclose watch on the musket. In this way they made three attacks, untilat the third their piece became enraged, and breaking its carriage, fell into the sea. Thereupon the enemy dared attempt nothing more, and retired. The same fortune happened to Father Antonio Abarca, [35]of our Society, of whom we shall make honorable mention later. He, having left me in Dapitan in order to go over to Bohol, on that sameday while sailing toward that island, and while still one legua awayfrom it, found three hostile joangas of Joloans at another island, small and uninhabited, called Illaticasa, which attacked him at thesame time. There was but one firearm in the ship, and the fatherwas the only one who knew how to manage it. He seeing himself so farfrom land, and pursued by an enemy so keen and so swift on the sea, availed himself of his courage, which was great, and of his skill, which was remarkable; and, adroitly fighting, he kept firing at theenemy, until he gained shore, being almost all the time in range ofthem, and so near that they talked to one another. By that means hesaved himself and his people--a thing that would have been impossiblein any other manner; but his defense was so fiery that in less thanhalf an hour he fired the gun more than thirty times. 

These people are the instruments of all the exploits by sea, for ofall the other nations no one will embark unless he is forced; andon account of the little effectiveness that is found by experiencein all the others, our enemies, who are watchful for their ownsafety and for fortunate results, are not hindered by those otherpeoples. Consequently, he who has most men from this nation isconsidered the most powerful and is the most feared, as they havepower to infest the seas and coasts, making captives and pillaging, and making themselves masters of the crossings and passages necessaryfor communication with the other islands. 

For that same reason the Mindanao has become so feared in theselatter years that although he of Buhayen is the true and legitimateking, he is coming to be less esteemed; for since the Mindanao kinghas many Lutaos, he has also power to make war. And although theking of Buhayen has twenty-fold more vassals, he can make no oneuneasy because he has no subjects of this nation; consequently, he has no weight in these islands. For the wars of these nations, now because of their little permanence, now because of the naturalruggedness of their settled parts, are but seldom offensive by land;for the enemy are immediately perceived, and the less powerful availthemselves of the shelter of the mountains. Since the people are oflittle endurance and less subordination they cannot sustain longcampaigns. Therefore, at most the valiant ones set an ambush, andaccording to the way it falls out the campaign is finished withoutthe spoils being surrendered; for their articles of value, as thereis so little good faith among them, are always kept buried, or areso light that they are carried along with them. On that account healone is judged powerful who has people to make war by sea. In ancienttimes this power caused all this island to pay tribute to the king ofMindanao in order to be free from his attacks. In the time of Buisan, the father of Corralat, they had hopes of rendering all the islandsof Pintados tributary; and, though the island of Burney is so out ofthe way, more than twenty thousand vassals pay tribute to him in thevillages called Suaco. For the same reason, although the Joloan nationis so small, it has become the most distinguished in these islands;for on sea it equals the strength of the Mindanaos, as they have asmany or more vassals of the Lutao nation. 

The fourth nation is the Subano. They are the settlers along therivers. To them is due the name suba, which is the equivalent of"river" in the general language of these nations. It is the nation ofleast esteem, both because of their natural barbarousness, for theylive in the plains with as little association with one another ashave brutes (one house being located a legua's distance from another, according to where each one wishes to build his hut); and because oftheir poverty, which is dire. For since they have no other intelligencethan [what is required for] their work, their slothfulness reducestheir efforts to what necessity [only] requires, so that what isabundant for a laborious life is always lacking with them. They aredeficient in civilized ways, along with human intercourse, as theyare born so hostile and so averse to communication [with others] thatthey grow old in their rude settlements without curiosity drawingthem from their place of residence, or without their seeing the sea, although some of them live where they hear news of the horror of itstumults and movements. If either necessity or gain has made them givea glance at their rivers, they are satisfied with that, and do notseek a better fortune with its dangers. This inertia forbids them, incapable of giving force to their ambition, from following itsimpulses with [favoring] winds. 

They are as cowardly as treacherous, the one being the consequence ofthe other. He who better plans a bit of treachery and comes out mostsafely is considered the most valiant. As they all know one another, they look out for one another, and build their houses so high upthat a pike cannot reach and wound them. Their usual practice isto seek a very high tree, where they can build their nests safely;and, their houses being so unostentatious in size and furnishing, a tree holds them easily. The ladder by which they ascend is a log, some grooves that they cut in it serving as steps. On the coming ofnight they draw this ladder up and thus sleep secure. They teach usthe little with which life is satisfied, and the fatigues which ourambition and pride give us; for in order to satisfy our ambitionand pride we take upon us so many cares, which, so far as life isconcerned, are superfluous, and are not the least of the accidentswhich our life suffers. This nation is almost wholly in vassalage tothe Lutaos, and every village recognizes some chief [36] of the latternation to whom they pay tribute; and that chief bears himself as aking among them, and makes and unmakes at his will. In the beginning, this authority entered under color of protection and support againstthe king of Mindanao, and remained in enthroned tyranny, so that todaymost of this nation are slaves of the Lutaos--their want of intellectsubjecting them to a thousand cheats, and their want of protectionto a thousand outrages. For since the Lutaos are so alert a nation, and so sharp in their affairs, they have gradually bought the Subanosby trading with them, becoming masters of their entire freedom. 

CHAPTER X

 Of the noble and brave nation of the Dapitans

Of this island, which has given empires to so many kings, without doubtthe crown is the village of Dapitan; and, although it is so small atpresent, it has been one of the most densely populated in the past, the one most respected for its power, and in our times the whole, both of these conquests and of their Christian churches. In a smallnumber, reduced to one single village, there is inclosed a nation[37] apart from all the others, and superior to all those discoveredin nobility, valor, fidelity, and Catholicism. They are descendedfrom the island of Bool, where they anciently occupied the straitmade by that island and the island of Panglao, which remains dry atlow tide, but at high tide allows a galliot to pass. Therefore manybrazas in the sea stand, even today, certain columns of upright wood, as honorable witnesses of the location so gloriously occupied bythis nation, and today the venerable ruins of poor although adequatebuildings which they sustained. They occupied both shores and theentire island of Panglao. There they conquered the famous peopleof Bohol; for as their nation was the less numerous in that island, they were obliged to sustain their name by their deeds. The Boholans, conquered and put to flight, abandoned the site which they occupiedfrom the shore of the strait to the coast of Baclayon and took refugeon the river of Loboc, where their name is still preserved in a fewfamilies descended from that stock which conquered that island, andonly the valor of the Dapitans subdued. [38] According to the ancientlaw of the land the Dapitans can call the Boholans their slaves sinceless title was sufficient for that in the days of their antiquity, and the most authoritative reason was always that of war. 

War exiled the Dapitans from their country, a proof of their valorand the unforeseen accidents of their misfortunes; for they were theonly people of all the archipelago who were renowned among foreignprinces for their exploits, and to them alone were embassies made. Ithappened then that in an embassy sent by the king of Terrenate, the most warlike and powerful king known, his ambassador lost [due]respect for the house of the Dapitan princes--then represented byDailisan and Pagbuaya, who were brothers--by making advances toa concubine. They punished the crime more by the laws of offendedand irritated fury than by those of reason, with hideous and indeedcruel demonstrations of contempt, by cutting off the noses and earsof the ambassador and his men. When they had returned to Terrenate, the horrid aspect of his subjects aroused the wrath of the king. Hearmed all his power in twenty joangas to oppose the Dapitans. Hisgeneral, doubtful of the outcome, as he knew the valor of thosewith whom he had to do, made use of a trick by which he assured adeceitful victory. He sent his joangas in, one by one, giving out thatthey were traders, and under the security of friendship--excusing theabove occurrence, in order to divert the attention [of the Dapitans], with the laws of punishment, deserved because of the boldness of theirmen. The Dapitans, seeing that the Ternatans were attending only tothe sale of their goods, lost their caution, and came up with the sameconfidence as ever. When the Ternatans had all their fleet together, and saw that of the Dapitans, they closed with them. Although thelatter placed themselves in a position of defense, they retreatedbefore that multitude, and the terror of arms to which they wereunaccustomed; for the Ternatans already had muskets and arquebuses, the use of which they had before other nations, because of theirtrade with the Portuguese. [39] The frightful effects of these, as terrible by their ruin as by their novelty, worked on the mindsof the Dapitans. Dailisan was killed in that fray, and his brotherPagbuaya was left the reigning prince. He, seeing how he was involvedwith the Ternatans, and how much at the mercy of their new [arms][40] was the place occupied by the Dapitans--where the Ternatanships could succeed in anchoring under the houses of the Dapitans, and using their arms, fight them in safety--resolved to seek anotherplace, better defended. He also thus resolved because these nationsregard as unlucky the place where fortune has once shown itselfhostile to them, and immediately abandon it as accursed. Even today, in these islands, it is a fact that the house where a chief dies isabandoned by his people and it remains alone, waiting its ruin. [41]He sought then a place where, their valor and its ruggedness joininghands, they could make up, aided by the strength of the site, forthe small number of their nation. As there were no hills on theircoasts, and they were unable to restrain their noble and warlikenature to the confinement and gloomy prison of the retired mountains, where they would be deprived of the trade and benefits of the sea, they crossed to the island of Mindanao, a crossing of fifteen leguas, and twenty from their village, and seized a small rugged hill, whichwould allow itself to be monopolized by their valor. 

The people who elected to follow Pagbuaya numbered one thousandfamilies of freemen, his subjects, without taking into account theunmarried men. In these nations, where there is a law of dowry--orrather a law for the purchase of wives--there are many men who aredenied the bonds of matrimony because of their poverty. Neither dowe reckon the slaves of the prince, who exceeded five hundred, andmany other families of the Lutao nation, who as they now live underthe protection of the kings of Mindanao and Jolo, lived then alsounder the protection of the Dapitan princes. 

They had occupied the new site but a short time when their renowncaused anxiety to the most remote princes, who were fearful oftheir power. Consequently, the king of the great island of Burneywas the first to send his ambassador with two joangas, solicitingtheir friendship. While they were yet awaiting the resolution of theDapitans, the brave Magallanes sighted their coasts with his squadron, as we shall relate in the second book. They immediately made peacewith him, being pleased, as brave men, with the valor which theyrecognized in the unknown people. [42] The Borneans were sent awaywith the message that the Dapitans wished no other friendship thanthat of their new guests. They have preserved that friendship tothis day, as noble people, without any complaint [arising] of theirloyalty, even to the lowest slave; and their exploits in favor ofour arms have deserved much praise. For the son of that Pagbuaya, called Manooc, following the fidelity of his father, and surpassingit with the good fortune of being a Christian, aided the Spaniards intheir first conquests of these islands--especially in the conquest ofManila, the capital of all these islands; and later in the conquestof Camarines, taking at their own expense, in all these feats of arms, their men and the nations subject to them. 

That prince, who, as he was the first to become acquainted withthe Spaniards (having shared the knowledge of them which his fatheracquired with the first sight of the squadron of Magallanes), was thefirst to receive the blessing of acquaintance with our holy faith, giving renown equally to his own banners and to those of our king andsovereign, and receiving the name Don Pedro Manuel Manooc--continuedthe greatness of his deeds. For besides the services rendered inManila and the province of Camarines, he sustained war againstMindanao and Jolo, and attacked them with his fleets in their veryhouses. On one occasion, when among others he went to attack Jolo, he met the king himself, who was also going out with his fleetof twelve joangas. Manooc defeated him and captured his flagship, and, at the cost of many killed, the king escaped as a fugitive, byhastening to the land. He made war on the Caragas, who were the terrorof the islands at that time. He subdued the village of Bayug of theMalanao [43] nation, who were subject to the Mindanaos, without ourarms having any other protection amid so many enemies than that of hisvalor which made easy so many undertakings. That prince was the fatherof Doña Maria Uray, who is today living as an example and ornamentof these nations because of the perfection of her virtues--which sheprefers to a better fortune, for she has spurned marriage with thekings of Jolo in order that she might not subject her faith to theoutrages of barbarous and faithless princes. Don Pedro Manuel Manoocleft orders that he was to be buried in the city of Cebú, as he hadordered in his will that his bones be taken to that cathedral. Hischildren carried out his orders, thereby showing both their affectionto us and their devotion to him. 

The women were not inferior in merit. For Doña Madalena Baloyog, thesister of Don Pedro Manuel Manooc, had so great authority among thebarbarous Subanos that she alone by her discretion reduced more ofthem than did the arms of her people by their valor and courage. Sheobtained the name of pacifier, mistress, and sovereign of the hardhearts of the chiefs of the Subanos. Her authority was so manifestto our men that, the natives of the river of Butuan having rebelled, and killed their alcalde-mayor and their minister, a secular priest, who was then in charge of it, [44] it was sufficient for her to assurethem of pardon for the deed, and to secure to us their pacificationand due obedience forever. 

The cousin of Don Pedro Manuel Manooc was Laria, who competed in allthings for the greatness of his cousin. He served in the conquest ofMaluco with the same nobility and valor, and would receive no pay orrations for his men. In the seven times when the island of Jolo wasattacked in war, he took part in all of those conflicts, always showinghimself remarkable for his princely actions and soldierly valor. 

A son worthy the nobility of such a father was Don Gonçalo Maglenti, the husband of Doña Maria Uray, whom we mentioned above, and thefather of Don Pedro Cabelin. The latter is still living and isnowise inferior in his deeds and fidelity to his forbears, as he wasreared from childhood with so good merits of nobility and Christianwarfare--accompanying his father from the age of seven years, on alloccasions of danger; thus he came to despise danger so thoroughlythat at the age of thirty (his present age) the enemies of God andof our king whom he has killed in hand-to-hand combats, in variousfrays, surpass two hundred. Don Gonçalo, then, the father of soillustrious a son, left him enough examples to emulate his valor, for in accordance with his surname (which means "he who hurls downthunderbolts"), his valor hurled them in a constant shower. He opposedthe might of the Mindanaos at the time of their greatest arrogance, when they threatened all these islands with their arms. He always wentin pursuit of their fleets and of those of the Malanaos which weresent by way of the bay of Pangil [45] to aid the Mindanaos, for hewas an ally for the defeat of their plans. He subdued from the bay ofPangil to the village of Sidabay, ten leguas from Samboangan, all ofthe villages scattered through sixty leguas along the coast (formerlymany more and superior in number). His care watched perpetually overthe islands, and of his own accord he despatched advices to Cebú andOton at the first rumor of hostile fleets, by means of which the evildesigns of the enemies might be frustrated. That care merited forhis nation exemption from the tribute and from all personal service, which its natives enjoy today by concession from his Majesty. 

In this site the Dapitans--now reduced to the enterprises of hisvalor to so small a number that they scarce exceed one hundredfamilies--alone and strangers, have defended themselves from thepower of all the pirates of these islands, all of whom, pursuing themwith their vengeance and injuries, have attempted to extirpate thementirely. And as they have the land so at their mercy, with nationswho have inherited so much internal hatred [to the Dapitans] at beingsubdued by this noble nation, the former have been unable to get onesingle captive out of their hands, and their sieges are always leftcrowned with triumphs. For Buhisán, the father of Corralat, and themost warlike of the kings of Mindanao, with one hundred joangas andthe incentive of his own person and presence, returned within fifteenmonths, his haughtiness undeceived. The Joloans, notwithstandingtheir power, had no better fortune, and left behind seven joangas inthe enterprise that they attempted--although the opportunity was soin their favor, when there were scarcely ten men in the stronghold, as the majority had gone to various places for their trade. 

Among the Subanos--the ports of their conquest, which surroundthem on all sides--their valor is so accredited, that a Dapitan hasnothing to fear among a hundred of them. For if they see him readyfor them, they do not dare to attack him, however thirsty for hisblood their hatred makes them; for the Subanos are all the triumphs ofthe arms of the Dapitans, of which the sound and rigorous executionhas drawn the former from their mountains, and made settlements ofmen from savages scattered among the thickets, who are reduced tomore civilized life. Thus has been established a province which, inour time, has been given separate an alcalde-mayor, namely, that ofIligan; and by that province is secured to our arms an opening forthe conquest of Mindanao and Jolo, as we have thereby had soldiers, pilots, and most skilful sailors, who are better than all those whosail in these islands. Their village remains as a stronghold opposedto the petty rulers of those peoples. 

They are a very prudent race, and are quite Hispanicized in theircustoms, and by the modesty of their bearing naturally deservedrespectable. Thus they do not endure the outrages that the othersubdued nations endure, now from the boldness of the soldiers, now from the exigencies of our necessities; for they attendto all things willingly, considering it an honor to satisfy ourdesires. Consequently, in respect and esteem they are the princes ofthese islands. 

In matters of the Christian faith they yield in no wise to the mostpious European nation or to the loyalty of the most distinguished. Theyare the ones who guard religion. The minister who visits the portsof their coast, with four Dapitans whom he takes as a guard goes assafely as if he were taking an infantry regiment; and no misfortunehas ever happened to such an arrangement. For although misfortuneshave been experienced in the infidelity of the native Subanos, yetthey have been invited by the confidence of the father missionaries, who have gone among them without that valiant guard, as will be seenin the course of this history. Finally, the faith of this island andthose near by is owing to the Dapitans; and, to their fidelity andvalor, the glorious confidence of our arms. 

CHAPTER XI

 The settlers of these islands, and their origin

The owners of these islands are those who people the mountains. They, enamored with their peaceful mode of living, and fed with the happyreturns of their cultivation, built their nests there and losttheir liking for the coast and love for its occupations. Thereupon, as they were reared in so deep retirement, which is especially greatand unconquerable in these natives, because of their slothfulness andbecause they are so dead to curiosity, by which they have grown oldin their gloomy retreats, they gradually became mountaineers; and, their intercourse with other peoples ceasing, they became less alertand more barbarous, allowing the foreign traders to seize the coasts, harbor-bars, and rivers which they found deserted. Since by theirtrade, and in every way, the latter were making themselves mastersof all things, the aborigines, being less valiant, yielded to theforeigners, as these were more civilized. Consequently, on the southcoast the rulers of those peoples are the Lutaos, who bear themselvesamong these nations as princes. In some parts those peoples are calledSubanos, as in the jurisdiction of Iligan and Samboangan; in Mindanao, they are called Manobos [46] and Mananapes [47] which is equivalentto "brutes. " In Jolo, they are Guinuanos [i. E. , Guimbanos], and inBasilan they are called Sameacas, [48] and they are subject in allplaces equally to the fortune of the Lutaos. No other origin to thesepeoples can be conjectured than one general to these islands--whoselanguage, since its structure is founded on Malayan roots, shows byits origin the origin of its natives. To this testimony correspondsthe arrangement of these islands, which are strung out in a seriesfrom Burney and Macaçar, so that there is scarcely any considerablebreak, and there is no such correspondence in any other part. 

The Lutaya nation are new in these islands, and live more on the seasthan on their plains. They have no greater stability than is promisedby a log in the water where no firm foundation can be laid. Theyscarcely take their feet from their boats. Their Moorish dress ofturban and marlota [i. E. , a Moorish robe], their arms and worship, clearly show their origin. With all this agrees their more polishedlanguage, which they speak, emulating the grandeur of the princes ofthese nations who have made an ostentation of speaking it--indeed, because their own especial language approaches more nearly to it thanany other, for they owe to it a great number of their words. [49] Asthe Moorish faith [i. E. , Mahometanism] is recent in India, [50] andthence has steadily spread through these kingdoms it can be understoodthat this nation [i. E. , the Lutaos] occupied these coasts but a shorttime ago. The Lutaos of this island who are subject to Corralat andthe Buhayens (both through commerce and by the submission which theyobserved toward the king of Ternate) show that they are branchesof that stock. They recognize even their protection, which in oldentimes was the greatest obligation, and give them aid in their wars andprotect them from their enemies. By the prowess of the Lutaos thoserulers were encouraged to cause grievous depredations among theseislands, until the Spaniards established themselves so strongly inTernate that, checked by that, as a bulwark of the islands, the Morochiefs did not attempt to pass farther, being content with placingtheir domestic affairs in safety without risking it for foreign[gains]. 

There are black negroes in this island, who pay tribute to no one. Theyresemble those of the island of Negros, and of the uplands aboutManila, called Aetas. They live more like brute beasts than likemen, and they flee from the sight of all, doing ill to whomever theycan. They recognize no village, nor in a land of so many inclemenciesdo they have any other shelter than that of the trees. They can beseen daily in the bay of Pangil. In the village of Layauan, where Iwas making the visitation, there appeared to be many of them. Theyhave no other adornments than those which they inherited from nature;and pay so scant respect to decency that they do not secure even whatis requisite. Their arms are the bow and arrows dipped in poisons, which they know and with which they prepare the arrows. It appearsprobable, from what we know of other islands, where these people arefound gathered in the most inaccessible mountains, that these are thefirst ones that occupied all these islands; but, as they are moreancient and are so shut in, nothing more is known of their originthan what is evident from this land, connected by its islands in achain with those of Burney, Macaçar, and Great Maluco. This nationmaintains only one excellence--at the cost, [however, ] of its brutalcondition and wretched mode of life--namely, its liberty. No power, not even that of our Spaniards, has been able to subjugate them. Theyare so free in their indomitable barbarism that they will not sufferany subordination among them, not even that which fraternal feelingfor their own people might bring about if they recognized dignitiesor any organized form of social life. [51]

The Lutaos of Jolo have all their communication with the Borneans, raising the trident of their king [52] in the villages of that enormousisland. There they are judged to be one people [with the Borneans], and are declared such by the fraternal intercourse that they maintainamong themselves--being related by marriage, and conspiring togetherwith their arms for the invasion of these islands, where theirsquadrons are seen daily under one and the same banner. 

But the rulers and nobility of all the islands of Jolo and Basilanrecognize as the place of their origin the village of Butuan (which, although it is located in this island, is within the pale of theVisayan nation) on the northern side, in sight of the island of Bool, and but a few leguas away from Leyte and from Bool, islands which arein the same stage of civilization. Therefore, that village can gloryat having given kings and nobility to these nations. It is not so longago since the branches which flourish so well today were lopped fromtheir trunk, that the memory charged with the event that divided themcan have forgotten it. The old king of Joló who is now living [i. E. , Bongso], saw the one who was dismembered from his people, and whommisfortunes exiled from his fatherland in order to make him venture onanother's land, thus giving him the foundation of so warlike a kingdom, which is so feared in these regions. Inasmuch as the tender beginningsof this new kingdom gathered encouragement from the protection ofour arms, which it enjoyed for some time as pacific and tributary, it will be well to relate its beginnings before time obscures them. 

The dissensions of two brothers obliged the less powerful to seek, by way of exile, a path to liberty which oppression denied him. Thoseaffected to him accompanied him, and with them, seeking a land tohis liking, he hit upon the island of Basilan. The one who stirred upthat people was named Paguian Tindig, [53] then a title of nobility, and today the legacy of kings and princes of the blood royal in theisland of Joló. In his company he took his cousin, one Adasaolan, whom his fate gave to him in order to maintain its enmity tohim. Some of those in his company allowed themselves to be led awayby the fertility and abundance of this island and remained behind, captivated by its advantages. With the rest Tindig went to Joló, whither the report of its wealth, the advantages of its seas andislands, and the fertility of its mountains carried him. They easilyconquered the natives, who were barbarians and unaccustomed to therigors and ambitions of war. They remained as rulers of the island, and their prince was Paguian Tindig, who, as subject to the Spaniards(who had already subdued the river of Butuan), continued in the sameallegiance and paid them tribute. His cousin Adasaolan he married to adaughter of Dimasangcay, [54] the king of Mindanao named Paguian Goan(a dangerous plan) in order to give himself power in the rivalry [withhis brother]. The mother of Corralat, by name Imbog, was a Joloan, andwith the communication indispensable to relationship easily infectedAdasaolan with the perfidy of Mahomet, and the tyranny and violenceof his law; and he, puffed up by the favor of the Mindanao king, and confident of his help, which their relationship promised him, planned to kill his cousin, in order that he might remain absolutemaster of the island. He blockaded him, unprepared, in his housewith four hundred men who had gathered to his standards. But ina happening not expected or feared, love acted, being forewarned, and innocence, being offended. And since there is no confusion thatblinds the courage of foresight, he had taken the precaution to pourdown along the supports of the house (which are here called arigues, and are of strong wood) a quantity of oil, which rendered the scalingmore difficult; and the besiegers, finding more resistance than theirpresumption imagined, and yielding to so great force, retired. Tindigrecognized the difficulty in which he was, and considered war asdeclared and broken out; and, in order not to stain it with bloodat the cost of his men, planned to absent himself and look for aid, respect for which would ensure his condition. He went to Manila forthat purpose, having repressed the forefront of his danger, and, as a tributary and subject prince, easily secured the pledge of ourarms for his help; and, because he alone could measure the force withthe necessity, the means was left to his choice. He thought that twowell-armed caracoas would be enough, and, although a powerful fleetwas offered him, he refused to accept it; for he considered himselfas invincible in his joanga, if reënforced by two Spanish caracoas. 

His absence made his rival powerful, for the party without a leaderreadily unites with that side that has one; and, the cause of therivalry being wanting, tyranny easily united the forces of theisland. Eight well-armed joangas were prepared by Adasaolan, whichwere given to him by Buhisan, the father of Corralat; and Tindig, having come within sight of Joló, went ahead with a lack of caution, to prepare his people, as he did not believe that the party of hiscousin was so in the ascendancy. The enemy who were awaiting him, all ready, as soon as they saw his joanga without the shelter of thecaracoas, all surrounded it and boarded it, with the determination tofinish the war at one stroke. Ours who were coming behind could notaid him; for he had gone on ahead, as we have said, to advise his men, and to notify his enemies of the war, so that fear could accomplishwhat he desired without recourse to arms. Overcome by the multituderather than yielding to force, he was killed. He died unconquerable, his death leaving the tyrant assured of power. The king of Joló, Raya Bongso, who was punished by Governor Don Sebastian Hurtadode Corcuera, in his conquest of Joló, is a good witness of thiscontest. He, without much questioning, showed even the wounds thathe received on that occasion, fighting, although but a lad, at theside of Paguian Tindig, who was his relative. 

The Spaniards having arrived, and the cause of their fighting (theprotection of him who had fallen) being now removed, and not findinganyone with whom to fight, returned to Manila. The tyrant, flushedwith his victory, and being greedy with the hopes that great captureswere assured to him in the islands with alliance with the Mindanaosand Borneans, united himself to them; and following their fleets, with so good masters of piracy his people became so great pirates, that they surpassed all in deeds, and by themselves caused so greathavoc throughout the islands that they have proved the heaviest scourgethat these natives have suffered. And refusing obedience to his Majestyand the tribute which they have always paid, that principality [ofJoló] was founded and has less antiquity in these islands than theSpaniards. [55]

CHAPTER XII

 Beliefs and superstitions of these islands

The general condition of these islands is paganism. From Sangil toSamboangan, the dwellers along the beach follow the law of Mahomet, as well as those of the islands of Basilan and Joló. This last is themetropolis of the false religion, and the Mecca of this archipelago;for there is the tomb of their first master, concerning whom thecaciques [i. E. , Kasis], for the credit of his deceits, have beenestablishing innumerable fables, which have already become a lyingtradition in this century. One is that he came from Paradise withthree others, of whom one went to Java, and another to Burney, andthe other two landed at Joló, and thence one went to Mindanao. He ofMindanao was ill received; and because of that, and of having beenshipwrecked in the sea by driving on a reef, he went in anger to anisland to become a hermit, walking upon the water. But he who waswrecked in a ship could ill keep his footing in the water. Such is thecharacter of lies, that some are quite contrary to others. The outfitthat he carried consisted of a net, and it is said that he caughtfish on the mountain with it, by dragging it over the ground. But ifhe found fish on the mountain then the fish surely could not escapehim, unless indeed it were a flying-fish. When his followers wentto seek him, Satan had already carried him away, and they found onlythe net--and that stretched out, for it had been placed to dry. Fromthat point they took occasion to discuss so disconnected bits ofnonsense as we have mentioned. Thereupon he who remained in Jolóobtained the chair of the evil [doctrine], and, as he is accreditedwith not fewer deceits, he was able to authorize his person and hisdoctrine with the barbarians; for he also gave them to understand thathe could get fresh water from the sea, that he could sail on land, and could establish fisheries on the mountain, as did the other. Theuse of these errors gave authority for the common people to inventothers. They believe that the enchanted boat which they never saw, andwhose anchorage they never knew, still exists. The respect that hisdeceits gained him in life became ignorant and infamous adoration athis death. A sepulcher was erected for him, which became the mausoleumof his memory, and the Mecca of his deceits. They erected it on thefamous hill [of Joló], and it was very elegant. [56] At its foot theyplanted the singular fruit which they call the king's fruit, [57]which is unique in this archipelago, and of which no one ate excepthimself, although for devotion the shells were given to the others. Aswe said, they planted many jasmines, and made their defenses there, so that animals might not defile the mausoleum. As an entrance to it, there was arranged in front of it a little house which was placed atthe beginning of the stockade, as if it were an entrance into the wellof St. Patrick. There they made their offerings, all of which went tothe benefit of the prebendaries of the house, who were generally ofthe blood of the hypocrite. Thence they took their auguries for thewar, for, putting water in a vase, together with some earth from thesepulcher, if it became bitter to the taste the outcome would be bad;but if sweet, it would be happy. It is said that this test was madefor the war waged on them by Don Sebastian, in consequence of whichthe king was always inclined to treat for peace. 

By the entrance of our forces upon the hill, that place lost itsworship and esteem; for the soldiers turned it all upside down, anddug it up in the hope of finding some treasure, and found no trace ofa human body. The Indians were terrified at their boldness, and askedwhether those who dared to do so much would not die. Thereupon, thosepeople were left with only the staff [of that teacher], which the Kasis[caciques] keep; for that is the staff of all virtues, and in goingout with it (which is at the time of any necessity), all make it greatreverence, and attend to all that is asked of them. For if they do notdo so, he excommunicates them, with two blows with it which he giveson the house or the boat, and there can be neither health in the oneor good luck in the other. All these are the artifices of cupidity, which holds them fast in a deceitful fear by vain terrors. 

The other relic is the cap, [58] which is the hereditary possessionof the kings, and to swear by it is to use the sanction of a greatsacrament. 

Notwithstanding so many lies that are made up to sustain this deceit, there are but few who esteem it; and in general they are all atheists, and those who have any religion are sorcerers. For as Moros, beyond noteating pork, and practicing circumcision, and [having] a multiplicityof women, they know not anything. They drink wine more than we do, andall their happiness consists in drunken revels--[to them] a positiveact of greatness; and thus all their knightly deeds consist in emptyingmore or fewer jars [of wine], and there is a wedding in which theyempty two hundred. All their festivals consist in this. They live inall respects like men without any law who do not know God, and withoutany mode of worship, and unmindful that there is such in the world. Allregard the law as little more or less, and, according to the land theyinhabit, follow its customs and laws. Accordingly they are neitherMoors, heathen, nor Christians, but barbarous atheists. Corralat, who has civilized his country somewhat, has his mosque, and makeshis people attend it. But when they leave their village, each onedoes as he pleases--except some of the chiefs, who, following theexample of the king, have made it a point of honor to appear to beMoors. But the common people, assuredly, lay no stress on that point. 

What they believe in thoroughly are omens, which are almost general inall the islands. There are many of them: of birds, like the limocon;[59] of insects, like the lizard; of accidental occurrences, likesneezing; of happenings, like deaths or earthquakes; of observancesat time of sowing, and of reaping, and of the hunt--all of these havetheir observances, which they fulfil in order to have luck in thework; for they believe that without these it will be unlucky, andwithout any profit. Therefore, they do not undertake those things, since in many districts it is considered an omen when anyone asksfor a portion of what may be caught (as for instance, of the hunteror fisher), if we say to him when he goes to try his luck: "Dividewith me what you shall catch. " They consider that as a bad omen, andreturn to their house, for they believe that they will catch nothing. 

Those who are atheists knowingly are the dwellers in mountains;for they have no mosques, or shrines, or any method of praying toGod. Those upon whom they call in their illnesses are their ancestors, saying "Alas, my mother!" or "my grandfather. " That is rather thenatural expression of pain than a prayer in which they experience anyefficacy. Where there are some to whom the devil talks (which was moreusual in their antiquity), such people offer him their sacrifices, [60] and the Indians have recourse to them in their illnesses, sothat they could make the same efforts for them. Today the Christiantruth has obscured the falsity of hell. At most, the descendants ofthose ministers of the devil, who were generally women, do what theysaw them do without the devil taking any notice of them or talkingto them. Others, who lay but small stress on all that, do what theyheard said was the custom in the days of their antiquity, let happenwhat would. But they do it with so little earnestness that it appearsto be levity rather than religion. With the same fervor they followany other rule, so that they always remain without any law, unless itbe where the energy and incessant constancy of the missionaries hasmade them forget their ancient customs, and with continual instructionhas made it easy for them to accept the new things of our holy faith. 

In Caraga there was a barbarous custom to make their ships lucky, namely, to vow to them the first time upon some name, which wasgenerally the name of one of their captives. 

That which has great value in all parts is sorcery; and they hold itin such high esteem that the father hides it from the son, and unlessthey receive a great profit they refuse to communicate any secret ofit. The famous sorcerers are feared, although there is no one who isnot ashamed of being called thus, and the word "sorcerer" is one ofthe insulting words of these natives. My judgment from seeing these[sorceries], so alike, is that they are implicit compacts made withtheir ancestors. For it also seems impossible that there are herbsof so powerful poison that they can kill so instantly that somepersons kill, with only the breath alone by chewing those herbs;and others, by burying those herbs where one has to pass. They alsouse figures, which they dedicate to him whom they wish to harm, andthese accordingly torment him; the figure continues to aggravate theevil upon the sorcerer's enemy. Others work by letters, and that ispeculiar to the Moro Kasis [caciques], although the most of all thisis fabulous; but as they imagine that it is true, for any accidentfor which they find no remedy, and of whose cause they are ignorant, they throw the blame on the sorcerer. It is recounted of the kingof Burney that, on learning the name of one, he can kill him if hechooses. Sargento-mayor Pedro Duran Monforte having made war in hisland, the king was informed of his name, and said that since he knewhis name, therefore Monforte could not live much longer, and with thathe consoled his people. But thanks to God, the sargento-mayor has beenliving for three years since that threat. Thus are all their affairs. 

He who unites the excellency of a powerful sorcerer to Mahometanardor is King Corralat. He causes the fish to enter his boat. Whileone of our fathers was in his boat, a fish leaped in; the kingpicked it up and, giving it to the father, said: "This is for thefather. " It is also related that he makes a piece of artillery floaton the surface of the water by placing an oar in its mouth. He has asaker, which according to report, when fired, serves him as a goodor evil augury. The fact is, that he talks very familiarly withthe devil. According to the tale of a Spaniard (and one for whichhe vouched to me), when he was going from Samboangan on a certainembassy, just as he entered the river the favorite of Corralat toldhim that, the night previous, his king had asked him whether anyship were to be seen. To his negative answer the king said to him:"Then take note that three ships will arrive tomorrow, and one of themwill be Spanish. " That was a fact, for two ships from Java entered, and that of the said Spaniard. Thereupon the favorite exclaimed:"Great Saint Corralat, there is no other truth. " With such thingshe has established so much credit that if God do not bury his bodyin the depths [of the sea], the Mindanaos will worship him and willfound another house of Mecca, such as they had in Joló. With that hehas become a greater king than any of his forbears; for their fearof him is incredible, as they recognize in him one who has superiorpower to avenge himself. Consequently, they do not dare undertakeanything against his will; for they regard it as certain that theywill be unlucky. Since the devil has been so advantaged by that way, he manages to make their fears come out true at times, by which creditfor the others is assured. 

CHAPTER XIII

 The moderation of their conduct, and the sobriety of their living

Among all the Indians it is a general fact that in what relates totheir own persons natural law is more conspicuous, and has a morefirmly established empire, than have the nations. Part of that isfounded on the slothfulness of their natures, and part on the rudenessof their civilization; the former makes them content with little, andthe latter causes them to ignore the niceties of art. Their food provesthe first well; and the havoc that they cause, the second. The foodis very poor among the wealthy, and requires little labor; for theyneither know condiments nor for that purpose are drugs valued amongthem, of the use of all which they are ignorant. Both slave and ruler, plebeian and prince, eat bread; for, since that consists of a littleboiled rice, one cannot eat it more adorned than the other. Since allof them are bakers of this bread, he who wishes to clean it bettereats it whiter. He who has no slaves to relieve him from that eatsit as he chooses; and, consequently, there is no one who does notknow how to cook his food. For they are under the daily necessity, even the richest, of making it; and, as ostentation in ordinary lifeis so little, it is unavoidable that service is lacking to them ontheir voyages and navigations, so that they are forced to use theirown hands. Those who do not obtain rice--either because the land doesnot bear it, or because it is limited in any year--eat of many roots, which supply the lack fully, and which require no other preparationthan boiling. He who is so well served that he obtains a littlefish, venison, or pork, with water and salt alone makes his stew, without the knowledge of other kinds of pottages. In order to givetheir food a sharp flavor, they are wont to cook it with some herbsof a sour taste. Consequently, in the seasoning of their food theyconsume nothing, so that they save the cost of butter, oil, vinegar, and all spices. They are accustomed to make their puches [i. E. , a sort of pap] and poleadas [i. E. , a sort of fritter] from cocoanutmilk and the honey made from sugarcane, which are their preserves androyal cakes. But such is at a great wedding or at a feast, where theirdesire for ostentation arouses their endeavors. Such were presented tome by the king of Joló, Panguian Bachal, while I was visiting at hiscourt. They consisted of a half-dozen small cakes made of rice flourand kneaded with cocoanut-milk, and baked until they turned dark, so that they appeared to be cinnamon to the sight. In fact the colorwas due to the toasting and to a preserve, like turpentine, made fromthe fruit of the durion with honey made from sugarcane. This is enoughto turn the strongest stomachs--as it were, the chief dainty for thestomach of a bull--oppressive, as it was all night to the Queen mother;[61] and we satisfied ourselves with looking at it. 

Their clothing is very simple, without stiffening or linings. Allare dressed after the same style, and innovations due to curiosityare not allowed. As the country is so hot, they dress very loosely, a fact which makes the cutting out very easy. Each one is the tailorof his own garments. This is the reason why the Indians are so lackingin the communal idea, and are so hostile to assembling and unitingin villages; for since their misery and laziness make them contentwith the easiest and most natural, which all obtain, they do not needone another. For in each house are found all the trades, and no onemakes use of them unless his own necessity compels him. If one goesto fish, he is content with what will satisfy either his appetite orhis necessity; and the desire of acquiring does not make him breakwith his laziness in order to work. 

Returning to their clothes, the stuffs worn are generally common tonobles, and plebeians, kings and slaves, and there is no differencebetween them--except it be in something extraordinary, in which theobligation and ostentation of their chief persons induces them todepart from their accustomed use. At such times they are wont to wearsilks and very beautiful stuffs, with buttons and gold lace. Theirkrises (which are their inseparable weapons) have gilded scabbardsand hilts of massy gold. I have seen some of them which were valuedat nine slaves each, all covered with precious stones and perhapsencrusted with pearls. But in daily appearance all resemble oneanother, both in the garments in which they dress and in the fashionsthat they employ. These clothes consist of breeches and short jacket[ropilla]--or skirt, to be more accurate. That is not worn overa shirt, for with them the first garment is not the shirt, but theskirt, for it is all one. Sometimes they wear a jacket with longskirts cut in the French style; which, although it can be buttoned, is generally worn open, with the breast exposed. In this particularthis nation is quite different from the others of this region. They useanother style of cut; the skirts and sleeves each ending in a point, and the ends which ought to close over the bosom are brought togetherin double points, fastened either with a button or with a knot, so thatalmost all the breast is left open. The breeches are full and white, resembling those which the Spaniards wear for the sake of cleanlinessunder their black ones. They are girt with a bit of native linen, so long that after having been knotted it hangs from the waist to theknees; and it serves to make their garb more decent than it would bebecause of the meagerness and thinness of the breeches. Or if theydo not have that, then they use two brazas' length of the same clothor silk, which at its full width they wind about the body, joined infront with one end crossed below the other. In that manner they coverthe breeches entirely, and the clothing is much more decent. In thisusage, the gala costumes have special elaboration, and it displaystheir ostentation; for they are wont to wear cloth that is valuedat thirty or forty reals of eight. They also wear breeches of theMalay fashion, which are closed like ours, although they are not sotight. It is the rule that they must be of silk with a gold fringebelow, or with border and buttons of the same which among these peopleis always of filigree or of solid gold. In that they consider onlyostentation, without any risk of waste. 

On the head, in the Moorish style, is worn a turban. Its use throughoutthe Indias is general, but among these people inviolable. I do notknow whether it is because even their hearts are tinged with theircursed worship, or because of hatred to our nation and to our customs, or because of flattery to their natural arrogance--through which theywill never, of themselves, come to depreciate their own things. Evenyet throughout the islands, those who are esteemed as chiefs areashamed of appearing without hats. 

The clothing of the women is plainer, and such that it becomesindecent; for from the small mantas or textiles of these regions, which are all very thin, they make a sack nine palmos long and open atboth ends. They gird this in at the waist as much as may be necessary, so that it falls to the feet; what is left they allow to fall over thelegs, and it does not even reach to the knees, or necessarily servefor the decency which modesty requires. They adjust it by drawingit close to one side of the body, and by making folds on the otherside of all the extra width in proportion to their body. This sack, which by day is a garment--so shameful to decency, because it so illsatisfies it--serves at night for mattress, sheets, and curtain. Foron retiring they ungird the sack, and the part which they doubledabout the knees they put up to the head. That is all the opulenceand comfort that their beds can boast of, which are made of a thinmat. These are their Holland and Rouen linens, which serve for theiropulence and their fastidious cleanliness. That is their whole wealthof quilts and covers, which protect them from the cold and from themosquitoes. All is so exactly adapted to necessity, that there isno difference between the chief women and the slaves--as I saw inJoló in the queen herself, and in Samboangan in many other women, not inferior to her in vanity. However, the women of highest rank, on retiring let fall a curtain without a covering. And that is alltheir ostentation and the necessary obligation of modesty for theprotection from sight of those who are careless concerning theirmanner of sleeping, in houses where there is no division of apartments, and where there can be no rooms for the multitude that inhabit them, and where the others throw themselves down pellmell on the floor. Atmost, the master is protected by that little grandeur. This is inregard to the bed, for in dress no difference is known. 

The gala dress of the women of this nation consists wholly of theshirt [sayuelo] which is made in the style usual to the Indians. It ishowever, drawn close about the breasts, and the sleeves are very long, at times each sleeve taking three or four varas of cloth. The sleeve isgathered at the wrist in a very fine and graceful plait, as the goodsthat they wear are so delicate. They heighten that gala dress withthe wealth of gold, the use of which among these Indias extends tothe wrists, which they cover with bracelets, either solid or hollow, and a finger in width. On days of great display they generally wearthree or four pairs. The work is beautiful, and these add much to theirgay and festive appearance; and they show off the arm loaded with suchrich bracelets. For cloaks or mantles they wear textiles of fine silk, and at times of gold [tissue], which they call patolas [62] which isa very beautiful and rich kind of goods. Generally, when they leavethe house they all wear very long black cloaks; that partly moderatesthe ugliness and utter indecency of their dress--which of itself is, I know not whether more ugly or more immodest, with its sack abovementioned, which serves them as shirt and petticoat, without itshaving any distinction either for station, rank, or display. 

The houses in which they reside have what is sufficient for theirshelter and poor lodging. They have no salons where they can walk, or higher stories where they can amuse themselves, than that whichseparates them from the ground. This is made with logs, upon which ascolumns they build their sills, to which they fasten the ends of thebeams with their keys. The roof is thatch, which nature furnished, a provision very suitable to the needs of the country--which, as itis so subject to earthquakes, does not allow a greater weight withoutdanger to the buildings. The floor is of bamboos, split or otherwiseprepared; for, as these are hollow, they can be split with the sameease, thus avoiding the trouble and niceties of carpentry. Thus thefloor is like a grating, and is a necessary precaution of their naturallaziness and dirtiness; for by this way of making their floors theyavoid having to sweep them, since the houses can so easily be washedand rid of all dirt. They have no benches or chairs, and thus theyget rid of the encumbrance of much furniture. They consider a seat onthe floor as more secure. They use tables somewhat; these are roundand hollowed out in the middle, in the manner of an ordinary brasier, and are built wholly for use rather than for display. In that hollowthey put all their dishes, which consist of boiled rice, and fishof the same stew, without there being any danger of the food beingspilled out. They use no tablecloths or napkins; and, although they usedishes somewhat, they do not usually feel the lack of these, as thetrees with their wide leaves furnish them a cleaner table-service, and the bamboos make them very tasteful jugs and bowls which areformed from their lengths between knots. These also form their jars;for there is a kind of bamboo from which they make jars containingthree or four azumbres. [63] By cutting four joint-lengths and boringholes in them, they fill a good jar. The cocoanuts yield them cups, for here these are very common. 

CHAPTER XIV

 The laws of their private conduct and the general laws of their government

Following are the laws pertaining to them privately as persons. Theyare as much adapted to the nature of the world (although more clothedwith innocence), as they are to their laziness and cupidity whichprohibits them from all expense which is not necessary for life, as superfluous. For that I have always said of these natives thatthey are fine philosophers, adapted to nature. The laws which touchon other matters and have to do with their neighbors are quite atvariance with the laws of nature; and these extend to a tyrannyso manifestly cruel that at times and in some things it comes tobe brutality. I have seen a son who held his father as slave, and, vice versa, a father who held his son as slave; for if one make anoutlay for another, they take account of it, as would be done inthe case of a stranger. Inasmuch as this son had freed his fatherby buying him from his master, that man was reckoned as his son'sslave, and the same would be true of the son. It may happen that achief lowers himself [by having intercourse] with his slave-woman, and the son whom she bears may be so cruel that at the death of hisfather he makes his own mother his slave. Even if, while they are atpeace, these points are not cleared up, and the inner tyranny employsexternal civility, yet, if dissensions alter these relations, and theyare divided, the men avail themselves of those rights, and subjecttheir mothers to whatever they choose, and do not allow them to leavetheir houses. Thus do they come to be served by their mothers at alltimes. In regard to those who descend from them, there is even lessshame; and among another kind of relations is an utter disregard ofnature in this respect, for their own nephews are the slaves of theiruncles, and, vice versa, uncles are slaves of their nephews. 

They do not know what charity is. Consequently, whatever benefitsthey confer are all placed on account as debts, which their tyrannyestimates wholly to their own satisfaction. Unfortunate he whomabandonment or orphanage has flung into the house of another, fornow for his sustenance, and again for his rearing, he must becomea slave. Kindness is shown at the cost of liberty. Although thatwas general throughout the islands, in this island it is excessive, as it is a tenet of the perfidious sect of Mahomet; and its crueltyhas left no liberty that it has not opposed. Therefore, there is notin this nation the middle class that is found in the others whichforms the common people out of the freemen; for there are no freemen, nor any mean between chiefs and slaves. Their community is composedof but two extremes, so far separated. It is a fact that there aremany ways by which to reduce men to such a condition, and there is noescape from the injury. For, since self-interest is the advantage ofthose who are powerful, it unites them against the unfortunate onewho dares to proclaim the offense that has been done to him, whilehis punishment conciliates so many other offenders who might perplexjustice; and fear shuts the mouths of those whom the same fortune mightgain to his favor in the support of his testimonies. Therefore, whenit comes to proof there is always a lack of witnesses for innocence;while on the contrary there is for tyranny an oversupply of ocularwitnesses of things that they have never seen or heard. When somestranger goes to a village to trade where he does not have theguaranteed patronage of many powerful relations, in the case of anyneglect that is shown him in courtesy or in the laws, they bringsuch a case against him that to get out of it well he abandons hisbusiness and perhaps with his business his freedom. The worst of itis that the punishment is always more than the offense, for the justpay as if they were sinners. Their avarice or tyranny not satisfiedwith the vengeance taken on the criminal makes the offense related tothe very blood, in order to extend their cupidity farther. Hence itis that on account of the crime committed by a single one, they makeall the relations slaves. I saw four brothers who were all deprivedof their inherited freedom because of the incivility and weakness ofone. Finding myself in Iligan--a nation which, as it is so new, iseven yet throwing out the sparks of this tyrannical fury it happenedthat a common woman spoke some insulting words to another woman whohad rank; and the latter's husband, coming to me to make a complaint, said to me, exaggerating the offense: "Father, if the Spaniards werenot here, and we could rule ourselves by our own laws, we would havemade mincemeat [gigote] of that woman with a campilan, and slavesof her brothers and sisters and relatives. " Finally, he whom avaricerules with a tyrannical power (for all their laws end in self-interest)gets usury from his offense and employment from his crime. 

Avarice rules in all their judgments; and the purse becomes the gallowsof all crimes. Money is the vengeance of the aggrieved parties, andthe sponge for injuries. When they are paid for, no spot or sign ofthe offense is left. Although there are crimes which bear especiallya capital penalty, yet there is no penalty that cannot be redeemed bymoney or goods. He who has no possessions at all has still liberty, and can surrender that also. That is the road most traveled by whichsome come to be the slaves of others; and perhaps the chief, if he bepoor, may be the slave of another who is a plebeian. When anyone iscaught in adultery, if sudden wrath does not execute him, which isbut seldom, the wounds are passed on to his purse, in the endeavorto destroy him, and the husband subjects his own wife to the sameharshness and penalty. For here all persons have a separate purse, and the husband is not master of what his wife possesses but only ofwhat pertains to him. Nor, under pretext of managing her possessions, does he have more to do with it than the extent of her permission;and she is always mistress of her own possessions. Thus she paysa fine to her own husband, as if she were a stranger to him. Havingreceived this, the aggrieved party remains as satisfied as when, amongthe Spaniards, one sword has pinned both guilty ones together. Theoffender retains a privilege truly insulting and barbarous--that forone year he may have intercourse with the woman without her husbandcomplaining. Then the husband and wife return in all peace to cohabitas before, the offense being again at risk, for another atonement. 

They especially abhor theft, and they have assigned an ignominiouspenalty for the thief, as a warning. This is to cut off the jointsof his fingers, more or fewer according to the crime. That perhapsobliges them to pass from the hands to the toes, the penalty beingproportioned to the misdeeds of greater atrocity. But that penaltycan also be redeemed, as can the others, by money. 

Notwithstanding that, some crimes they regard as so capital that theydo not respect petitions or allow bribes, and death is the necessarypunishment for them. The unnatural crime is one of them, and theseverity of the execution well shows their natural horror, for suchpeople are burned, and their houses; and nothing that they possessedis allowed to escape from this rigor, as being contaminated. Or, having caged the offenders, they throw them into the sea, and destroytheir houses and fields, by such punishment to make demonstration oftheir abhorrence. 

The most feared crime is that which they call sumban, which is incestin the first degree; for they regard it as assured by long experienceand knowledge inherited in tradition from their ancestors, thatthe land which allows that crime is bound down by wretchedness andmisfortunes until its infamy is purged by the rigorous chastisementof the offender. There is no other means which can placate the wrathof heaven. Consequently, when they suffer long droughts, or othergeneral plagues from heaven, they immediately attribute them tothis. A case of that nature came to my notice in the year fifty-one, when the drought was general, and so great that even the water ofthe rivers failed, and that river which had any water that found itsway to the sea was rare. The Indians of the village which was in mycare on the coast of Siocon came to tell me that it was a punishmentfrom the sky, and that it had been demanded by the awfulness ofsuch crime on the coast of Mindanao, where they said that a motherwas living in marriage with her son. They petitioned me to havethe offenders punished, and warned me that the punishment should bedeath without remission, such being their custom, without admittingsatisfaction by any other penalty, however excessive it be. The samereport was current in the island of Basilan. However, it was withoutother foundation than that the Indians are gossipy and suspicious, ignorant of the secrets of the sky and ruled by the traditions of thepast. They are ruled in that island by greater fear, as they retainedmore accurately in their memory certain cases that served them asexamples and warnings. For, at a certain time, the sky was so leadenthat for two years not a drop of rain fell. There was an Indian whoviolated the respect that he owed to his blood and to nature, withregard to a daughter of his. Although he tried to bury the crime inthe depths of his silence, it cried out to the sky as an offense, and was heard distinctly as a sin; for the effect, as ungrateful asevil, always turns against its cause. He was a person of influence, and respect for him did not allow any investigation to be made;but, the villages grieving over the public calamity, and unable toendure their forced famine, men trampled under foot respect and laws, in their judgment that tolerance in so execrable an evil had alsovexed and hardened the sky. By common consent they seized father anddaughter, and, shutting them up in a cage well weighted with stones, threw them into the sea. In return they experienced from the skyapprobation for their avenging zeal, in the heavy rain with which itreceived them. For at all times God preserves the credit to virtue, and even among barbarians imposed penance on vice, so that those whobecame familiars of vice could have no excuse. [64]

The Joloans executed the same punishment with equal severity, butthrough malicious information. God, who is always the protector ofinnocence, shielded the wretched; for when they cast two other fathersin the same manner [into the water], he took away the weight of thestones, and gave the men strength to keep afloat, without abandoningthem for a whole day, so that, the report of the matter havingreached the king, the wonder forced him to seek new information, by which he discovered falsity and recognized innocence. In all thenations innocence considers God as its advocate, and in desperatecases rests secure on His protection. 

Judges in suits or causes follow the simple laws of nature, and have noembarrassment of laws and doubts and contrary interpretations. Theyhave no delays by reports or prolixity of writs, for they do notwaste a single dedo [65] of paper in that. The accusation, the plea, and the evidence are quickly heard--all in the manner of the timeof Noah. If there is no testimony, they admit the parties to theoath, which contains terrifying imprecations. With that plea theparty is usually content; for the obligation and risk, to which heis exposed by results which are reckoned as punishments of heavenagainst perjured ones if the rigor of their imprecations is executed, are greatly feared. If perchance the party is satisfied that he hastruth on his side, at his petition they do not rest content with thattrial, but judgment of red-hot coals or hot iron, [66] such as wasresorted to in España and other countries, in centuries ruder and moreimmune from laws by the privilege of their innocence and goodness. Ifthe persons are burned, then their punishment is proceeded with;and if not, the accuser is obliged to make requital. That customseems to have been communicated by the Moros by way of Terrenate, where it is still observed. However, no one is burned, for sincethe Ternatans are so skilled in sorcery, they know herbs of suchefficacy and bewitchments of such power, that they communicate it tothe hands so that they can handle the iron with impunity, as if itwere a nosegay of flowers. Also many of those whom they bury alive, that being the punishment of adultery and rape, escape. I say this, for it often occurred that persons escaped from the execution ofthis test, in the sight of the Spaniards at Ternate, women whoseguilt was notorious, but who cleared themselves of suspicion amongtheir people by this proof. I was told many happenings of this sort, during the time that I spent in those islands [i. E. , the Moluccas];and I was assured that it was done by means of an herb, and I wasshown some that were famous in its knowledge. These were the onesto whom the accused had recourse in all their exigencies, suborningtheir expertness with a quantity of money. 

CHAPTER XV

 The form of government of these natives

The kings, although so tyrannical in government, and in power sobeyond the affliction and trouble which authority and ostentationincur, yet according to the condition of their poverty maintain theform and authority of a court. Peace affairs are in charge of a chiefjustice or counselor, called zarabandal. That is the greatest courttitle and he decides the causes and suits, and advises concerning thesentence. In the outside villages where the king does not reside, the chiefs meddle wherever they wish, without other law than theirpower and will, and their unbridled greed; and the one injured hasno recourse, for, in quarrels between the plebeians and chiefs, theking always takes the part of the latter--who are more powerful, andare those who can make trouble for him, and even deprive him of hiskingdom. For his principate is founded more on the recognition thatthey make of his nobility than on any absolute power which secures tohim their vassalage; since a slave will say "no" to the king in whatdoes not suit him. That happened in Joló, in the presence of FatherAlexandro Lopez. When the father was negotiating through the medium ofthe king to have the ransom for a Christian put at a humane figure, the other, a Joloan slave by condition, who had the Christian in hispower, said to the very face of the king, when the latter asked him toconform to the prices settled upon in the treaty of peace, [67] thathe would not do it; and that was the end of the matter. That signifiedthat the king's power in execution extended just so far as his vassalswished, and that they would obey him just so far as it pleased them. 

They have established orders of nobility, with a distinction of titleswhich aggrandize it. Some are called Tuam, which is the same as "Señor"or the title applied to men in España. Others are given the titleof Orancaya, which signifies "rich man;" it is the greatest title, and equivalent to grandee of their kingdom. It is equivalent to thesame title that España gave to its grandees when his Majesty usedmore simplicity, and called them Ricos-Homes [i. E. , "rich men"]. Therest are called chiefs, and correspond to what we call caballeros andHijos-dalgo [i. E. , "knights and nobles"]. They have no greater dignitythan the honor. Those of the blood royal are called cachiles followingthe custom and style of the kings of Maluco, Terrenate, Tidores, and Xilolos. The same in the peculiar style of Joló are called Paguian. 

The Orangcayas or Ricos-Homes become the rulers of vassals, andhave some villages in their charge. In those villages, althoughthe king is recognized, and tribute sent to him, in all else thoserulers are absolute; and especially in government affairs are theyindependent. They are the ones who tyrannize most ungovernably overthe people; for whatever fine the king imposes upon them, or whatevergift he requests from them, they lay hands upon their subjects, and, as if they were slaves they take away the son from the father in orderto sell him. That has been the case so often that, even since theyhave been made subject to our government, it has been necessary toexamine with close attention, whenever they bring any slave to sell, the reason for his slavery; for it has been found that they sellus many slaves without any other right than that of their tyranny, relieving their necessities and making their payments with the firstperson whom they meet--bringing him, beguiled by some other pretext, to the Spaniards; and the injury was suffered without any complaint, because of the incapacity and dullness of the poor Subanos. Thelatter, as they are so unused to intercourse with us, and so shut upin their own lives, had no arguments to oppose to what they did notunderstand; and showed their wonder, surprise, and bashfulness inbrute silence. For that reason, where the Orangcayas govern (whichare almost all villages of the Subanos or Indians of the mountain), there is scarce one who enjoys liberty. Those chiefs hold them sounder their power, that they regard the very leaders and chiefs ofthe Subano nation as their slaves. That I experienced on a visit whichI made on a dangerous occasion, when in order to assure the minds ofthe people I took with me a Lutao chief who was the absolute masterbefore the Spaniards entered, and to whom they still paid hereditaryrespect along all the coast of Siocon. Being, then, with all thepeople and chiefs of the nation assembled together in a village, andI endeavoring to honor them with signs of the greatest affection, the Lutao said: "Do not pay any attention to these people, Father, for they are all my slaves. " This he said in a place where we two andthe chiefs of the village were alone. I thought that that contemptand arrogance would arouse them; but on the contrary, it softenedthem, as the affection and presents of a loving prince would hishumble vassal. And, although they were not slaves, the respectin which they were born gives the chiefs so much authority, thatalthough we [Spaniards] possess the rule, they, as chiefs, commandthe people. And, as the latter were reared in that tyranny, theirnatural disposition made them show respect and natural submission;for, notwithstanding the immunity that our arms give them, they obeythose chiefs better than they do us. May that be tempered in part bythe Christian government, and the vigilance of our father ministers, and the recourse which they find in the royal officials. For a chiefof those natives who was governor of the village of Baluasan, nearto Samboangan, when speaking of the wretched subjection in which theLutaos held them, and the good fortune that had come to them withthe entrance of our government, by restraining the Lutao tyranny, and giving arms to persecuted liberty, spoke to me these words:"If you [Spaniards] had not arrived when you did, there would nownot be any of us left; for we would already have been finished, andbartered for goods with the people of Macasar. " These words consoledme, on account of the fidelity which the interest and recognizedadvantages of that barbarian guaranteed. [68]

Such was the government maintained by Corralat. And since he madeall of them so powerful, giving them special power by laws, he wasvery acceptable to the princes of his nation and therefore mostsecure. These men, then, are the ones who grieve over the lossessustained by the change, who see themselves put under holy laws andjust--they who before had no other laws than those of their own will, and their unbridled ambition, laws from which the others suffered asa servile, cowardly, and rude nation. 

CHAPTER XVI

 Some peculiarities of the customs of the Subanos

The customs of the Subanos or Indians of the mountains there is noreason for relating; for with more hideous extremes they maintain theevils of the Lutaos, while those peculiar to them are, as it were, thebrutal creatures among other citizens. But that even will add praisesto the changes that have resulted from the skill of the Omnipotent, and to the zeal of the missionaries, by whose means virtue producedthe civilized and Christian conduct which now is theirs. Their dressapproaches that of the inhabitants of the beach with whom they havecommunication. Accordingly, those who traffic with Lutaos or Morosdress in their style; while those familiar with the Visayan nations(such as the peoples of Caraga and the coast of Dapitan), throughcommerce with them, follow their custom. All their government isconfusion, and they wage war, not some nations with others, nor onevillage with another, but all are, as it were, enemies of the humanrace. Armed against one another, without subordination or greatersubjection than what the might and act of violence of the boldestobtained, they had no other laws in their causes that the might ofthe one provoked to avenge himself; and his rigor, even in the worstcases, was appeased by gifts. Thus when a Subano came to acquire a poorcapital that would enable him to pay for a murder, he committed themurder with the greatest safety, in order that he might be enrolledin the number of valiant and to have authority as such to wear a redturban. Because of that barbaric vanity they would kill their bestfriend, if they caught him asleep or off his guard; for the barbariccourage of these nations does not consider posts of reputation, butthose of security. In Caraga there was a more atrocious custom; for, inorder to be able to clothe oneself in the dress of the valiant--namely, a striped turban, and breeches of their peculiar style (which they callbaxaque) with similar stripes--one must have killed seven men. [69]

The peculiarity of this nation, and the thing that gives themsome excellence and esteem, is that their women are more chaste andmodest. They esteem virginity, and keep it inviolate, even to advancedage, for the vocation of matrimony. It is true that this virtue isaided by their natural disposition, which furnishes for the defense ofchastity their native stupidity and shyness; but therewith they succeedin an undertaking which among Lutaos and the other nations of theseislands is rare and difficult indeed. This has secured them so muchesteem and confidence in this region that the chiefs of high standingamong the Lutaos, in order to guard their daughters more safely, have them reared among Subanos; and they do not take them into thedangerous camp of their own nation unless it is to establish them inmarriage, and with that station, in safety, as they think. Among thisnation there is a class of men who profess celibacy [70] and governthemselves by natural law, and they are very punctual and perfect intheir observance of it; and such is the feeling of security in regardto them, that they are allowed to go about among the women without anyfear or suspicion. Their dress is throughout like that of the women, with skirts of the same fashion. They do not use weapons, or engage inanything else that is peculiar to men, or communicate with them. Theyweave the mantas that are used here, which is the proper employmentof women, and all their conversation is with women. Therefore, thepurpose of life which they follow comes to be more extraordinary byits peculiarity and by its perils, considering both the nature of thatcountry, and the little regard that they give to their dangers. Sosatisfied do they live, either from their own purpose or from theirnatural disposition, that they have never discredited their positionwith weaknesses. They were, so to speak, hermits of their religion, andwere held in high esteem. And in fact the constancy of their life andmodesty of their customs, obliged one to have respect for them. In anation so barbarous and who knew not God, it appears a prodigy worthyof wonder that one of the special providences of His Divine Majesty, to place such examples of virtue in a country where vice had absolutecontrol, so that the experience of the eyes causes them to esteemwhat God's love did not obtain. I have known two of these men, andone of them I baptized, to my especial consolation, while visitingthe coast of Siocon, which extends for twenty leguas from Samboangantoward Dapitan. His reputation reached me in a different village, forin his own they kept him closely concealed, whether it were for thesake of their ancient observances I do not know. Like a holy man of hislaw, or because of some fear, he also kept himself hidden; for, as heafterward told me, they had terrified him by telling him that if theSpaniards caught him they would put him in the galleys. By that means, to him whom the pathway of salvation was most easy, they filled itwith such difficulties that they made it impossible for him. I knewthat they would refuse to let me see him for those same reasons, and therefore made use of a trick and of a dangerous resolution, to catch him. For near the village, which was located on the beachin the shade of trees (the poverty of these barbarians not sufferingmore shelter), and where in a few hours they would suffer from hunger, having them all before me I told them that if the lavia [71] whom theyhad hidden did not come, then the mass would not begin. Labia is thename they give to those of this profession. The name of this one wasTuto. I added that no one must return to his house until he arrived, and that if he delayed too long, I would go to Samboangan with thechief of the village and the Subanos of importance. That was the sameto them as if I were taking them to the galleys; so much does theirwretchedness grieve to leave the wretchedness in which they were born, and their lack of intelligence to appear before reasonable people andSpaniards. Without allowing them to talk, or to question whether hewas there or not, or where, but assuming that it was a well-knownthing, I turned to a relative of the governor, and said to him:"Go for him quickly, for I shall not move from this spot until hecomes. " He departed without a word, and all of the people remainedmotionless, staring with fright. When they recovered their equanimity, their whole attempt was to excuse their negligence by empty excuses, which I accepted in order to calm their minds. Inside of an hourI found in my presence him whom I desired so much. He, seeing thelove with which I received him, and how differently my purpose wasdeclared from that which his fears gave him to understand, recoveredhis courage in full, and immediately offered himself for baptism--amatter which I was unwilling to defer, in order that I might leavehim with his salvation assured. Consequently, after instructing himbriefly, I baptized him, and called him Martin, as that happy lot cameto him on that saint's day. [72] He satisfied my hopes and hastenedto me every time when I afterward visited his village of Malande, very punctually, and always with some special refreshment both forme and for him who in my company had acted as his sponsor. 

The other lavia whom I saw was in one of the Joloan islands, called Pangutara. [73] Him I found to be already a Christian, whom Father Alexandro Lopez, a great apostle of the Joloans, hadreduced and baptized in Samboangan, and called Santiago. This manis naturally very well dispositioned and has no moral defects, andhe is a man of a celestial peace and serenity. He is always bubblingwith laughter, which is the effect of the security of his soul; for, when the conscience has nothing to fear, the heart has gladness toscatter abroad. 

I must not neglect to tell one thing that I noticed in regard to thenature of the people of this profession, from what I could gatherfrom the exterior of those two, which seems to me to be the reasonthat takes them along the pathway so unusual and difficult in aclimate so hot, and lands so dangerous (as he who has had experiencein these islands, and who knows the wretchedness of their nativesin this region, will know). For the physiognomy of those men is thatof eunuchs, and their natural disposition and condition are so cold, that it made me think that they must be so naturally, and that naturekept her virtue under control in this region. But since they behavein all other things with so blameless a life, I shall always considerthem as prodigies of the divine Providence in favor of virtue. Forno one despises virtue as a thing unknown, since even to barbariansvirtue is painted in so natural colors that they respect it naturally, without more external credit than their native security. 

This sole spark of good morals have I found among the so great darknessin which the Subanos live. However, they have another custom belongingto the same aspect of their lives, so vile that it is sufficientto obscure greater lights than those of that small spark; for amongthem is more acceptable the exchange that they make of their womenwith one another--the husbands mutually agreeing upon this exchange, and celebrating the hideous loan and the vile restitution with dancesand drunken revels, according to their custom. Their feasts are liketheir customs, and one is the manifestation of the other. 

CHAPTER XVII

 Burials and marriages of those natives

I have kept these two acts, so contrary in their effects, in orderto present them in one place in this chapter, inasmuch as they areof greater display and magnificence, and in them, in spite of thesimplicity of those natives, the serious predominates. In the first, which is practiced with their dead, I know not whether to praisemore their piety or their generosity and grandeur, or to which of thetwo virtues recognition is due; for both are carried to the greatestextreme. For their liberality, the obligations of their piety (whichdeclares itself in those attentions a debtor to nature), passes byand tramples under foot the laws of their poverty and the naturalsimplicity of these Indians, and makes demonstrations superior totheir fortune, clothing their dead with the magnificence of princes. Inthe shroud alone, they clothe the dead person in a hundred brazas offine muslin, which serves him as a shirt. Over that they place richpatolas, which are pieces of cloth of gold, or of silk alone, workedvery beautifully, and of great value, pious generosity endeavoring togive him the best and to clothe him in the finest and most preciousgarments. It is a law, established by immemorial custom, that thechildren and near relatives each clothe the deceased in a piece ofgauze or of sinampuli (another fabric of equal estimation) arranging itwith such loops and knots that they find space for it all. In regardto the dress, this custom is in force even to this day, and no manwho respects himself has ever failed in this law. There is no one sopoor and so wretched that he does not own a piece [of cloth] eightbrazas long, which is reserved for his burial. They have abandonedother demonstrations, or rather, exchanged them for Christian ones, of which we shall speak at the proper place. In that regard they giveoldtime Christians much to emulate. For formerly they buried withtheir dead most of their treasures--gold, bells, and other things, which are highly esteemed among them. Those things were so sacred toreverence that no one, however abandoned and audacious he might be, had the courage to stretch forth his hand to take them--althoughhe could have done so with great safety to himself, as their deadare buried in caves, islets, or solitary mountains, without otherguard than their imaginary religion. On the day on which they buriedthe deceased, about his sepulcher they planted palms, jasmines, andother flowers peculiar to this region. If the deceased was a king, or a prince of equal nobility, they placed a tent above the grave withfour white banners at its sides, while inside it they burned perfumesas long as the time of lamentation or memorial lasted, perhaps settingaside some slaves for that employ, in order to make it more lasting. 

This heathen display has given way to Christian demonstrations ofsumptuous honors and abundant alms which they give for their deceased, as we shall relate in the proper place. But I shall not defer thetelling of one which may prove a matter of reprehension to our neglectand forgetfulness, in what is more important to us, namely, that theyare wont to have the coffin prepared during the lifetime for theirburial. They make those coffins out of one single piece, and fromincorruptible woods. They keep them under their houses where theycan see them whenever they descend from or ascend to their houses;and they are open to the gaze of all who pass along the street. Thatis a care that it would be right for them to have learned from theoldtime Christians, whom the faith of what they hope for, ought toarouse with greater demonstrations. .. . 

The Subanos follow the Lutaos in some things, their poverty and miseryexerting efforts in the worship of their dead, and their barbarismshowing itself at the side of their piety, when they throw into thesea, out of grief, the gold of their ornaments, decorations, andtheir most precious jewels--a custom wellnigh universal in all theseislands. [74] But in one island their cruelty is shown especiallyin their alleviation of their grief and their barbaric pity fortheir calamity, by giving associates to the deceased, and makingthem companions of their grief, causing the same havoc and loss inothers. Because their father, son, near relative, or anyone whom theyhad loved had died, they would seize their arms in order to kill thefirst person whom they met, and without other cause for offense thanthat of their natural disposition and their barbaric ferocity. Thuswith the blood of the unfortunate one did they dry the tears of theirown ill fortune, finding consolation in the misfortune of others. 

The celebration at their marriages is such that in all that has beendiscovered nothing else can compare with it; and the Spaniards whodaily wonder at it as witnesses always do so with new wonder. For ifthe marriage is of a chief, the celebration begins a week beforehand, and is concluded a week after with dancing to the sound of their bellsand drums. There is open table for all who care to go up into thehouse. The viands consist of wine, for that is the thing in which theyare especially solicitous to show display, while they take no accountof the food, although it is not lacking. But the deceiving heat ofthe wine takes away their taste so strongly that they are mindful ofnothing. Its heat serves to give spirit and animation to their songs(which are in honor of him who makes the feast), and sprightlinessto their dances. The day of the celebration [of the wedding] whenthe betrothed couple have to appear for the nuptial blessings, thebride, breaking the strict confinement which she keeps all that time, issues forth with a display and gravity superior to her condition;for her relatives and the other Indians of their partisanship are cladin their gala costume, and armed with lance and shield, and escort thebride. The march is to the accompaniment of bells and Moorish dulzainas[i. E. , a sort of wind instrument]. The ladies of honor follow in doublefile, and they generally consist of all the women of the village, who are invited for the sake of greater display of grandeur. Thenthe girls follow in the same order, while those of greater socialstanding and higher rank are borne in chairs richly adorned, andcarried on the shoulders of four slaves. At the end comes the bridein a certain very spacious chair which allows room for a lady whosupports and assists her, and to two or three girls, who serve herwith so singular modesty and gravity that it would cause wonder evenif she did not affect so great elaborateness; for she scarcely movesan eyelash or must move her hand, those who accompany her substitutingthemselves for everything. One dries the sweat from her, another fansher, and a third looks after her clothing. Down a different streetcomes the bridegroom to meet the bride, with a like or even greaterretinue in competition with that of the relatives of the bride. Themen are in gala costume, and armed; the women are in festal array;and the chief women in chairs. The dress of the bridal pair must bewhite, until, the [bride's] consent having been given, the bridegroomretires, and exchanges it for a red dress. In this ceremony coquetrydisplays greater affectations: for the bride takes a half-hour to giveher answer, and, after it is given she wastes another long half-hourto reach the lattice of the chapel. And it is necessary to sit downto await the bride for that time, amid the laughter of those who afew days before saw her running and leaping about like a mad she-goat, while on this day she deports herself with so great a demonstration ofsedateness and virginal modesty. The precision of her steps, they say, is a necessity, because she is coming bound even to the feet. Thatis the ceremony that they practice for the reception of the husbandwho is the one who must come to take those bonds and shackles from her. 

On that day the house is all hung with a canopy that covers everything, so that neither walls nor ceiling are seen. The bridal-chamber isopen to the sight and richly adorned, for on that day everythinggleams with splendor and adornment. The bride is seated on a cushion, near a seat made for the groom from cushions in the Moorish style, with embroidery and strips of silk with a quantity of lace. She isserved with the same ostentation as in the street, and displays nomore animation than a statue. I was present at one of so great displaythat, besides the display which the Lutaos showed in their weddings, there came at two o'clock of the same day, marching in a companyformed of their men, lancers and arquebusiers, an assembly of men whotaking position in the plaza de armas, invited the governor and allthe Spanish artillery for that afternoon; and for the following dayall the paid soldiers--Pampangos and Cagayanes--giving food to all andserving the Spaniards quite in the Spanish fashion, both in the cuisineand in the courtesies. It is an event of so great preëminence that thegovernor and all his captains and best soldiers go to it, in order tohonor and conciliate those people. And any prince can well go to seethose ceremonies, for neither actions nor words show that they arebarbarians; but [they appear as] the most modest nation in the world, which is celebrating its marriage without any idea of the [carnal]delights of it. They are so moderate in showing their affection thatduring three days they do not avail themselves of the license of theirestate. Such is the way in which they act that the fathers worthilyhonor it with their presence, and on that day go to their houses, for they are unaccustomed to the modesty and caution unless it iswhen they confess and anoint them. Everything is dispensed with onthat day because of its gravity. We all, then, went on that day withthe superior, and the governor and captains. I was very glad to be awitness of so great splendor, modesty, and gravity in natives who arein other things so simple and unceremonious; and to see a sacrament sohazardous treated with so much devotion, in the respect shown to theministers of it. That chief spent at that feast more than four hundredarrobas of wine, and more than one thousand birds. Although they arepoor, in order to meet the obligations of that day satisfactorily theystrip themselves, showing an equally generous spirit in such actionwith the living as is displayed in the fatherland with the dead; forthe greatest displays of their grandeur are the funerals and weddings. 

CHAPTER XVIII

 Boats and weapons of these natives

The craft used by the Lutaos for war are, like those of terriblepirates, built with particular attention to speed--both for pursuit, and to seek shelter whenever affairs go wrong with them, or whentheir undertaking is dangerous to them. For since their wars arealways waged for greed, and reputation never induces them, they try toadvantage themselves quite at their safety; and they readily abandonany undertaking if they see that it will be costly to them. That careand attention, which govern their boat-building, cause their ships tosail like birds, while ours are like lead in this regard. The plankingthat they use is very thin, and has no other nails, crotches, or kneesthan a little rattan. Rattan is the substance which here takes theplace of hemp, in tying things together, some planks [in the craft]being tied together with it. For that purpose projecting parts areleft at intervals on the inside [of the planks] in which holes aremade; and through these the ligament passes, without any harm beingdone to the plank. Upon so light a foundation they build upper works, as high as they wish, of bamboo upon the cates. The cates are buoyswhich run on both sides from bow to stern, and they act as outriggersfor the ship, which is sustained by these two floats. The ship carriesmore outside than in. The outside scaffolds allow room for two rowsof oars, beside that of the hull. Thus small craft of from seven totwelve brazas (which is the largest size) have a crew of sixty men andupwards. I have seen one that was manned with three hundred hands;for, in order to have the rowing more compressed together they useloose oars, each one handling his own. Those oars are certain roundblades, which an Indian manages easily. Therefore, when it is necessarythey row exactly to the time of their breathing, by inserting moreor less of the oar, according to the force they wish to give. Forthe rowing is excellent and the oar is put directly into the water, because it is trusted solely to the hands, without being fastenedto anything. That is a custom that obliges them to have their craftvery flat, and to elevate the sides but little, and they are contentto leave but one plank out of the water. 

These vessels are crescent-shaped. Consequently, there is but a smallkeel, or little of it in the water, and that part which they rob fromstern and bow is left out of the water--three or four brazas of keelor stem, all of which serves for its speed, and there is little tohold the boat back because of its narrowness. Therefore the helmis not managed like the Spanish helm, by the sweep from the end;accordingly, they use two rudders, one at one side and one at theother, where the flat part of the keel begins. One is usually employedfor managing the boat, and both of them when it is stormy. With thesecond they keep the boat from getting unsteady, which would followfrom its lightness, that rudder giving the boat more stiffness andserving as ballast. That is a precaution rendered necessary by itsvery lightness, the vessels that are lightest being those that requiremost care by being unsteady. In the middle they have a scaffold, fouror six brazas long, which they call burulan or baileo. This consistsof a floor raised above the rowers, and has its awning, which iscalled cayanes. Those awnings are made from the leaves of a smallpalm which grows in the water. That is the quarters for the fightersand the chiefs, for those vessels do not have any stern-cabin; it is, at the same time, the little castle from which they fight. All thatstructure finds its support and staunchness in what they call thecates, which are the buoys of which we have spoken. They are made ofthree or four bamboos as thick as the arm, and even larger, and reachfrom stem to stern. They are so adjusted that they drag through thewater about one and one-half brazas away from the vessel. Consequently, they do not allow it to toss about, however violent the waves, butare the arms that keep the boat safe. They are used in general byall the craft of these islands, and by those of Burney and Maluco;for, since their ships are of no account without this security, theyhave no safety in the sea nor do the Indians dare to embark. Fromthis circumstance Molina, who represented to the Council that buoysought to be fastened to the ships so that they could sail or floatwith a support made of certain bags blown up and thrown alongside, derived his argument. He thought that that would assure the fleets, as they could not then sink, as he had experienced, even if theyfilled with water. It might have proved successful indeed, and infavor of his discourse, if some heavy sea raised by the hurricaneswould not prove sufficient to burst the bags and drag them away fromthe sides; for hurricanes have more than sufficient violence to breakup the stern and destroy the ship. That has been well known by actualexperience here; for a few hours of a severe storm are sufficient todestroy the fastenings; and those ships would be wrecked daily if thevoyages were not so short, and the vessels of so small burden that theycan find shelter in any port. When necessity arises, the men in thembeach the vessels themselves, and do so more easily when they go ina fleet, as then they unite their forces. The crossings are so short, because of the multiplicity of islands, that the weather never catchesthem in such a way that they can not soon escape by drawing near toone land or another. For fair weather this appliance is very useful, so that they take comfort in them freely. 

In regard to their weapons, the Lutao nation is the most curious inthese islands; for all glory in having the most precious and the finestarms possible. All of them from their earliest age wear their weapons, with so careful a regard to this matter that no one dares to leavehis house without his weapons. The wearing of weapons is so much amatter of reputation with them, that they consider it an insult to beobliged to appear without them, regulating their punctiliousness inthis region very much according to the laws of España. It casts muchshame upon the negligence into which our military force has fallen, by the poor reputation of those here who profess arms, who in thesight of these nations are not ashamed to be seen without swords ordaggers; and those which they carry well demonstrate the care withwhich they serve in their posts, since they necessarily satisfy outwardappearance, although they would be useless on occasion. I speak ofthe simple and common soldiers; and, since this care is lacking inmost of them, it ought to be felt more, and with effect, by those whocan remedy it. The weapon worn by the natives of the cities is a wavydagger, which they call a kris. Its blade is engraved with channelsand water-lines, which make it very beautiful. The hilt is a smallidol, made of ivory for the common man, and of gold for the chiefs, studded with gems which are highly esteemed among them. I saw one wornby the commander Socsocan [75]--who was the lord of Samboangan whenour men conquered it--which was valued at ten slaves. The scabbardwas gilded with the same neatness, and at some time had been coveredwith sheets of gold. I saw a scabbard in Joló, which had a pearl aslarge as a musket-ball at the end of the chape. The blades are veryfine, and, although so small (being scarcely two palmos in length), they are valued at twelve, twenty, or thirty reals of eight. 

Such are their arms in peace; those of war, for fighting on the land, are lances and shields. The shield is round among the coast-dwellersof the south, and in the islands of Basilan and Joló. In the rest ofthis island, the general custom of the long and narrow shield whichis used in all the other islands is followed; with these, they shieldand protect all the body. From these weapons the kris is inseparable, and they use it at close quarters, and after they have used the lance, which they throw in the usual manner. Their lances show the same careas their krises, and are very much ornamented and engraved, and havetheir covers gilded. The shaft is of the finest ebony, or of someother beautiful wood; and at intervals they put rings of silver ortin on it. The head is of brass, which is used here, and so highlypolished that it vies with gold. It is chased so elaborately thatthere are lances that are valued at one slave each. At the end theyfasten a large hawk's-bell, which they fix upon the shaft in such amanner that it surrounds it; and when they shake the lance it soundsin time with the fierce threats and bravadoes. The valiant use themand as man-slayers, give warning to those who do not know them andthose of less valor, so that they may avoid them as they would vipers. 

The arms used on sea and land--besides those of the plain, in placeswhere the people fortify themselves with the resolve to defendthemselves--in addition to the one mentioned (which are the mostdeadly), are the bagacayes, which are certain small bamboos as thick asthe finger, hardened in the fire and with points sharpened. They throwthese with such skill that they never miss when the object is withinrange; and some men throw them five at a time. Although it is so weaka weapon, it has such violence that it has gone through a boat andhas pierced and killed the rower. Brother Diego de Santiago told me, as an eyewitness, that he being seated saw that thing (which appearsa prodigy) happen in the same vessel in which he had embarked with agarrison. To me that seemed so incredible that I wished immediately tosee it myself; and, cutting a bagacay, I had it thrown at a shield. InSamboanga I saw a bull which was killed immediately by a bagacaywhich a lad threw at it, which struck it clear to the heart. It is athing that would cause laughter in Europa, and there would be littleesteem for the valor which does not despise such weapons, and theywould jest at so frail violence. But it is certain that, at closerange, there is no crueler weapon; and it is also certain that, theday on which these Moros have bravery enough to get within range, on that day any ship must yield. For they send in such a shower ofthese bagacayes that scarce a man is unwounded; while many are stucklike bulls, so that they cannot move for being laden with so manyweapons. Then the rowing ceases, and they discharge the missiles withboth hands and some from each finger, both rowers and fighters. Thatthrows their opponents into disorder, and they are unable to managetheir weapons. There must be many in España who were in the dangeroussieges which Governor Don Sebastian Hurtado de Corcuera undertookagainst the kings of both Mindanao and Joló--where, in the so greatmortality which the glorious boldness and military honor of our menincurred, the most of those who fell, to exalt their fame forever, were slain by arms so weak and apparently contemptible. In the sameway they use stakes hardened in the fire which they hurl with accuracy, and which inflict even more damage. The lance is used in the same way, and they hurl it with so extraordinary violence that they pierce asteel-covered shield and transfix the soldier with it, as has beenseen often. In an engagement that Captain Gaspar de Morales [76]fought in Joló, his steel-covered shield did not avail him; but thelance passed through it and his arm, and did not fall short of givinghim a mortal wound in the breast. 

The Negrillos of this island use the bow and arrow, as these arethe weapons least difficult to obtain, and more natural [to them], asrequiring less skill. They poison arrows, and the wound is consequentlyalways dangerous. The wooden points of the arrows are so hard thatthose people have no occasion to regret the lack of iron. [77]

The use of the blowpipe [zarbatana], which is one braza long, hasextended from the Borneans to the Joloans, and even to the Lutaos ofthis island. By blowing through it they discharge certain small dartssmeared with so deadly a poison that if one single drop of blood isdrawn, death is certain to result, if the antidote is not quicklyapplied. When our soldiers have to make an expedition to Burney, where other weapons are rarely used, they go prepared with the mostefficacious antidotes--namely, human excrement, as has always beenhappily experienced. These blowpipes are sometimes used also as lances, having the iron fastened at one side, so that, if the shot is notaccurate, they use it alternately as a lance. Then when the opportunityis offered they make use of their darts. They are so good shots thatthey can bring down the smallest bird at twenty or thirty paces. 

The Joloans who are called Ximbanaos, [78] and are more ferociousand of greater determination, are armed from top to toe with helmet, bracelets, coat-of-mail, greaves, with linings of elephant-hide--armorso proof that nothing can make a dint on it except firearms, for thebest sword or cutlass is turned. That was an experience acquired bymany in the conquest of the Joloans by General Don Pedro de AlmonteVerastigui, [79] who had brought from Ternate braggarts of that nation, who wielded the campilan or cutlass--a weapon made for cutting offheads, and for splitting the body from top to toe. But they couldeffect nothing, notwithstanding the heavy blows of those cutlasses;and retired like cowards, giving as an excuse that their weaponswould not cut, and that they were only succeeding in ruining them, for they were all nicked by the strong resistance. From the shouldersrise two irons to the height of the helmet and morion by which theyprotect the head from being cut off. They knot the flaps of theirskirts on the breast or coat-of-mail, so that they can bend the kneeto the ground, according to their method of fighting, when the casedemands it. They wear a plume of feathers above the forehead, such asis seen on mules. They leave nothing unarmed, even to the eyes, whichare armed by fierceness--both because of the terrific appearance oftheir arms, and by the fierceness which they affect. It is the fittingdress, among them, for princes and braggarts. When they put it on theygenerally take some opium, [80] and, rendered furious and insensible[to danger] by it, they enter amid the vessels of a squadron madly, and destroy it with great slaughter. For their arms are lance, kris, or dagger; and with their bounds and leaps, in which they indulgeaccording to their barbarous method of fighting, they appear in manyplaces, always endeavoring to bring down many [of their foes]. Hence, in order that any ball may strike them, it is necessary that itcause disaster in the troop--besides the injuries that their furyhas executed in safety, armed so proof against those who dress aslightly as the heat and roughness of the country compel. 

The Mindanaos use a weapon quite distinct from that of theTernatans. It is a campilan or cutlass of one edge, and heavierthan the pointless Turkish weapon. It is a very bloody weapon, but, being so heavy, it is a danger for him who handles it, if he is notadroit with it. It has only two forms of use, namely, to wield itby one edge, and to raise it by the other, in order to deal anotherstroke, its weight allowing time for the spears of the opponents toenter. They do not gird it on, as that would be too much trouble, but carry it on the shoulders, in the fashion of the camarlengos[81] who carry the rapiers on their shoulders in public ceremonies infront of their princes. Besides that weapon the Mindanao uses lance, kris, and shield, as do the other nations. Both these and those havebegun to use firearms too much, having acquired that from intercoursewith our enemies. They manage all sorts of artillery excellently, andin their fleets all their craft carry their own pieces, with ladle, culverins, esmerils, and other small weapons. [82]

SAN AGUSTIN'S LETTER ON THE FILIPINOS

[Gaspar de San Agustin, O. S. A. , wrote the following letter regardingthe Filipinos. This letter has been widely discussed pro and conby various writers, because of the views expressed therein. Manymanuscript copies of it exist in various collections, archives, andlibraries. The present translation is made from an early manuscriptcopy, belonging to Mr. E. E. Ayer, of Chicago. In footnotes we givethe variant readings of the MS. Conserved in the Museo-Biblioteca deUltramar, Madrid (pressmark "6-5a; caja 17; 21-4a"), that MS. Beingindicated in our notes by the letter M. ; and of the letter as publishedin Delgado's [83] Historia (pp. 273-296, where it shows marks ofhaving been edited by either Delgado or his editor), that publicationbeing indicated by the letter D. Sinibaldo de Mas presents many of theessential parts of the letter in his Informe de las Islas Filipinasen 1842, i, "Poblacion, " pp. 63-132. He says: "In order to give anidea of their physical and moral qualities, I am going to insert someparagraphs from a letter of Father Gaspar de San Augustin of the year1725, [84] suppressing many Latin citations from the holy fatherswhich weigh that letter down, and adding some observations from myown harvest, when I think them opportune. " We shall use most of theseobservations in the annotations herewith presented. Sir John Bowringgives, on pp. 125-139 of his Visit to the Philippine Isles (London, 1859) some excerpts taken from Mas's Informe, but he has sadly mixedSan Agustin's and Mas's matter, and has ascribed some of the latter'sobservations to San Agustin, besides making other errors. [85]]

Letter from fray Gaspar de San Agustin to a friend in España whoasked him as to the nature and characteristics [genio] of the Indiannatives of these Philipinas Islands. [86]

My Dear Sir:

Although your command has so great weight with me, the undertaking ofperforming it satisfactorily is so difficult that I doubt my abilityto fulfil what you ask. It would be more easy for me, I believe, todefine the formal object of logic; to give the square of a circle; tofind the mathematical [side [87]] of the double of the cube and sphere, or to find a fixed rule for the measurement of the degrees of longitudeof the terrestrial sphere; than to define the nature of the Indians, and their customs and vices. This is a memorandum-book in which I haveemployed myself for forty years, and I shall only say: Quadragintaannis proximus fui generationi huic, et dixi semper hi errant corde;[88] and I believe that Solomon himself would place this point ofknowledge after the four things impossible to his understanding whichhe gives in chapter XXX, verse 18 of Proverbs. Only can they tell theOne who knows them by pointing to the sky and saying, Ipse cognovitfigmentum nostrum. [89] But in order that you may not say to me that Iam thus ridding myself of the burden of the difficulty, [90] withoutmaking any effort or showing any obedience, I shall relate brieflywhat I have observed, for it would be impossible to write everything, if one were to use all the paper that is found in China. 

2. The knowledge of men has been considered by the most erudite personsas a difficult thing. Dificile est, noscere hominem animal varium etversipelle. [91] Man is a changeable theater of transformations. Theinconstancies of his ages resemble the variation of the year. Agreat knowledge of man did that blind man of the eighth chapter ofSt. Mark have who said, with miraculous sight, that he saw men astrees: Video homines velut arbores ambulantes. [92] For the tree inthe four seasons of the year has its changes as has man in his fourages; and thus said the English poet Oven:

 "Ver viridem flavamque æstas, me fervida canam Autumnus calvam, frigida fecit hyems. " [93]

"For this is the inconstancy of man in his [various] ages: green inhis childhood; fiery in the age of his virility; white in old age; andbald in his decrepitude. " But his greatest change is in his customs, for he is a continual Proteus, and an inconstant Vertumnus. [94]Thus does Martial paint his friend:

 "Dificilis, facilis, jucundus, acerbus est idem; Nec tecum possum vivere, nec sine te. " [95]

From this came the proverb "Quot capita, tot sententiæ. " [96] Forin the changeable affection of man are locked up all the meteoricinfluences of natural transformations. 

3. It is a fact that the difficulty of knowing these Indians is notin the individuals, but in the race; for, if one be known, then allare known, without any distinction--so much so that the Greek wordmonopantos [97] fits them, and which another critic gave to anotherrace of people, because they were all homogeneous and uniform amongthemselves. At the eighth meeting of the last Lateran Council, heldin the time of Leo X, the opinion of the Monophysite philosophers[98]--who give but one single soul to all men, each body having a partof it--was condemned. Doubtless that impious opinion originated fromsome nation as alike in customs as these Indians; and it is not theworst thing to have been able to give this humble judgment, althoughit is defective. [99]

4. Although we call both the natives of America and those of thesePhilipinas Islands Indians, it cannot be denied that they are verydifferent; for the inclination of the Asiatics [100] is somewhat moredocile and more capable of progress through teaching. Accordingly, I shall confine my remarks to the Indians of Philipinas, leavingthe definition of the Americans for those who know them; for theyhave enough chroniclers who have undertaken it, although I doubtthat they obtained their desire, such as Father Juan de Torquemadain his Monarchia Indiana, [101] Fray Antonio de Remesal, [102] andFather Joseph de Acosta. [103] For what has been written of them bythe bishop of Chiapa, Fray Bernardino de Cassas, [104] and by DonJuan de Palafox [105] in his treatise on the virtues of the Indians, was written from very remote experience; and they were carried awayby the holy zeal of their defense as they were deceived [106] bytheir remote knowledge of the object--as [in viewing] the hills andmountains, which anear are green, but afar are blue. Gold concealsfrom the sight the degree of its fineness; and one must crush [107]the rock himself, and frequently, in order to recognize the truth. 

5. The Asiatic Indians of Philipinas, then, are almost the same asthose of the other nations of East India, in what regards their genius[genio], temper, and disposition. Consequently, the Malays, Siamese, Mogoles, and Canarines [108] are distinguished only by their clothing, languages and ceremonies. I except the Japanese (who are, as Gracian[109] learnedly remarked, the Spaniards of Asia) and the Chinese, who, by their culture and civilization, and love of letters, seem tobe different--although, touched with the stone of experience, theyare the same as the Indians. [110] The influence of the stars whichrule Assia is common, whence Macrobius and Suetonius complain thatthe corruption of the good native customs of the Romans proceeded, especially from Persia, whence came great evil both to the Greeksand to the Latins. 

6. But leaving this immense sea of peoples and customs, let us returnto our natives of these islands, who, besides having been exceedinglybarbarous, living without a ruler, and in a confused monarchy, [111]have the vices of the islanders; for they are fickle, false, andmendacious, and [that] by the special influence and dominion whichthe moon exercises upon all the islands, isthmuses, and peninsulas[Chersonesos], of which much will be found in the Theatrum vitæ humanæof Laurencio Beyerlinch. [112]

7. The temperament of these Indians, as is proved by their physiognomy, is cold and humid, because of the great influence of the moon. Theyhave but little or no difference among themselves in their temperament, as was remarked by a learned doctor who has had considerable experiencein these islands, namely, Doctor Blas Nuñez de Prado. [He observed]that there was no difference, but a great similarity, in the humors ofthose who had been treated, and a fine natural docility in respondingto the medicine; in whatever remedy it was applied to them. Forthey have not the great rebelliousness and changeableness of theEuropeans, because of the infinite combinations made in them by thefour humors. The cause of this is the similarity and lack of varietyin the food that they use and which their ancestors used, which goto make up a nature different in its root from that of the Europeans, but yet very similar. [113]

8. This disposition and influence makes them fickle, malicious, untrustworthy, dull, and lazy; [114] fond of traveling by river, sea, and lake; fond of fishing, and ichthyophagous [115]--that is, they sustain themselves best on fish; they have little courage, onaccount of their cold nature, and are not disposed to work. [116]Besides this they have other qualities and vices, of which I do notknow the cause, and I do not believe that I can easily know them. [117]I shall mention some of them. [118]

9. First, they are remarkable for their ingratitude; and althoughingratitude is an innate vice in all people, through the corruptionof original sin in our vitiated nature, it is not corrected in themby the understanding, and they lack magnanimity. Therefore, it is allone to do a good turn to an Indian, and to prepare oneself to receivethe blow of his ingratitude. Consequently, if one lend them money, they do not pay it; but instead they run away from the father. Hencethere is ground for scruples in regard to lending money to them;for that is a benefit from which evil must result, as they absentthemselves and do not come to mass. If others ask them why, theyanswer that the father [119] is angry at them. In them is verifiedthe picture given by the Holy Spirit in chapter xxix, verse[s] 4[-9]of Ecclesiasticus. "Many" (he says) "have thought by artifice tosatisfy the thing due, and have given trouble to those who have aidedthem. So long as they receive, they kiss the hands of him who gives, and humble themselves with promises. But when it comes time to pay, they will beg for time (for they are beggars and not givers); andthey will utter tedious and complaining words, and the time is spentin vain. Even though one can pay, he can be got to do so only withgreat difficulty. For one solidus [120] scarcely will he give thehalf, and that he will think an unjust artifice; and if he cannotpay he will keep the money, and will esteem the debtor as an enemycauselessly, and will return him insults and evil words, and forhonor and kindness will return him dishonor. " [121] This picture ofingratitude given by Ecclesiasticus fits many, but it fits the Indiansbetter than all other nations, except the Vix solidi reddet dimidium, [122] for they pay nothing. This is one of the evil signs that theroyal prophet finds in the evil and ingrate in Psalm xxxvi, verse 21:"The sinner shall take the loan, and shall not pay. " [123] Consequentlywe find our Indians pagans in this, although they are Christians. [124]

10. If they borrow anything that is not money, they will never returnit until it is requested; and, as an excuse for not having returnedit, they say that they have not been asked for it. [125]

11. Their laziness is such that if they open a door they never closeit; and if they take any implement for any use, such as a knife, pairof scissors, hammer, etc. , they never return it whence they took it, but drop it there at the foot of the work. [126]

12. If they are paid anything in advance, they will leave work andkeep the pay. [127]

13. They are naturally rude, and consequently, it is strange tosee them, when talking with the father or a Spaniard, first scratchthemselves on the temples, [128] and, if it be a woman, on the thigh;but the more polished scratch themselves on the head. [129]

14. It is a thing of great wonder that in everything they make inwhich there is a right and wrong side, they naturally make it wrongside out. Consequently, they have not thus far been able to give into difficulty of folding a cloak with its right side in; [130] nor[do they understand] it can be that when a shirt or habit is wrongside out, on putting the head in, it is given a turn and remainsright side out. Consequently, whenever they see this done, theyexpress more surprise. [131] Hence the remark of a discerning man, that all they did was wrong except folding a cloak, because in thatoperation the wrong side is the face or right side. [132]

15. When the men walk with their wives, they go in advance, and thewives follow, as that is just the contrary of our custom. This was abit of carelessness that cost Orpheus the loss of his wife, who wasstolen by the prince Auresteo, as we are told in mythology. [133]

16. They are curious, rude, and impertinent, and accordingly, whenthey meet the father they generally ask him where he is going andwhence he is coming; and innumerable questions, all impertinent andtroublesome. [134]

If any letter is read before them, they will go behind one to see it, although they do [not] know how to read. And if they hear any talkingin private, they draw nigh to listen to it, even though it be in alanguage that they do not understand. 

17. They enter, without being summoned, into the convents and thehouses of the Spaniards, even into the most secret apartment, but intheir own houses they practice many civilities. If the door be locked, they try with might and main to look through the cracks at what isbeing done, for they wish to know everything. [135]

They tramp about in the convents and houses of the Spaniards so loudly, that it causes wonder and annoyance; and especially if the fatheris asleep. In their own houses, on the contrary, they walk about solightly, that they seem to be walking on eggs. [136]

18. They are very early risers in their own houses, [137] for theirpoverty and the noise demand that. But if their masters sleep untilten, they must do the same too. 

19. They must eat and try all that their masters eat, even though itbe something delicious or from Europa; and no Spaniard, and especiallythe father minister, will have been able to succeed in making themeat out of other dishes than those from which their master eats. Iknow well that I have been unable to obtain it, notwithstanding myefforts. Neither will they drink out of another and separate jar. [138]

20. Their manner of sitting is generally on their heels [en cuclillas], and they do that in all places except in the convents, where theybreak the seats with sitting on them and leaning back in them without-stretched legs. And they must do this in the balconies, wherethey can see the women. [139]

21. They care more for their disheveled hair than they do for theirsouls; and only they will not imitate the Spaniards if they have thecustom of shaving, as is now being introduced with the false hairand perukes. [140]

22. Their usual habitation and happiness in the convents consists innot leaving the kitchen. There they hold their meetings and feasts, andthere is their glory, as is the open country in Castilla. A religiouswhom I knew, called the kitchen Flos sanctorum, [141] because thelife of the father and of all the village was discussed there. 

23. When they go out alone at night, they must have a blazing torch, and go about waving it like a censer; and then they throw it downwherever they please, and this is usually the cause of great fires. 

24. They would rather wear mourning than go about in gala dress, and are accordingly very observant in wearing it during theirfunerals. [142]

25. They do not esteem garments or gala dresses given them by theirSpanish masters; and accordingly leave such in any place, withoutperceiving that they are losing them. But any old rag that they wearfrom their own houses they esteem and value highly. 

26. They do not care for any domestic animal--dog, cat, horse, or cow. They only care, and too much so, for the fighting cocks;and every morning, on rising from slumber, the first thing that theydo is to go to the roosting-place of their cock--where, squattingdown on their heels, in its presence, they stay very quietly for atleast a half-hour in contemplation of their cock. This observance isunfailing in them. [143]

27. They live unwillingly in convents, or in houses where they cannotbe at least on the scent of women. 

28. It is not known that the Indian has [ever] broken a dish or a crockin his own house, and consequently one will find dishes in them thatdate from before the arrival of the Spaniards in this country. Butin the convents and houses where they serve, they break so many thatone would believe that they do it on purpose to do their masters anill turn. [144]

29. One may not trust a sword, mirror, glass, musket, clock, or anyother rare article to them; or allow them to touch it even with thehands; for immediately, by physical contact alone, they put it outof joint, break it, and harm it. They can only handle bamboo, rattan, nipa, or a bolo, and some few a plow. [145]

30. They are insolent and free in begging for unjust and foolishthings, and this without considering time or season. When Iremember the circumstance which happened to Sancho Pancha when hewas governor of the island of Barataria, one day after eating [146]with an importunate and intrusive farmer, who said that he was fromMiguel Turra, I am reminded of the Indians when they beg. [147]And we shall say that if they bring four eggs, they think that withjustice they ought to be given a price of one hundred pesos. Thatis so true that when I see an Indian who is bringing something, which is always a thing of no value, or something that is of nouse to them, such as ates, mangas, or belinbiles [i. E. , balimbing], I repeat those words of Laocoon to the Trojans: Timeo Danaos, [et]dona ferentes (2nd Æneid). An Indian came to beg from the bishop ofTroya (as was told me by his illustrious Lordship)--Don Fray GinesBarrientos, [148] a specially circumspect prelate--the loan of fiftypesos, for which he took him a couple of guavas. An Indian broughta cock to the Marquis of Villa-sierra, Don Fernando de Valenzuela, [149] while he was in the fort of Cavite; and, when that gentlemanordered that he be given more than six times its value, the Indiantold him that what he wanted was to be given eighty cavans of rice, [150] and that in a time of so great scarcity it was not to be hadfor two pesos per cavan. But they have this curious peculiarity, thatthey are just as happy if these things are not given to them as ifthey had been given. For they have little or no esteem for what theSpaniards give them, and especially the father. Accordingly, whenthey sell anything that is worth, say, six, [151] they ask thirty, and are satisfied if six be given them. [152]

They would rather have one real from the hand of the Sangley than onepeso from the Spaniard; and the power that the Sangleys have over themis surprising, for they are generally cheated by those people. [153]

31. They are very fond of play, [154] for they believe that it isa restful way in which to gain much, and it is very suitable totheir laziness and lack of energy. Therefore, an Indian would ratherlie stretched out in his house than gain the greatest wage. On thisaccount, when he gets a peso he stays at home without working, until itis all eaten up or drunk up, for it all amounts to the same thing. Thisis the reason why they are so poor, in comparison with the Sangleysand mestizos, who live in abundance, for they know how to seek andwork. [155] Egestatem operata est manus remissa. (Proverbs X, verse 4. )

32. They have contradictory peculiarities, such as being very cowardly, while on some occasions they are rash; for they confess that theywould rather suffer a hundred lashes than to have one shout aloudto them--which, they say, penetrates even to the heart, without thecause being known. 

33. It is laughable to see them waken another who is sleeping like astone, when they come up without making any noise and touching himvery lightly with the point of the finger, will call him for twohours, until the sleeper finishes his sleep and awakens. The samething is done when they call anyone downstairs, or when the door isshut; for they remain calling him in a very low tone for two hours, until he casually answers and opens to them. [156]

34. In another way, they exhibit other rash actions, by which itis seen that their rashness is rather the daughter of ignorance andbarbarity than of valor. For it occurs that an Indian, man or woman, may be walking along the road and hear a horse which is coming behindhim, running or going at a quick pace; but this Indian never turnshis face. If the horse come in front of him, he will not turn out ofthe road so that he may not be trampled underfoot, if he who comeson horseback does not turn out with greater consideration. The samething occurs when they see a very large banca coming down upon themwith long sweeps of the oars, while they are in a small banquilla;when they will allow themselves to be struck by it, with the dangerof being overturned and drowned. It costs much labor to those in thelarge banca to avoid that, while the others could do it with greatease. This has happened to me on innumerable occasions. [157]

35. The same thing happens in the rivers where there are crocodiles, although they see them swimming about; for they say the same as do theMoros [i. E. , Mahometans], that if it is from on high it must happen, even though they avoid it. And thus, as says father Fray Gabriel Gomez(History of Argel, book 2, chapter 19), they say in the lengua franca"God is great! Be not led by fancy! The world is just so. If itis written on the forehead that one is to live, then he will live;but if not, then he will die here. " [158] For their Koran says thateach one has his fortune written in the lines of his forehead. TheseIndians believe the same thing (and they have never seen the Koran), and only because it is great nonsense. They receive no warning fromthe many misfortunes that happen every day for their sins. [159]

36. While it is a fact that they are extremely credulous amongthemselves, they will believe of the Spaniards only what is againstthem. Therefore, it is evident that the [Christian] faith is asupernatural act, in that they believe the divine mysteries taught bythe Spaniards. However, they do not believe some things, or refuse tobelieve them because they find the contrary profitable. Consequently, there is no one who can persuade them that it is a sin to stealfrom the religious ministers or the Spaniards. Of this we have suchproofs that we have not the slightest doubt that it is so; but, only perceiving it is not being able to remedy it. [160]

So great is the ease and tenacity with which they believe the greatestnonsense, if this is to the discredit of the Spaniards or againstthem, that it would be a long undertaking to recount some of it. Ihave deemed it advisable to mention only two [instances] of it ofwhich I heard [161] and of which I was a witness, so that the restcan be inferred from them. 

37. While I was in Bisayas in the year 1672, those islands began tobe depopulated and the Indians began to take to the mountains fromthe visitas of Xaro, because a rogue told them a bit of nonsenselike the following. He told them that the king of España had goneout fishing, and the Turks had come upon him and made him captive;and that the king had given for his ransom all the Indians of theprovince of Oton. They believed this so thoroughly that it was withgreat difficulty that the alcalde Don Sebastian de Villarreal andthe father ministers could quiet them, and considerable time passedbefore they were sure of the whole matter. [162]

The second: While I was in the village of Lipa, a mine was discoveredin that of Tanavan which was said to be of silver. Governor Don FaustoCruzat y Gongorà sent ministers and officials in order to find outabout it and to assay it. These men made their efforts, but the mineonly said, Argentum et aurum non est mihi. [163] But the devil willedto have some rogue at this time to sow this deceit, namely, that theministers [164] said that the mine would yield no silver until allthe old women of Cometan had been caught, and their eyes plucked outand mixed with other ingredients, in order to anoint the vein of themine with that mixture. This was believed, so that all was confusionand lamentation, and the old women hid in the fields; and it tooka long time to quiet them, and cost the ministers great difficulty, as the Indians would not believe them because they were Castilians, until time itself undeceived them. [165]

38. May God deliver us from any one of those Indians whom they consideras sages, who says any bit of nonsense, even though it be against thefaith, [166] and they only respond, Vica nong maronong, "Thus saythe sages, " and it is labor lost to persuade them to the contrary;for the authority that these scholars have over them is incredible. 

39. They are extremely arrogant, and hence the son will not obey hisfather, or the headman, or captain of the village. [167] They areonly bound in this by fear, and when they have no fear they willnot obey. They only recognize the Spaniard to be more than they;[168] and this they say only because of an interior impulse, whichforces them against their will and without their knowing why. Thisis the providence of God, so that they can be governed. 

40. They are very fond if imitating the Spaniard [169] in all hisbad traits, such as variety of clothes, cursing, gambling, and therest that they see the coxcombs [170] do. They shun the imitation ofthe good things in the dealings and civilization of the Spaniards, and in the proper rearing of their children. For in all the restthat treats of trickery, drunken revelries, and ceremonies in theirmarriages, burials, and tyrannies one against another, they observeexactly what they learned from their ancestors. Thus they unite inone the vices of the Indians and the Spaniards. [171]

41. Just as the poor are arrogant, so also are the old ones ignorant, and they are not to be distinguished from the youths. Consequently, in their weddings, banquets, and revelries one will see old men withwhite hair, mixed with the lads; and slouchy old women with theirscapularies, clapping their hands and singing nonsensical things withthe lasses. Scarcely is there an Indian who knows his age, and many[172] do not know the baptismal names of their wives, after they havebeen baptized for fifty years. [173]

42. They are so ignorant that they do not have the slightest knowledgeconcerning the origin of the ancestors from whom they descend, and whence they came to settle these islands. They do not give anyinformation concerning their paganism, which is not the worst; andthey only preserve in certain parts some ridiculous abuses, whichthey observe at births and sicknesses, and the cursed belief thatpersuades them that the souls of their ancestors or the grandfathersof the families are present in the trees and at the bottom of bamboos, and that they have the power of giving and taking away health and ofgiving success or failure to the crops. Therefore, they make theirancestors offerings of food, according to their custom; and whathas been preached to them and printed in books avails but little, for the word of any old man regarded as a sage has more weight withthem than the word of the whole world. [174]

43. They act tyrannically one toward another. Consequently, the Indianwho has some power from the Spaniard is insolent [175] and intolerableamong them--so much so that, in the midst of their ingratitude, someof them recognize it, although very few of them. Yet it is a factthat, if the Spaniards had not come to these islands, the Indianswould have been destroyed; for, like fish, [176] the greater wouldhave swallowed the lesser, in accordance with the tyranny which theyexercised in their paganism. [177]

44. They are wanting in understanding and reflection, so that they donot recognize any means in anything, but go to extremes. Consequently, if one ask them for warm water, they bring it boiling, and then if theyare reproached and told that one wishes it more temperate, they go andbring it back as cold as ice. [178] In this vicious circle of extremes, they will continue ceaselessly without finding a mean. Consider then, how they will act in prudential matters, where one must seek the meanand not the extremes, as says the poet: [179]

 Es[t] modus in rebus, sunt certi denique fines. Quos ultra, citraque nequit consistere rectum. [180]

This is the cause of great anxiety to us, and with them a causeof great happiness to see us grow impatient, even though it costthem some blows, which they take very willingly because they make usimpatient. They celebrate this in a lively manner in the kitchen. Thereis nothing that the Indian regrets more than to see the Spaniard orthe father calm, and that he patiently and with forbearance restrainshis hand from them when it is necessary; for but rarely do they doanything willingly, and hence the most prudent among them are wontto say that "the rattan grows where the Indian is born. " [181] Virgain dorso ejus, qui indiget corde (Proverbs x, 13). 

They resemble in this a mischievous lad who served a good cleric. Oneday his master sent him to buy a hen, and he stole and hid aleg. [182] His master was silent, and overlooked the incident. Itcame to pass that the master and the lad walked into a field, wherethey came upon some cranes, all of them with one foot lifted highin the air. Thereupon the lad said to his master, "Sir, the hen waslike these birds which have but one foot. " The cleric answered, "No, my lad, for these birds have two feet; and if you do not believeit, look. " So saying, he threw a stick at the cranes, which flewaway in fright, showing the other foot. At this the lad said, "O, sir, had you done the same with me, the hen would also have had twofeet. " Doubtless, this lad must have been of the same disposition asthese good brothers, who do nothing good without a beating. Tu virgapercuties eum (Proverbs XXIII, 14). [183]

It happened that an Augustinian religious--who still lives and is verywell known for his great learning--arrived in these islands in theyear 1684, and was given, shortly after his arrival, a lad of eightor nine years for his service. The lad was so clever and lively, thathe was held in esteem, [184] and the said religious was very fond ofhim because of his great activity. The lad considered that the fatherwas very patient with him, and chid his neglect very mildly. One dayhe said to the father "Father, you know that you are new. Considerthe Indians like myself. You must not overlook anything. If youwish to be well served, you must keep a rattan, and when I commitany fault, you must strike me with it; and then you will see that Ishall move as quickly as a sparrowhawk. For you must know, Father, that the rattan grows where the Indian is born. So have I heard saidby the old Indians. " [185] Trouble enough do the poor wretches have, for one may say of them: Oderunt peccare mali formidinæ penæ. [186]

45. One can give them nothing, even if it be given, [187] for if hehappen to give one anything in the presence of others, even if itbe a needle, [188] all will demand that in justice the same be givento them. In this they closely resemble the laborers of the twentiethchapter of St. Matthew, who construed as an injury the favor that thehouseholder showed to their companions. This is covetousness and lackof consideration. So far is this foolishness carried that the Indianwill take fifty lashes willingly, if he knows with certainty that allthe others are to get as much. Surely they cause great trouble withthis wretched habit, and those who might confer some benefit on themoften avoid doing so. 

46. They are so distrustful that they think that the ground on whichthey walk and the air which they breathe are about to fail. This doesnot make them more provident and industrious, but more foolish anddull. Therefore, if there are many to confess they troop together allin a body, each one desirous of being first. This causes extraordinarytrouble and impatience to the confessor. But, if there are but few, they come a legua apart; and one must summon them, and they take anhour to come. If the father rises in anger, or because it is late, then they all come together in a crowd, and say "Father, me only. " Thisis a bit of foolishness in which one can trace the great deficiencyof their understanding. [189]

47. As they are so curious, and fond of knowing whatever does notconcern them, what occurs when many of them confess together iswondrous to see. For all of them keep a steadfast gaze on the one whois confessing. One is astonished and amused to see all the women withtheir faces turned backward [190] so that they seem to be biformedJanuses, or paid dancers with a mask at the back of the head. In thismanner, they remain until the end of the function. The same is true onAsh Wednesday or at the adorations of the cross on Holy Friday, whenall of them wish to kiss at one time, or in other similar functions. 

48. They are much given to the sin of blasphemy, [191] because of theirnatural vileness, their pride, and their presumption. Hence it is quiteusual for them to complain of God, whom they call Paghihinanaquit, asking why He does not give them this or that, and health or wealth, as He does to other creatures. They utter words of nonsense thathorrify those who do not know that it proceeds from their greatlack of understanding and consideration, and from their very greatdisability for conforming themselves with the divine will. [192] Thusthe royal prophet David, when compelled by his superior enthusiasm totouch what he considered inferior matter, and [when he] lifted up hiscomplaints of the divine Providence, was excused by his ignorance, as will be seen in Psalm LXXII, [23], where he humbles himself, saying: Ut jumentum factus sum apud te: et ego semper tecum. [193]

49. They are very vain, [194] and they spend their money never morewillingly than in functions of vanity; for they consider themselveshighly, and wish to be esteemed without doing anything worthy ofesteem. The men especially, even though they do not have anythingto eat, must not for that reason fail to have a shirt and a hat, and to dress in style. They give banquets very frequently, for veryslight causes; and everything resolves itself into eating, drinking, and great noise. Their vanity is the only thing that causes them tolessen their laziness, in order to get the wherewithal to keep upthis esteem, and applause from their compatriots. [195]

50. They are revengeful to an excessive degree--so much so thatthey are vile and cowardly, and the ministers have great trouble inreconciling them with their enemies; and although they do it throughfear, it is never with the whole heart, for this passion has greatinfluence over them. And since they need magnanimity and manlinessto overcome it, and these virtues are foreign to them, [196] hategenerally forces its roots into them so deeply that it is impossibleto eradicate it in a whole lifetime. [197]

This is the reason why they are so inclined to litigation, and togoing before the audiencias and courts with their quarrels, [198] inwhich they willingly spend their possessions for the sole purpose ofmaking others spend theirs and of causing them harm and trouble. Forthat they are even wont to pledge their sons and daughters. [199]

51. In order to be contrary in everything to other nations, they havelust but no love. This is in regard to the illicit love; for in thesupernatural love which grace causes in the sacrament of marriage(since divine impulse works in this) their evil disposition isconquered and most of them make very good husbands. But in illicitintercourse the men have no other purpose than bodily appetite, and to deprive [of virginity] as many women as they have done, inorder to sport with it. For it is a long established custom amongthem that the women shall give to the men, and the latter shall bethe ones served and fêted; while only blows, kicks, and trouble aregiven to the women. So true is this that one might say that they havean inferno both in this and in the other world. Hence the women arevery poorly clad, for the men want everything for themselves. [200]

52. But in the midst of this, which appears inhuman, one may praisethem for having succeeded in treating their wives as they deserve, in order to keep them submissive and happy; for this submission makesthem better, and humble, and prudent, and conformable to their sentenceof being subject to man. And if the Europeans would learn this usefuland prudent management from them, they would live in greater peaceand with less expense; and marriage would be more mild and quiet, andwell ordered, according to reason, and better directed toward the endfor which it was instituted--as we see is the case with these people, with a fertility that causes our wonder. 

53. They have another remarkable custom, which has been taught them bythe infernal Machiavelian [201] Satan, which is good for their bodies, but bad for their souls. This is that they observe very strictly theconcealment of one another's faults and wrong-doing. They endeavorto see that no transgression comes to the ear of the father minister, or alcalde, or any Spaniard. They observe this with peculiar secrecy, although they may be at enmity among themselves, and ready to killas they say. Consequently, the most serious crime that can happenamong them is to tell the father or alcalde what is passing inthe village. [202] They call that mabibig, because it is the mostabominable fault and the only sin among them. [203]

54. This worst of customs is very prejudicial and troublesome to theSpaniards and to the father ministers. For it might happen that onehas one servant (or all) who wastes and destroys the property of hismaster, and there is [no one] who will tell him what is passing. [204]But if it happens that the wasteful servant leave, then all the otherstell what he did; and, whatever is lacking afterward, they throw theblame on that absent servant. If the Spaniard reprove the servant whomhe most esteems and benefits, asking him why he did not tell of theevil that the other servant was doing, he replies with great dudgeonthat they must not accuse him of being mabibig, or talebearer of whathappens. This is what takes place, even if the servants know that theyare flaying their master. Consequently, the first thing that they dowhen any new servant comes is, to threaten him if he turn mabibig, and afterwards make him do all the work that belongs to them all, while the old servants are quite free from toil. Hence the fewerservants a Spaniard has, the better served will he be; for only thenewcomer works and does everything, and the others not only do nothing, but are all served by him. [205]

55. They have another peculiarity, which always causes me greatwonder. I am trying to discover the cause therefor, but I only find, so far as I can make out, that it is due to their incapacity andingratitude and their horror of the Spaniards. This is, that while thedifference between the poverty, wretchedness, and want of their housesand the anxiety and poverty in which they live, when compared with theabundance, good cheer, good clothes, and comfort which they enjoy inthe service of certain Spaniards is almost infinite, if they happento be discharged, or to leave for some very slight cause occasionedby their pride and vanity, they turn from one extreme to the other, so contented with the present misery that they do not remember oreven consider the past abundance. If they be asked in what conditionthey lived better, they answer that everything is one and the same, and hence we do not get revenge by sending them away in anger [enembiarlos con Dios]. But what great happiness is theirs! [206]

56. They would rather scorn the goods of the father or of the Spaniardsthan enjoy them and profit by them. Hence what they lose is greaterthan what they spend. 

57. They are greatly lacking in foresight. Hence the servants andstewards do not advise their master to procure any article until itis completely gone. Therefore when they say that there is no moresugar or no more oil, it is when there is not [oil] enough to wheta knife. [207] Consequently, great deficiencies and annoyances aresuffered because of this custom. 

58. If there are visitors or guests to dine with the master, they donot consider the guests at all, thus causing the poor master of thehouse great shame; [208] and it is necessary for him to excuse himselfby the poor instruction that the devil gave them in this matter. Nomisfortune can be greater to him than to offend against his civility;and in a manner that seems good to them, for doubtless they are sopersuaded by the devil. It is also their custom, when there is company, for all to go to the kitchen and leave the master alone. [209]

59. Their stomachs are like sackbuts, with systole and diastole;[210] and thus they contract and expand them in a wonderful manner. Foralthough they observe parsimony in their own houses, it is a matter forwhich to praise God to see them gorge themselves and gulp down thingsat the expense of the Spaniards, as Quevedo said there of Galalon:"Galalon, who eats but little at home, overloads his goodly paunchat another's expense. " [211]

60. But say to them, Buen provecho; [212] for usually these lossesare well retrieved when they row. They are horrifying and frightfulin venting their anger, both against one another, and against thefather ministers; and there would be so much to say in this that itwould never be finished. [213] They are able to make their complaintsin such a manner and to such purpose that they persuade those whoknow most about their falsity and trickery that they are telling thetruth. I remember that an alcalde of experience [214] was heard tosay, when the Indians came to him with complaints: Audivi auditionemtuam, et timui. [215] There are usually Indians, both men and women, in the suburbs of Manila, who hire out as mourners in the manner ofthe mourners of the Hebrews, and such as were in style in Castillain the time of the Cid. The authors of the quarrel go first intothe house of some lawyer [216] well known for his cleverness, who isone of those called in law rabulas, [217] who do not know which istheir right hand. These men keep books of formulas and of petitionsdirected against all the human race; for example, in this form, "suitagainst alcalde;" and then follow all the crimes and excesses thatcan be committed by alcaldes. [218] The same thing is true of suitsagainst ministers and curas, and in them is enclosed all possibilityof irregular conduct. Then the said "smith of calumny, " [219] as theItalian says, takes the names of the plaintiffs and defendants, anda few facts; and then puts it all in the book from beginning to end[de pe á pa], without omitting one iota. And this is not to speakuncertainly; for in the archives of the court will be found thechart which was discovered in the possession of a certain rabulanamed Silva, who, in addition to this had skill in counterfeitingroyal decrees and documents. 

61. When the petition has been made, they go with it to the mourners, and they go to press their suit with a lamentation like that ofMagedo for King Josias, which would soften stones. [220] That hasbeen investigated by several governors in my time. I remember oneinvestigation by Don Juan de Vargas, and another by Don Gabriel deCruce-laegui; and many who are living remember them. Let them judge, then, the pity that ought to be expressed for the father ministers, whose honor is exposed to so great danger. 

62. Their cunning and diabolical cleverness in making an accusationis not the equal [i. E. , is more than the equal] of their capacity;and it is known that they have the special suggestion of thefather of discord, Satan. I remember that they brought to a certainprovincial a complaint against the father minister, saying that hekept twelve Indians busy in caring for but one horse. The provincialmade an investigation and found that the father had but one Indian, and that he used the said horse a great deal, in order to attendto the administration of souls. When the calumniators were chiddenfor the falsity of their complaint, they explained it by saying, "Father, that Indian is, in truth, but one; but he is changed everymonth, and at the end of the year there are twelve men. " Just seewhat subtlety, and what confusion in their arithmetic, in order tomake their accusation--the Indians maliciously speaking of a yearin order to give color to their calumny. [221] So many cases of thissort can be stated, that they are unending. And with all this, thesenatives have such persuasiveness, or powers of enchantment, that theygenerally deceive and persuade the most experienced with their lies. 

63. Inasmuch as any sort of complaint is received, without subjectingthe accuser to a penalty in case that he cannot prove his allegations[222]--as ought to be the case, and according to the orders of theMexican Council--no one's honor is safe. For, if they prove theiraccusations, they are the gainers, while if they do not prove themthey return home as cool as ever, for they always go to gain andnever to lose. [223]

64. They are very fond of ceremonial acts and festivals where thereis some novelty; and fond of long pilgrimages [224] to images of somenew miracle, while they forget about the old. [225]

65. They are especially fond of comedies and farces, and therefore, there is no feast of consequence, unless there is a comedy. [226]If possible they will lose no rehearsal, and in all they payattention only to the witty fellow who does innumerable foolish anduncouth things, and at each of his actions they burst into heartylaughter. He who plays this part acceptably receives his diploma asan ingenious fellow, and has permission to go and come anywhere, andeven to cajole the women before their husbands; and the latter mustlaugh, even though they have no wish to do so. It is very necessarythat these representations be not harmful, for many of them areprinted. Accordingly, they receive considerable benefit from thesefunctions and external acts, such as the descent from the cross, and other representations, which are patterned after those calledescuitales [227] in Nueba España--in which is verified the truth ofthe sentence in the Ars Poetica of Horace, verses 18[0-181]. [228]

 Segnius irritant animos demisa per aures, Quam quæ sunt oculis conspecta fidelibus. 

66. Consequently, those who have experience are wont to declarethat the faith enters into the Indians through the eyes; and henceit seems worthy of consideration that it was the apostle St. Thomaswhom our Lord [229] had prepared for the teaching of the Indians--hewho desired that the belief in his glorious resurrection might enterthrough the eyes: Nisi videro . .. Non credam (John xx, 25). 

67. They are extreme in their observance of their usages and customs, which they call ogali. To be found wanting in these is a great infamy;and, consequently, in order not to break them they will trampleeverything under foot. The ceremonies and abuses practiced in theirweddings and funerals are numerous and curious, and no success hasbeen had in suppressing them, notwithstanding all the efforts thathave been made; for all they want from the Spaniards is their clothes, and all the evil that they see in them. I believe that these customswill never be suppressed. [230]

68. Another curious peculiarity is that although there are generallysome few who are jealous, if they have any business with the Spaniards, they will not go themselves, but will send their wives or daughterswithout any fear of danger, in order that their business may be welldespatched. [231]

69. They are very material and literal in their conversations, andone cannot say the slightest word to the women in jest, however slightit be; for the most discreet thing that they will answer to one willbe, Tampalasanca, which means, "You are a [232] shameless fellow;"and, if not that, [233] a tempest of words, that will make him repenthaving given occasion for them. [234] This alone is their custom withthe Spaniards. [235]

70. It is a thing to be wondered at that even the dogs have anotherdisposition, and have a particular aversion toward Spaniards. Whenthey see Spaniards, they choke themselves with barking. And when thechildren see a father they cry immediately, [236] and thus from theircradle they begin to hold every white face in horror. [237]

71. They are so cowardly that they fear any Indian who becomes a bullyamong them--so much that, if they only see him with a poor knife, they fear him so greatly that he can do whatever he wishes. All thevillage together will not be bold enough to arrest him, for theysay that he is posong, which is the same as "bold. " I have had manyexamples of this. [238]

72. The vice of drunkenness is regarded by them as rank in thefourth degree, [239] and they have made it a point of nobility;for the chiefest men think that they are the best workmen at thisoccupation. [240] It is a fact that those most given to this viceare the Ilocans, then the Visayans, and then our Tagálogs. [241] ThePampangos can be exempted from this rule, for they are very temperatein this wretched habit, as well as in all the other things which wehave mentioned. They are very different: for they are truthful, andlove their honor; are very brave, and inclined to work; and are morecivil, and of better customs. In regard to the vices here mentioned(for they are, in the last analysis, Indians like the rest), theykeep them more out of sight and covered. In all things the Pampangoshave a nobleness of mind that makes them the Castilians of thesesame Indians. Consequently, that people must be distinguished fromthe rest in its character, in all that we have said. 

73. Returning now to the others, in general, they possess vanitywithout honor; for among them it is no reason for less esteem tobe drunkards, robbers, or connivers in evil deeds, or [to practice]other like virtues. [242] They lose reputation and honor only if theyget the reputation of being sorcerers. Consequently, in the opinion ofa very learned minister, there is no case of a restitution of honor, unless some accusation of this infamous sin is imputed to them. Intheir marriages and among their kindred their disgust is not movedexcept by this, for the others are excused by self interest, but thisfault is not. [243]

74. All that I have said of the men is very different in the women, saltem quoad modum. [244] For they are of better morals, are docileand affable, and show great love to their husbands and to those whoare not their husbands. They are really very modest in their actionsand conversation, to such a degree that they have a very great horrorof obscene words; and if weak nature craves acts, their natural modestyabhors words. [245] The notion that I have formed of them is that theyare very honorable, and, most of all, the married women. Although beansare boiled, it is not by the kettleful, as in other regions. [246]Scarcely will one find a Tagálog or Pampango Indian woman, who willput her person to trade; and they are not so abandoned as we see inthe women in other regions. They are very averse toward the Spaniard, and love the equality [in marriage] of their own nation; and, as aforeign religious said, are suited "each man to each woman. " Theyrarely have any love for a Spaniard. They have another peculiarity, which if the Indian women of America had, that land would not be sofull of mulattoes, who are a ferocious and wicked race. This is theirhorror for Cafres and negroes, which is so great that they would soonersuffer themselves to be killed than to receive them. The Visayan women, however, are ready for everything, and are not so fastidious. On thecontrary, they are very ready to consent to any temptation. [247]

75. The women are very devout, and in every way of good habits. Thecause for this is that they are kept so subject and so closelyoccupied; for they do not lift their hands from their work, since inmany of the villages they support their husbands and sons, while thelatter are busied in nothing else but in walking, [248] in gambling, and wearing fine clothes, while the greatest vanity of the women isin the adornment and demeanor of these gentlemen, for they themselvesare very poorly and modestly [249] clad. 

76. In all that I have said, to this point, concerning the nature andmorals of these poor people, I have done no more than to approximate[to the truth], as the mathematicians have done in the squaring ofthe circle. For an essential, substantial, and exhaustive definition[250] is for some other person, to whom divine Providence choosesto communicate this difficult matter. [251] Very praiseworthy isBarclayo, for in his Eupormion and his Argenis, [252] he succeededin discerning the natures of nations; as did Juan Rodemborgio, [253]and our Gracian in his Criticon. [254] But had they treated of theFilipinos, they would not have been so successful. 

77. The bishop of La Puebla, Don Juan Palafox, [255] wrote a keentreatise on the virtues of the Indians of Nueva España, in whichhis uncommon intellect and his holy and good intention are displayedmore clearly than is the truth of his argument on the subject; forin a curious way he endeavors to make virtues of all their vices andevil inclinations. For in what they merit before God through theirwills, they do not merit if it be the impelling force of theirnatural inclination and manner of living, because absuetiis nonfit passio. [256] One cannot, indeed, compare the voluntary povertyof St. Francis with that of the Indians, which is born of lazinessand full of greed; for theirs is the infamous poverty which Virgilplaces in hell: et turpis egestas. [257] And just as the economy ofa poor wretch is not reckoned as fasting, so it will not be properto say that if St. Antony [258] went barefoot, the Indians do thesame; and that they live on certain roots, as did the fathers of theThebaid. [259] For the fasting and the austerities of St. Arsenius[260] had a different impelling motive--since he left the pleasuresand esteem of the court of the emperor Theodosius [261]--than thatwhich they can have, being so born and reared, and never havingseen anything else. Hence, Ovid says of the Getas that they left thedelights and comforts of Roma, and returned to seek the poverty andmisery to which they were accustomed in Pontus:

 Roma quid meltus scyt[h]ico [262] quid frigore peius? Húc tamen ex illa Barbarus urbe fugit. [263]

78. It is not my intention to include the Sangley mestizos here, as they are a different race. For although they were the children ofIndians at the beginning, they have been approaching more and moreto the Chinese nation with the lapse of successive generations. Etcompositum ex multis atrahit ad se nuturam simplicis dignioris. [264]Consequently, I leave their description for whomever wishes toundertake that task; for I fear that I shall succeed but very illwith the task which I have here undertaken, as it is so difficult. 

79. Finally, summing up all the above, the inference will be thatall the actions of these wretched beings are such as are dictatedby nature through the animal, intent solely on its preservationand convenience, without any corrective being applied by reason, respect, and esteem for reputation. Consequently, he who first saidof a certain people that if they saw the whole world hanging on onenail and needed that nail in order to hang up their hat, they wouldfling the world down in order to make room for the hat, would havesaid it of the Indians had he known them. For they think only ofwhat is agreeable to them, or of what the appetite dictates to them;and this they will put in action, if fear, which also dwells in them, do not dissuade them. [265] Hence they will be seen dressed in theshirts and clothes of their masters, for the sole reason [266] thatbecause they no sooner enter any house than they become the ownersof everything in it. And the worst thing is that, although they arenot good and faithful servants, intrant in gaudium domini sui. [267]

80. They also have other qualities worthy of envy, non quoad causam sedquoad efectum. [268] Such is their contentment with their lot, for theybelieve that there is no people in the whole world better than they, and that if they possess a bamboo hut, a little rice for a few days, a few small fish, and a couple of leaves of tobacco, they do not envythe tables of Xerxes or Eliogabalus, [269] and can sing with Lucan:

 O tuta potestas Augusti parvique laris. Prohl munera nondum intellecta Deum quibus hoc Contingere templis, vel posuit muris nullo Trepidare tumulto, Cæsarea pulsata manu. [270]

81. They are also worthy of envy for the calmness and conformitywith which they die, with so wonderful peace, as if they weremaking a journey from one village to another--the Lord working inthese creatures as the Lord that He is, [271] for in that transitHis mercy shines forth more; and thus said David (Psalm, XLVII, 21)Domini, Domini, exitus mortis; [272] whence that reduplication whichthe Hebrew grammar calls ohatsere, [273] signifies the superlativein name and action. The same is the declaration of divine wisdom(Proverbs, XX): In viis justitiæ ambulo, in medio semitarum judicii, ut ditem diligentes me. [274] The Father celestial summons them forthe relief of their burdens, and of the troubles which they have hadduring life: Venite qui laboratis, et onerati estis, et ego reficiamvos (Matthew xi, 28). [275]

For it is a fact that if one consider the life and lot of most of them, they resemble that merchant in the gospel of Matthew (chapter 13), who gave all that he had for the precious pearl; for it costs themmore than is apparent to become Christians, with so much cutting oftimber, and many personal services; and thus God gives them the truerest of death, as to poor and needy ones. Parcet pauperi, et inopi, et animas pauperum salvas faciet (Psalm, xii, 13). [276] Exiguo enimconceditur missericordia (Wisdom, vi, 7). [277]

82. In all the aforesaid, I find no more than the claw by which thislion can be recognized, because of the difficulty of the matter;therefore I refer the matter to another who has greater talent andexperience, who can tell more, since I cannot do everything. [278]I remember once to have heard from an inexperienced preacher thisingenious bit of nonsense, that in praising St. John the Baptist hecited that passage of St. Matthew (chapter xi, [7]), coepit Jesusdicere [ad turbas] de Joanne;

83. And he said that John was so great a saint, that even in the mouthof Christ our Lord it was [only] possible to begin speaking of him, but that no end could be reached. The same I shall say of this matter, in all candor. 

84. There is no little to learn and study in the matter, concerning themanner in which one must behave with them--especially we ministers, who come from remote lands in order to assist and teach them;for because of not understanding this aright many have becomedisconsolate, and have conceived a horror of the Indians, andhave returned to España, or they have lived amid great hardship, in a continual combat of impatience and anxiety, thus frustratingthe good vocation which brought them to these islands, a vocation soacceptable to God our Lord. For, as says the angelic doctor St. Thomas, 22, book 188, article 4: Deo nullum sacrificium est magis acceptum, quam celus animarum. [279] To those who take this charge upon them, the words of the Lord in His revelations to St. Brigida are of greatconsolation. Among many others, he says (book 2, chapter 6): Vos ergoamici mei qui estis in mundo procedite securi, clamate, et anuntiatevoluntatem meam. Ego ero in corde et in ore vestro. Ego ero dux vesterin via et consolator in morte. Non relinquam vos, procedite alacriterquia ex labore cresit gloria. [280] For it is a fact that all thisexhortation is necessary, in order to combat the friction that iscaused to the European disposition by dealing with people of customsso different, and which has caused so many to lose their reason. 

85. Therefore the compass to which the navigator must always beattentive, in the gulf of the customs of this exasperating race, is patience. For this is the only remedy which Christ our Lord leftto His disciples for the attainment of this ministry: (Luke xxi, [19]) In patientia vestra possidebitis animas vestras; and St. Paul, in Hebrews x, 36: patientia est vobis necessaria, ut reportetis, repromissionis. [281]

86. With this knowledge and without losing [282] this strong protectionone must continually consider that all these vices and evil traitsare dictated and impelled by their nature, at times aided by thesuggestion of the common enemy when he hopes to succeed in causing usimpatience. Very worth considering in this are the words of St. Paul(2 Cor. , xi, 19, 20): Libenter enim suffertis insipientes cum sitisipsi sapientes. Sustinetis enim si quis vos in servitutem redigit, si quis devorat, si quis accipit, si quis extollitur, si quis infaciemvos cædit. [283] For all these hardships, and greater, must be sufferedhere among these brothers. [284]

87. I confess for my part that, at the beginning, I was afflictedand was greatly tormented, until with the lapse of time I came torealize that such was their disposition and nature, and that thesetrees could give no better fruit. In time it became to me a motive forpraising God to see the variety of conditions and [285] customs whichHe has placed in human nature, which is so beautified with variety;and I took particular pleasure in seeing youths and boys doing allthings backward--without any malice, and without having prompters, like actors; but moved only by that hidden peculiarity that makes themso different from all other nations, and so uniform among themselves, [a likeness] which is so great that any one who has seen one ofthese monopantos has seen them all. With these considerations I livedconsoled, and succeeded in making of them wax and wick, as the sayingis. [286]

88. First, one must not shout out at them, for that is a matter thatfrightens and terrifies them greatly, as can be seen if one cries outat them when they are unaware--when the whole body trembles; and theysay that a single cry of the Spaniard penetrates quite to their souls. 

89. One must not strike them with the hands, for if we are of flesh, they are of iron, and the hand will suffer greatly, for God does notchoose that they be corrected so indecently. [287]

90. All of their faults must not be overlooked, for they will becomeinsolent and worse daily. Consequently, it is necessary for the fatherministers to give them some lashes as a father, with great moderation, for it is enough to give lashes for vanity and haughtiness. This mustbe observed especially in the lads, as is the order of the Holy Spirit(Proverbs, xxiii, 13, 14): Noli subtrahere a puero disciplinam; si enimpercussieris eum virga, non morietur. Tu virga percuties eum: et animamejus de inferno liberabis. [288] The command of St. Gregory shall beobserved carefully (2 p. Pastoral, chapter 6): Curandum quippe est utrectorem subditis, et matrem, et patrem se exhibeat disciplina. [289]

91. Nothing must be taken away from them, or received from them, without paying for it; for they are very poor, and the least thingproduces a great want with them. It must be considered that theirgreatest misery arises from their laziness and rude condition, and thatthat habit keeps them in its grasp, and they suffer great poverty;for Egestatem operata est manus remissa (Proverbs, x, 4). We mustconsider also that they support us and that they pay as they areable for our labors. If anything be given to them, let it be purely[290] for God's sake and as an alms, for if it be lent it will beentirely lost, both the merit and the patience [291]--consideringtheir necessity and not their ingratitude, as a thing ordained byGod. Propter miseriam asume pauperem, et propter inopiam eius nedimitas eum vacuum; et cætera (Ecclesiasticus, xxix, 12). [292]

92. It is better, in selecting servants among the Indians for theinside of the house, to see that they be the sons of caciques orchiefs. They must be shown neither love nor familiarity. They mustindeed always be treated well, but with uprightness and seriousnessof face. It must be considered that in proportion as they arebetter caressed and clothed, the worse and more insolent they willbecome. This is the teaching of the Holy Spirit in Proverbs xxiv, 21: Qui delicate a pueritia nutrit servum suum, postea sentiet eumcontumacem. They must be taught their duties, and must always beordered to perform them with prudence and circumspection, for otherwisethey will come gradually to lose respect for their master, and forthe character which God presents to them in the Spaniard in order todominate them; and then will result the same thing that happened tothe log which, Æsop says, was placed in the lake by Jupiter to be kingof the frogs. But the frogs, seeing after a time that it did not move, made sport of it, and jumped on top of it, etc. Not many things shouldbe ordered of them at one time; for their memories are very poor, andthey will only keep the last one in mind. The keys of the pantry orto the money must not be entrusted to them, for that would be placingopportunity and temptation in their hands, and they never resistit. Good instruction and subjection in the house, and, above all, thegood example of life which they see in their masters, instil much intothem; and under such conditions they generally become good servants, especially those of the Pampango nation. On the other hand, also, one must not expect a good servant in the house of a bad master. [293]

93. One must not exhaust them or squeeze them much beyond what theycan give of themselves, as we do with the lemon, for all that will bepressed out will be bitter, as says the proverb of the commentary;qui nimis emungit, solet extorquere cruorem. [294] Neither is itwell or proper to go about visiting the caciques or going up intotheir houses, except when necessity requires it; for immediatelythe whole village will be filled with envy and complaint, and theesteem of the father ministers will suffer considerably. Besides, their stench and vice do not render this diversion desirable. [295]

94. When [296] they are sent with a message to any place, one mustvery patiently await some notable failure caused ordinarily by theirnatural sloth and laziness. [297] Sicut acetum dentibus, et fumusoculis, sic piger his qui miserunt illum (Proverbs, x, 26). [298]

95. I do not believe that I should omit mention, saltem per transenam, [299] of a matter very worthy of consideration--namely, that if Godchooses to chastise the flourishing Christianity of these islands forour and their sins, by placing it in the hands of Indians ordained aspriests (as appears about to threaten us very soon), if God do notapply a remedy, what abominations will not follow! For to declarethat they will change their customs [300] and the aforesaid vicesis impossible. On the contrary, their arrogance will grow worsewith exaltation to so sublime an estate; their cupidity with powerwill be better fed; their laziness, with the lack of necessity;and their vanity, with the applause that they would wish to have, for they would desire to be served by those whom they would inanother estate respect and obey; and the villages would sufferfrom the curse mentioned in Isaiah xxiv, 2, sicut populus, sicsacerdos. For the Indian who is ordained does not become a priestbecause it is the calling that conduces to the most perfect estate, [301] but because of the great and almost infinite advantage thatcomes to him with the new estate that he chooses. How much it differsfrom being a father cura, to be a baguntao or sexton! From payingtribute, to being paid a stipend! From going to the [compulsory]cutting of timber, to being served in it! From rowing in a banca, to be rowed in it! That does not count with a Spaniard, who, if hebecome a cleric, often gives up an office as alcalde-mayor, captain, or general, with many other comforts in his native place, while hishouse is exalted above all the nation of the Indians. Let one contrastthis with the vanity with which one who has been freed from the oar, [302] or from an ax in the cutting of timber, will give his hand to bekissed! What a burden for the village will be the father, and mother, sister and nieces ranked as ladies, when many other better women arepounding rice! For if the Indian is insolent and intolerable withbut little power, what will he be with so much superiority! And ifthe wedge from the same log [303] is so powerful, what will it be ifdriven by so great authority! What plague of locusts can be comparedto the destruction that they would cause in the villages? [304] Whatrespect will the Indians have for him, seeing that he is of theircolor and nation--and especially those who consider themselves asgood, and even better perhaps, than he who became a cura, while theydo not become anything better than bilango or servant? How severelythe good cura will chastise them, and for trifling offenses! [305]as we see the Indians do when they act as gobernadorcillos of theirvillages for even a single year--when the first thing that they do, and in which they most delight, is immediately to place the picota[306] in front of their houses, in order to apply lashes with thehangman's strap [penca]. What tyranny will the cura practice onthem, such as they are wont to practice if they have any power andauthority! How well the wedge of the same wood will force its way, without there being any one to say to him, curita facis? [i. E. , "Dost thou play the cura?"] [307]

96. Therefore, if any insurrection or mutiny should arise, how wellcould it be arranged and prepared, [308] if the cura entered alsointo the dance, as he is also an Indian and interested? For, in allthe insurrections that have occurred in these islands, respect forthe father ministers has been of great importance; but the veryopposite would have happened if these were Indians. Then in thefrequent carousals and feasts of which they are so fond, and on whichtheir vanity and their chieftainship are founded, without any doubtthere would be great indecency; for the cura would be very tenderof conscience who would not pledge them in their cups. In that andother temptations would happen what Lucian relates in the second ofhis dialogues. 

97. A noble youth had a very beautiful and gentle female kitten, which he esteemed so highly that he begged the goddess Venus to changeit into a beautiful maiden, in order that he might marry her. Thegoddess did so. Thereupon, the youth [309] immediately arranged thewedding, to which he invited the best people of the city. While, then, the bride was richly adorned with jewels and surrounded by many otherwomen, [310] and the guests, a mouse happened to appear, and began toapproach them in order to eat some crumbs of bread which were scatteredabout. The bride saw it, and, without power to control herself, ranafter the mouse throughout the length of the hall, and the guestswere unable to restrain her. The groom was ashamed, and said, [311]"Gentlemen, your pardon; for this girl was formerly a cat, and willalways have the habits and bad traits of that animal. "

98. I believe that the same thing would happen with the Indians, [312] even when they belong to the caciques or nobility; for itis incredible that they can strip themselves of the peculiaritiesof their nature. I at least do not believe it at present, althoughGod our Lord can very easily do it, for He is the One who raises upsons of Abraham from the stones. But we must not ask for miraclesneedlessly, but allow the Indian to remain an Indian, and go to hislabor as before. If it is desired to prepare them for the high ministryof the priesthood, it is advisable to test them in the offices ofalcaldes-mayor, captains, regidors, and councilors; for it appearsto me that there is no one who can say that these said offices aregreater and of higher rank and dignity than the priesthood, at leastwhere the Inquisition exists. Then, if they conduct themselves wellin the said employments, they can be given the management of the bodyand blood of Jesus Christ our Lord; and then one can say with reason:Quia in pauca fuisti fidelis supra multa te constituam. [313] For, as the Church teaches us through the mouths of the holy fathers, the dignity of the priesthood is so great that that of the kings oremperors of the world cannot compare with it. Thus says St. Ignatiusthe Martyr in his epistle to Smyrna, chapter x, Sacerdotium estapex bonorum omnium, quæ sunt in hominibus. [314] St. Ambrose, inchapter 2 of his book De dignitate sacerdotum [315] says so stillmore clearly. [316] Father Molina [317] has considerable to say onthis in the first treatise of his Libro de sacerdotes [i. E. , "Bookof priests"] as has Father Señeri [318] in his Cura instruido [i. E. , "the cura instructed"]. 

99. Then is it possible that, even though they are Catholics andfaithful sons of the Church, we must exalt to so lofty an estatemen against whom there would be so many complaints if they becamealférezes of a company in the regiment of Manila? Can the sacred habitof St. Peter, which we religious venerate as that of the greatestdignity, and to which we yield the most honorable place--which, assaid the patriarch of Antiochia [319] to the emperor of China, isthe first rank and order of the Church--be obliged not to experiencedisgust at such low creatures? I do not know in what it [i. E. , theproposal to ordain Indians] can consist, unless it be that in itis realized the vision that the said St. Peter had in Cesarea whenthe sheet was let down from heaven filled with toads and serpents, and a voice commanded him to eat without disgust--as is read inchapter x of the Acts of the Apostles. For although it signifiedthe calling of heathendom, it must not be understood in moral thingsof the barbarous and mean nature of some peoples that compose thatheathendom, in order to constitute the ecclesiastic hierarchy. [320]When I come to discuss this matter, I find no end, and I find thatwe can only say: Domine adauge [nobis] fidem (Luke [x]vii, [5]). [321]

100. It is also a fact that the sacred canons do not demand fromthose who are ordained more than an honorable life and example, and a sufficient knowledge. Then, in order to dispense the spuriousand legitimate [322] and the mestizos, there is a brief of GregoryXIII which begins "Nuper ad nos relatum est, " [323] issued at Roma, January 25, one thousand five hundred and seventy-five. For allthat, I regard them [i. E. , Indians as priests] as irregular, notonly for the reasons given and stated above, but also because theylack the ecclesiastical and priestly mental ability, and the prudencenecessary; and without these all the rest serves as almost nothing, as Pedro Urceolo sang with graceful elegance in his "Epigrams:"

 Sis licet ingenuus clarisque parentibus ortus; Esse tamen vel sic bestia magna potes. Adde docus patriæ et claros tibi sume propinquos; Esse tamen vel sic bestia magna potes. Sint tibi divitæ [324] sit larga et munda supellex; Esse tamen vel sic bestia magna potes. Denique, quidquid eris, nisi sit prudentia tecum; Magna quidem dico, bestia semper eris. [325]

101. May God our Lord preserve your Grace for the many years of mydesire. Manila, June 8, one thousand seven hundred and twenty. [326]Your humble servant, who kisses your hand, Fray Gaspar de San Agustin

[On a loose paper inserted in the copy of this letter owned by theMuseo-Biblioteca de Ultramar (which as stated above, is unsigned), which was formerly owned by the well known Spanish scholar Pascualde Gayangos, is the following: "According to paragraphs [of thisletter] which Paterno inserted in his work La antigua civilizacion deFilipinos (Madrid, 1887), p. 241, this letter must have been writtenby father Fray Gaspar de San Agustín; and according to Sinibaldo Mas, who inserts entire passages from this MS. In his Informe sobre elestado de Filipinas en 1842, i, pp. 63-132, and attributes it toFather Gaspar. " Paterno has not had access to the document itself, but has used Mas. ]

[Subjoined to the letter is the following, the origin of which wecannot account for, but which indicates the wide circulation thatthe letter must have had. ]

Questions of Father Pedro Murillo [Velarde] [327] of the Societyof Jesus

102. What is the Indian? Reply--The lowest degree ofrational animal. Question--How many and what are hispeculiarities? Reply--Twenty-one, as follows:

 Pride Without honor. Friend Without loyalty. A drunkard Without satiety. Compassionate Without mercy. Reserved Without secrecy. Long-suffering Without patience. Cowardly Without fear. Bold Without resolution. Obedient Without submissiveness. One who practices austerities Without suffering. Bashful Without sense of honor. Virtuous Without mortification. Clever Without capacity. Civilized Without politeness. Astute Without sagacity. Merciful Without pity. Modest Without shame. Revengeful Without valor. Poor Without corresponding [mode of life]. Rich Without economy. Lazy Without negligence. Laus Deo. 

Résumé of the entire letter by the said Father Murillo

103. The Filipino Indian is the embryo of nature and the offspringof grossness. He does not feel an insult or show gratitude for akindness. His continual habitation is the kitchen; and the smoke thatharms all of us serves him as the most refreshing breeze. If the Indianhas morisqueta and salt, he gives himself no concern, though it rainthunder and lightning, and the sky fall. He is much given to lying, theft, and laziness. In the confessional he is a maze [embolismo]of contradictions, now denying proofs and now affirming impossiblethings. Now he plays the part of a devout pilgrim over rough roadsand through the deepest rivers, in order to hear mass on a workdayat a shrine ten or twelve leguas away; while it is necessary to useviolence to get him to hear mass on Sunday in his parish church. Theyare impious in their necessities with the father, but liberal andcharitable to their guests, even when they do not know them; andthrough that they are greatly disappointed. At the same time they arehumble and proud; bold and atrocious, but cowardly and pusillanimous;compassionate and cruel; slothful and lazy, and diligent; careful andnegligent in their own affairs; very dull and foolish for good things, but very clever and intelligent in rogueries. He who has most to dowith them knows them least. Their greatest diversion is cock-fighting, and they love their cocks more than their wives and children. They aremore ready to believe any of their old people than even an apostolicpreacher. They resemble mellizas, [328] in their vices and oppositevirtues. In lying alone, is no contradiction found in them; for onedoes not know when they are not lying, whether they are telling thetruth by mistake. One Indian does not resemble another Indian, oreven himself. If they are given one thing, they immediately ask foranother. [329] They never fail to deceive, unless it crosses theirown interest. In their suits, they are like flies on the food, whonever quit it, however much they be brushed away. Finally, there isno fixed rule by which to construe them; a new syntax is necessaryfor each one; and, as they are all anomalous, the most intelligentman would be distracted [330] if he tried to define them. Farewell. 

[Delgado has the following interesting chapter (pp. 297-302 of hisHistoria) on this letter, which it is judged advisable to present atthis place. ]

CHAPTER VII

 Some considerations concerning the matter in Father Gaspar de San Agustín's letter

I confess that I read this letter, in which the reverend authorcriticises the customs and dispositions of the natives of Filipinas, some years ago. But I read it as I am wont to read other letters, fordiversion and amusement, without thinking much about its artfulness, and I was delighted with its erudition. However, when I afterwardconsidered its contents with some degree of thought, I saw that itbrought forward, in its whole length, no solid proof of what ittries to make one believe; and it appeared to me a hyperbolicalcriticism from the very beginning. On that account I resolved tomake a few brief commentaries on the matter in the letter, both forthe consolation of those whom our Lord may call to these missions, and so that it may be understood that at times sadness and melancholyare accustomed to heighten things, making giants out of pygmies--allthe more, if a relish for revery and grumbling be joined with atendency to exaggeration and with figures of speech correspondingthereto. Consequently, I am surprised that the reverend annalist orchronicler [i. E. , San Antonio] of the seraphic province of San Gregoriopraises this letter, saying that it is worth printing, since its authorhas penetrated as far as one may penetrate into the characters of thenatives of these islands. And yet the author confesses that it is asdifficult to define their nature as are the eight impossible thingswhich are recounted there. That seems to me a fine hyperbole. 

From the above one can see that, as he commenced this letter byaffirming a hyperbole with eight hyperboles, it is not surprising thatI called it hyperbolical; and especially if all the hyperboles that itcontains from its beginning to its end be enumerated. But ere I beginto express my opinion I would like to sum up two contradictory andopposite expressions that I find in these authors. The reverend fatherFray Gaspar says of the Indians, in his letter, that the difficultyof knowing the Indians lies not in the individual but in the race, for, if one be known, all are known. 

Father Pedro Murillo says, in his approbation of the Cronicas, [331]that "there is no fixed rule by which to construe the Indians; foreach one needs a new syntax, all being anomalous. With the Indiansthe argument does not conclude by induction, since no one is like tohimself; for, in the short circuit of a day, he changes into morecolors than a chameleon, takes more shapes than a Proteus, and hasmore movements than a Euripus. [332] He who has most to do with them, knows them least. In short, they are an aggregate of contrarieties, and the best logician cannot reconcile them. They are an obscure andconfused chaos, in which no species can be perceived and no pointsof exactness distinguished. " All these terms considered one by one, compose a very exaggerated hyperbole, in which this author showed hisgreat erudition and little experience, for he only ministered in a fewmissions, and for a short time. For during most of the time while helived in these islands he did not leave the professor's chair, exceptfor a short time; and all that he tells of his journey to and travelsamong the Visayas was learned in passing and hastily, in companywith the provincial who visited those missions. There he obtainedvery little light on the character and temperament of the Indians, as he had no dealings with them as one settled among them. And, justas in this expression he opposes himself without much reason to thereverend father Fray Gaspar, who after forty years of ministry, affirmsthat the Indians are well designated by the Greek word monopantas--aterm which was given to a certain people by a critic, as they were allsimilar and homogeneous--so also when he affirms that all are anomalousand heterogeneous because they cannot all be constructed in one andthe same syntax, does he go beyond the credence that can be given tohis ingenious hyperboles. The experience that the said Father Murillocould have is of the Indians who go about in Manila and its environs, who are interpreters, servants in accounting-rooms and secretarialoffices, who are accustomed to deal with Spaniards of all kinds, withcreoles, mestizos, Sangleys, and other kinds of people who assemblethere for trade. They have learned fraud and deceit, as well as thebad morals and propensities of all and every one of them. As is seen, one cannot judge of a whole nation--and much less of all the nationsof the islands, who are diverse and distinct in genius and customsby the cases of these Indians who speak Spanish. And taking intoaccount so great diversity, I affirm that it is impossible to finda definition that admits and includes all of them. For these personswhom I have mentioned, reared among so many classes, and among peopleso heterogeneous, and who are imbued with customs so diverse, cannotform rules by which to explain their own nation, much less by whichto define the other nations. 

Now if the statements of authors in regard to physical or moral mattersare so at variance that we can say that each author has a differentopinion--as says the proverb, Quot capita, tot sententiæ--and ifthus far no ground and certain point has been found at which theunderstanding may stop, how is it strange that they do not find, in order to describe Indians with customs so unusual and artificialas have those of Manila, a compound idea made up of all that theyhave learned from the Spaniard, both good and evil; all that theyhave learned from the Guachinango; [333] and what they have learnedfrom the mestizo, the Sangley, the Moro, the Malabar, the Cafre, andall the other people with whom they have intercourse and with whomthey trade? Granting this to be true, it appears that the definitionof Father Murillo fits these Spanish-speaking Indians, but not theothers, who have not had any intercourse with diverse classes ofpeople. On this account it seems to me that father Fray Gaspar hitthe definition exactly, when he said in his letter that the AsiaticIndians of Filipinas are almost the same as all the people of thenations of Eastern India, in what concerns their genius, disposition, and inclination; and are not distinguished one from another except intheir rites, clothing, and languages. I add, in what regards theirabilities and capacities--which are so good, and in general so wellinclined--that I believe that if children, either boys or girls, were taken from Filipinas to Viscaya or to Castilla, the natives[of those countries] would not distinguish them from the Vizcainos, Castilians, or mountaineers. For their vices are not due so muchto their nature, as to their bad rearing and education; and they areeasily instructed both in the evil and in the good. And notwithstandingwhat father Fray Gaspar, Father Murillo, and Fray Juan [Francisco]de San Antonio have said, they would have been more successful hadthey not said, with exaggeration, that it would be impossible towrite everything that they have observed of the Indians, on all thepaper that is found in China. That is a hyperbole that transcends allfaith. Thus does he continue in all that he says; and he affirms, further, that it surpasses all that we can touch with the hands orsee with the eyes. Hence from the beginning we can state those tworules of law: semel malus, semper præsumitur malus; and the other, malum ex quocumque defectu. [334]. .. 

What mystery is there in the customs and genius of the Indiansthat should make them so deep and inscrutable that we cannot reachthem, sound them, and explain them? since they are Indians like allthe rest of the people of Asia, without there being more or lessin them. Therefore, "these profundities, this intricate, confusedchaos, this aggregate of contrarieties, this maze of contradictions, are a collection of rhetorical locutions or tropes invented inorder to exaggerate and to use hyperboles in what of itself hasno mystery--these definitions remaining purely in the manner ofspeech, or of the conception, of their authors; or perhaps in a meremisapprehension formed by a critical, melancholy, or affected genius. 

But since in this letter, the evil propensities of the Indians, bothmen and lads, who act as servants, are set down in detail, let us seeon the other hand, somewhat of the good that the Indians possess. Forone should not write and consider only the evil, and omit as fittingall the good, in order thereby to make the object more detestable. For, as says a mystical writer, we must not possess the nature of thedung-beetle, which goes always to the dungheap, but that of the bee, which always seeks out the sweet and pleasant. Let us see what FatherMurillo says of the good: "They are most clever in any handiwork, notin inventing but in imitating what they see. They are most beautifulwriters; and there are many tailors and barbers among them. They areexcellent embroiderers, painters, goldsmiths, and engravers, whoseburin has not the like in all the Indias (and I was even about topass farther if shame did not restrain me), as is seen clearly in themany good engravings that they make daily. They are good sculptors, gilders, and carpenters. They make the water craft of these islands, the galleys, pataches, and ships of the Acapulco line. They act assailors, artillery-men, and divers; for there is scarce an Indianwho cannot swim excellently. They are the under-pilots of theseseas. They are very expert in making bejuquillos, [335] which aregold chains of a very delicate and exquisite workmanship. They makehats, petates or rugs, and mats, from palm-leaves, rattan, and nito, [336] which are very beautiful, and embroidered with various kinds offlowers and figures. They are remarkable mechanics and puppet-showmen, and they make complicated mechanisms which, by means of figures, gothrough various motions with propriety and accuracy. There are somejewelers. They make powder, and cast swivel-guns, cannon, and bells. Ihave seen them make guns as fine as those of Europa. There are threeprinting houses in Manila, and all have Indian workmen. They have greatability in music. There is no village however small, that has not itssuitable band of musicians for the services of the Church. They haveexcellent voices--sopranos, contraltos, tenors, and basses. Almostall of them can play the harp, and there are many violinists, rebeck, oboe, and flute players. The most remarkable thing is, that not onlydo those whose trade it is make those instruments; but various Indiansmake guitars, flutes, harps, and violins, for pleasure, with theirbolos and machetes. And by the mere seeing those instruments played, they learn them almost without any teaching; and the same thing occursin other things. On this account it is said that the Indians havetheir understanding in their eyes, since they imitate whatever theysee, by another like it. " This is what Father Murillo says; but heleft the most important things in the inkhorn. I will add them here, as I have heard them affirmed many times by the Spaniards in Cavite, namely: Who are the men who convey and conduct the ships and galleonsfrom Acapulco and other kingdoms? Is it the Spaniards? Ask that ofthe pilots, masters, and boatswains, and they will all affirm thatthis great and inestimable good is due to the Indian alone. (Here isindeed where a hyperbole will fit exactly. ) Besides this, who arethe people who support us in these lands and those who furnish usfood? Perhaps the Spaniards dig, harvest, and plant throughout theislands? Of a surety, no; for when they arrive at Manila, they areall gentlemen. The Indians are the ones who plow the lands, who sowthe rice, who keep it clear [of weeds], who tend it, who harvest it, who thrash it out with their feet--and not only the rice which isconsumed in Manila, but that throughout the Filipinas--and there is noone in all the islands who can deny me that. Besides this, who caresfor the cattle-ranches? The Spaniards? Certainly not. The Indiansare the ones who care for, and manage and tend the sheep and cattleby which the Spaniards are supported. Who rears the swine? Is it notthe same Indians? Who cultivates the fruits--the bananas, cacao, andall the other fruits of the earth? of which there is always abundancein the islands, unless unfavorable weather, locusts, or some otheraccident cause their loss? Who provide Manila and the Spaniards withoil? Is it not the poor Visayan Indians, who bring it in their vesselsannually? Who furnishes so great profit to the Spaniards in Manilawith the balate [337] and sigay; and who buys these products verycheaply from the wretched Indians, and resell them for double the sumto the pataches of the coast and to the Sangleys? Who guide and conveyus to the villages and missions, and serve us as guides, sailors, andpilots? Perhaps it is the Spaniards? No, it is the Indians themselves, with their so exaggerated, magnified, and heightened laziness. Isthis the thanks that we give them, when we are conquering them intheir own lands, and have made ourselves masters in them, and areserved by them almost as by slaves? We ought to give God our Lord manythanks, because He maintains us only through the affection and by theuseful labors of the Indians in this land; and He would perhaps havealready driven us hence if it were not for this usefulness of theirs, and for the salvation of the Indians. We also owe many thanks to theIndians, since God our Lord sustains us in their lands by their means;and because we would die of starvation if they did not sustain us, provide us with food, serve us, and conduct us through the islandswith so much love and security that they would all first perish beforethe father in whatever perils arise. 

These and many other like things were overlooked by Father Murillo, whowas enraptured by their music, engraving, and rugs. By the aforesaid, one will see with how little truth the statement is printed that theIndians are the greatest enemies that the father ministers have;for certainly all the above could not be reconciled with such aproposition. On the contrary, it must be said that the Indians arethose who defend us from our enemies; for, in the presidios, who arethe soldiers, who sail in the war fleets, who are in the vanguardin war? Could the Spaniards, perchance, maintain themselves alonein this country, if the Indians did not aid in everything? Littleexperience and less reflection would he have who should proposesuch a thing. Therefore, these two things do not harmonize well, that those who hate us should defend us, and that those who are ourgreatest enemies should be the ones to maintain and support us. Noris it to be wondered at that there have been insurrections on severaloccasions; these, perhaps, have not arisen because the Indians wereill-disposed to the Spaniards; but, on the contrary, we know thatmany of them have been caused by the cruelty, wickedness, and tyrannyof some alcalde-mayor and other Spaniards who, having been elevatedfrom low beginnings, try to become gods and kings in the provinces, tyrannizing over the Indians and their possessions. This is often thecause of the insurrections. Would that I could mention some especialcases in this matter. However, I do not care to dip my pen in blood, and write tragedies instead of history. For, although I could saymore, the authority and arrogance that every Spaniard assumes uponhis arrival in this country is incredible. 

THE NATIVE PEOPLES AND THEIR CUSTOMS

[San Antonio, [338] in his Cronicas (Manila, 1738-44), i, pp. 129-172, has the following ethnological matter. We omit the side heads. ]

CHAPTER XXXIX

 Of the origin of the Indians

[After a brief allusion to the creation of man at the beginning ofthe world, the writer continues:]

384. Now, then, I have said as much as there is to say of the originof the Indians, if we speak of the first and most remote. For toendeavor to determine the first settlers of these lands, whence andhow they came, whether they were Carthaginians, Jews, Spaniards, Phoenicians, Greeks, Chinese, Tartars, etc. , is reserved for God, who knows everything; and this task exceeds all human endeavor. Andif such study obtain anything, it will amount only to a few fallibleconjectures--with danger of the judgment, and without any advance ofthe truth or of reputation. And such is the notion (omitting manyother absurdities that have been written), that the Indians wereproduced ex putre like unclean animals, or like the wild plants of thefield. Others showing them great favor, assign the sun as their father, which produced them from some noble material. Others say [that theywere produced] by the ingenious art of chemists or magicians; othersthat there were two Adams in the world, one in Asia, and another inthe Western Indias, and that our Indians proceeded from one of them;others, that there were already people in the world before the creationof Adam; and that from them came the heathen, and from Adam, theHebrews. All of the above, being so erroneous nonsense, and blindnessfrom the devil, is already refuted, and is well refuted with contempt. 

385. The only conjecture that can be made with some more visiblefoundation is the origin of our Indians, considering those who werefound in these islands at the time of the conquest by the Spanisharms. In accordance with this, I shall relate what written recordsI have found (which is very little), and what I have carefullyinvestigated, which will not be much, for the natives are not verycapable of forming adequate accounts of this subject, and what weEuropeans are reducing to treatises. 

386. Father Colin (both learned and curious in the investigation of thematter which we are treating) reduces the people found in this landby our first conquistadors into three different classes. The firstclass consisted of those who ruled and governed as absolute masters;and these were civilized after their own fashion. The second consistedof black and barbarous mountaineers who inhabited the tops of themountains, like brutes. The third consisted of men neither so barbaricnor so civilized as the other two classes; for, although they livedin retirement, they did not hate civilization and human intercourse. 

387. This third class still remains in the same ancient condition. Theylive, as a rule, on the plateaus of the mountains, and at themouths of rivers, and maintain themselves by hunting and fishing, and some agriculture. Most of them trade, and barter wax with thevillages. These people are called Zimarrònes, Zambals, Ylàgas, Tìngues, Tagabaloòyes, [339] Manòbos, Mangyànes, and various other names, according to the difference of the sites where they live. Some orothers of these have become Christians, through the efforts of thenear-by evangelical ministers. The rest are heathen, but they haveno determined rites, and are governed only by the customs of theirancestors, and those customs are mostly barbaric. Some of thesepeople are accustomed to pay some sort of recognition or feudal dueto our Catholic monarch, who is thereby bound to defend them fromthe invasions of their neighboring enemies. Such is done by theTagabaloòyes in the province of Caràga, who pay their annual feudaldue in guinàras and medriñaques (textiles of abacá), [340] in order tobe defended from the Moros their neighbors. Likewise the Mangyànes ofMindôro (who number about seven thousand), who pay fifty-two arrobasand a half of wax annually, or 105 tributes; and some of the Manòbos inthe mountains of Caràga (who are heathen and without number, althoughsome are Christians--a people civilized and well inclined to work, who have [fixed] habitation and excellent houses)--pay tribute. 

388. The origin of all these people (who are scattered throughout theseislands) is inferred to be either the many civilized Indians who haveretreated to the mountains in order not to pay tribute, or in order notto be chastised for any crime; or the many different nations immediateto this archipelago. For some bear traces of being Japanese mestizos, as do the Tagabaloòyes, as I am well informed by religious who havehad intercourse with them. Some are known to proceed from the Chinese;some from pure Indians, and some from other nations, as is declaredby the circumstances of face, body, color, hair, customs, manner, and behavior--according to the experience of various religious, whoagree that they are not of the pure race of the Indians, but mestizosas above stated. And even in five clans of Mangyànes who are saidto exist in the island of Mindòro, there is one which has a littletail, as do the monkeys; and many religious who have assured me ofit, as witnesses. In Valèr, on the coast opposite us, a woman wasfound not long ago who had a long tail, as was told me by the presentmissionary; and he was unable to be sure of the origin of that race, unless it was a race of Jews. 

389. I do not know whether those people who are found only inthe environs of Manila, and are called Criollos Morenos [i. E. , creole blacks], can be put in this mestizo class. The former areall oldtime Christians, docile, well inclined, and of sufficientunderstanding. They serve the king in personal duties, and alwayshave their regiment of soldiers, with their master-of-camp, captains, and other leaders; and in this way they are outside the reckoning asIndians. It is difficult to assign their true origin to them. Forsome make them the descendants of those blacks, of whom we shallspeak later, who were the primitive lords of these domains. But I donot see how this can be so, for they do not resemble those Negrilloseither in their hair or in the members of their bodies, or in thequalities of their minds, in which these creoles have the completeadvantage. And although it might be said that they have been betteredin all ways with the lapse of time, and the change of location toone more civilized and temperate, it is not credible that they wouldnot retain some of their old vices, as is the case with various otherraces here, and as has been experienced in Nueva España. Some peoplemake them the descendants of those slaves who were formerly held hereby the petty rulers, brought by foreign traders in exchange for thedrugs that formed their commerce and with whose price they made agood profit. Even yet they bring to our settlements a considerablenumber--so many, that it is necessary for one of the auditors to bejudge of the slaves, and his duty costs him his time and patience. Thecreoles refuse to confess this origin, and it does not seem to methat they would be so well received and so well regarded if theyhad so vile an origin. Some believe that they descend from the freeMalabars who come to these islands under pretext of trade. I inclinemore to this view, paying heed to the physiognomies and intellect ofthem all, for they are almost all alike in their clear dark color, aquiline noses, animated eyes, lank hair, docile disposition, andgood manners, by which we may infer that those that there are noware Malabar and Indian mestizos. 

390. At the present time, all this archipelago, and especially theseislands of the Tagálogs, are full of another race of mestizos, whowere not found at the first discovery, whom we call Sangley mestizos, [341] who are descended from Indian women and Chinese men. For sincetrade with them [i. E. , the Sangleys] has been, and is, so frequent, and so many remain in these islands under pretext of trade, and theyare the ones who supply these islands with clothing, food, and otherproducts, those who have mixed with the Indian women in marriage arenumerous; and for this purpose they become Christians, and from themhave resulted so many mestizos that one cannot count them. They are allChristians, and quite commonly well disposed, and very industrious andcivilized. They take pride in imitating the Europeans in everything, but their imitation is only a copy. They inhabit the same villageswith the Tagálogs, but are not reckoned with them; since for thereckoning of the king they belong to a different body. The women aremore like the Sangleys or Chinese, but the men not so much; however, these inherit from them ambition, in their continual industry. 

391. There is also another kind of mestizo--the Japanese--who resultfrom the Japanese who were shipwrecked on these islands in formeryears. They are of better conduct than the others, since they have abetter origin. They are more esteemed here and have more privileges, for they only pay half as much tribute as do the others. 

392. It is tradition that the Negrillos, who belong to the secondclass of people whom our first conquistadors found, were the firstowners of the islands of this archipelago; and that, the civilizednations of other kingdoms having conquered them, they fled to themountains and settled there, and from there it has never been possibleto exterminate them, because their sites are impenetrable. Therethey have lived and brought forth children until the present. Informer times they were so elated with their primitive power that, although their forces were not able to cope with those of foreignersin the open, they were very powerful in the thickets, mountains, andmouths of the rivers; and were accustomed to burst like an avalancheupon the villages, and compel their inhabitants to pay them tribute, as if they were the lords of the land, who were inhabiting it. And ifthe people refused to give it willingly, they killed right and left, collecting the tribute in the heads of those who were decapitated; aswas written by one of our oldtime religious in the following words:"Even in my time, it happens, " he says, "that they descended tothe settlements and sought tribute from the Tagálogs, and at timestook some heads for this purpose. Thus did it happen in Sinilòan, which refused tribute at the approach of the Spaniards. The mountainIndians, having revolted, attacked the village; and they took threeheads, and badly wounded a Spaniard who was defending them. " Thus farthe religious. At other times those people did not allow the Indiansto make use of the wood and game of the mountains, and the fish ofthe rivers. For being very skilful in the use of the bow and arrow, and very swift and experienced in the fastnesses of the mountains andthickets, they inhumanly shot with arrows as many as approached theirterritories, without anyone catching sight or sound of them. For thatreason, the inhabitants of the villages consider it wise to make anagreement with the Negrillos to pay them a certain tribute, providedthat the latter leave the rivers and fields free. And although thispact is not so apparent at present, I believe that it is practicedsecretly because of the fear that the Indians have of them, andbecause of their dependence on them; since the Negrillos are thelords of the mountains which contain the most virgin forests, withwoods of the greatest value. It is a fact, too, that those of thepresent day are as barbarous as their ancestors. 

393. All of these people are black negroes, most of whom have kinkyhair, and very few have lank. They are flat-nosed, and almost all ofthem have thick, projecting lips. They go totally naked, and onlyhave their privies covered with some coverings resembling linencloths, which they draw on from the back forward, and which arecalled bahaques. They make those bahaques from the bark of trees, pounded with heavy blows, so that there are some that look like finelinen. Wrapping a rattan around the waist, they fasten the bahaqueto it by the two ends. As ornaments they wear certain bracelets ofrattan of various colors, curiously wrought; and garlands on theirheads and on the fleshy parts of their arms, composed of variousflowers and branches; and as a means of greater distinction for someone person, a cock's feather or the feather of some other bird, asa plume. Their food consists of fruits, and roots of the mountain;and if they find, perchance, some deer, they eat it in that placewhere they kill it. That night they make their abode there, and afterthey grow tired of dancing, they sleep there--all helter-skelter, like brutes. Next day the same thing happens, and they sleep inanother stopping-place. All their customs are the savage and brutishones characteristic of barbarians; and they recognize no other laws, letters, or government than those of the heads of their families, at the most. They only care about defending their own territories, upon which they have lively wars, some Negrillos against others, with great mortality on both sides. At such times no natives dareenter the mountains, for the Negrillos kill them all, whether friendor enemy. Their most common arms are shield, bow, and arrow. If by amiracle any Christian is found among these people, and if perhaps thereligious have reared some of them in Christianity from childhood, it very rarely occurs that he does not flee to the mountains whencehe originated, when he becomes grown. 

394. One of the islands of this archipelago which has a name, is theone called the island of Negros, because of the abundance of thosepeople. It is located between the two islands of Zebú and Panày, andin it is established a Christian and civilized government. But at onepoint of this island, which lies toward the west, and is called thepoint of Sojotòn, there is a great number of the said blacks, and notone Christian. In the center of the island is a much greater number;therefore, it is along the beach where the Jesuit fathers and theseculars administer, and where the Visayans or Pintados are settled. 

395. The origin of these Negrillos is thought to have been interiorIndia, or citra Gangen, which was called Etyopia; for it was settledby Ethiopian negroes, whence went out the settlers to African Etyopia, as Father Colin proves in detail. Consequently, there being on themainland of India nations of negroes, and even in Nueva Guinea so manythat their first discoverers gave the island that name because of themultitude of these people; and since the distance from those placesto these islands and the Philippine archipelago is not great; nor wasthe land [of Nueva Guinea] which was five hundred leguas in length, entirely settled with blacks--whom the ships of Viceroy Don Antoniode Mendoza found in one of the capes of the strait of Magallanes:those blacks could very easily pass from one island to another, andtheir chief abode with their own name might be the island of Negros, as we have remarked. Thence they could extend afterward to dominateand settle the rest of the islands, without any opposition from otherpeople, until the opposition came through other men more rationaland civilized than they, who dispossessed them. 

396. The third kind of people whom our Spaniards found in thisarchipelago were the civilized nations, who maintained their governmentor seigniory on the river banks, on the seashores, and in the othersites with the best locations in these regions, and in the locationsmost fit for healthful and safe dwelling-places. Among them there wasanother remarkable class of people, and their domination, scatteredthroughout the many islands of this archipelago, the chief of whom arethe Tagálogs, Pampangos, Visayans, and Mindanaos. Other peoples arereduced to these, although they have various distinguishing marks. TheTagálogs, who are the natives of Manila and its archbishopric, withbut little distance between their villages, were Malays, who camefrom a district called Malàyo; that is the origin of all the Malays, who are scattered throughout the most and the better parts of allthese archipelagoes. They are located on the mainland of Malâca, and as that district is not far distant from the great island ofBornèy, it is inferred (and this tradition has been handed down fromfather to son), that the Malays went to Bornèy, and from Bornèy tosettle Manila and its district; taking the name of Tagàlog--whichis the same as Taga Ylog, which signifies, in their own language, "those who live on the rivers;" for the Tagálogs have always livedon the shores of the rivers. 

397. That the Tagálogs originated directly from the Malays, is proved(in the opinion of all) by their language, which differs but littlefrom that of the real Malays; by their color, and the shape of theirfaces and their bodies; by the clothes and vesture in which the Spanishconquistadors found them; by their customs and ceremonies, all of whichresemble those of the Malays--of whom the Tagálogs themselves said, and say always, that they are the true descendants. The coming ofthe Malays to this archipelago is not incredible, as we have so manyexamples of various accidents in these seas which have originated fromthe weather, by which we have seen brought to these islands unknownpeoples, who spoke languages which no one could understand. Forinstance, a boat driven from its course, landed in the year 1725on the opposite coast of Valèr and Casigùran, where our religiouswere in charge; it contained more than twenty men, whose language orgarb had not been known until that time. But it is much more easilycredible that the Malays came to these islands led by greed for theircommercial profits--as, one reads in the histories of the Portuguese, happened in the regions of India with the Persians and Arab Moros, who, having entered under the pretext of trade, afterwards becamemasters of everything. The same thing is said here of the entranceof the Moro Malays. 

398. The Pampangos (according to tradition) originated from thelargest island of the Orient, which is that of Sumàtra or Trapobàna(although some apply the latter name to Zeilàn), which is located belowthe line. That island is seven hundred leguas in circumference, and isnear the land of Malâca and Malâyo, and for that reason it is includedin the Aurea Chersonesus. In the midst of that great island of Sumàtrathere is a large lake, on whose surrounding marge many differentpeoples have their abodes. According to Father Colin (who himselfexamined him), a Pampango who had lost his way reached that place;and, having discovered that there were men there of his own build, language, and clothing, approached, and entered into conversation withthem in his own elegant Pampango tongue. They answered him in thesame speech, and one of their old men said: "You are descendants ofthe lost people who, in former times, left here to settle other lands, and have never been heard of since. " From this it appears that one mayinfer the origin of the Pampangos. But it is not easy to determinewhether they came from Sumàtra direct, or settled first in Bornèy, because of the nearness of its lands and domains, and thence passed onto settle the islands of this archipelago; although it appears fromthe statements of some who have been in Bornèy for a time that theyeven find there sufficient indications that the Pampangos originated, some from Sumàtra and others from Malâyo. It is certain that ifthe island of Bornèy was not a land continuous with that of theseislands in past centuries (and arguments are not lacking for this), at least many islets are found lying in a row and near one another, with which Bornèy is closely connected. [342] Such a one is Paragua, which extends in a northerly direction. Toward the east, Bornèy isextended by Mindanào. With this continuation and the short distancesbetween these regions, one can see the little difficulty in changingtheir abodes from one to the other; and it is believable that theTagálogs, Pampangos, and other civilized races who were found inthis archipelago, and who were almost alike in language, customs, bodily proportions, and clothing, as now we see them, came immediatelyfrom Bornèy, some from some provinces and some from others. That mayaccount for the little difference that is found among them. 

399. It is argued that the Visayans and Pintados--who are theones found in the Camàrines, Lèyte, Samàr, Panày, Zebù, and otherneighboring territories--came from the large island of Macasàr, which is very powerful and densely populated. It has its emperor, who is called Sumbanco, and many petty rulers. The basis of thisargument lies, not only in the short distance from that island tothis archipelago, for it is only distant about sixty leguas from thepoint of Samboànga; but also because in Macasàr, as is reported, thereare Indians who adorn and tattoo the body as do the Visayans (who arecalled Pintados on that account). But it is not known with certaintywhere one and the other originated. We only know of a relation writtenby the chief pilot, Pedro Fernandez de Quiròs, of his voyage to theSalomon Islands and their discovery by Albaro de Mendaña de Neyra inthe year 1595. That relation is addressed to Doctor Antonio de Morga, lieutenant-general for his Majesty of the Philipinas. The said Quiròssays in it that, finding themselves in ten long degrees south latitude, they sighted an island to which General Don Albaro gave the nameof La Magdalena; and that from its port there came to receive them, he says, "with seventy ships, more than four hundred white Indians, of a very fine symmetry, tall, lusty, and robust, and so well builtthat they far surpassed us. They had fine teeth, eyes, mouth, the mostbeautiful hands and feet, and long hair. Many of them were very fair;and among them were the must handsome youths, all naked, and withoutcovering over any part; and all their bodies, legs, arms, hands, andin some the faces, were adorned as among these Visayans. " From thisit is evident that they are Pintados Indians; and that they were notconquered, like those whom we call here Pintados Visayans. They livein south latitude, in the same parallel as that of the north, fromten to twelve degrees. But it is not easy to determine what mightbe the origin of the others; since, although it is known that thiscustom of tattooing and making figures on the body is found in Brasil, in Florida, among the Scythians of Asia, and the Britons of Europa, and even among the Moros of Africa, those nations are very remote fromour Pintados; and so remote an origin cannot be conceded to the latter. 

400. The large island of Mindanao took its name from a large lake(which is called Danào in the general language of these islands)which is found in that island, and into which many rivers flow. Thesame thing has happened in that island as I have said of the others, namely, that its first owners and settlers must have been theones who are now found on the uplands and in the fastnesses of themountains and the crags. Since they are inclined to the mountains, they allowed the foreign traders to settle their seacoasts and rivers, as they were found uninhabited and defenseless; and when the latterhad taken possession of the best of the territories and districts, the true owners were unable to expel the foreigners, since the latterwere the more powerful and civilized. 

401. From this fact comes the variety of tribes that have been foundin that island of Mindanào: such as the Caragas, the Butuans, theCagayans, the Dapitans, the Mindanaos, the Malanaos, besides theTagabaloòyes, Manòbos, and Lutàos, and a great number of blacks, like those of whom we have already written. Of all of them, whenwe consider their first origin, there is no other inference thanthat it was in the neighboring islands of Bornèy, Macasàr, or theMalùcas, considering not only the Mahometan rites and their mannerof dressing, but also the bonds of sympathy existing among them. Forto this day they maintain their friendship and trade, and unite forthe protection of one another, although they are not all Mahometans, and most of them are infidels, atheists, and total barbarians. 

402. If we consider their more immediate origin, the Caragueños havethe first place. They are so called from Caraga or Caràghas, which wasformerly the name of all that coast which extended north and southfrom the point of Surigao to that of San Agustin, and then, turningtoward the west, extended from Surigao and ran through Iligàn andas far as Dapitan, until in later times a division of districts wasmade. The Caragas are the oldest people in that island, and withoutthe protection of any foreigners have maintained their location andtheir valorous courage--which was well known in former times, bythe Visayans and even by all the islands of this archipelago. Theyhave rendered greater their valor by the character of Christians (afact which they owe to the burning zeal of the discalced Augustinianfathers, their first conquistadors), since their aid has been themost efficient and most formidable in the invasions of the Moros, in favor of the Church and its evangelical ministers. These people, if they are not Butuans, differ but little from them, and now theyare united; by which we believe the origin of both to have been common. 

403. The Butuans, worthy of eternal memory and thanks, as they werethe first among whom the Catholic arms found shelter, come down fromthe village and river of Butuàn, the coast which looks to the northfrom Mindanào. It was the first soil where the famous Magallanes[343] planted the domination of Jesus Christ and that of our Catholicking. All these, perchance, have the same origin as the Visayans andPintados, because of their great nearness to them. But they are theorigin of the best blood and nobility of the Basilans and Joloans, for the king of Xolò even confessed that he was a Butuan. But he givesthe lie to that by his barbarous procedure, for he has been the scourgemost disturbing to these islands; while the Butuans have ever remainedfaithful, and have been vassals to God and to our Catholic monarch, following the example of the Caragas throughout. 

404. The Cagayans take their name from Cagayàn el Chico [i. E. , the little], which is [found by] following the coast from Butuan tothe west and southwest. It is a bay with this name, which is not ofancient usage, but was given from the other Cagayàn, today a provincein the upper part of the island of Luzòn, between Cape Bojeadòr andthat of Engaño. These islanders are reduced and civilized, and differbut little from the previous ones [i. E. , the Caragas] from which itis argued that they are not very different from them in their origin. 

405. The Dapitans were a people who inhabited a closely hemmed-instrait between the island of Bohòl and that of Pànglao, and possessedthe two shores of that strait. They conquered the Boholàns in a war, and assumed their name and territory. These new and triumphantBoholans left that island of Bohòl (the country having alreadybeen abandoned by the old Boholàns), and went to live in Dapitàn, located on the Mindanào coast, almost opposite Bohòl and Pánglao, whence they took the name Dapitàn. That name has been extended andpreserved even to the present, because of their fortunate progress, and the friendly reception that our first conquistadors experiencedfrom their noble loyalty and honorable valor. No other more remoteorigin is known of them, but it is conjectured to be like the others. 

406. The Mindanàos and Malanàos are Moros, but they seem formerlyto have been heathen (from which today they are considered asnewcomers), and took their names from the celebrated lakes in theirterritories. Father Combès says that the Malanàos resemble the Visayansin their government, and the same is inferred of the Mindanàos; and, of both, that one must seek there their true origin. The Mindanàoshave always remained Mahometans, and have not allowed the light ofthe gospel to enter. The Malanàos, with the district of Bayùg, werereduced to the yoke of Christ at another time, and were for some yearsconstant to their baptisms by the discalced Augustinian fathers; butlater they grew weary of it. At the present time some of those Moroshave come to the governor of Manila with the title of ambassadors, fromBayùg and Malanào, in order to petition for the discalced Augustinianfathers as ministers of the gospel. This is not the first time whenthey have requested them, as well as the Franciscan religious, as Ihave seen in an original document. Since the fathers of the Societyare those to whom those places are adjudged for the preaching of theholy gospel, and since the disposition of that race is so faithless intheir dealings, some suspicions have been aroused by those embassies, and we are endeavoring to probe their designs in coming. 

407. The Tagabaloòyes take their name from some mountains which theycall Baloòy, which are located in the interior of the jurisdictionof Caràga. They are not very far remote from and trade with thevillages [of Caraga], and some indeed live in them who have becomeChristians. Others are being converted through the zeal and care ofthe discalced Augustinian fathers, who regard them as inhabitants ofBaslig, which is their headquarters and priorate. Those people, as hasbeen stated above, are the descendants of lately-arrived Japanese. Thisis the opinion of all the religious who have lived there and hadintercourse with them, and the same is a tradition among themselves, and they desire to be so considered. And it would seem that one isconvinced of it on seeing them; for they are light-complexioned, well built, lusty, very reliable in their dealings, respectful, andvery valiant, but not restless. So I am informed by one who has hadmuch to do with them; and all the above are qualities which we findin the Japanese. 

408. The Lutàya nation, or the Lutaos, do not give much sign of theirfirst origin, just as they do not evince any particular inclinationfor one kingdom or another. For since their natural dispositionis one of self-interest and fickle, and delights in war, they makealliance now with the Joloans, now with the Basilans, and now with theMindanaos--as quickly with one as another, and as quickly against theirallies and with others. They show that they are Moros by the turban, the marlota, [344] their arms, and their ceremonies; but they cannotbe very ancient, since the Mahometans have not been very long in Indiaand in these parts. The Lutaos could have come to these islands fromthe regions whence it is inferred that the others have come. 

409. Of the mountain people without civilization or government, and with the life and custom of barbarians, it is inferred that theywere some of these primitive possessors, who fled from the civilizedforeigners. These people have various names in various settlements. InYligàn and Samboàngan, they are called Subànos; in Caràga, Manòbos;in Xolò, Guinuànos; in Basilàn, Sameacàs. [345] And although some saythat it is known that they are the descendants of the Malays, becausetheir language is built on the general roots of the Malay language, there are religious (living today) who have lived there for manyyears, who assure me that they have not heard, in their method oftalking with them, any Malay root. Consequently, since the islandsare so strung out even as far as the islands of Bornèy and Macasàr, and since the crossing is so easy, it is always inferred that theirorigin comes from that direction. 

410. In the upper and northern part of the great island of Luzòn arethe two provinces of Cagayàn and Ylòcos. Those people, as is inferredby Father Colin, are descended from Chinese or Japanese, because thegraves of men of larger stature than the Indians have been found there, as well as some Chinese and Japanese jewels which have been preservedamong them. If these should be slight indications--for they can proceedfrom various other circumstances, on account of the great nearness ofChina and Japan--they may aid in the foundation of that inference. Butwe cannot get any farther than conjectures, as in everything else, after so much toil. It serves only as a light, so that others may infera truer origin. And the same is true of Pangasinàn, which lies next. 

411. On this account, and without all the above serving as anobstacle, one can also conjecture the origin of other nations whoare scattered through the innumerable islets of these archipelagoes;for they may proceed from all India extra Gangen and from its mostrenowned kingdoms, such as Siàn, Cambòja, China, Cochinchina, Tunquin, Japon, the Lequios, etc. --especially when not few affirm that theChinese dominated all this archipelago, and that they were the firstsettlers of the Javas, as is mentioned by Barros. In fine, these arethe conjectures that I have found. Other conjectures may be made fromtheir customs and ceremonies, in the comparison of which the curiouswill find not a few strong arguments, if they read thoughtfully. But, at the last, God is the only one who knows the truth, to which ourlimited judgments cannot penetrate. 

CHAPTER XL

 Of the characteristics [genio] and genius [ingenio] of the Filipino Indians

[Paragraphs 412, 413, and a portion of 414 will be found in ourVol. XXVIII, pp. 220-223. The balance of the chapter follows. ]

. .. They are the greatest enemies that the father ministers have. Theyare impious in the known necessities of their parents and relatives, and very charitable to a guest who comes to them and stays leisurelyin their houses, without knowing him and without sending himaway; and they do not even take warning by the experience of greatinconveniences. Many other contradictions and contrarieties are founddaily in these Indians by those who have communication with them andknow them, so that in them vices are united to their opposed virtues, as if related. Only in the matter of lying there is no contradiction, for one cannot tell when they are not lying. Neither does one knowwhen they are thankful for any benefits received; for one couldwrite by thousands the cases of their ingratitude which have beenexperienced--either not taking any account of the good that is shownthem, regarding it as a justice due them; or paying with treacherypure and simple their greatest benefactors. All these are truths, and although (in the opinion of Terence) they gain hate for theone who states them, it is not right for the Indians who may readthis to hate me; for I know it all by my own experience and that ofother fathers of long standing--which indeed the Indians who knowthem recognize. In Nueva España and in Perû the same thing occurs, to about the same extent. 

415. From this result other things, in the same father ministers, thatseem also to be contradictions. For the minister of the Indians wholoves them most would like not to have anything to do with them, butto be very distant from them; and if he succeeds in getting far awayfrom them, then his love for them will not suffer it and he does notrest until he is with his Indians again. It is a providence of God, sothat instruction may never be lacking to these wretched beings. This, I believe, appears like the discreet love with which Christ lovedJudas, for an example to men; loving persons compassionately, anddistinguishing their evil qualities, as things detestable. If all theabove-mentioned contradictions of the Indians are malicious, or arisefrom their lack of understanding, let him who will examine it, foreven in this have I found new contradictions. For some actions whichappear simple are very doubly acts of malice; and quite the contraryalso occurs at other times. In short, whether malicious or simple, their mental standpoint [genio] is incomprehensible, and consequentlythe merit that belongs to the ministers of instruction very great. 

416. In regard to the mind [ingenio] and understanding of thesenatives, no general rules can be laid down; for there are rude andclever ones in all parts, although it be even among Spaniards andservants in courts. But speaking generally, all authors agree, andexperience tells us the same, that the Filipinos are more clever thanthe Indians of other parts. They can learn any art at all with ease, and imitate with exactness any beautiful production that is placedbefore them. Consequently, they become so fine writers that theaccounting-rooms are filled with them, as are also the secretariats, the courts, and the offices of private persons. But very rarelycan one find the copy of an Indian which does not need revision, for they cannot cease lying even in writing; or else because of thelittle care with which they do it. This is very mortifying to those whodictate and correct. Some of them have been so capable that they havebecome officials in the accounting-rooms, and have served ad interimin the highest offices. Others serve as managers for alcaldes-mayor, and they have great knowledge of government business; whether witha right conscience, God knows. There are others who have greatcleverness for the management of a suit between litigants; and areso keen in entangling the parties that they cannot be disentangledwith their laws, and recourse can be had to God alone. There areat present some of them who are printers, and they have sufficientintelligence. In their own political and civil government I haveseen many Indians who are very capable, and who can discourse sopowerfully, with their natural logic, that they convince. But asit is natural for them to be concerned only about the present time, they need some one to direct them so that they may not make any errorin what they discuss. In short, their understandings are fastenedwith pins and attached always to material things, for they do notunderstand things with any depth. I believe that this is the reasonwhy there is so little fruit produced from the constant repetitionof sermons; for they are perplexed with abundant instruction, orelse do not understand it. And although the sermon be very clear, andpreached in their own native language, not one of them can yet repeatthe substance of what he hears, although he understands it when it ispreached. They are, however, very clever at handiwork, because of theirgreat indifference in everything. On that account they can play wellon all musical instruments; and their inclination for music is verygreat, and they make instruments. There are good singers among them, and these have positions, with a fitting salary attached, in all thechurches, from the cathedral to the poorest ministry; and thus theyare being trained, from the time when they sing soprano. They arefond of verses and representations. They are excellent translators, and can translate a Spanish comedy with elegance into verses oftheir own language. And thus, although all, both men and women, arefond of reading, they are indefatigable when verses are concerned, and they will act them out as they read them. Accordingly it resultsthat they are clever for all things, in whatever duty they are set;and they would be more so if they were less lazy, or if their greed fortemporal possessions were greater. On this account, they have alwaysbeen, are, and will be poor, without caring for more than the food ofthe present day. I do not know whether this is a special providenceof God for these poor wretches; for when they have a little wealth, as the vessel is so limited, immediately it swells out and then theydo not know what to do; and, to let it be known that they are rich, they immediately waste it in expenses that are at best useless, untilthey remain as they were before. Thus their inclination [genio] isopposite to their judgment [ingenio] in this direction; and althoughthey have sufficient intellect, they yield to their natural disposition[genio], which dominates them, and in this never allow themselves tobe directed. 

CHAPTER XLI

 Of the letters, languages, and civilization of the Filipinos

417. Just as in Italia the Tuscan, Lombard, and Sicilian languagesresemble one another, and in España the Castilian, Portuguese, and Valencian--for they all recognize one origin (namely, theRoman), although they are, strictly speaking, quite distinct amongthemselves--so it happens in the languages of these PhilipinasIslands. The principal cultured languages found here at the conquestwere six, namely, the Tagálog, the Visayan, the Pampanga, the Cagayan, the Ilocan, and the Pangasinan. It is a fact that all the languageshere resemble one another, and he who knows one of them can easilytalk the others, for the structure of them all differs but little. Wetrace them all to one origin, which cannot be other than the Malayanlanguage, according to the comparison which has been made of words, and to the formation and construction of them all. Consequently, although these Indians have regarded their origin as distinct fromthat of various other nations, in the manner already mentioned, itis evident that the more immediate generations must have been Malays, since their letters and languages alone are found in these islands. 

418. The vowels in the characters proper to their language are threein number, although they have the same value as our five in use;for the E and the I form one single letter, as do also the O andthe U. The consonants are thirteen in number, but they are neverused alone, for the vowel is always used with them. Thus by the useof the C and the M alone they write cama [i. E. , "bed"]. In order topronounce words with other vowels, they make use of certain commas, placed either below or above. Consequently, as all the pronunciation oftheir writing for the most part makes it necessary for them to supplyit at the expense of commas, the difficulty that was experiencedwas considerable, even in the natives themselves. On that accountthey have applied themselves so easily and willingly to our letters, in order to write in their own language. 

419. Their own method of writing was peculiar, by writing the linesfrom top to bottom, beginning at the left hand and proceeding tothe right. This bespeaks a very great antiquity; for the ancientcustom of the Hebrews is to write lines, from the right to the left, as the Chinese do at the present time. But the latter write themfrom top to bottom, as was done in these islands. Diodorus Siculus, who wrote in the time of the emperor Cæsar Augustus, says that inan island of the torrid zone the people wrote from top to bottom, and employed only a few letters. 

420. Before the people knew anything of paper in these islandsthey wrote on the smooth bark of bamboo, or on leaves of the manypalms which are found in these islands (and even yet this is done, indistricts where there is no paper, or even that the schoolboys may notwaste paper), the point of a knife or an iron, or some other material, serving as a pen (and now with birds' quills and ink). If it were amissive letter, they wrote it on palm-leaves, and folded it as we foldour letters. Some of them are much given to writing on the ground ina squatting posture, which is the usual way both men and women sit. 

421. The cultured languages, as already stated, are six in number--forone cannot reckon the languages of the Negritos and mountain peopleas such, since each settlement has its own distinct language, which results from the lack of human intercourse. Among the culturedlanguages, the chief and mother languages are considered the Tagálog, the Pampanga, and the Visayan; and even among these the Tagálog isconsidered the most polished and powerful. That is not [for instance]because it lacks the tu [i. E. , "thou"]--which is well employed withtheir primitive pronoun ycao or ca, even with persons to whom thegreatest respect is due--but on account of the po and Po co, whichexplains it, and signifies "Sir" [señor mio]. The first is used formen, and the second for women. Interwoven with the words, it showsreverence and courtesy; as, for example, in order to answer "Yes"to a woman one says Oo, Po co, an expression which without the Po cowould be too familiar. In many other phrases in the Tagálog languageis shown its seriousness and polish; those who write grammars of thelanguage will be able to set them forth. 

422. The natives of these islands employ innumerable other eleganciesand courtesies, now in actions, now in words, now in names and titles, which they apply to themselves; these are various according to thedifference of the provinces, and are too numerous to mention, for theyare ceremonial, and they value their ceremonies highly. No one willpass in front of another, without asking permission, and in order topass, he doubles the whole body with the most profound bow, at the sametime lifting one foot in the air, and doubling the knee and liftingboth hands to the face. If one has to talk to any person of higherrank, he shows all reverence and squats down [pone en cuclillas], with raised face, and waits thus, until he is asked his reason forcoming; for to speak without being questioned would be a point ofbad breeding. They employ many courteous acts and expressions insaluting one another when they meet; but these do not seem to me tobe so many as in Nueva España, where people do not cease to use themuntil they lose sight of one another in the street. The Filipinosdo this here with greater dignity and respect. When they write, theyheighten their style with so many rhetorical phrases, metaphors, andpictures, that many who think themselves poets would be glad to doas much; and yet this is only in prose. For, when it comes to poesy, he who would understand it must be very learned in their language, even among his own compatriots. 

423. The names which they impose now are usually high-sounding. Iknow a Pius V, and a Philipe V; and, following this custom, they takeas surnames the most honorable names of España. This is since theyhave known Castilians. But, even before, they could rival in this thekings of España; for just as the latter have been called "the Wise, ""the Prudent, " "the Chaste, " etc. , for the special virtues whichhave made them worthy of this glory, so here in the Philipinas, theycalled one "the Strong, " another "the Splendid, " and another "theTerrible, " according to his deeds, or to those of his ancestors, orin accordance with various incidents that happened at birth. Now theyare introducing the custom of taking the paternal name added to thebaptismal name. However, when the first-born child comes to any one, the latter's Christian name is forgotten; for that instant they callthe father by the name of his first-born for the rest of his life. Ifthe name of the first-born is Rosa, the father is called Ama ni Rosa, or Pan-Rosa, which means "the father of Rosa. " One must not then askfor such a man in any village by his Christian name (which is the oneentered on the parish register), for there are many so named, so thathe would not be known by that name. An author is not wanting to callthis an instance of courtesy; but many times it serves as a dishonor, if they know him and call him, for example, "father of Judas. " Theyemploy many other names and endearing expressions in naming theirchildren, relatives, and families, although I believe that theaffection that they feel for one another has very little reality. 

424. The "Don" of the Castilians is being rapidly introduced among theIndian chiefs, both men and women, of these islands. In olden timesthey did not lack a term proper to their own language by which theyexpressed it, as Lacan or Gat for the men, and Dayang for the women. 

CHAPTER XLII

 Of the physical features and clothing of these Indians

425. According to the differences in climate we find certaindifferences in the lines of the body and faces of the Indians, as hasbeen stated above. But this difference amounts to but little. Allof them are sufficiently corpulent, well-built, and well-featured, except that they are all flat-nosed; for the cartilage of the bridgeof the nose does not come to a point as among Europeans. Consequently, there are no sharp noses among the full-blooded Indians. Some havetried to explain the color by saying that it is the color of cookedquinces, or brown, or an olive color. But it appears much strangerto me, and I have been unable to find a legitimate color to whichto compare it; for it is a brown color, but flushed with red. [346]It is generally clearer in the women, and still lighter in all of theVisayans. The hair is black and lank, as is that of the Scythians, Getas [i. E. , Getæ], and Turks, and is carefully tended with washings, and very fragrant oils, as was that of the Lycians. They assert thatthey do this in order to free it from grease (which is considerable), but a great part of it consists in vanity. Among the Tagálogs it isallowed to grow to the shoulders, among the Ilocans somewhat longer, and among the Visayans slightly longer or shorter, and done up; but theCagayans leave it loose and hanging upon the shoulders. This custommust have appeared well to all of them, since everywhere they envythe one who has the longest and heaviest hair; and the same thing isseen among the women. It is indeed considered as an affront to cutthe hair for any crime. The Zambals alone shave the head from themiddle forward; and from the middle back, as far as the occiput, theywear a large shock of loose hair. Ribbons are never used to tie it, but with the hair itself men, women, and children make a knot nearthe crown of the head or the occiput, as do the Turks. 

426. The eyes of all are very beautiful and large, either gray orblack. The face is broad. The teeth are even and fine; formerly theycovered them with ink or a varnish of a black color. Now that is nolonger used except among the Tagabaloòyes of Caragà, of whom I havewritten; their beauty, lightness of complexion, and the features oftheir faces might deceive one, and they would be taken for Spaniards ifthey kept their mouths shut, and one did not see the black teeth. Theyalso, especially the chief women, adorned the teeth with gold, with exquisite beauty. I do not know whether they waste the gold sonow. All of the men are beardless in the face, but their bodies aresufficiently shaggy, as are those of all Asiatics. It is attributedto the temperature of the torrid zone in which we are. Who cares tostudy this more in detail would better read Fray Gregorio Garcia, theDominican. [347] In olden times the Indians removed and pulled out, as if it were a defect, any little hair that appeared on the face, with pincers of bamboo made for that very purpose. I have not readthat they did this because they considered it a reproach to have abeard, as did those of Perù--who did the same, as I have read in theabove-cited author. 

427. The women (and in many parts the men, especially themountaineers), have certain large holes in their ears, in which theyplace pendants and earrings of gold. They make the greater displayof it according to the greater size and openness of the holes. Somewomen have two holes in each ear, for two kinds of earrings. This isusual among the Zimarrònes and blacks, for the civilized people havenow adopted the custom of the Castilians in this regard. 

428. In olden times the men wore their heads covered or wrapped aboutwith a narrow strip of cotton or linen. Those who esteemed themselvesas valiant men wore the two ends hanging to the shoulders. This theycalled the potong; and some wore this of colored cloth, to declaretheir chieftainship. No one could wear a red one unless he had killedat least one person, and he could not have it striped until he hadkilled seven. Now they wear neat white and black hats, which arewoven from various materials which they gather in the field. 

429. Of the mountain people it is already known that their own skinis their clothing, and that they only use the bahag, which is a linenor cloth which keeps in the privies. But the clothing of the menwho live in villages is a half-shirt of linen, silk, or some othermaterial--which, at the most, reaches to the navel; it is open to theair, and has wide sleeves without wristbands, and this is called thebaro--and certain garments that they call saluàles, which correspondto our small-clothes or under-drawers. These are also loose andwide, and made of any kind of linen or other material; they do notopen at the front, but at the side, and they are tied there. Theynever wear anything on feet or legs. The above is the whole amountof their clothing, and, at the most, a cord or belt at the waist, like a girdle, where they hang the knife. The chiefs and others wear, for church functions and other meetings of theirs, in addition tothe said clothing, a long black garment reaching to the feet, withsleeves fitted at the wrists. This they call barong-mahaba, whichsignifies "long baro. " It is an eminently modest and decent garment, and is worn loose and not girdled. For outside wear, these garmentsare of ordinary materials. For gala attire, they are of silk, andmuch worked with embroidery, except the long baro, which is alwaysthe same. Today the people of highest rank in the villages dressin the Spanish fashion, with coats, trousers, stockings, and shoes, although it is the most usual practice to wear stockings of naturalskin, in the midst of all these adornments. In former times, theirgreatest care was exercised in supplying the lack of clothing withabundance of gold, with which they adorned all the body. That customis still preserved, although not in the abundance of which we readearlier. In what they wore the full complement of their gala attirewas a colored sash drawn up under the arm, which is no longer worn atthe present time. All the clothing of the Filipino Indian is reducedto the above, and I believe that it is so throughout this archipelago, without any difference of special note. 

430. The dress of the women is the baro already mentioned, but not solong, and only covering the breasts and hanging loose; and a garment aswide above as below, in which they envelope the body from the waistdown, fastening one of the ends in the girdle in order to secureit. This garment is called a tàpis. The mestizo women wear skirtswith plaits and seams, with the opening at one side. The tàpis is theunchangeable costume of the Indian women of this archipelago, and this, at the most, is generally of silk, but of a modest hue, and of onlyone color. Upon their festival occasions the women--some for galaattire, or others, because they are more modest--wear white Spanishpetticoats. Some wear an underskirt, especially within doors. But whenthey go abroad, the tàpis is [preferred] above all. Some of them weargarments resembling black mantillas, which they call cobìjas, withwhich they cover the whole body from the head down, in the manner ofthe mantillas of España. With this and the bits of gold that theywear on the body--in the ears, at the throat, on the wrists andfingers (and she who does not possess these ornaments must be verypoor indeed)--they appear as Indian women in their wealth of gold, and are Indian women in their being and clothing. Now when the Indianwomen go abroad, they wear slippers embroidered with silk and gold;few and far between are those who wear shoes. Formerly, they wore aribbon, of wrought gold which covered their foreheads and temples. Now, at the most, they usually wear a chased silver or gold nail, thrustthrough the knot of their hair. Women of a somewhat more advanced ageand respect wear the long baro, which is made in the same manner asthat of the men above described. It is certain that an Indian womanappears well in this manner, for there is no more modest dress forwomen that one can imagine. 

431. The chief bodily adornments of the Visayans were the tattooingand designs which gave them the name of Pintados. They did this in thesame manner as the Moro men and women, and it was the olden custom ofthe Huns, Gelones, and Agathyrsos; but the kind of the designs wasaccording to the deeds and merit of each person. But that barbarousmethod of adornment was lost long ago, and has not been seen among themfor many years. Perhaps they have erased those pictures with the waterof holy baptism, since they embraced the true Catholic ceremonies. 

CHAPTER XLIII

 Of the false religion which these Indians held in their heathendom; and of their superstitions and omens. 

432. The great slothfulness and natural carelessness of these Indiansis recognized by its results; for as yet not the slightest scrap ofwriting concerning their religion and ceremonies, or their ancientpolitical government, has been found. Only by tradition and old songswhich have been preserved from father to son, and from other thingswhich they have still in use, has it been possible to trace somewhat oftheir antiquity by means of some careful ministers. The first who tookhis pen for this purpose, at the instance of the superior government, was our venerable Fray Juan de Plassencia, one of the most zealousworkers in the vineyard of this archipelago, in the year 1589. [348]So great credence was given to him in this, that his relation of thecustoms of the Indians, having been received by the royal Audiencia, was imparted to the alcaldes-mayor of the provinces for theirgovernment. Later, in the year 1598, with but little difference intime, Doctor Don Antonio de Morga, auditor and lieutenant-governor ofPhilipinas, wrote his description. In it the same matter is treated, taken from the other. Our Fray Antonio de la Llave, [349] afterward(in the year 1622) used this in his description. In the year 1660, Father Colin wrote his description, adding anew the best form. Sincethis is a matter in which we cannot exceed the ancients, yet withthem all it will be necessary for me to write something, in orderthat I may not leave this treatise of my description faulty. 

433. These Indians had various sorts of adorations: now to animals andbirds, as did the Egyptians; now to the sun and the moon, as did theAssyrians. The Tagálogs adored now Tigmamanoquìn, which was a blue birdof the size of a turtledove; now the crow, which they called Meylupa, which signifies "Lord of the soil, " as if he were the god Pan, or thegoddess Ceres of the ancients; now the crocodile, which they callednono, which signifies "grandfather, " to which they offered varioussacrifices in order that it might not harm them. Sometimes they adoredany old tree, especially the one they call balete, and even those nowliving show respect to it; now they adored and offered gifts to thestones, crags, reefs, and promontories of seas and rivers. All was theresult of their natural fear, so that all these things should causethem no harm. Nevertheless, they had a knowledge of one sole God;and accordingly they adored Him as the principal God, and greaterthan all. The Visayans called Him Lauon, which signifies "ancient;"and the Tagálogs Bathalà Mey capal, signifying "God, the Maker, or Creator of all things. "

434. Besides these they had other idols, which the Visayans calledDiuata, and the Tagálogs, Anito, each of which had its specialobject and purpose. For there was one anito for the mountains andopen country; another for the sowed fields; others for the sea andrivers; another for the house of their dwelling. These anitos theyinvoked in their work, according to the functions of each one. Amongthese they also made anitos of their ancestors, and to these was duethe first adoration of all. The memory of this anito is not even yeterased. They kept some small badly-made figures of all these, of gold, stone, ivory, or wood; and they called them Lic-hà or Laràuan, whichmeans a "figure" or "image" among them. 

435. They also venerated as anitos those who came to disastrous ends, because either the lightning, or the shark, or the sword, killed them;for they thought that such immediately went to glory, by way of therainbow, which they call balangao. With such barbarous beliefs livedand died the old people, puffed up and vain, considering themselves asanitos. As such they caused themselves to be respected and worshiped;and buried after death in places set apart and of distinction amongthem all, as they were reverenced there. There are many cases ofthis known, and it required all the valor and zeal of the fatherministers to destroy tombs, fell trees, and burn idols. But it is yetimpossible to tear up the blind error of the pasingtabì sa nonò, whichconsists in begging favor from their aged dead whenever they enterany thicket or mountain or sowed fields, in order to build housesand for other things. For if they do not do this, they believe thattheir nonos will punish them with some evil result. This is foundamong an ignorant people without malice, who do not know why theydo this, but only that they do it because they saw that their agedpeople do it here. The ministers labored hard to remove this error, especially in the remote villages; for in those that are now civilizedthe people at present laugh at it. 

436. For all these adorations and sacrifices it is not evident thatthey had any common and public temple. For although these places hadthe name of simba or simbahan, which signifies "place of adorationand sacrifice, " and the people attended them and resorted thither, they were not like our temples common to all, but, as it were, certain private oratories belonging to the houses of their chiefs, where those of their families, or their dependents, or those relatedby marriage, met to make a feast for any special object. For thispurpose they made a bower in the house itself, which they call sibi, dividing it into three naves and lengthening the fourth. They adornedit with leaves and flowers on all sides, and many lighted lamps. Inthe middle was placed another large lamp, with many ornaments. Suchwas their simbahan or oratory. This feast was called pandot; it wastheir most solemn one, and lasted four days. During that time theyplayed many musical instruments, and performed their adorations, which is called nag àanito [350] in Tagálog. When the feast was endedand all the adornment removed, the place had no longer the name ofchurch or temple, and remained a house like all the others. 

437. Their sacrifices always redounded to the advantage of theirbodies; for they were reduced to all eating, drinking, and makingmerry. In proportion to the motives, so were the ceremonies of theirsacrifices. If it were only for the entertainment of their chief, theymade a bower in front of his house, which they filled with hangings, according to their Moorish custom; and there they all ate, drank, danced, and sang. For this it was the usual practice to fetch a hog, which the catalôna or priestess ordered the most graceful girl to stabwith the knife, amid certain dances. That done, and the hog havingbeen cooked according to their custom it was divided among all thecompany, as if it were a relic; and they ate it with great reverenceand respect, with the other food of their feast. They drank morethan they ate, as they always do. With this was ended the greatnessof their sacrifice, without God to whom to offer it, or altar therefor. 

438. If the sacrifice was for the health of some sick person, thepriest of the sacrifice ordered a new house to be built at the expenseof the sick one. That done (which took but a very short time, as thematerials are close at hand, and many assemble for that purpose), they removed the sick person to it, and arranged what was to besacrificed. That was sometimes a slave, but most generally somehog or marine animal; its flesh they set before the sick person, with other food according to their custom. The catalôna performed herusual dances, wounded the animal, and with its blood anointed the sickperson, as well as some of the others among the bystanders. Then itwas divided and cleaned, in order that it might be eaten. The catalônalooked at the entrails, and making wry faces and shaking her feet andhands, acted as if she were out of her senses--foaming at the mouth, either because she was incarnate as the devil, or because she sofeigned so that credit might be given her. In this way she prophesiedwhat would happen to the sick man, either adverse or propitious. If itwere propitious, there was great feasting; and if adverse, means werenot lacking to her to evade it--as they were also not lacking in casethat her prophecy was not fulfilled. If the sick man died, she consoledthem all by saying that their gods had elected him as one of theiranitos, because of his prowess and merits; and she began to commendherself to this saint, and made them all commend themselves to him, andeverything ended in drunkenness and rejoicing. Then the catalôna tookall the gifts, which all had offered her according to their custom, and returned home, wealthier, but not with more reputation; for thosewho exercised that office among the Indians were held in no estimation, for they were considered lazy persons who lived by the toil of others. 

439. When the sick person died, he was followed by the lamentationof his relatives and friends and even by other and hired mourners, who had that as their trade. In their lamentation they inserted amelancholy song, with innumerable extravagant things in praise of thedead. They bathed, smoked, and shrouded the corpse, and some embalmedit in the manner of the Hebrews, with certain aromatic liquors;and thus did they bury it, with all due respect. 

440. The grave of the poor was a hole which was dug under the houseitself, and was called sìlong. The rich and influential were keptunburied for three days, amid the weeping and singing. A box or coffinwas made out of one piece, which was the dug-out trunk of a tree;and the cover was tightly fitted on, so that no air could enter. Therethey buried the deceased, adorned with rich jewels and sheets of gold, especially upon his mouth. As the coffins were usually of incorruptiblewood, which was used for this purpose, in this way some bodies havebeen found uncorrupted after many years. 

441. The coffin with the body was placed in one of three places, according to the direction of the deceased: either in the higheststory of the house itself, in a place like a cock-house, where theyusually keep their treasures and other goods; or under the house, which is the sìlong, elevated from the ground; or if they place itin the ground itself, they dig a hole, and enclose it with a smallrailing and there they deposit the box with the body without coveringover the hole. They buried others in the fields, and lit fires in thehouse, and then set sentinels so that the deceased should not cometo take away the living with him. Others had themselves buried in alofty place on the seashore, in order that they might be veneratedand worshiped; and sentinels were posted so that no boats should passthere for a certain time. 

442. Another box, filled with the best clothes of the deceased andvarious viands on their dishes, were set near the grave; if thedeceased were a man, various weapons that he used were left there;if a woman, her loom, or other work-utensils that she had used. Ifthe deceased had while living been employed in sea-raids, as apirate, his coffin was made in the shape of a boat which they callbarangay. As rowers they placed in it two goats, two hogs, two deer, or more, as they wished, male and female paired, with a slave of thedeceased as pilot in order to take care of them all. Some food wasput in for their sustenance, and when that food was consumed, theydried up with hunger and thirst, and all perished. If the deceasedhad been a warrior, a living slave, bound, was placed under him, and was left there to die with him. After the burial, although thelamentation ceased somewhat, the revelry in the house of the deceaseddid not cease. On the contrary, it lasted a longer or shorter time, according to the rank of the deceased. 

443. On the third or fourth day of the funeral, all the relativesassembled at the house of the deceased, for they said that he returnedthat day to visit them. At the landing of the stairway of the house, they set water in a basin or tub, so that the deceased might washhis feet there, and rid himself of the earth of the grave. They kepta candle lit all that day. They stretched a petate, or reed mat, onthe floor and sprinkled ashes on it, so that the deceased might leavethe marks of his feet there. At meal time they left the best place attable vacant for the dead guest. They ate and drank, as at the mostsplendid banquet; and then spent the balance of the day in relatingand singing the prowess of the deceased; then each one went home. Thisridiculous ceremony is called tibao. The Indians even yet retainthe oldtime custom of this assembly, but all superstition and errorhave been removed from it, and they unite to pray for the deceased;but it is not without inconveniences that ought to be remedied. 

444. The mourning consisted in fasting, and during the days of mourningthey lived only on vegetables. This fasting or abstinence was calledsipà by the Tagálogs. In dress the Visayans wore white, as do theChinese in sign of mourning, and this is even yet the custom in somevillages; but black is the most usual color for mourning in the restof the islands. With this kind of mourning they cover all the body, so that the face may not be seen, especially if they are women and ifthe mourning is thorough. During the mourning the men may not weara hat; but, instead, a black cloth wound about the head. They wearmourning for any deceased relative, even though he be related onlyvery distantly; but the mourning is greater or less according to thedegree of relationship, both in manner and in duration of time. 

445. From the above is inferred the belief of these Indians in thetransmigration of the souls of the deceased. In this they agree notonly with the Chinese, who believe in this peculiar error, but alsowith other Indians whom Torquemada mentions in his second volume. Thesimilarity that they might relate in rites, both with the Indians ofNueva España and Perû, and with other nations of greater antiquity, may be compared by the curious reader, by reading the entire bookof the Origin of the Indians, and by tracing there that of theseIndians. [351]

446. It is an assured fact that the oldtime heathen of these islandsknew that after this life there was another one of rest, or let ussay paradise (for Bathàla Maycapàl alone in their belief lived in thesky); and that only the just and valiant, those who had moral virtuesand lived without harming anyone, went thither to that place as areward. In the same way, as all of them believed in the immortalityof the soul in the other life, they believed in a place of punishment, pain, and sorrow which they called casanàan, where the wicked went, andwhere, they said, the devils dwelt. Consequently, the transmigration ofthe souls of their deceased to other living bodies was a sign of restto them. Since no one desired his relatives to be numbered among thecondemned in casanàan, the error of the Chinese found in them an easierentrance, for it was built upon the foundation of their own errors. 

447. The superstitions and omens of these Filipinos are so many, andso different are those which yet prevail in many of them, especiallyin the districts more remote from intercourse with the religious, that it would take a great space to mention them. They merit tears, although they are all laughable. They are being continually preachedagainst, but we have not succeeded in extinguishing them; and thepeople obey the customs of their barbarous ancestors rather than theChristian prudence which the ministers teach them. And although I donot at this time consider it as an explicit error, ut in plurimum, yet the error implied in the tenacity with which these people followthe errors of their ancestors is dangerous. 

448. Now they ask permission of the nonos for any task, with thepasingtabi sa nono. Now they have innumerable fears if the owl whichthey call covàgo hoots; if they find a snake in a new house, or ona journey that they have undertaken; if they hear anyone sneeze;if any rat squeals, or if the lizard sings, or if any dog howls; andother things like these. There must be no talk of fish in the house ofthe hunter, nor of hunting nor dogs in that of the fisherman; whilein neither the one nor the other house must there be any mention ofnew implements for work, unless they have already been used. Sailorsmust name nothing of the land, nor landsmen anything of the sea:for all these were omens. 

449. Pregnant women could not cut their hair, for they said that thechildren that they would bear would have no hair. When a woman is aboutto give birth, some men undress until they are stark naked. Then takingshields and catans, one takes his stand in the silong, and anotheron the ridge of the house, and they continually fence with the windwith their catans as long as the parturition lasts. I have removedsome from this performance by force of punishment. They say that itis to keep the patiànac and the osuàng away from the woman. Theseare witches among them who come to obstruct the success of thechildbirth, and to suck out the souls of children; and the peopleact thus in order to prevent them. He who does not wish to have thisobserved in public, through fear of punishment, removes his wife toanother house for the parturition, if he thinks that the witch is inhis. The procurer of this witch they say is the bird tictic, [352]and that this bird, by flying and singing, shows the witch or osuàngthe house where there is a parturition, and even guides him to workother misfortunes. Consequently, whenever they see or hear the tictic, they all grow melancholy, in their fear lest some harm come to them. 

450. They greatly fear and reverence the tigbàlang or bibit. This isa ghost, goblin, or devil; and as it knows the cowardice of theseIndians, it has been wont to appear to them in the mountains--nowin the guise of an old man, telling them that he is their nono; nowas a horse; and now as a monster. Consequently, the Indians in theirterror make various pacts with it, and trade their rosaries for variousarticles of superstitious value, such as hairs, grass, stones, andother things, in order to obtain all their intents and free themselvesfrom all the dangers. Thus do they live in delusion until God willsthat the evangelical ministers undeceive them, which costs no little[effort], because of the very great fear with which they are filled. 

451. In order to discover any theft, they generally burn freshrock-alum, and after it has vaporized and then crystallized they saythat the figure which those crystals form is the living picture ofSo-and-so, and that he is the author of the theft. Since they believesuch nonsense as easily as it is difficult to make them believe thedivine mysteries, they all agree to that statement, even though theface should be that of a dog; and they make a charge in court againstSo-and-so, and impute the theft to him. Sometimes they take a screen orsieve (which they call bilào), in which they fasten some scissors inform of a cross, to which a rosary is hung. Then they proceed to callthe name of each one who is present at this exercise. If the bilàoshakes when the name of Pedro is called, then that poor Pedro is therobber, and pays for the theft, without having perhaps eaten or drunkof it. [353] Sometimes they light a candle to the saint of miracles, my St. Anthony of Padua, misapplying his peculiar protection forall lost things; they believe that if the flame of the candle shouldflare up in the direction of any of those present at this act, he isthus shown to be the robber. For these and like deceitful artifices, there are not wanting masters, Indian impostors, both men and women, who, in order to gain money, deceive the simple-minded in this manner, without paying any heed to the claims of conscience in these wrongs. 

452. The different kinds of these ministers of the devil in the oldendays, so far as I have examined them, are twelve, and they are asfollows, according to their own old names for them: sònat, catalònan, mangagávay, manyisalàt, mancocòlam, hoclòban, silàgan, magtatangàl, osuàng, mangagayoma, pangatahòan, and bayòguin. 

453. The sònat was equivalent to a bishop among them; and they allreverenced him as one who pardoned sins, and ordained others as priestsand priestesses. They expected salvation through him, and he couldcondemn them all. This office was general throughout these islands, but it was held only by the chiefest and most honored, as it was ofgreat esteem among them. It is said that this office came from theBorneans. Some try to make out that he was the master of a kind ofexercise that is not decent, but I have found nothing certain amongthe much that I have examined. 

454. The catalònan (as remarked above) was the priest or priestessof their sacrifices; and although his office was an honorable one, it was only while the sacrifice was pending, for after that they paidbut scant attention to him. 

455. The mangagàvay were the sorcerers who gave and took away healthand life by their sorceries. It was an office general throughoutthis archipelago. 

456. The manyisalàt was the sorcerer appointed for lovers. Themancocòlam was the sorcerer or witch who belched forth fire fromhimself, which could not be extinguished with any application exceptby his rolling himself in the ordure and filth that falls from thehouses into the silong; and the master of the house where he rolledhimself died and there was no remedy. The hoclòban was another kind ofsorcerer more efficacious than the others, since without any medicinehe could kill, overturn houses, and work other destruction. This isin Catanduanes, but the two preceding ones are general. 

457. The silàgan's duty was to draw out the entrails and eat them, from all persons whom he saw dressed in white. That happened towardCatanduanes; and it is not fable, since our Fray Juan de Mérida burieda Spanish clerk in Calilàya to whom this misfortune had happened. Themagtatàngal is said to have been a man who left his body without headand intestines, and that the head wandered about hither and thitherduring the night in different parts of the world, and in the morningreunited with his body, leaving him alive as before. This story iscurrent in Catanduànes, but it is regarded as a fable, although thenatives assert that they have seen it. 

458. We have already spoken of the osuàng. It is only added that humanflesh is his usual food. They all saw this one flying, but this istold in the Visayas and not in Tagalos. 

459. The mangagayòma was the sorcerer who made use of the naturalremedies in his sorceries; but those remedies were often corrupted bypacts with the devil. The pangatahòan is the same as the soothsayer, who prognosticated the future; and this notion was general throughoutthis archipelago. The bayòguin was an effeminate man [hombre maricon], inclined to be a woman and to all the duties of the feminine sex. 

460. This is sufficient as an index of innumerable other errors, superstitions, and omens, in which their ancients were submerged, and some of their descendants now follow their footsteps. However, I am of the opinion that it is born rather of their simplicity than oftheir malice, ut in plurimum. Yet I would not be so bold as to assertthat there are not some who make their contracts with the devil; and, with or without contracts, it is certain that many enchantments arefound here, whence follow deaths to some and extraordinary accidentsto others. And although that can be attributed to the multitude ofherbs of which they have good knowledge, they always leave suspicionof some diabolical art. 

461. The oaths which were and are most usual in these Indians areexecratory. Since they lie so much, I do not know why they arenot brought to confusion in the promissory notes that are alwaysfurnished with curses. In the oath of allegiance which the peopleof Manila and Tondo took to our Catholic monarchs in the year 1571, they confirmed that promise of their obedience in this manner:"May the sun split us through the middle; may we be devoured bycrocodiles; may our women not show us favor or affection"--if theyshould fail to keep their oath. Sometimes they took the pasambahan, which was, to draw the figure of any wild and monstrous animal, andask to be torn to pieces by that animal if they broke their contractor agreement. Sometimes they lit a candle, and declared that, justas the candle, so might they be melted, if they did not fulfil theirpromise. Now this is somewhat better, but not, their perjuries; forwith great ease and frequency one catches them in false oaths in legalinstruments. This is well known, and therefore should be well punished. 

CHAPTER XLIV

 Of the former government and social customs of these Indians

462. I have already said that our brother and venerable father FrayJuan de Plassencia wrote in the convent of Nagcarlàn and signed(October 24, 1589) a relation describing all the old customs ofthese Indians, in obedience to a request and charge of the superiorgovernment. That relation appeared to all a very truthful statement, as, in order to make it, his examination and vigilance were rigorous. 

463. Of this relation I have already used what I thought ought to beset down in their fitting places. Now I shall say in substance whathe tells when speaking of the social customs of the Indians and theirold-time government, with some additions which serve for the betterunderstanding of the matter. 

464. These Indians were not so lacking in prudence in the oldentime that they did not have their economic, military and politicalgovernment, those being the branches derived from the stem ofprudence. Even the political government was not so simple among all ofthem that they did not have their architectonic rule--not monarchic, for they did not have an absolute king; nor democratic, for those whogoverned a state or village were not many; but an aristocratic one, for there were many magnates (who are here called either maguinòosor datos), among whom the entire government was divided. 

465. In the olden days, when, as most of them believe, the Malays cameto conquer these islands, they called the boat or ship by the name ofbarangay, which is well known and much used in these times. In thisboat came a whole family, consisting of parents, children, relatives, and slaves, under the government of one who was the leader, captain, or superior of all. In some districts, this man was called maguinòo, and in others dato. And in proportion as they continued to peoplethis archipelago in this manner, it filled up with families andthey appropriated their places of settlement, each of them seekingits own convenience for its maintenance and living. And there theylived governed by their own chiefs, not with a hard and fast rule, but all in friendly relations. By virtue of this friendship they wereobliged to aid their chief, both in his wars and in the cultivationof his fields; and all to aid one another mutually. But no one wasable to usurp the property which belonged to another, even though hewere of the same barangay. 

466. This barangay consisted of about one hundred persons, more orless, according to the number that they knew were sufficient fortheir territory. If perchance those of one barangay did any injury toanother, cruel wars broke out between them, as broke out between thechiefs of Manila and Tondo when the Spaniards came in to plant withthe faith the Catholic dominion, and with it the true peace, whichnow they enjoy with tranquillity. These chiefs or maguinóos, althoughsome were so by inheritance, commonly did not get these offices byvirtue of their blood, but by their merits; or because some one hadmore power, more wealth, more energy, or more moral virtue than anyof the others. This method of government has always seemed so goodto these Indians that it is the form followed in all the villages, and all the tributes are divided among various heads of barangays, in accordance with the enumeration of the villages; and those headsare the ones who look after the collection of the royal income, and see that the Indians live like Christians. They must also, byreason of their office, give account to the father minister and thealcalde-mayor of their province, in case there is any fault to findwith their respective barangays. 

467. No Indian could pass voluntarily from one barangay to anotherwithout the payment of a certain sum, which was established amongthem, and unless he made a great feast to all the barangay which heleft. It was much more difficult if they were married. If a man ofone barangay married a woman from another, the children had to bedivided between the barangays, as was also done with the slaves. 

468. The classes of people mentioned in that early age by our brotherPlassencia (besides that of chief or dato) are three, as follows. Oneclass is that of the nobles, whom they call mahadlìcas. Thisword signifies, according to the best vocabularies of the Tagáloglanguage, those who are free, and who were never slaves. The secondclass are called pechèros; and the third are those who were slaveslegitimately. Although I find in one vocabulary that mahadlìca isrendered as "freedman, " still I find that freedman is rendered bytimava in most trustworthy vocabularies. And although in the commonpractice of the Tagálog speech, one now says minahadlìca aco nangpanginoongco, that is, "My master freed me, " I do not believe thatit is so; for mahadlìca properly signifies "to give freedom to theslave, " only because absolute liberty is its peculiar signification, and they make use of this term when it was given to a slave. Thus thisterm gives liberty, and the slave remains free from all slavery in theuttermost of its meaning. It is certain that the term timava is morecorrectly used to signify the freedman. Consequently, the Tagálogspeech applies it and uses it, not only to express the liberty ofthe slave, but also for him who breaks the cord at the gallows andis freed from punishment; and for any fierce animal which makes sportof bonds. They only lengthen somewhat the accent of the last syllablein the latter sense, and say nagtitimavà. 

469. The pechèros were the ones called alìping namamahay. Althoughin strictness, in the Tagálog, the term alìpin signifies "slave, "the pechèro was not properly a slave, for he always remained in thehouse and could not be sold. Consequently, this term could only beapplied to express their method of service, namely, an up-stairsservant, as I understand it. These pechèros were married. They servedtheir masters, whether datos or not, with the half of their [timein the] fields, or as was agreed upon at the beginning; and servedthem as rowers. But they lived in their own houses with their wivesand children, and were lords of their property, lands, and gold; andtheir masters had not the slightest liberty of action or dominion overthose things. And, even though they should fall by inheritance to ason of their master, if the former went to live in another villagehe could not take them from their own native village; but they wouldserve him in their own village, according to their ability, as theyserved their former master. 

470. The slaves who were strictly such were called alìping saguiguilir. This term comes in strict Tagálog to mean the servantsbelow stairs; for the term guilir signifies "the lower part ofthe house, " or "its lower entrance. " These were bought and sold, or acquired by war, although those who were born in a family wereseldom sold, for affection's sake. Such served their master in allthings; but the latter would give them some portion of his field, if they were faithful and zealous in their labor. If they gainedanything by their industry, they could keep it. If they were slavesbecause of debt, a condition that was very frequent among them, whenthe debt was paid they were free; but they were also obliged to payfor their support and that of their children. At times it was usualto transfer the debt to another, for the obtaining of some profit;and the poor wretches remained slaves, even though such was not theircondition. Much of this is found yet, although not with the rigorof slavery, but by the force of obligation; but these poor pledgedcreatures suffer a certain kind of slavery in their continuous andtoilsome service. The authorities ought to employ all their care forthe uprooting of so keenly felt an abuse. 

471. If perchance these slaves sa guiguilir acquired any gold throughtheir industry, they could ransom themselves with it and becomepechèros; and that ransom did not cost so little that it did not amountto more than five taes of gold, or thereabout. If one gave ten or more, then he became free from every claim, and became a noble. For thispurpose a certain ceremony took place between the master and the slave, namely, the division between the twain of all the furniture that theslave used--and that with so great strictness that, if a jar was leftover, they broke it and divided up the bits; and if it were a manta, they tore it through the middle, each one keeping half. 

472. From the time when our brother Plassencia explained thisdifference of slaves, many acts of injustice which the Indianspracticed on one another were remedied; for they made slaves of thosewho were never so, because, as the term alìpin is so confused, andthe alcaldes-mayor did not know the secret, they declared one to bea slave in all rigor, because the Indians proved that he was alìpin, which signifies "slave, " being silent, in their malicious reserve, as to whether he was namamahay or sa guiguilir. There were many suchacts of trickery. 

473. Those born of father and mother who were mahadlìcas were all alsomahadlìcas, and never became slaves except by marriage. Consequently, if a mahadlìca woman married a slave, the children were divided. Thefirst, third, and fifth belonged to the father, while the mother hadthe second, fourth, and sixth, and they alternated in the same way withthe other children. If the father were free, then those who pertainedto him were free; but slaves, if he were a slave. The same is to beunderstood in regard to the mother and her children. If there wereonly one son, or if there were an odd number, so that one was leftover in the division, the last was half free and half slave. However, it has been impossible to determine at what age the division was made, or at what time. The slavery of these children followed the nativecondition of their parents in all things, and the children were dividedas they pertained to them, whether they were male or female, as theywere born. The same thing occurred when one was poor, and did not havethe wherewithal with which to endow or buy his wife for marriage; andthen, in order to marry her, he became her slave. Hence it resultedthat the free children who belonged to the mother were masters andlords of their own father, and of the children who belonged to thefather, their own brothers and sisters. 

474. If the mahadlìcas had children by their slaves, mother andchildren were all free. But if the mahadlìca had intercourse with theslave woman of another, and she became pregnant, the mahadlìca gave themaster of the slave woman one-half tae of gold because of the dangerof the death of her who was pregnant, and because that her legitimatemaster was deprived of the services of the pregnant woman, by reasonof him. When the woman gave birth, one-half the child remained free, and the father was bound to take care of its support; and, if he didnot do that, he meant that he did not recognize the child as his, and it remained all slave. 

475. If any free woman had children by any slave who was not herhusband, all were free. If a free woman married a half-slave, the children were slaves only to the one-fourth part, and theyconsidered that in the question of their service. The service wasdivided among all those who were considered as masters, by weeks ormonths, or as the masters might agree. But they had the right becauseof the parts that were free to compel their masters to free them fora just price, which was appraised in proportion to the character oftheir slavery. But if one were wholly slave, he could not compel hismaster to free him for any price, even if he became a slave only fordebt provided he did not pay the debt at the expiration of the time. 

476. Another form of servitude was found among them, which they calledcabalangay; it included those persons who begged from the chief whowas head of their barangay whatever they needed, with the obligationof serving him whenever they were summoned to row, work in his fields, or serve at his banquets--they helping to meet the expense [of these]with the tuba or quilàng, which was their wine. Thus did their headmangive them what they needed, with this agreement. 

477. This tyranny of slaves was so extensive in this archipelagothat when our Spaniards conquered it, there were chiefs with so manyslaves--of their own nation and color, and not foreign--that there werethose who had one, two, and three hundred slaves; and most of thesewere not slaves by birth, but for slight reasons, and even withoutreasons. For since their best kind of property, after gold, consistedin slaves, as their own conveniences were increased considerably bytheir services, they expended care in nothing to a greater extent thanin increasing the number of their slaves; now by usury and interest, in which they had no respect for their own parents and brothers andsisters; now by petty wars and engagements among themselves, in whichthe prisoners became slaves; now by the punishment for some slightcrime such as for not having observed the interdict on speaking duringthe funeral obsequies, or if anyone passed by the chief's wife whileshe was taking a bath, or if, while the chief was passing by the houseof any timava, some dust accidentally fell on him. Or they were madeslaves because of other reasons, as tyrannical, as trivial, such asare natural for those who have not the light of the holy gospel. 

478. After this [report of Father Plassencia] was promulgated, the above abuse was so thoroughly removed that now there is not theslightest amount of slavery among the Indians, in accordance withapostolic briefs, which have been confirmed by various royal decreesof our Catholic monarchs. Thus we are all soldiers of one and the samedivine Lord; all militia under the holy cross, which is our Catholicstandard; and citizens and sharers of the heavenly Jerusalem, which isour kingdom. Thus do we live in these islands, Spaniards and Indians, all vassals of one Catholic monarch in regard to human matters. Thispoint can be seen in extenso in the Politica Indiana of Solorzano inbook 2, chapter i. [354]

479. The laws or regulations by which these Indians governed themselveswere founded on the traditions and customs of their ancestors, whichwere not barbaric in all things as were they. For they were directedto venerate and obey their parents, and to treat their elders with thedue respect; and individuals to follow the dictate of the communityof the village; and to punish crimes, etc. 

480. Their judges for this were the chief or dato aided by some oldmen of his own barangay, or of another barangay if necessary. Orthey themselves appointed a judge-arbiter, even if he were of adistinct barangay or village. If there were a suit with rival parties, they tried first to come to an agreement. If they would not agree, an oath was taken from each one, who declared that they would doas the judges should sentence. Having done that, witnesses wereexamined summarily. If the testimony was equal for each side, thenthe litigants were reconciled. If the evidence were in favor of oneof them, the suit was sentenced in his favor, and the defeated one wasnotified. If he would not admit the sentence willingly, the judge andall the others proceeded against him, and by way of execution deprivedhim of all the gold to which he had been sentenced. The greater partof it went to the judges of the case, and to pay the witnesses onthe victorious side; while the poor litigant had the least of all, being content with only the glory of victory. 

481. Criminal cases were judged according to the rank of the murdererand the murdered. For if the murdered man were a chief among them allhis relatives went to the house of his murderer, and the houses of hisrelatives, and they had continual wars one with the other until--theold men stepped in and acted as mediators, with the declaration of theamount of gold that ought to be given as a payment for that murder. Thejudges and the chief old men took one-half that sum, and the other wasdivided among the wife, children, and relatives of the deceased. Thepenalty of death was never adjudged except when the murderer andhis victim were so poor and so destitute that they had no gold forsatisfaction and expenses. In that case either his own chief or datokilled the criminal, or the other chiefs speared him after he had beenfastened to a stake, and made him give up the ghost by spear-thrusts. 

482. In the matter of thefts in which the thief was not known withcertainty, and those under suspicion were many, they made a sort ofgeneral purgation performed in the following manner. Each one wasobliged to bring in a bundle of cloth, leaves, or anything else inwhich the stolen article could be hidden. Then the fastenings wereunwound, and if the stolen goods were found in any of them, thematter ceased, and no investigation was made as to whom the bundlebelonged, or who had stolen it. But if the stolen goods were notfound, the following means were employed. Each suspect was made toenter a river with a good bottom, staff in hand, and then all at onceplunged under. The first one who came up, because he could no longerhold his breath, was regarded as the thief of the stolen goods, forhis remorse of conscience, they said, took away his breath. On thataccount, many were drowned for fear of punishment. The other meanswas to place a stone in a vessel of boiling water, and to order thesuspects to take it out with the hand, and he who refused to put inhis hand paid for the theft. Another means was to give them each a waxcandle with wicks of equal length, and of the same size and weight, all lit at the same instant; and he whose candle went out first wasregarded as the culprit. Of all this, and in all the other suits andcivil or criminal causes, the chief took half the gold, and the otherhalf was divided among joint judges and witnesses; and scarce a bitwas left for the poor creditor, litigant, or owner. This was one ofthe greatest sources of gain to the chiefs and datos, and offered thebest opportunity for them to exercise their tyranny with the poor, even were the latter guiltless. 

483. Adultery was not punishable corporally, but the adulterer paid acertain sum to the aggrieved party; and that was sufficient so thatthe honor of the latter was restored and his anger removed. Theypaid no attention to concubinage, rape, and incest, unless the crimewere committed by a timava on a woman of rank. On the contrary, thecommittal of such sins openly was very common, for all of them werevery much inclined to this excess; but I cannot find that they wereaddicted to the sin against nature in the olden time. Verbal insults, especially to chiefs, women, and old men, were regarded as deservingthe severest kind of punishment, and it was difficult to obtain thepardon of the aggrieved. 

CHAPTER XLV

 Of other customs of these peoples, and in regard to their marriage, dowries, children, and issue

484. It is not known whether these natives divided the time intohours, days, weeks, months, or years, or made any other divisionof time. As this was necessary to them for the reckoning of theircommerce, trade, and contracts (in which they all engaged), they usedfor reckoning their times of payment, and for other transactions andbusiness of their government--for the hours, the state of the sun inthe sky, the crowing of the cock, and the laying time of the hens, and several other enigmas which are still employed in the Tagálogspeech. To keep account of the changing of seasons, they knew when itwas winter or summer by the trees, and their leaves and fruit. Theyknew of the division into months or years by moons. Consequently, inorder to designate the date of payment, they said "in so many moons, in so many harvests, or in so many fruitings of such and such atree. " These were the methods employed in their trading and government. 

485. The days were reckoned by the name of the sun, namely, arao. Thusthe Tagálogs now reckon ysang árao, "one day;" dalauang árao, "two[days], " and so on until they have the difference of weeks, whichthey call by the name Domingo, saying "so many Domingos. " [355] Thenight is called gab-ì; and the day arao, from the name of the sun. Themonths were named and reckoned by the name of the moon, namely, bovanin Tagálog. Thus did they divide the seasons after their own manner, and in their own speech. Only there are no terms to indicate thehours of the clock [in their speech]; and now the Castilian [names of]hours are Tagalized, in order to indicate the hours of time. They callthe clock horasan, that is, "a thing in which one sees the hours;"whether in its place or in the instrument made for it. 

486. They expressed "the year" in their old speech by the word taòn. Itis metaphorical, for it really means "the assembling of many, " andthat they have joined together months to make one year. They had aword to signify seasons and climates, namely panahon. But they neverknew the word "time" [tiempo], in its general sense, and there isno proper Tagálog word for it; but they use the Spanish word only, corrupted after their manner, for they make it tiyempo. 

487. Their business and contracts were for the greater part illegal, filled with usury, interest, and tricks; for each one thought onlyof increasing his own profits, and paid no attention to his nearestrelatives. Consequently, loans with interest were very common andgenerally practiced (and even yet this archipelago is not free fromthis abuse, nor have the difficulties experienced in the confessionalceased); and the interest increases to a very high figure, the debtdoubling and increasing for so long a time as the debt is delayed, until it results that the debtor, his wealth, and his children, areall slaves. Their general business was the bartering of one productfor another (and it is still much in vogue)--food, mantas, birds, stock, lands, houses, fields, slaves, fisheries, palms, nipa-groves, woodlands, and other similar products. Sometimes those products weresold for a price, which was paid in gold, according to the terms of theagreement. Thus they traded among themselves with the products of theirown lands, and with foreigners from other nations for products peculiarto them; and for this they were wont to have their deferred payments, their days of reckoning, and their bondsmen who were concernedtherein--but with exorbitant profits, because they were all usurers. 

488. In regard to money of silver or gold they did not possess itin that [early] time. Those metals were employed in their tradingonly by the weight, which was used alone for silver and gold;and that weight they called talaro, and was indicated by balances, like ours. They reckoned and divided by this. And after they learnedabout money they gave to each piece its proper name, taking the cointhat we call "tostòn, " or "real of four, " as the basis for greatersums. This they called salapì, although that is the common termfor all kinds of money. They divided the salapì into two cahàtis, the cahàtis into two seycapat, the seycapat into two seycávalos, theseycávalo into two calatíos, the calatìo (which they call aliu) intothe cuding, etc. All this division was regulated by tostòns in thismanner: the cahàti signifies one-half tostòn; seycàpat, the fourthpart; seycávalo, the eighth; calatìo is the Tagálog cuartillo; [356]and so on. In order to say "three reals, " they say tatlongbahagui, that is, three parts of the tostòn. From the tostòn on, they count upto ten, and from ten to twenty, etc. Consequently, in their languagethey use this expression for ours, saying, "I ask ten and one more, "or "I ask one for twenty;" and so on. But now since they know whatpesos are, that is, reals of eight, some of them reckon by pesos, which is more familiar to the Spaniards. But most of them do notforget their salapìs, nor the method of reckoning used by the ancients. 

489. The gold, which they call guinto, was also reckoned by weight. Thelargest weight is the tàhel, which is the weight of ten reals ofsilver--or, as we say, of one escudo. The half-tàhel is called tingà, which is the weight of five reals. The fourth part is called sapaha, which is two and one-half reals. They also used other metaphoricalterms (as the Spanish do the term granos), and said sangsàga, whichis the weight of one red kidney-bean [frixolillo] with a white spotin the middle. 

490. In order to weigh bulkier things, such as wax, silk, meat, etc. , they had steelyards, which they called sinantan, which wasequivalent to ten cates, of twenty onzas [i. E. , ounce] apiece. Thehalf of that they called banal, which was five cates; and the halfof the cate they called soco. Consequently, these old weights havingbeen adjusted to the Spanish weights by the regulations of the year1727, one cale is equivalent to one libra, six onzas; one chinantato thirteen libras, and twelve onzas; hence one quintal, of eightyof the old cates, corresponds to four arrobas and ten libras of ourweight. A pico of one hundred cates is equivalent to five arrobas, twelve and one-half libras, in the new arrangement. As in the caseof gold, one tàhel must weigh one and one-fourth onzas in our weight. 

491. In regard to the measures of quantity which the ancients used, they were the same as those we now see: cabàn, ganta, half-ganta, and chupa. The city has regulated them by the Spanish measures inthe following manner. The caban, which signifies "box" [arca] intheir own Tagalog speech, is equivalent to one fanega of the standardof Toledo. The ganta (gantang in Visayan, and salòp in Tagálog) isequivalent to one half of a Toledo almud, which is the hal-zeleminin other territories. The half-ganta is equivalent to one cuartillo, which is called pitìs or caguiina in Tagálog. The chupa is the eighthof the half-almud of Toledo, which is called gàtang in Tagálog, andalso gahinan, for it is the ration of cleaned rice sufficient foreach meal of a man. The act of measuring in this manner is expressedby the word tàcal among the Tagálogs. When the king issues ordersfor rice, it is reckoned by cabàns of twenty-four gantas apiece;and now it is known that it is of pálay rice, which is rice with thehusk and uncleaned. When vouchers are issued for the stipends andthe support of the religious ministers, the reckoning is by fanegas, at the rate of two cabàns of twenty-four gantas each, of the saidpálay rice uncleaned. And because his Majesty chooses that they giveit to us very clean, it is now ruled in the royal accountancy thatforty-eight gantas of the fanega of pálay is equivalent to a basket oftwenty gantas of bigàs, which is the name for cleaned rice. Henge theking in his charity, in order to give us our sustenance in the ricewithout waste, gives valuation to the measure at his own pleasure, for the rice with husk, so that the quantity may be doubled. Theestimation of the king in this is not the same as looking into thehollow measure in its strict capacity, as has been already explained. 

492. They also measure by brazas and palmos (but for the vara, I findno proper Tagálog term, but only the Spanish). The braza is calleddipa; that of the city is of sixty points, into which the six feetcontained in it are divided. The palmo is called dancal. Tumòro isone jeme. [357] Sangdamàc is the whole width of the hand with thefive fingers. Sangdali is the width of one finger; and sucat is theact of measuring in this manner. [358]

493. So was their usage in their business. Although there are noarithmetical numbers among their characters, such as we use, theycounted with little stones, making small heaps of them, and made useof the natural words of their own speech, which are very expressivein Tagálog; and they did not feel their ignorance of the numberswritten in their own characters; for they could express the highestnumber very clearly by word of mouth. 

494. The maritime folk were wont to go out upon many raids, and thoseashore to set strange ambushes for their robberies, to the great lossof life. Their arms were bow and arrow, and a short lance resembling adart, with the iron head of innumerable shapes; and some without iron, the points being made from the bamboos themselves, or from stakeshardened in the fire. They used cutlasses; large and broad daggers, of excellent quality, with sharp edges; and long blowpipes, throughwhich they discharged arrows dipped in poison. Their defensive armswere wooden shields, breastplates of rattan or thick cord, and helmetsof the same material. 

495. Among so many barbaric customs, the universality of their vicesprevailed; and they were infidel, tyrannical, and unchaste. Theyregarded virginity as an opprobrium, and there were men who received asalary for the office of deflowering [the girls] of their virginity. Nowoman, married or single, assured her honor and credit, unless she hadsome sweetheart; and although this was so honorable for the women, itwas considered a dishonor to give the liberty of her body freely. Nowthe women are modest in their behavior, but easy, if they are sought, as the smoke from the fire of their beginnings still endures. At thebirth of males, and even the females, the midwives themselves madeeasier for them the carnal act, by cutting off I know not what fromtheir organs. And now that the midwives do not do it, there is no lackof the introduction of this abuse among the boys; but it is assuredthat this is not the circumcision of the Jews. The devil influencedthem in other curious ways for the greater sensuality and duration intheir carnal acts, methods which are now completely extinct. But theyhave sufficiently caught the plague of sodomy from the Japanese andChinese; and I have already seen some persons burned, in my time. Inshort, men and women never think of being chaste, so that among themost holy all their thought is of their marriages. 

496. At the present time we have always tried to see that the bridesand grooms are always of equal rank and condition. It was not usualfor them to have more than one own wife, and one own husband; butthose who were chiefs and wealthy were allowed to have some slaves asconcubines, especially if their own wives did not prove fruitful. Onlyamong the Visayans did the first religious ministers of the gospel findestablished the custom of one man having many legitimate wives, andthat of large dowries, which was no small obstruction to the plantingof the gospel. The general rule was for each man to have one legitimatewife; and they tried to obtain one who was of their own family, andeven very closely related to them, barring out the first degree, for that was always a direct impediment to their marriage. Theirmarriages were not indissoluble, as are those of Christians. For ifthe consorts returned the dowry, one to the other, the one at faultto the one without blame, that was sufficient for repudiation; andthey could marry others, unless the couple had children, in whichcase all the dowry was given to these. If profits had been made withthe lapse of time, while they had lived together, those profits weredivided between them both, if the gains were in common. But if theywere the secret gains of one of them, then that one kept them. 

497. The dowry, which is called bigaycàya, was always given by the man(and it is even yet given), the parents of the girl determining thesum beforehand, at the time when they discussed the marriage. Theparents of the bride received that dowry, and neither the bride norher parents contributed any fund. The dowry was set according to therank of the contracting parties; and if, perchance, the parents of thebride asked more than the ordinary sum, they were under obligationsto bestow some gift to the married couple to suit the occasion as, for instance, a couple of slaves, some small gold jewel, or a bit ofcleared land--for cultivation, as I have seen practiced even yet, and which they called pasonòr. In this bigaycaya was included whatthey called panhimùyat, which was the sum that had to be paid to themother of the bride in return for her care and labor in the rearingand education of her daughter. In it was also included the pasòso, orthe sum that was to be paid to the chichiva, or nurse, who had rearedher. At present, if perhaps there is no bigaycaya in any marriage, for any reason, they never fail to collect these revenues from thegroom, upon which there is generally a suit. 

498. This dowry or bigaycaya was and is given before the marriage withall the solemnity that they can muster up, amid a great concourse ofmaguinoos, relatives, and friends of the lovers. The latter are giventhe crosses on the money to kiss, which is counted and exhibitedin public, in confirmation of the pact; and then the marriage isimmediately celebrated with feasting and rejoicing. The employmentof this bigaycaya is not the same in all the villages. In some it isall converted into the property of the parents of the bride, by wayof trade, they selling their daughter (as do those of Mesopotamia)for a reasonable price. If the men do not possess the wherewithalwith which to buy them promptly, innumerable sins follow and the twolive in improper relations, even to the knowledge of the parentsthemselves--the young man serving as a servant in the houses ofthe latter to do their will, but in the capacity of a son, as faras familiarity and permission for evil are concerned. Many effortsare employed to extirpate this diabolical abuse, but it still costsgreat toil. Under the title of catipàdos (thus they call those whoare engaged for marriage) are some concubinages legitimate for alltime, for which the bigaycàya is not necessary. Having given up thebigaycàya, the poor couple are left destitute, for the parents ofthe bride take charge of everything. 

499. That money is better used in some villages; for it serves toprovide all kinds of clothes for the bride, and for one-half theexpenses of the wedding (which are generally very great), and theparochial fees of the marriage, so that scarcely any is left for theparents of the couple. This is the practice that I have seen observedwhere I have been. These and other ogalis (which are customs) canonly have their origin in the past, and come from father to son, and even there is variety in them, according to their distinct origins. 

500. That which in España is called "the exchange of rings, " in orderto give security to the marriage contract and the wishes of those whoare to contract it, has also been observed here, the couple givingeach other some jewel. This has been called talingbòhol. This wasfollowed by the habìlin, which is the sign that they have given thedowry which they had promised. And this was like the sign in shopsto show that the price was fixed and that the article could not besold at another price. Some fathers have maintained the custom ofasking the same price for their daughter as they paid for the motherwhen they were married; but as fortunes are unequal, this cannot bemaintained inexorably, nor at all times, nor with all. 

501. The dowry was never returned to the one who gave it, unless theson-in-law were so obedient to his parents-in-law that he should wintheir affection, in which case they returned him the dowry, at thedeath of any one; but this was rather a matter of charity than ofobligation, as all confess. If the woman who was to be married wasalone, and had neither parents nor grandparents, she herself and noother received the dowry. At present, the greed of the Indians mustbe greater; for this poor lone woman is never without either thechichiva who gave her the breast, who will not be left without herpayment, or uncle, aunt, or other relative in whose care she has beenbecause of the loss of her legitimate parents. And since the aboveconsider themselves as her parents in this matter (the pinaca ama, as the Indians call it) they take upon themselves the place of herparents, and get all the money, just as if they were the true parents. 

502. All the relatives and friends who go to weddings were alsowont to take each some little present. These gifts were set downvery carefully and accurately, in an account, noting whatever eachone gave. For if Pedro So-and-so gave two reals at this wedding, two reals were also given to him if he had another wedding in hishouse. All this money is spent, either in paying, if anything is duefor the wedding, or as an aid in the expenses. Or if the parents ofboth the young couple are niggardly, they divide it and keep it. Ifthey are generous, they use it in the pamamuhay, or furnishing ofthe house of the couple. Consequently, there is no regular customin this. The nearest relatives give the couple a jewel as a mark ofaffection, but do not give money. These jewels belong to the bride, and to no one else. 

503. Three days before the wedding all the relatives of both partiesassemble at the house where it is to be celebrated, to make thepàlapàla, which is a sort of bower, by which they make the house largerso that all the guests may be accommodated easily. They spend threedays in making this. The next three days are those customary to thewedding and its feast. Consequently, there are six days of expense, of racket, of reveling, of dancing and singing, until they fallasleep with fatigue and repletion, all helter-skelter without anydistinction. Often from this perverse river the devil in turn getshis little harvest--now in quarrels and mishaps which have happened, and now in other more common sins; the greatest vigilance of thefather ministers is insufficient to stop these wrongs, and there areno human forces (although there ought to be) which can banish thesepernicious ogalis. 

504. In the olden days they employed certain ridiculous ceremonies, which had but little decency attending the intercourse of the coupleupon the night of the wedding, customs which have now been totallyuprooted. The least indecent was the coming of the catalona orbabaylana to celebrate the espousals. They brought a hog for thispurpose, and with it and on it performed their rites as in othersacrifices. The young couple seated themselves on their bridal bed, in the laps of certain old women who played the part of godmothers ofthe espousal. These women fed the young couple with their own handsfrom one dish, and they both drank from one vessel. The groom said thathe loved the bride, and she that she loved the groom. Thereupon theshouts of joy broke out, and cries, and there was singing and dancingand drinking. Then the catalona arose with great gravity, and so manywere the blessings that she showered down upon the young couple that, according to some that I have heard among these natives, they wouldexceed without any doubt the flatteries of our gypsy men and women, when they tell the fortune of one who has given them a large reward. 

505. If the recently-married couple did not agree well, the groomdanced, spear in hand, before a hog, and then gave it the death-thrust, praying meanwhile to his anito, and this was sufficient to make theyoung couple agree. Now the couple go in festal procession in themanner of a masquerade, to the house where they are to live. Then theyform another such procession, in order to convey the godparents totheir abodes, and with this the festival is at an end. And after sogreat expense, they usually remain indebted for the small parochialmarriage fees, if the father minister has not been very prompt. 

506. In regard to heirs, all the legitimate children equally inheritedall the property of their parents. If there were no legitimatechildren, then the nearest relatives inherited. If one had two ormore children by two wives, all legitimate, each child inheritedwhat belonged to his mother, both of the wealth of her time, and ofthe profits made from it, which could have belonged to her. As tothe dowry, it is inferred that the child's grandparents received it, and spent it at the time of the wedding. If there were other childrenwho were not legitimate, who had been had by a free woman, they hadone-third of the property, and the legitimate children the other twothirds. But in case that there were no legitimate children, then theillegitimate children of a free woman were the absolute heirs. Someproperty was given to the children of slave women according to thewishes of the legitimate heirs, and the mother became free, as hasbeen stated above--as did the children also, in the manner alreadyexplained. 

507. They were also accustomed to have adopted children, and they arestill much addicted to this; but the adoption was purchased by the oneadopted, who gave the adopter a certain sum of gold, and, without anyother intricacies of law, the latter kept the one adopted, althoughotherwise he had his own legitimate father. This was the contract madein such cases. If the adopter reared the one adopted during his life(whether he had other children or not), the one adopted was to inheritthe sum that had been given for his adoption--increased by a like sum, obtaining in the inheritance twenty, if ten had been given. But if theone adopted died first, the total obligation of the adopter expired, even to the heirs of the one adopted. Over and above the inheritanceobligation, the adopter generally left the one adopted something else, such as a jewel or a slave, if his services had been good, as a rewardfor his faithfulness and affection. If however, the one adopted wasdisagreeable, the adopter gave him up by giving back the sum thathad been given for his adoption, and the contract was annulled. 

508. If children were had in adultery, they all lived with themother. If the party aggrieved had been paid and satisfied by theculprit with gold, according to their custom, the children weredeclared legitimate, and inherited equally with the real legitimatechildren in the inheritance of the father; but they inherited nothingfrom the mother. But if the injury were not atoned for, they had noinheritance, and were not regarded as legitimate. 

509. These children, and those had by one's own slave woman(notwithstanding the liberty which she and her children enjoyed), and much less the children had by a slave of another master(notwithstanding that gold was paid for her during her pregnancy), did not succeed to the nobility of their parents, nor to theirprivileges; but were always considered as people of low birth, andwere enrolled among the timavas in the villages. The legitimatechildren alone could inherit nobility, and even posts. Hence ifthe father were absolute lord in one barangay, his sons succeededto that office, according to priority of birth; and if there wereno sons, then the daughters, and after them the nearest relatives;and it was unnecessary to appoint or name them in their wills. Theyhave never had the custom of making wills, and at most leave a listof their wealth and obligations. However, the custom is now comingin of making some testamentary memoranda before the village clerk, so that it may be legal in court. 

NOTES

[1] Domingo Zabálburu de Echevarri (see Vol. XVII, p. 294). 

[2] For description of Borneo, see Vol. XXXIII, p. 353, note419. Malayo refers to a portion of the Malay Peninsula. For the origin, settlement, and distribution of the native peoples in the Philippines, see Barrows's account in Census of Philippine Islands, i, pp. 411-417, 447-477; cf. Crawfurd's Dictionary of Indian Islands, pp. 249-253. 

[3] João de Barros, the great Portuguese historian, was born at Vizeuin 1496 and became page to the crown prince (afterward João III), for whose amusement he wrote his three-volume romance, Cronica deEmperador Clarimundo (Coimbra, 1520). João III appointed him captainof the fortress of San Jorge de Mina, governor of the Portuguesepossessions in Guinea, and (1533) treasurer and general agent forPortuguese India. An attempt to colonize a grant of land in Brazil(received 1539) failed, and was abandoned. Barros died in 1570. Thebook referred to in the text was his Decados, a history of PortugueseIndia, written in fulfilment of a royal commission. The first "decade"was completed in nine years (1552), the second soon after, and thethird ten years later. The fourth was left unfinished at his death, but was completed later by Diogo do Conto, who added eight morevolumes. A complete edition was printed at Lisbon in twenty-fourvolumes (1778-88). Barros was a conscientious writer and a goodstylist. (New International Encyclopædia. )

[4] An apparent error for the word "kasis, " and here wrongly used(see Vol. XVI, p. 134, note 161). 

[5] Thus (sur) in text; but, as a matter of fact, Paragua stretchesnortheast from the north point of Borneo, and the Sulu archipelagoin the same direction from its northeast side. 

[6] Sumatra is on the whole deficient in lakes. The largest is LakeSingkara, about twenty miles in length by about twelve to fifteen inbreadth, with a depth of twenty-four fathoms, and is the source of theIndragiri River. Another lies near the foot of the mountain Mârapi, and is called Danau Sapuluh kota, or "Lake of the ten forts. " There aretwo others in the country of the Korinchi Malays; and still anotherin the country of the Lampungs, toward Java, and called the Ranu(Javanese synonym for "water"). It is about sixteen miles long andeight miles wide. Colin evidently refers to either the first or thelast of these. See Crawfurd's Dictionary, p. 416. 

[7] India citra Gangem (if we accept Marco Polo's division) wouldcorrespond to Greater India, or the country extending from theGanges to the Indus. India extra Gangem, or Lesser India, included theterritory between the eastern coast of the peninsula of India, and thatof Cochinchina or Champa. See Wright's edition of Travels of MarcoPolo (London and New York, 1892), p. 435, note. Colin says (p. 1), that India extra Gangem or Farther India included the coasts of therich kingdoms of Malacca, Sian, Camboja, Champa, Cochinchina, Tunquin, and China, as far as the confines of Oriental Tartary. The allusionto an Asiatic Ethiopia is hopelessly confused, and may have arisenfrom Marco Polo's second division of India, which includes Abyssinia. 

[8] Of the Manguianes, or more properly the Mangyan, Pardo de Taverasays in Etimologia de las nombres de razas de Filipinas (Manila, 1901): "In Tagálog, Bícol, and Visaya, manguian signifies 'savage, ''mountaineer, ' 'pagan negroes. ' It may be that the use of this wordis applicable to a great number of Filipinos, but nevertheless ithas been applied only to certain inhabitants of Mindoro. In primitivetimes, without doubt, the name was even then given to those of thatisland who to-day bear it, but its employment in three Filipinolanguages shows that the radical ngian had in all these languagesa sense to-day forgotten. In Pampango this radical ending stillexists and signifies 'ancient, ' from which we can deduce that thename was applied to men considered to be the ancient inhabitants, and that these men were pushed back into the interior by the moderninvaders in whose languages they are called the 'ancients. '" Theylive in the mountains of Mindoro and are probably a mixture of theNegritos with other Filipinos, and possibly in some localities theremay be a small infusion of white blood. They are non-Christian, and are very timid. Their dress consists of the "gee" string, withthe addition, in the case of the younger girls, of some forty oreighty yards of bejuco (rattan) wrapped around the waist. They aredivided into several tribes, chief among which are the "Buquit, ""Bangon, " and "Batanganes, " who roam in bunches or by families, theoldest acting as chief. They are willing workers, and make nearlyall the bancas used in the province. They have no knowledge whateverof agriculture, and do not know the value of money. The census of1903 shows a population of 7, 269. See Census of the Philippines, i, pp. 472, 473, 547, and 548; and ii, p. 15. 

[9] The Chinese carried on a fairly active trade in the Philippinesthree centuries before Magellan's discovery of the archipelago. Thearticles traded by them for the products of the country consisted ofpottery, lead, glass beads, iron cooking-pans, and iron needles. Someof them may have gone north above Manila. See Census of Philippines, i, p. 482. 

[10] See David P. Barrows "History of the Population of thePhilippines, " published in vol. 1, of Census of Philippines, forvaluable material in regard to the peopling of the Philippines. Seealso Crawfurd's Dictionary. 

[11] Diodorus, surnamed Siculus, or "the Sicilian, " was a Greekhistorian, a native of Agyrion, Sicily, who lived in the timeof Cæsar and Augustus. After long travels in Asia and Europe hewrote his Bibliotheca, a universal history in 40 books, covering aperiod from the oldest time to 60 B. C. Books 1-5 and 11-20, besidesother fragments, are still extant. The early portion of the work isethnological, but the later is in the annalist style. (Seyffert'sDictionary of Classical Antiquities. )

[12] Either Iamblichus the Syrian Greek romance writer, who lived inthe second century A. D. , or Iamblichus the Greek philosopher fromChalcis in Syria, who was a pupil of Porphyrius, and the founder ofthe Syrian school of Neo-Platonic philosophy, and who died about 330A. D. The latter justified Oriental superstition and had the reputationof working miracles. (Seyffert's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities. )

[13] See Vol. XVI, p. 117, note 135. 

[14] Señor Don Antonio Graiño, a bookman in Madrid, Spain, has anunpublished MS. History by Pedro Chirino, probably a copy of the onementioned by Colin. 

[15] See Vol. XII, p. 237. 

[16] This should be compared with the Ave Maria as given by Chirino(see Vol. XII, p. 237). Colin also gives the same in the Visayantongue, but as it differs so slightly from the version as givenby Chirino ("ginoon" in place of "guinoon, " line 2, second word;"sancta, " in place of "santa, " line 5, first word; "Ynahan" in placeof "inahan, " line 5, third word; "macasala" in place of "macasasala"line 6, fourth word; and "camatay" in place of "camatai, " last line, fourth word), it is omitted here (see ut supra, p. 239). The versionin the Harayan tongue that is given (ut supra, p. 238) by Chirino, isomitted by Colin. In his text we retain also his Spanish translationof the prayer. 

[17] Cf. Personal names and the ceremonies attendant on bestowing themamong the Bornean Malays, in Furness's Home-life of Borneo Head-hunters(Philadelphia, 1902), pp. 16-53; and Ling Roth's Natives of Sarawak, ii, pp. 273-277. 

[18] Light thin stuff made of silk or thread; crape. See Velázquez'sNew Dictionary. 

[19] "Such is the wine from nipa, called Tanduay. The famous chemist(a Chinese mestizo) Anacleto del Rosario, discovered a process bywhich the disagreeable taste of this brandy disappears; and it becomesequal to that of Spain in color, smell, taste, and strength. " (FatherPastells, in his edition of Colin, i, p. 62, note 2. )

[20] Gachas: A certain food composed of flour, milk, and water, to which is added honey or sugar, and the consistency of which ismidway between starch and flour paste. (Dominguez's Diccionario. )

[21] "Their most popular traditional songs are the Cundimán, theComintán, the Balitao, the Saloma, and the Talindao. Some are onlysung; in others, they sing and dance at the same time. " (Pastells, in his Colin, i. P. 63, note 1. )

[22] "The dance here described by the author is that which is calledin Filipinas Moro-Moro. " (Pastells, ut supra, p. 63, note 3. )

[23] Pastells (ut supra, p. 64, note 1) discusses the meaning ofthe word Bathala; he thinks that it is ascertained "by resolving theword into its primary elements, Bata and Ala = 'Son God, or Son ofGod. ' This is why the first missionaries did not deprive the natives ofthis name when they instructed them about the existence of God and themysteries of the Trinity, the incarnation, and redemption, as states ananonymous but very circumstantial relation written at Manila, on April20, 1572. This is more evident in the song which the Mandayan baylanasuse in their sacrifices, when they chant the Miminsad, saying: [Herefollow the words of this song, for which consult our Vol. XII, p. 270, note. ] . .. The Mandayas believe that Mansilatan is the father of Batla(man being a prefix which indicates paternity, being, or dominion), and the Búsao who takes possession of the baylanas when they tremble, and of the Baganis when they become furious; it is a power which isderived from Mansilatan. .. . This interpretation of the word Bathalais confirmed by that word of the Visayans, Diuata; we always find herethe same idea signified in the words Diwa and uata, differing only intheir transposition. .. . In closing, we may note that Dewa in Malay, Déwa in Javanese, Sunda, Makasar, and Day[ak?], Deva in Maguindanao, and Djebata in Bornean, signify 'the supreme God, ' or 'Divinity. '"

[24] The caverns were, in especial, formerly the usual sepulchres ofthe Indians. The anthropologists have profited by this circumstancefor their studies, and for furnishing the museums of their respectivenations with skeletons of those natives. (Pastells, ut supra, p. 66, note 1. )

[25] The Mahometans [Moros] had their mosque, or lañgà. " (Pastells, utsupra, p. 66, note 3. ) Legazpi says (Vol. III, p. 60): "The heathenshave no [religious] law at all; they have neither temples nor idols, nor do they offer any sacrifices. "

[26] A reference to the common little house or chirping lizard, which is often seen and heard on the walls of the houses. See Censusof Philippines, i, p. 74. 

Arthur Stanley Riggs says in a note in a forthcoming volume, TheFilipino Drama: "The common or house lizard in the Philippines has apretty, chirping note. When one hears a lizard 'sing, ' as the Spaniardscall the cry, it means, among the Ilocanos, an important visit ofsome kind. If hunting at the time one hears several lizards sing, he must turn back immediately, as disaster will inevitably followfurther progress. Other curious and interesting superstitions obtainin like manner in other parts of the islands. "

[27] i. E. , "over and above the dowry. "

[28] i. E. , "Property which was given to women over and above the dowry, and remained at their own disposition. "

[29] Juan Francisco Combés was born at Zaragoza on October 5, 1620. At the age of twelve he entered the Jesuit order as a novice, at Tarragona; after six years of study there, he wished to enterthe Philippine missions, and was therefore sent to Mexico to awaitan opportunity for going to the islands. This did not come until1643, when Diego de Bobadilla went from Acapulco with forty-sevenJesuit missionaries, of whom Combés was one; five of these died in anepidemic, which carried away one hundred and fifteen of the people onthe ship. Combés completed his theological studies at Manila, and wasordained in 1645, being soon afterward sent to Zamboanga. He remainedin Mindanao twelve years, often acting as ambassador of the governorsto Corralat and other Moro chiefs, and ministering in various places;in 1657 he returned to Manila, where he spent two years, and then threeyears in Leyte. He was then recalled (1662) to Manila, and tried toinduce the authorities there to maintain the forts in the Moro country;but his efforts failed. In 1665 he was sent as procurator for his orderto Madrid and Rome; but he died on the voyage, December 29 of thatyear. (Retana and Pastells's ed. Of Hist. De Mindanao, col. Vi-xix. )

[30] Of the Caragas, Blumentritt says (Tribes of the Philippines, Mason's translation, p. 535): "In older works are so named the warlikeand Christian inhabitants of the localities subdued by the Spaniardson the east coast of Mindanao, and, indeed, after their principalcity, Caraga. It has been called, if not a peculiar language, a Visaya dialect, while now only Visaya (near Manobo and Mandaya)is spoken, and an especial Caraga nation is no longer known. " It isquite probable that the term Caragas was only a local name appliedby the people of this district to themselves or applied to them bythe Spaniards; and if they ever did exist as a separate people theyhave been completely absorbed by the surrounding peoples. 

[31] The Mindanaos (properly Maguindanaos, "people who come from thelake") are mentioned by Pigafetta (Vol. XXXIII, p. 239); they livenow, as formerly, principally about the Rio Grande, and they gavename to the island of Mindanao. They are Mahometan Moros and were thechief obstacle of the Spaniards in Mindanao, but were finally broughtunder control by General Weyler, and their power and importance isnow almost gone. Their political achievements are the only ones ofconsequence ever made by peoples of the Philippines. See Census ofPhilippine Islands, i, pp. 466-467. 

[32] Blumentritt (Tribes of the Philippines) identities the Lutaoswith the Mono of the district of Zamboanga, who are frequently calledIlanos, and adds that the name appears to be the Hispanicized formof the Malay Orang-Laút ("Men of the Sea"). The description givenby Combes fits rather the Orang-Laút themselves than the Ilanos, wholive along the seacoast west of Malabang, and are few in number. TheOrang-Laút, called also "Sea Gypsies, " "Bajau" and "Sámal-Laút"("Sámal of the Sea") are found throughout the Malay Archipelago(in the Philippines along southern Mindanao and throughout the SuluArchipelago), and live for mouths in their small boats. Their originalhome was Johore and the islands in the strait of Malacca; and they areonly imperfectly Mahometanized, some being quite pagans. The Sámalliving in towns in Zamboanga and the Sulu Archipelago are probablydescendants of the Sámal-Laút who have abandoned their wanderinglife. See Census of the Philippines, i, pp. 464, 475, 476, 563. 

[33] The Subanon (Spanish form "Subanos"), or "Men of the Rivers"are an important pagan tribe of western Mindanao, who are found in themountains of Zamboanga, and extending eastward slightly into Cottabato, Misamis, and Dapitan. For a modern description that agrees essentiallywith that of Combés, see Census of the Philippines, i, pp. 552-560. 

[34] Spanish, redentor; in religious orders, the father appointedto attend to the ransoming and return of Christians held captive byMahometan enemies. 

[35] Antonio de Abarca, S. J. , was born in Villalba in the diocese ofCuenca, September 13, 1610. He entered the Society March 23, 1628, went to the Philippines in 1632, and took his final vows, January21, 1649. He was a missionary in Mindanao and the Visayan Islands, and rector of Carigara and Cebú. While going to Rome as procurator, he died at sea (January 23, 1660), near Acapulco. (Combés, Pastellsand Retana ed. , col. 694. )

[36] This chief is called timoly by the Subanos; hari-hari by theMandayas; masali campo, by the Monteses; matado, by the Manobos;bagani, by the Bagobos; and dato and sultán by the Mahometans andMoros. (Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 655. )

[37] The so-called Dapitan nation was a Visayan tribe and lived inMindanao in the present comandancia of Dapitán in the province ofMisámis. Strictly speaking they can be called a distinct tribe withno greater accuracy than can the Caragas. See Blumentritt's Tribesof the Philippines (Mason's translation); and Pastells and Retana'sCombés, col. 779. 

[38] Baclayón is a village on the extreme southwest coast ofBohol. Loboc is a village of southern Bohol, and two milesinland. (Philippine Gazetteer. )

[39] The Portuguese had discovered the Moluccas before Magallanesset out on his memorable voyage in 1519. See Vol. XXXIV, pp. 39, 153. 

[40] The text which we follow reads "y quan a fauor de susnueuas. " "Nueuas" may possibly be a misprint for "navios, " in whichcase the phrase would read "how much at the mercy of their ships. "

[41] Even yet infidels abandon a house in which the head of thefamily has died. Father Pastells says that while crossing the islandof Mindanao with Father Heras in 1878, one Sálug died in the house ofSilungan, a freedman recently redeemed by the said missionaries. He wasbaptised before death by Father Pastells. Silungan demanded from thereligious the value of the house, which he proposed to abandon. Thefathers, however, answered him that since the freedman had died withbaptism, the house was purified. This satisfied the heathens, andthey did not insist on their demand. (Pastells and Retana's editionof Combés, note 13, col. 655. )

[42] This refers to Legazpi's and not Magallanes's expedition. Pagbuayamade friendship with the former, and gave him a pilot to guide him tothe inland of Panglao. In book two of Combés's Historia, chapter II, is related rightly the occurrence with regard to the king of Borneo, after the arrival of Legazpi. Combés says that the Dapitans imaginedthat the Spaniards were eating fire when they smoked, and the hardwhite sea-biscuits they imagined to be stones. The noise of theartillery they took to be thunder, and the sword with which each onewas girt, they thought to be a tail. 

[43] The term "Malanao" is derived from "ma, " "people of" and "lanao, ""lake, " and has long been used to distinguish the Moros living onthe watershed of Lake Lanao. See Census of the Philippines, i, p. 473. 

[44] In 1596, Fathers Valerio de Ledesma and Manuel Martinez firstestablished the mission of the River of Butuan. That same year, there not being as yet any division into bishoprics, the Manilaecclesiastical cabildo (as the see was vacant), gave Mindanao into theformal possession of the Society of Jesus, an act that was confirmedby Francisco Tello, as viceroyal patron. Later, the question ofthe jurisdiction about Lake Malanao was argued in court between theJesuits and Recollects, and was decided in favor of the former byJuan Niño de Tabora, a sentence confirmed by Corcuera September 5, 1637. (Pastells and Retana's Combés, cols. 655, 656. )

[45] The bay of Panguil or Pangil takes its name from a fruit, pangi(Hidnocarpus polyandra--Bl. ), which is carried down to the coast bythe rivers. (Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 759. )

[46] The Manobos are a Malay head-hunting heathen tribe of northernMindanao who live in the interior about the watershed of the AgusanRiver. "Manobo" is a native word, which, in the Bagobo language ofthe gulf of Dávao, means "man. " Blumentritt (with whom Retana agrees)says that the correct form of the name is "Manuba" or "Man-Suba, " i. E. , "river-people. " The term might possibly be extended to the mountainpeople of Misamis province. See Census of the Philippines, i, pp. 461, 473; Blumentritt's Tribes of the Philippines (Mason's translation);and Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 780. 

[47] Blumentritt (Tribes of the Philippines, Mason's translation) saysof the Mananapes: "A heathen people alleged to dwell in the interiorof Mindanao, possibly a tribe of Buquidnones or Manobos. " Retana(Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 780) says that the appellation isequivalent to "Manap, " and is not the name of a tribe, but merely anickname to indicate that those bearing that name are wild like beasts. 

[48] Retana (Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 780), derives"Sameacas" from "Sumasacas, " a word which he says is equivalent tothe Visayan "tagasaca, " "people of the uplands. " According to him, they are Malayan Moros, but Montero y Gay (Blumentritt's Tribes ofPhilippines, Mason's translation) says that they are heathen. It shouldbe observed that Retana is not always a safe guide in etymologicaland ethnological matters. 

[49] This entire sentence is, like many others of Combés, of loose andvague construction. Apparently what he means is, that the Lutaos had, like the Javanese, a polite and a vulgar tongue; and that the formermore closely resembles the Sanskrit (since he implies that the Lutaoscame from India). 

[50] The Spaniards, mindful of their own struggles with the Moors ofSpain (Moros) called all Mahometan peoples Moors. 

[51] See Vol. XXXVI, p. 174, note 33. 

[52] A classic allusion, occasioned by the marine life and habits ofthe Lutaos. 

[53] Paguian Tindig is equivalent to "just king. " In their literalsense, both words signify "he who causes persons and things to passby the right path. " (Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 727. )

[54] Elsewhere written Limansacay; see Vol. IV, pp. 241-278, theaccount of Gabriel de Ribera's expedition against the Mindanaosin 1579. 

[55] Such was the first outbreak of hostilities which caused therebellion of the Moros of Joló against Spain, and originated thepiracy of that small archipelago, which wrought so much ruin, andcaused so much bloodshed and depopulation among the Visayan andTagálog islands. (Pastells and Retanas Combés, col. 658. )

[56] Regarding the introduction of Mahometanism in those islands, see Vol. IV, pp. 150, 151, 168, 178. 

[57] A common name for the mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana), a fruitof delicate flavor and highly prized; this tree grows in Joló andMindanao. (Official Handbook of Philippines, p. 316. )

[58] Becoquin: "A sort of cap made with a piece of cloth. " When theJoloans made a treaty with the Jesuit Lopez, they ratified it by anoath taken "on the becoquin or cap of Tampan, one of the old-timeministers of their deceit. .. . When the princes of Joló swear by thisbecoquin, using this ceremony, it is the strongest oath that they cantake, and that which is most respected. " (Combés, Hist. De Mindanao, col. 478, 785. )

[59] The limocon (Calcophups indica) is a species of turtledove withred feet and beak. It is very beautiful, its plumage being green ona white background. See Delgado's Historia, p. 830. 

[60] There are offerings and sacrifices among the Mindanao heathen. Thefirst [pagcayog] consist in offering rice, buyo, and money beforea small idol of bayog [Pterospermum] wood (placed on a small altaradorned with bamboo and bonga [Areca]), called diuata or Manáug. Thisidol, which is a poorly-made image, has for eyes the red fruit of thetree called mabugaháy, and is painted with the sap of the narra. Theblood sacrifices are of animals, and even of human beings. Thefirst are called talíbong, if the animal sacrificed is a cock, and pag-balílig, if it is a hog. In either case, the priestesses(bailanes) having assembled, to the sound of the agun and guímbao, are clad according to rule; that is, with embroidered handkerchiefs onthe head; magnificent red shirts, rich glass beads hanging from theneck; silver medals fastened to the breast; large gold earrings withstrings of beads; a jabol or dagmay which serves them as a skirt, andis very skilfully woven and figured with crocodiles and other designs;at the girdle, in the midst of fragrant flowers and hawk's-bells, they carry the balarao or dagger with which the sacrifice of thevictim is made; on the arms precious bracelets of ságai-ságai andpamóans; and on the feet hoops and hawk's-bells, which sound incadence with the dance which legalizes such ceremonies. When thepriestesses have taken their places about the altar, upon whichthe victim is to be sacrificed, they commence their dances to thesound of the culintangan, some of them playing on the guimbao andthe agun. They walk about the altar; they tremble and belch, whilesinging the "miminsad, " until they fall senseless to the ground likethose stricken with epileptic fits. Then the spectators go to them, fan them, sprinkle them with water, and the other women bear themup in their arms until they recover consciousness. Then they repeatthe ceremony and the chief priestess buries her balarao in theheart of the hog or slits the cock's neck. Thereupon, she sucks upthe blood which gushes forth from the victim, partaking thus of thesacrifice. The other bailanes do the same. During the epileptic fit, they assert that Mansilatan has appeared to them and notified themof the good or ill outcome of the war, sickness, harvest, or whateverthey have been investigating. Then it all ends in excessive eating anddrinking. The human sacrifice is called huaga, and is only practicedamong the Bagobos and most barbarous heathen of Mindanao. The victimis offered to the Mandarangan, the god of the mountain or volcano ofApo; this person's value is generally apportioned among those whoparticipate in the sacrifice, and he who pays most is the first towound the unfortunate victim. The latter is cut into mincemeat in amoment amid the horrifying cries of his infamous executioners. Thanksto the painstaking vigilance of the authorities of that district, andto the incessant care of the missionaries, so impious and criminala ceremony is almost entirely eradicated, and is only practicedin secret, in the densest woods. In addition to the huaga, thereare true cases of cannibalism among the Baganis, who are wont toeat the raw entrails of those who fall before their lances, krises, and balaraos in battle. They do that as a mark of bravery. They havea proverb which says: "I am long accustomed to eat the entrails ofmen. " (Pastells and Retana's Combés, cols. 657, 658. )

[61] Referring to Tuambaloca, the queen of Raya Bongso; Bactial(misprinted Bachal in the Combés text) was his bastard son, who fora time ruled Joló, during his father's life. 

[62] These patolas are mentioned by Pigafetta in his relation. SeeVol. XXXIV, p. 59. 

[63] A measure of capacity equivalent to about one-half an Englishgallon, or two liters. 

[64] This last sentence is in the language of the Inquisition, the original being "y aun entre barbaros puso con sambenitoal vicioso, para que no tengan escusa los que se le hizieronFamiliares. " "Sambenito" (translated "penance") is the "garment worn bypenitent convicts of the Inquisition;" or "an inscription in churches, containing the name, punishment, and signs of the chastisement ofthose doing penance. "

[65] The dedo is a measure equivalent to one forty-eighth of the varaor Spanish yard. 

[66] Father Pastells has seen the immediate effects of the executionof judgment by boiling water, and cured a young man, who had thrusthis hand into boiling water, by sentence of the chiefs, in order toprove his innocence. The judgment of plunging the parties into wateris also practiced, and he who remains in the water the shortest timeis adjudged the criminal. (Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 659. )

[67] These prices are mentioned in Vol. XLI, appendix. 

[68] One of the chief causes of the great depopulation of Mindanaoand the Visayan Islands was the slavery produced by the piracy of theLutaos, encouraged by the Moros of Borneo, Célebes, Gilolo, Macazar, Ternate, and the other Moluccas, who brought the slaves in the marketsto which they were conveyed. (Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 659. )

[69] The Baganis, who dress in the manner described by the author, generally count the number of their victims, by placing on the edge ofthe shield as many locks of hair as the assassinations that they havecommitted. One Macusang gave Father Pastells his shield as a present, as a sign that he would kill no more Christians; and that shield heldone hundred and eight locks of hair. (Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 659. )

[70] Now called bido. They dress like women; and some think themhermaphrodites. (Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 659. )

Henry Ling Roth, in his Natives of Sarawak and British North Borneo(London, 1896), i, pp. 270, 271, describes these men in women's attireas found in Borneo, where they are called Manang bali. Before suchassume women's dress they are unsexed; and thenceforth they endevourto imitate as nearly as possible the women in everything, he whocan best do so being regarded as the most successful. Their servicesare in great demand and they generally grow wealthy, when in orderthe better to act their assumed character as women, the manang balitakes a husband. The latter is despised by the women and disliked bythe men of the tribe, and is completely under his so-called "wife's"domination. Men are not brought up in this office as a profession, butone becomes a manang bali from pure choice, or by sudden inclination, at a mature age. He is always a person of great consequence in thevillage, and may become the chief. He has many cares, and acts oftenas a peacemaker, in which he excels, all little differences beingbrought to him. His wealth is often at the service of his followers, and he is ready to help in times of trouble and distress. When themanang bali marries, he generally adopts some children; and if hehas had children before he becomes a manang bali, he must give themtheir portions and start in that career unencumbered. 

Cf. The "berdashes" among the North American Indians; see JesuitRelations (Cleveland reissue), lix, pp. 309, 310. 

[71] Retana (Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 786) derives "labia"from "labi" and "a" "he who advantages the others. " "Tuto" is said byRetana (ut supra, col. 790) to be equivalent to "tuud-tuud" meaning"in real truth. "

[72] Either the eleventh or twelfth of November. The first date isthe day of St. Martin, the blessed confessor; and the second that ofSt. Martin, pope and martyr, who was martyred in 655. 

[73] The island of Pañgutarang, of the Sulu group. It is about11 × 9 miles in extent, and is low, but is densely inhabited andhas considerable trade with Joló. It has some settlements of theSámals, the descendants of the Sámal Laút or "sea gypsies. " SeeU. S. Philippine Gazetteer, and Census of the Philippine Islands, i, p. 464. 

[74] At present, when anyone dies, those of his house break out intouncontrollable lamentations, and the father or husband becomes sobeside himself at times that, seizing his bolo, he slashes right andleft whatever he finds, destroying his clothes, furniture, utensils, and even the very floor of the house; and it is necessary to layhold of him in order to avoid a worse ending to such uncontrolledactions. (Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 660. )

[75] Socsocan (Sofocan, Sogsocan) was a Basilan by birth and one ofthe most esteemed of Corralat's chiefs. He became friendly to theSpaniards and served them well as commander of the Lutaos. His nameis said to signify "he who penetrates the fortresses or the ranks ofthe enemy. " (Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 735. )

[76] Captain Gaspar de Morales was made admiral of the squadron inJoló. He fought bravely in La Sabanilla and in Joló, where he wasseverely wounded. He became commandant of the stronghold and afterwardwas governor of the Joloan fort. As governor he was an utter failure;for by his avarice and licentiousness he occasioned the insurrectionof Salibansa (whose daughter he had seized), and the loss of the Suluarchipelago for more than two centuries. (Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 723. )

[77] Among woods of extraordinary hardness is the magconó (Xanthostemonverdugonianus naves). This wood is so hard that if a nail be driveninto its heart and it be afterward sawn apart, one does not observewhere the saw strikes the nail, and it said that both substances are ofequal hardness. Father Pastells asserts that he has seen bits of thiswood that have been converted into real flint after only twenty-fiveyears. (Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 660. )

[78] Of these people, properly called Guimbajanos (Guinbajanos, Guimbanos, Guimbas, and Quimpanos), Blumentritt (Tribes of thePhilippines, Mason's translation) says: "The historians of theseventeenth century, under this title, designated a wild, heathenpeople, apparently of Malay origin, living in the interior of SuluIsland. Their name is derived from their war drum (guimba). Laterwriters are silent concerning them. In modern times the first mentionof them is by P. A. De Pazos and by a Manila journal, from whichaccounts they are still at least in Caroden and in the valley ofthe Loo; it appears that a considerable portion of them, if not theentire people, have received Islam. " Retana (Pastells and Retana'sCombés, col. 779) derives the name of these people from guimba, "a mountain. " They are not mentioned under this name by the Censusof the Philippines. 

[79] Pedro de Almonte Vérastegui, of Sevilla, was a brave soldier, who served as general and sargento-mayor, and admiral of an expeditionagainst Maluco. He was especially distinguished for his honesty anduprightness. In Sibuguey he attained equal merit with Corcuera, andin 1638 conquered Joló. Diego Fajardo assigned him the encomiendaof Lorenzo Cañete, left vacant (July 1, 1645), by the death of thelatter's son. (Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 695. ) AlmonteVérastegui has often been mentioned in this series. 

[80] The Chinese, during the Spanish régime of the Philippines, wereallowed to smoke opium under certain rules; but its use was prohibitedto the natives, although it was at times used secretly. (Pastellsand Retana's Combés, col. 781. )

[81] The former officer of the crown of Aragon, who was assigned toduty immediate to the king's person. He enjoyed several privileges, one of them being to hold the royal sword naked in publicceremonies. (Dominguez, Diccionario nacional. )

[82] The arms of the natives of Mindanao, like their clothes, are manufactured by themselves. The spears and campilans are saidto be finely tempered. They themselves adjust the dies for theirpataquias. The sheaths, like the hafts of their krises, are of goldrichly engraved. The haft of the kris used by Dato Ayuman of Tabiranwas of solid gold, and was engraved with sentences from the Koranin Arabic characters. The usual weapons are: campilans, krises(straight and wavy), machetes, bolos, ligdaos, súndanes, variouskinds of spears, balaraos, and badis. They use coats-of-mail madeof brass, tortoise-shell, malibago [-bark], or very thick cloth, orlong sashes wound about the breast. Spears and arrows are generallypoisoned with the resin of the tree called quemandag or the poison ofred ants or scorpions; and the points of their daggers and balaraosare also poisoned. They also use darts made of steel, iron, bone, palm-wood and bamboo. For defense they construct traps, dig pits, and set bamboo points. They use also various kinds of lantacas andother kinds of firearms, with which the Chinese supply them, or whichthey manufacture themselves. These were considered contraband of warduring the Spanish régime. (Pastells and Retana's Combés, col. 782. )

[83] Juan José Delgado was a native of Cadiz; the time of his birth isnot known. In 1711 he left Spain for Filipinas, and perhaps remainedfor some time in Mexico: it is probable that he reached Filipinasas early as 1717. He seems to have spent most of his life in theVisayan Islands--Sámar, Cebú, Leyte, etc. --but to have visited mostof the peoples in the archipelago at some time or other. His Historiawas written during the years 1751-54; the date of his death is notknown. See sketch of his life in the Historia (Manila, 1892), pp. X-xi. 

[84] Mas used the MS. Of the Museo-Biblioteca de Ultramar, which iswrongly dated. See post, pp. 278-280. Of the letter itself he says (i, "Poblacion" p. 63): "These paragraphs and other ancient documentswill show us . .. How little the individuals who now occupy us havechanged since that time. "

[85] For instance, Mas says (p. 63): "Here follows what the author ofthe celebrated work on the Philippines, called Cronicas franciscanas[referring to San Antonio's Chronicas] says: 'The very reverend father, Fray Gaspar de San Agustin, an Augustinian from Madrid, '" etc. Bowringmakes this: "Among the most celebrated books on the Philippines are the'Cronicas Franciscanas' by Fr. Gaspar de San Agustin, an Augustinemonk of Madrid;" and following gives the impression that he makesthe selections directly from San Agustin--a ridiculous error. 

In regard to the word "monk" used by Bowring, that author is again inerror, technically at least, an error that is quite often met within many works. As pointed out by Rev. T. C. Middleton, O. S. A. , in aletter dated December 8, 1902, the only regulars in the Philippineswho could rightfully be styled "monks" were the Benedictines. Themembers of the other orders are "friars, " the equivalent of the Spanish"frailes. " The monks are strictly cloistered. The friars appeared firstin the thirteenth century, and do not live a strictly cloistered life. 

[86] M. Reads on the outside wrapper: "Letter by Fray Gaspar de SanAgustin;" and the heading of the letter is as follows: "+ Letterwritten by an aged religious of Philipinas to a friend in España, who asked him as to the nature and characteristics of the Indiannatives of these islands. " D. Reads: "Letter written by the veryreverend father Fray . .. Giving him an account . .. "

[87] M. And D. Read "mathematical side;" and continuing D. Reads"of the double of the cube of the sphere. "

[88] i. E. , "I was with this generation for about forty years, and Isaid 'These people always err from the heart. '" M. Omits the Latinphrase and reads in its place "and I have only learned that they arealmost incomprehensible. " D. Reads as M. And then adds "and thereforeI shall only say, " followed by the Latin phrase. 

[89] i. E. , "He himself knew our formation. " The last word of theLatin phrase is omitted in M. 

[90] D. Reads "excuse myself from the burden and difficulty. "

[91] i. E. , "It is difficult to know man--a changeable and variableanimal. " M. Gives only the first four words of this Latin phrase. 

[92] i. E. , "I see men as trees walking. "

[93] Not set off into lines in the Ayer MS. A literal translationof the citation, which is rather freely translated in the text, is: "Spring makes me green; burning summer, yellow; autumn, white;and chill winter, bald. " M. Omits all the quotation after the firstthree words; D. Reads "Glaucumque" instead of "flavamque. " The poetmentioned by San Agustin was a Welshman by the name of John Owen, or, according to his Latin name, Joannis Audoenus. He was born about1560, at Armon, Wales, and died in London, in 1622. He studied law atOxford, and afterward became a teacher at various places. He imitatedthe Epigrams of Martial, and his Epigrammata were published firstin three books at London, in 1606, but were later augmented by sevenmore books. They were reprinted many times in various countries andeven translated into other languages--among the latter, into English, French, and Spanish (Madrid, 1674-82). One of the best editions isthat printed at Paris in 1774. 

[94] D. Omits this last phrase. 

[95] M. Omits the epigram. It is the forty-seventh epigram of thetwelfth book, and is translated thus in Henry G. Bohn's Epigramsof Martial (London, 1877): "You are at once morose and agreeable, pleasing and repulsive. I can neither live with you nor withoutyou. " It has been several times translated into English verse. 

[96] i. E. , "As many opinions as persons. "

[97] From the Greek words monos, "one, " "single, " and pas, "all;"thus meaning, "homogeneous. "

[98] The Monophysites held that there was but one nature inChrist. They were condemned at the fourth general council held atChalcedon in 451, but the decision of that council was a few yearslater set aside by an imperial encyclical issued by the emperorBasilicus. During the next century the Monophysites split up intomany sects, and fought among themselves. The Monophysites stillexist in Armenia, Egypt, Syria, and Mesopotamia; and are representedby the Armenian National church, the Jacobite Christians of Syriaand Mesopotamia, the Coptic church, and the Abyssinian church. Theschismatic Christians of St. Thomas are now connected with theJacobites. See Addis and Arnold's Catholic Dictionary, pp. 597, 598. 

[99] M. Greatly abridges this paragraph, among other things omittingall mention of the Monophysites. D. Also omits the latter. 

[100] At this point M. Adds "who are the true Indians, so named fromthe River Indus or from Indostan, for our Indians are so by catachresisor misusage. "

[101] The title of the Franciscan Juan de Torquemada's book, isas follows: Ia (-IIIa) Parte de los veynte y un libros rituales ymonarchia Indiana con el origen y guerras de los Indios occidentalesde sus poblaçones, descubrimiento, conquista, conversion y otrascosas maravillosas de la misma tierra (Sevilla, 1615; in three parts). 

[102] The title of Antonio de Ramesal's book is Historia general delas Indias Ocidentales, y particular, de la governacion de Chiapa, y Guatemala. Escrivese juntamente los principios de nuestro gloriosoPadre Santo Domingo, y de las demas religiones (Madrid, 1620). 

Remesal was born in Allariz in Galicia, and took the Dominican habitin Salamanca, where he also became doctor of theology. He was sentto Central America in 1613, and on his return wrote his book. SeeMoreri's Dictionaire, vii, p. 68; and Hoefer's Nouvelle biographiegénérale, xli, col. 956. 

[103] See Vol. VIII, p. 38, note 1. 

[104] Bartolome (not Bernardino) de las Casas, the great apostle of theIndians. He first went to the New World in 1502 as a planter, became aDominican religious in 1510, and in 1514 began to preach against thecruelty inflicted on the Indians by the Spaniards, for the purposeof alleviating their misfortunes, making numerous trips to Spain. Hefinally obtained from Cárlos I the "New Laws, " which were so rigorousthat an attempt to enforce them resulted in an insurrection in Peruunder Gonzalo Pizarro, for an account of which see Pedro Gutiérrezde Santa Clara's Historia de las guerras civiles del Peru, 1544-1548(Madrid, 1904-05). He finally returned to Spain for the last time, and died after a few years in the Dominican convent of Valladolid. Hiswritings are many, and important. The reference in the text may beto his Brevissima relacion de la destruycion de las Indias (Sevilla, 1552); or to his Historia general de las Indias, which existed onlyin MS. , until 1875. 

[105] See Vol. XXIX, p. 189, note 42. San Agustin probably refers tohis Virtudes del Indio (1650?). Palafox left many writings, a numberof which are of a controversial nature. 

[106] In D. , "taught. "

[107] In D. , "collect. "

[108] M. And D. Call these last two peoples the "Mogores" and the"Camarines. "

[109] Baltasar Gracian was born in Calatayud, Aragon, in 1601, and entered the Society of Jesus in 1619. He taught belles-lettres, philosophy, moral theology, and the Holy Scriptures, and preached forseveral years. He was rector of the college at Taragona, Catalonia, where he died December 6, 1658. His first book, El Heroë, appeared in1630. The most famous of his numerous works was his Criticon, whichis probably the book referred to in the text. It is a sort of satireon the vices and customs of the times; and in places reminds one ofPilgrim's Progress. It was published in three parts, the first in 1650at Madrid, and the other two at Huesca, in 1653. Most of his works werepublished under his brother Lorenzo's name. His talent in writing isvitiated by his affectation and other faults. See Ticknor's Historyof Spanish Literature (New York, 1854); Sommervogel's Bibliothèque;Moreri's Dictionaire, iv, p. 174; and Hoefer's Nouvelle biographiegénérale, xxi, cols. 570, 571. 

[110] M. And D. Add "For most of the defects and vices of theseIndians are common, on account of the, " and continue as above. 

[111] This passage is badly confused in the three copies. Thetranscriber of M. Has wrongly made the viviendo acephalos of the Ayercopy, bebiendo à sed [i. E. , drinking when thirsty?] which hardly makessense. That MS. Continues, "and in confused anarchy, " which is betterthan the Ayer reading. D. Reads "Who besides having been living asthe greatest barbarians, leaderless, and in confused anarchy. "

[112] Both M. And D. Omit the passage referring to the influence anddominion of the moon. M. Gives the names as "Beyerlinhe, " and D. As"Bayarlinch. "

Laurentius Beyerlinck was a noted Flemish savant and litterateur. Hewas born at Antwerp in 1578, and, after studying in that city withthe Jesuits, went to Louvain, where he enjoyed a benefice until1605. In that year he was recalled to Antwerp to become head ofthe seminary, and soon afterward obtained a canonry and then anarchdeaconry there. His death occurred in Antwerp June 22, 1627, at the age of forty-nine. Notwithstanding his short life and hisreligious labors, he wrote a surprising amount. An edition of hisMagnum Theatrum Vitæ Humanæ appeared in London, in eight volumes, in 1678. See Moreri's Dictionaire. 

[113] "When they grow delirious in their sickness, they are neverfrantic, but calm. " (Mas, p. 64. )

[114] M. And D. Add here "slow. "

[115] In the Ayer MS. "serithnophagos. " D. Makes it "ictiófagos, "which reading we have adopted; and M. Omits the phrase. 

[116] The abundance of fish is one of the means by which natureaids their necessities. In the rainy season, all the creeks andravines are full of water and fish. The very rice fields swarm witheels, shrimps, and a species of fish called dalag, which is abouttwo palmos long and more than two inches thick. It is especiallyinteresting for an European to see a crowd of people in the month ofOctober on the high-road, busily fishing in the sowed fields. As therice is now grown, it is impossible to see the water that bathes andwets its roots, and consequently, when the hooks are drawn out withfish two palmos long on them, it appears to be enchantment, or theinconsequential things of a dream. As the water dries up, the fish, still living, gather down in toward the hollows where there is yet somewater; and they are there caught with the hand, or killed with clubs. 

"The Indians have three meals [per day]: breakfast, dinner, andsupper. These three meals consist of rice boiled in water but drylike the rice cooked in the Valencian style, or like the Turkishpilao. In addition they eat a trifle of fresh or salt fish, somesort of meat stew, camotes, etc. ; but rarely do they have more thantwo different dishes, unless it is the occasion of a banquet. In thedearest provinces, the [expense of] common food cannot be estimatedat more than one-half real of silver per day per adult; and sincethe daily wage that they earn is at least one-half real and theirfood, it results that this race have great opportunity to save andacquire considerable wealth. But their vices, their few necessities, and their disposition, which is indifferent and lacking in foresight, does not allow them to better the condition of their birth; and theyremain in the wake of the mestizos, who are always the wealthy peopleof the villages. " (Mas, pp. 64, 65. )

[117] Mas says (p. 65): "It is not easy for anyone to explain them, so long as he tries to consider these men equal to the Europeans. "

[118] This sentence is omitted in M. And D. 

[119] All the matter above between the word "father" and this pointis lacking in M. 

[120] The solidus was a coin of the Roman empire, which was at firstcalled "aureus, " and worth about twenty-five denarii, but afterwardreduced to about one-half that value. It is used in the same manner as"farthing" or "cent" would be in English. 

[121] These passages are translated as follows in the Douay versionof the Bible:

4. Many have looked upon a thing lent as a thing found, and havegiven trouble to them that helped them. 

5. Till they receive, they kiss the hands of the lender, and inpromise they humble their voice. 

6. But when they should repay, they will ask time, and will returntedious and murmuring words, and will complain of the time:

7. And if he be able to pay, he will stand off, he will scarce payone-half, and will count it as if he had found it:

8. But if not, he will defraud him of his money, and he shall gethim for an enemy without cause:

9. And he will pay him with reproaches and curses, and instead ofhonour and good turn will repay him injuries. 

[122] i. E. , "Scarce does he return the half. "

[123] In the Douay version: "The sinner shall borrow and not payagain;" being only one-half the verse. M. Omits the reference, butgives the passage. 

[124] Delgado (Historia, p. 306) commenting on this passage says: "Ifind noted many actions of the Indian boys who serve in the houses andconvents; and all are ridiculous things which we ourselves did in ourown country when we were boys like them. " He objects to San Agustin'squotation from Scripture on the ground that it is too general, andthat those words were not written merely for them. "If twenty caseshave been experienced where the Indian borrower has failed to returnwhat he borrowed, it cannot be said that the entire Tagálog nation aresinners, let alone other nations, which may not have been seen. Sucha supposition is illogical. "

[125] The paragraph structure of M. And D. Differs from our text inthe above two paragraphs, and in other places throughout this letter;and the paragraphs are also unnumbered in both of these versions. Thecopy owned by Eduardo Navarro, O. S. A. , Valladolid, agrees with theAyer MS. In having numbered paragraphs, but the numbering is not inall cases the same. 

[126] At this point the following paragraphs which are not containedin either the Ayer MS. Or in D. Occur. 

"They think that it is a fine thing to meddle and take part in thingswhere they are not invited. Consequently, if any of Ours wishes toattend to any bodily necessity, not fit to mention, even when he leastwishes it, there comes an Indian before or behind him even though heleave the banca and seek the most retired spot to do what no othercan do for him. 

"They cruelly treat the animals that serve them, and the danger oflosing them does not move them to the contrary. Thus following thevery opposite of St. Paul's command: Non alligavis vos bobi trituranti[i. E. , "Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn, "--ITim. V, 18, a quotation from Deut. Xxv, 4], they tie the poor cow orcarabao to a post after it has worked all day; and, if it is a horse, they feed it without removing bit or bridle. And if they have to lookafter their carabao it must be on condition of their being atop of itwhile it moves from place to place; and on the road they make soreson its buttocks. "

That the Indian does not shut a door that he has opened, etc. ;Delgado says (p. 306): "This is done by boys, and is common in ourown country. It is not because of laziness, but perchance, for lackof attention, or the liveliness or mischievousness of boys, in whichthe aged and prudent Indians cannot be included. " He has often seenthe carpenters carefully collect their tools and take them away, sothat they should not be lost. San Agustin's criticism is too generaland has proceeded from what he has experienced in a few foolish lads. 

[127] "This, " says Delgado (p. 307) "is peculiar only to some workmen, and not to all the nations of these islands, and the same thinghappens also in our own country among cobblers, tailors, and otherdeceitful and tricky workmen. "

Mas comments as follows (pp. 66, 67): "There is no tailor, cobbler, or workman of any kind, who does not begin by begging money when anywork is ordered. If he is a carpenter, he needs the money in orderto buy lumber; if a laundryman, to buy soap. This is not for lack ofconfidence in receiving their pay, for the same thing happens withthose who have the best credit, with the cura of the village, and evenwith the captain-general himself. It consists, firstly, in the factthat the majority have no money, because of their dissipation; andsecondly, because they are sure that after they have received a partof their price, their customer will not go to another house, and thathe will wait for the workman as long as he wishes (which is usuallyas long as what he has collected lasts), and that then the customerwill have to take the work in the way in which it is delivered to him. "

[128] M. Reads, "in the region of the genitals;" and D. , "ears. "

[129] Delgado says of this: "Let us give thanks to God that ourparents reared us in civilized ways; for if they had not, we woulddo the same. But how many blows and lashes we had to take to becomeso! And indeed it must be noted that it is not so much because ofrudeness that the Indian scratches himself, or does other thingssomewhat more indecent and coarse, as has happened to me at timeswhen with them; but because of a sort of fear or respect, that soconfuses them that they do not know at times what they are doing, oreven what they are saying. " The criticism, like others of San Agustin, is too sweeping. Delgado has not noticed this among the Visayans, although he has noted it among the Tagálogs. Because some women arecoarse, coarseness cannot be charged in general upon all the womenof the islands. 

[130] D. Reads "And as yet they have not gotten over the difficultyof folding a cloak with the right side in. "

[131] M. And D. Read "make gestures of wonder. "

[132] "I have observed that they are very stupid in making anythingwhen one tries to give them instructions, but not when one allows themto work in their own manner. For example, one desires to have the corkwhich has slipped down into a bottle drawn. The best thing to say then, is 'See here, get this cork out without breaking the bottle. Takecare!' Thereupon the Indian goes and fixes it as well as he can. OnceI asked an old woman for some fire to light my cigar. There were manylive coals on the ground remaining from a fire. She took a handful ofearth in her palm, and atop of that placed a coal which she presentedto me. In this way they do things that at times show sufficientingenuity and skill, especially with bamboo and rattan. General Alavadeclared that their brains were in their hands. " (Mas, pp. 67, 68. )

[133] These last six words are lacking in M. This refers to thewell-known myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. By Auresteo, San Agustin meansAristæus, probably an early Greek poet, but deified as a beneficentgod and worshiped in various parts of Greece and other places. Hewas said to be the son of Apollo and the Thessalian nymph Cyrene, and was reared by Hermes, who made him immortal; although he is alsosometimes called the son of Urana and Gæa. His connection with theOrpheus myth was probably an innovation of Virgil (Georgics, iv, ll. 315-558) who tells how he caused the death of Eurydice, who waskilled by a serpent while fleeing from his persecutions. See Smith'sDictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, and Seyffert'sDictionary of Classical Antiquities (London, 1891). 

"It is still the custom in many of the churches for the men to taketheir positions in the center toward the upper part, and the womenin the lower half. " (Mas, p. 68. )

[134] The last two words are missing in M. And D. 

Curiosity, says Delgado (p. 307) and impertinence is a characteristicof all the peoples of Asia. 

"They have asked me often as to my employment or occupation, my mannerof living, and the amount of my pay. This proceeds from the toleranceand benevolence that they generally find in The Spaniards. " (Mas, p. 68. )

[135] This argues only their wildness and lack of civilization, saysDelgado (pp. 307, 308), and they ought to be taught civilized mannersby their masters, or at least by the missionaries. The Spanish housesgenerally have porters, so that the Indians cannot penetrate into themost retired apartment. It may happen at times in Manila, or in someof the missions; but it is not the custom in the Visayas, or in theprovince of Tagálos. Delgado has never had such a thing happen to him, for the Indians have always announced their arrival before entering. 

[136] "This proves the severity with which they are treated by theirown people, and the kindness that they experience in us. " (Mas, p. 68. )

[137] "Thank God, " says Delgado (p. 308) "that I find the prognosisabove that says 'they are great sleepers' absolutely false. "

[138] This sentence is lacking in M. And D. 

[139] In D. , "where the women go. "

"They do this because they are humored like children in theconvents. " (Mas, p. 69. )

[140] M. And D. Omit "and perukes. "

[141] Literally, "the flower of the saints, " perhaps alluding tosome book of lives of saints, thus entitled. M. Has "the isles ofthe saints. "

[142] M. And D. Omit the last three words. 

[143] "Nearly all the villages have theaters for cock-fighting. Beforefighting, some very sharp knives are fastened to the spurs so thatone or the other is killed at the first meeting. On this account thecockfight does not offer the interest or sport that it does in Españaand other places, and it occupies the attention of these people solelyas a means of winning or losing money. In reality, a cockpit is a houseof play. Before the two fowls are placed in attitude of fight, the betsare placed on two spindles. One of them generally offers a great sum infavor of the black cock, while others bet on the white one, until thesum is matched. The leading cocks are loosed and one of them is killedin less than two minutes. This is in fact a 'monte, ' as is playingthe races or betting on the jack [at cards]. The Filipinos, by natureidlers and greedy, are passionately fond of play, for they considerit an excellent and unique way of getting money without working; andthey gather like flies to these pernicious places, in order to spendwhat they have and what they can succeed in borrowing or robbing, abandoning their most sacred and peremptory obligations. Furthermore, they pass many hours, both in their houses and in the cockpit, teachinga cock how to fight and to have no fear of the people; and examiningthe other cocks, in order to ascertain by certain rules and marks whichwill triumph and which will succumb. There is nothing more commonlyseen even in the very streets of Manila itself, than a man squatteddown on his heels with one of these fowls, in order that it mightbecome accustomed to the noise, so that it might not grow confused orbecome frightened in the pit. There are men who take heed of nothingelse or have other thought during the day than of their cocks. 

"The government authorizes these wretched gatherings, not only onSundays, but also on Thursdays or fair-days, which are not few, and has rented out the right of opening these theaters. Last yearthis department produced about 40, 000 pesos fuertes. A sad recoursewhich must have occasioned and will occasion so many tears, crimes, and punishments, since so much vagabondage is thereby caused. Thereare often serious quarrels, which two judges of the theater endby deciding according to the laws. When any one of the contestantsdoes not conform to the sentence, he has recourse to the alcalde, who takes the evidences in regard to the matter; and these quarrelsgenerally go on appeal to the superintendency and to the upperlitigious assembly. These causes are judged according to existinginstructions, which were written in America. 

"The Indians are also very fond of cards. They play brisca, burro(which is distinct from that of España), and panguingui, which isa game played very commonly by the Chinese. In this occupation theyoften pass all the night until dawn; and the cabezas de barangay losethe tributes of their subjects, and they have to go immediately tojail, or take to the mountain. 

"They generally play duplo at their parties--a game consisting inarithmetical combinations--and also our game of forfeits. " (Mas, pp. 69-71. )

[144] Delgado (p. 308) admits that the youthful servants do breakdishes, but they are cheap. "There are Indians in Manila who makeand repair watches and other delicate baubles, and do not breakthem. Consequently, not only can they handle bamboo, rattan, nipa, andbolos, but also other things; and they make and handle them lovingly. "

"This is because they are generally heedless, sometimes throughstupidity, and at other times because they are thinking of theirsweetheart, or of something else, instead of what they are doing. Whenthe Filipino drops a dish, the Spaniard says nothing, or is satisfiedby calling him only a brute, animal, or savage; while in his own home, he would not escape without some buffets, which have more effect onthis race than would the Philippics of Cicero. " (Mas, p. 71. )

[145] "The father must have said this of the country people, or ofthose who are servants; for among those who devote themselves to thearts there are some who turn out work very delicate and difficult toexecute, even in Europa--as, for instance, the textiles and embroideryof piña, and the gold chains or bejuquillos, etc. " (Mas, pp. 71, 72. )

[146] D. Adds "or [rather] not eating. " This incident is related inthe second part of Don Quixote, chapter xlvii. 

[147] This sentence is omitted in M. The following is there a question, "And what shall we say if they bring four eggs?"

[148] A Dominican and the assistant of Archbishop Pardo, who becameacting archbishop after the death of the latter. See Ferrando'sHistoria de los PP. Dominicos, vi, p. Cxlvii; and our Vol. XXXIX, "The Pardo Controversy. "

[149] Don Fernando Valenzuela, a grandee of Spain, marquis of SanBartolomé de los Pinales and of Villasierra, chief master of the horse, gentleman of the chamber, etc. , the favorite of the mother of CarlosII of Spain, Mariana of Austria (with whom his connection was said tobe dishonorable), was, as a youth, page to the Duke of Infantado. Hewent to Rome with the duke, who was appointed ambassador to the papalcourt. On his return he gained the favor of the queen's confessorthe German Jesuit Nitard, who introduced him into court circles. Hisrise to favor was rapid, for he was talented and handsome. After thedownfall of Nitard, he gained entire ascendancy over the weak queen, who showered honors upon him. Finally he was exiled to the Philippines(1670), through the efforts of Don Juan of Austria, uncle of the king, and was imprisoned in the fort of Cavite where he landed March 29, 1679. On the death of Don Juan, the first act of the queen was tohave Valenzuela freed from his exile, and a special ship was sentto the Philippines to take him to Spain. It is reported, however, that he died in Mexico, while on his way to Spain, from the kick ofa horse. He built the bridge over the Manzanares at Toledo, at thecost of one million ducats. See Harrison's History of Spain (Boston, 1881); Montero y Vidal, i, p. 364; and Concepción, Hist. De Philipinas, vii, pp. 349-364. A document in Ventura del Arco's MS. Collection(vol. Iii)--which is a compilation from original documents in the RealAcademia de la Historia, Madrid--gives an account of the receptionaccorded to Valenzuela on his arrival at the Philippines, and somedetails of his life there. 

[150] M. Reads "rice in the husk. "

[151] M. And D. Add "pesos. "

[152] Delgado says (p. 308): "If they had as much understanding as thereverend father, they would not do it. " The cases cited prove nothinggeneral, since they are only particular cases. "But it must be bornein mind that all the Indians of these islands are very poor, and dressvery poorly and live meanly; and when they see that the Spaniards, and especially these bishops and marquises, bear themselves with sogreat ostentation, and are so free and magnanimous and liberal, astheir nobility demands, some Indians of little capacity are emboldenedto beg from them things that they ought not; for they think that suchmen will never remain poor even though they give much. " We beg Godoften for things out of season. 

"This is because they know beforehand that they ask nonsense, andassume that their demand will not be granted, but they only are tryingto see whether it might be met by any chance; for they are accustomedto the extreme goodness of the Spaniards, and do not fear making themangry by an absurd demand. " (Mas, pp. 72, 73. )

[153] M. And D. Read: "Although the Sangleys cheat them, as if theywere simpletons, and they are satisfied to be cheated by them. "

Delgado says (p. 309): "This I absolutely deny, for I have more thanonce seen that after the Indians have traversed the whole Parian ofthe Sangleys to sell their goods, if they are not offered more thanfour they immediately carry their goods to the Spaniards or to thefathers, in order to get eight for them; and this must be tongodsa calooy, that is, for charity, which the Spaniard and the fatheralways practice with them. "

"This is a fact, but it needs explanation. The Filipino is by naturephlegmatic, and especially when it is a question of buying or sellinganything; for he exerts himself to get the largest profit possible, and the calculation of that costs him much trouble. A countrymancomes, for instance, to sell two or three quintals of indigo to amerchant. Thereupon, he does not come alone, but is accompaniedby relatives and friends, and sometimes women. Very often theindigo belongs to four or five owners, who all come in the wake ofthe seller. Each proposition must be communicated to the societythat is squatted there in a circle on their heels. The matter isdiscussed at length, and then it is decided to lower the price onepeso per quintal. The buyer claims that the price should be threepesos. Finally this point is settled. Then another discussion begins, namely, that the indigo is damp, and that some pounds must be allowedfor waste. In short the transaction is so tiresome and so eternal, that there are very few Spaniards who have the patience to endure somuch impertinence and importunity; and they generally end by sayingdryly, 'Will you or will you not give it?' And then they order themangrily into the street. The Chinese and mestizos do not hurry them, but on the contrary invite them to eat, and keep them in their housesfor three or four hours, and sometimes days. Finally they get the goodsfor what they wish to give, and more often cheat them like Chinese. Forthe Filipino is very stupid even in matters of self-interest. OnceI was with a Spaniard who was buying indigo. After the trading hadcost him more patience than Job must have had, the indigo was weighedbefore him, the account was reckoned, the money made ready and placedon the table in piles of 20 pesos, while there was one of 7, whichwas placed separately, and another of reals and copper coins. Theman who had been most attentive to everything took the piles of 20'sand left the pile of 7. We called him back to tell him to take thatmoney which he had left. Thereupon he took the seven pesos, and itwas necessary to call him back the third time to tell him that allthe money on the table belonged to him. He himself had determinedthat the price should be 52 or 53 per quintal, and then he took whatwas given him. The majority are the same. Then it is learned thata Chinese has bought for 20 the same quantity of indigo for which aSpaniard offered 25. It is said that a Filipino would rather receiveone real from a Chinese than one peso from a Spaniard, as we havejust seen was written by Father Gaspar. " (Mas, pp. 73, 74. )

[154] "And tell me, your Paternity, " says Delgado (p. 309), "who isnot given to this vice in this land?"--an interesting commentary onsocial conditions. 

[155] Commenting on this, Delgado (p. 309) says: "Who are the ones whocut the timber, and build the ships, galleys, and galliots, as saysFather Murillo, and work in the ships in the port? Then they do thisstretched out in their houses, as says our father master? It is truethat they are always poor, but the true cause of that is different. Letthem not admit into Manila so many heathen Chinese, who possess inthemselves all the trades and employments, by which one may seekhis livelihood. The Indians would apply themselves to these trades, and would not lie stretched out in their houses, for the Sangleys donot allow them to engage in these or to seek their livelihood. "

Mas says (pp. 75-77): "I have never read a single manuscript orprinted book about the Filipinos that does not speak of their laziness. 

"I, accustomed to hear the term 'lazy' given to Spaniards, and toother men who have been or are idle--rather through the influenceof bad laws or because of the lack of laws, than because of theimpulses of their physical organization--was ready to believe thatthe Filipinos would be found to exhibit the same characteristic inregard to this--especially when I remembered the system of deliveringthe provinces to trading governors and monopolists and the prohibitionfor so many years of trading with foreign ports, which still exists, with the exception of the city of Manila. But in spite of the factthat these things powerfully influence the obstruction of the fountsof wealth and choke incentives to work, I have seen things that havemade me change my opinion. For instance, I have desired to send peopleto get grass for my horses; and, in spite of the facts that it wasvery abundant and near, and there was not the slightest doubt aboutthe pay, I have been unable to get anyone to go for it. On arrivingat a village, I have endeavored to get a guide to accompany me to thenext village; and, in spite of the facts that the distance was notmore than one hour and the road excellent, I have found it difficultto obtain him. And even I have obtained it by means of the justice, as[a carrier of] baggage; although one pays for this service, accordingto the schedule, one silver real, with which a Filipino has enough tolive on for at least two days. A few weeks before my departure fromFilipinas I was at an estate belonging to religious, where there arevarious individuals who enjoy an annual salary sufficient to supportthemselves, on condition that they guard the estate against robbers, and that they work whenever necessary, in which case their day's wageis paid them. The question was raised of transferring the rice in thehusk from one granary to another, distant about 20 paces, and theywere not to work more than the hours usual in that country, whichare very few, for which they were to be given one silver real daily, besides their food. All this was in addition to their annual pay. Itis to be noted that the season was the dryest and coolest of the wholeyear, namely, the month of January, and a Filipino's support cost thenabout five cuartos per diem. However, by no means would they consentto work consecutively all the days, for they said that when night camethey were exhausted, and needed rest on the following day. Had I notbeen present there I would not have believed it. I have been in manyFilipino huts where I saw many men and women pass the day without doinganything, while everything was indicative of their poverty. I haveexamined the condition of the fields, and I have discovered that anyman may become wealthy, and yet all live in wretchedness. I have beenmuch surprised to hear that they must be ordered by edict to sow thefields, so that the propitious season may not pass by; and that thosewho allow their houses to burn are punished. Especially have I notedthat the Chinese mestizos, who are partly of the same blood as the mostdiligent Chinese immigrants, are always comfortable, and some of themhave accumulated considerable wealth. This might all be in the handsof the Filipinos, who are the most ancient inhabitants, have enjoyedand enjoy greater protection, and have been owners of all the estatesthat are now possessed by the mestizos, which the latter have boughtby the fruits of their industry and their economy. It is to be notedthat all the Chinese who come to Filipinas are very poor, and comefrom a colder country. Gentil says that the Filipinos have acquiredtheir laziness from the Spaniards; but if they have learned indolencefrom the Spaniards, why did not the mestizos learn it also, who are onthe contrary so active and industrious? Why have they not learned tobe diligent from the mestizos, since they have a more continual andintimate intercourse with them than with the Spaniards? I concludeby saying that after examining and weighing everything thoroughly, I am of the opinion that there exists in the nature of the Filipino, quite independent of any accessory and modifying cause, an elementof quiet and inertia that is but slightly neutralized by the ambitionof acquiring consideration and wealth. "

[156] Delgado (pp. 309-310) says: "This happens perhaps among theboys who serve in the convents in Tagalos and in no other missions;and I have also seen them awakened in another manner. And althoughthis seems a matter for laughter among us Spaniards, it is not sofor them. For they do it in order not to make the other impatient bywaking him suddenly, and it serves among them as a kind of prudenceand respect. The game thing happens when they call at the door ofany house. But generally they enter without the formulas of etiquette. "

"This is a hard fact and has been called to my attention often. Forin any other matter whatsoever, it is well understood that ignorancemakes an unpolished man appear quite distinct from a civilizedman. But when it comes to waking one who is sleeping, I cannotconceive that wisdom, or even a knowledge of reading, can have theleast influence. But I believe that I have discovered the origin ofthis peculiarity. The remontados Filipinos of Abra have the greatestrespect for a sleeping man. Their deepest curse is 'May I die whenasleep. ' Their oath, when they come to the province of Ilocos for theelection of gobernadorcillos, for causes, etc. , is 'May I die whenasleep, ' 'May a bolt of lightning strike me, ' etc. This same fear ofdying when asleep exists also in other tribes and in the provinces ofIlocos, and must have been formerly a general idea, since, as we havealready observed, the origin of our Christianized Indians and thoseat present remontados and called infidels was the same. Whether thisfear arose from some disease in which the people slept and did notawaken, or whether only from the similitude of sleep to death, it isdifficult to ascertain. However, it is always surprising that, sinceno one now dies or becomes sick because his rest is interrupted, theIndians still constantly preserve this so stupid dread; so that evenafter a master has ordered his servant to awaken him, the latter hasgreat difficulty in doing it in a quick and positive manner, althoughhe knows that, if he do not execute it, it will put his master outgreatly. That shows at least the most powerful influence of habiton the minds of these men. Somewhat similar to this is our customof saying 'Jesus, ' when anyone sneezes--a custom which I have heardexpressed by 'God bless you, ' 'Á vous souhaits, ' 'Salute, ' etc. , among all the peoples of Europa. .. . This custom generally allowsthe man who receives an accident to die without aid, because of notawaking the physician or cura. " (Mas, pp. 77, 78. )

[157] This is because the Indians do not appreciate the danger, says Delgado (p. 310). This happens often on narrow roads, and notto Indians, but to Spaniards or mulattoes, and neither will yield tothe other, whereupon quarrels ensue. But the lesser always yields tothe greater. It has happened once or twice to Delgado. 

"This is a fact, and a proof of their indifference andstolidity. " (Mas, p. 78. )

[158] The lengua franca is the trade-jargon of the Orient. Theoriginal of the passage above is as follows: "Deó grande nopillarfantacia; mondo cosi cosi; si estar escrito in testa andar andar;sino acá morir. " M. Reads "an andar andar, " and has other slightdifferences. D. Reads "ha (de) andar" and has also other slightdifferences. 

The full name of the author above mentioned is Gabriel Gomez deLosada, and his book is Escuela de trabaios, in quatro libros dividida:Primero, del cautiverio mas cruel. .. . Segundo, Noticias y govierno deArgel: Tercero, necessidad y conveniencia de la redempcion de CautivosChristianos: Quarto, el mejor cautivo rescatado. .. . (Madrid, 1670). 

[159] M. And D. Add (though with a slight difference in wording)"for they will not believe that he who loves danger will perish in it. "

Some Indians are fatalists, but not all, says Delgado (p. 310). TheVisayans are generally careful, and watch out for the crocodiles. Thosewho have been devoured by those reptiles have always been evil, andwere so punished by God for their sins. Mas says (p. 79), that thisfatalism must have been imported from Asia. 

[160] Delgado says (p. 310): "This proceeds from their barbarouscondition, and because the Spaniards commonly deceive them, andteach them things that are not very good, especially the convictguachinangos, of whom this country is full. But that they cannotbe persuaded that it is a sin to steal from the religious or fromthe Spaniards, I regard as a misapprehension, or at least it is notcommon for this to happen, although his Paternity brings forward suchevidence, that one cannot doubt him. For I have seen the contrary inmany villages. "

Mas (pp. 80, 81), says: "It is a fact that some Indians have butlittle scruple in stealing from Spaniards, for they say that allthat the latter possess is of the Philippines and consequentlytheirs. But do not believe that they have any consideration for theirfellow-countrymen. In its proper place we shall see that theft isthe greatest part of the criminality of the islands. .. . It is to benoted that they generally rob on a small and rarely on a large scale;for their ambition is limited to satisfying a vice or to betteringtheir present condition, but not in changing it. 

"The father provincial of the Augustinian religious, said in hisprinted report, in the compilation made concerning the causes of theinsurrection in Ilocos in 1807:

"'The Indians of Ilocos have become highwaymen, like those of theother provinces. They steal cows, horses, and carabaos from their owncountrymen; and those who are occupied in this trade are ready forall sorts of evil. It is not surprising that many of these shouldhave come with the deserters who first rebelled in the mountainsof Piddig, and that others should unite with them when the firewas fanned. But one can not call this a cause for insurrection, nor do I believe that for such thefts the means should be to takethe stealers of carabaos to Manila so that they might be punished;but it is enough for the alcaldes-mayor to watch over their provinceand punish these thefts. By so doing they would succeed in lesseningthefts, for the extermination of them is as impossible as is makingan end of the classes of the thieves according to the proverb of theIndians, "When the rats die, then the thieves will come to an end. "'

"It is true that perhaps one ought not to ascribe all thisdemoralization to a perverse disposition. One must not have livedamong the Filipinos, or have been very blind in regard to them, tosay that they are all thieves. There are very many who, although theycould steal with impunity, do not do so. .. . The frequency of theft mayproceed from other causes. Perhaps the system of mercy and impunitythat has dictated and is dictating the sentences of the Audiencia ofManila has contributed thereto. .. . "

[161] M. And D. Omit "of which I heard, " and the latter reads "andI shall only tell of two of which I was a witness. "

Spaniards also, says Delgado (pp. 310, 311), recount things that arenot credible, and "it is not to be wondered at that some rude andignorant people should believe such nonsense; and if they believesome things that are told them by some scholars, it is because ofthe authority of those people among them. .. . This happens commonlyin other places, besides among the Indians. "

[162] See an account of this matter and the trouble caused by it, in Vol. XXXIX. 

[163] i. E. , "Silver and gold have I none"--a reference to Acts III, 6. 

[164] M. And D. Read "miners. "

[165] "When the ship 'Santa Ana' arrived at Manila in the year 1832with 250 Spanish soldiers, it was rumored among the women of thetobacco factory that those soldiers were coming to take away theirchildren in order to irrigate the mines in España with their blood. Allwere aroused and fled to their homes, took their children, and beganto take refuge in the houses of the Spanish women, and they couldnot be persuaded that it was all nonsense. The house of Doña DoloresGoyena was filled with them. Also many men armed with spears cameout on the streets; but the disorder gradually subsided. " (Mas, p. 82. )

[166] M. And D. Add "for all the ministers cannot free them fromthis deceit. "

[167] This is not so in general, says Delgado (p. 311), but is trueonly of some individuals among the various nations. 

[168] M. Reads "respect the Spaniard more. "

[169] The truth is that any Spaniard, with rare exceptions, has morepenetration, more vivacity, more nobility, more talent, and morecourage than a Filipino. This superiority can do no less than haveits effect. .. . For the rest, few in Manila have an exact idea of theFilipino character. Their arrogance may be seen in the importancewhich the gobernadorcillos give to themselves. They go daily tothe city hall, but they make two regidors go to their houses to getthem. There the regidors wait until the gobernadorcillo is ready tocome out, and the latter then goes in solemn state to the city hall, preceded by the regidors and the alguacils, with staffs in hand. Whenthese officers reach the door of the city hall, they stop in order toallow the gobernadorcillo to pass between them; and he enters withoutnoticing the salutes given him by the guards, who take off their hatsto him. He immediately takes a seat which is on an elevated platform, and there he thinks himself to be on a throne; and even the Spaniardswho enter casually, especially in the villages on the highroad, appear of but little importance to him. This is the place wherethe auditors of the Audiencia of Manila, and all others who haveany share in the government of Filipinas, ought to come incognito, and as if in passing, in order to know the Filipinos--instead offorming an opinion of their character from the servants of theirhouse, or from those who go to the capital with clasped hands and adowncast look in their eyes to ask some favor of them. The strangething is, that the Indians do not learn from the alcaldes-mayor, who administer justice with the greatest equality, and who do notsit in an elevated place, or even sit down, and go into the streetwithout any following. This aristocratic spirit may be observed inthe church. All the principales, who consist of the gobernadorcillos, cabezas de barangay, and all others who have the title 'Don' andwear a jacket, seat themselves in the central aisle or nave; and thefollowing order of etiquette is in general scrupulously observed: thegobernadorcillo; the ex-gobernadorcillos, who are called past captains, in order of their seniority; the actual first lieutenant, who must bea cabeza de barangay; the two lieutenants; and nine present officials;the ex-cabezas, in order of seniority. If any ex-captain from anothervillage is present, he takes a seat among those of his class, andis given the first place, out of courtesy. When the lieutenants andofficials leave their posts, they are not called principales, as arethe others, but titulados. " (Mas, pp. 83, 84. )

[170] D. Reads "petty sextons. "

[171] Delgado says (p. 311): "It is a fact that nature always inclinesrather to evil than to good. But in order to correct their vicesthere are fervent and zealous ministers in all parts, who preach toand teach them. "

Mas says (pp. 85-89): "In fact some Indians practice ceremonies intheir marriages which date from before the conquest. 

"On the birth of an infant, the newborn child is sometimes taken toanother house in order to free it from the Patianac; and, when thechild is taken out for baptism, aromatic substances and incense areburned for the same reason. 

"When a person dies, they celebrate a novena in his house at night, where the relatives (and sometimes those who are not relatives)assemble. After praying, it is not seldom that they sit down togamble. On the last day there is a great banquet, and sometimes adance. These mortuary feasts are practiced even yet, in all theirpurity, in the mountains, as we have already seen. 

"If possible, both men and women bathe daily in the river. The womenenter the water wrapped in their tapices, taking care that the bosom iscovered. When they are in the water they take that garment off to washthemselves. The men enter the water with wide pantaloons and the bodybare. They enter the river at any hour and before everybody; but onemust confess that they do it with great decency and modesty. .. . When Iwas in Santa Cruz de la Laguna, the cura published an edict orderingmen and women not to bathe in the same place. That gave rise tomany jokes and jests, and it is to be supposed that they continuedtheir old-time customs. They consider us as not overcleanly, becausethey see us make less use than they of the bath. .. . It is also thecustom for the families of the country and many Europeans to bathetogether. During the outdoor sports of Manila, at the summer housesof Mariquina, or other neighboring towns, the chief diversion is thebath. The women generally enter the water wearing a kind of blouse, and the men with wide pantaloons and the body uncovered. Newcomersfrom Europa do not consider this amusement at all decent. 

"They kiss by bringing the nostril near and drawing in the breath. Thisis the plain kiss in the mountains, but some Filipinos of the plains, especially of Manila, have also become accustomed to kiss with thelips; but they always put the nose to the face at the same time, and if they have a sincere affection, they always smell as if theywere giving a deep sigh with their mouth closed. .. . When they lookat a person from a distance, and desire to express their desire tokiss him, they constrict the nose in the manner of one smelling. Avery extreme kind of kiss is given by rubbing the nose on the spotthat they wish to feel, and drawing in the breath as long as possible. 

"I am greatly surprised that no one of the writers on the Filipinoshas spoken of this remarkable fact, which springs from their exquisitesense of smell. It is so great that a servant can tell his master'sshirt, after it is cleaned and ironed, even though it lies with tenor twelve other shirts resembling it and belonging to other persons, by simply smelling them. They also assert that if a man be near a womanfor whom he experiences a feeling of love, she knows it by the odor ofhis perspiration, and vice versa. As a pledge of affection, they askfor a shirt that has been worn--which they return after it has lostits odor, and replace by another, just as we beg for a lock of hair. 

"They had the custom of circumcision, a custom which they did notacquire from the Arabs, since it is still practiced on the peaks ofthe independent mountains. They practice it still, and that against thewill of the curas. Ancient customs have very great force. It is to benoted that the manner of operation is not the same as that practicedby the Jews, for the cut is made from the upper to the lower part. 

"They had the custom that the suitor for a maiden's hand went to servein the house of his future father-in-law for three or four years, anddid whatever he was asked--in general, the most onerous duties. Thenthe parents of the bride had to give him a house, clothes, etc. , andthe marriage was celebrated. In many provinces, as for instance, inBulacan, there is now no trace of this custom, because of the abuseswhich were committed. This custom, which we meet in the first pages ofthe Old Testament, could not have been acquired from the Mussulmans, who by their Koran hold laws diametrically opposed. This custom isstill followed in Laguna, although the young man does not live in thehouse of his loved one, for the cura does not permit it. The friarshave done their utmost to destroy this custom. 

"They scarify new-born infants in order to draw blood from them;and then apply lighted matches to various parts of the body, whichcause them burns, and serve the place of caustics. 

"Women in childbirth they suspend by the hair in order to stop theflow; and, after parturition, they compress the abdomen, and pressdown with great force on both thighs at once, in order to make theorgans return to their former position; and they perform other thingsof like nature, which we consider as injurious and nonsensical. Butthey hold one of their old women higher than the best Paris physician. 

"They consider the balete tree as sacred. At marriage, they carry itdishes of food as an offering; and it is very difficult, or impossible, to make them cut one of them. It has happened that they have beggedincense from the cura on various pretexts in order to go immediatelyand burn it under a balete tree. 

"They are very fond of telling tales of love adventures, of witches, and enchantment, and everything else that is rare and marvelous, even though it be nonsense and against common sense. 

"They believe that all diseases are cured by drawing out the air thathas been introduced into the body; and, consequently, their favoriteremedy is to supply a kind of cupping-glass of Chinese origin, whichthey drag over two palmos on any part of the body, and which leavesa great red streak. 

"They respect their fathers and mothers greatly, and even the youngerbrothers the older. I have seen a married woman, on entering her house, kiss the hand of a sister older than herself. 

"In order that a young man may marry, he must give the bride the moneyor other things up to her value; and that price is often kept by theparents. The parents would rather have their daughter remain single, even though she be with child, than to give her without a dowry. Itis not seldom that one can hear a mother say that she will not giveher daughter for less than one hundred pesos, or fifty, etc. 

"In order to strike fire they take a bit of bamboo, and slit it downthe middle lengthwise. In the hollow or inner part, they dig out oneportion near the center, which leaves the bamboo much thinner. Then onthe outside they open a chink, lengthwise. Then they take the knife, and scraping the upper part of the other half-bamboo, they make somevery fine shavings. These they roll about between the two palmsof the hands until they form a small ball, and that they place inthe hollow of the half-bamboo. The latter they place on the ground, with the shavings below. Then with the other half bamboo, they rub(while singing) across the one which has the shavings below it, uponthe same point where the shavings are placed, and in a few secondsthey begin to smoke. Thereupon they rub faster and blow, and a blazestarts. All this is the work of one minute. 

"On going out between people, or when passing in front of anyone, they bend the body and clasp the hands, which they then move forwardas if they wished to open a path or cut the air. This is a sign ofrespect, or their method of asking leave to pass. 

"The women ride horseback, not astride, but with a side-saddle, as do Europeans. "

[172] M. Reads "most of them. "

[173] This is common throughout the world, says Delgado (p. 311). "Thatthey do not know their age happens commonly among rude and wildpeople, wherever they may be; but their age is known very well bytheir datos and chiefs, in order to assign them their place in thetribute readily. In what pertains to their ancient beliefs, there isno doubt that these are preserved in some parts, and there is no lackof babailanes, who are their priestesses or diuateras; but one mustconsider that all these peoples of the Indias are new Christians, and the seed that the enemy had sown, and which had thrust so deeproots into them, has not yet been completely destroyed. "

[174] M. And D. Omit "than the word of the whole world. "

Mas says (pp. 90-96): "The superstitions of these people can bedivided into three classes. The first consists in believing thatcertain monsters or ghosts exist, to which they give names and assignspecial duties, and even certain exterior forms, which are describedby those who affirm that they have seen them. Such are the Tigbalan, Osuang, Patianac, Sava, Naanayo, Tavac, Nono, Mancuculan, Aiasip, the rock Mutya, etc. 

"The Antinganting is any object which promises wealth or happiness, as we would speak of the girdle of Venus, or the ring of Giges. 

"Many Spaniards, especially the curas, imagine that these beliefs arenot very deeply rooted, or that they have declined, and that most ofthe Filipinos are free from them. This is because in the presenceof such the Filipinos do not dare tell the truth, not even in theconfessional, because of their fear of the reprimand that surely awaitsthem. I have talked to many about these things, some of whom at thebeginning began to laugh, and to joke about the poor fools who putfaith in such nonsense. But when they saw that I was treating thematter seriously, and with the spirit of inquiry as a real thing, they changed their tone, and made no difficulty in assuring me ofthe existence of the fabulous beings described above. .. . 

"The second class consists in various practices, like that of burningincense under the balete tree; putting ashes at the door of the housewhere a person has died, in order that they might recognize the tracksof the soul of the dead one; leaving a plate for the dead man at thetable, etc. 

"When Don G. Piñeiro went to Culamba in 1841, for the purpose ofclimbing a lofty mountain, he encountered innumerable difficultiesin getting people to accompany him, in spite of the orders of thesuperior government; and he had to desist and climb from the villageof Los Baños accompanied by the cura, who had the road opened forhim. The reason for that, as the said religious assured me, was thefear of the Filipinos for the anito, although the excuses that theyoffered were quite different. 

"In the said village of Los Baños, they believe that there is anantinganting in one of the hot water springs, which has water at 67°Reaumur. This consists in the Divine Child, who appears and hopsabout in the water on Good Friday; and he who catches Him obtainsthe antinganting. This last year, 1841, a man tried to get too near, and fell in. His entire body was scalded, and he was bled; but notone drop of blood could be drawn from his body, and he died on thefollowing day. 

"The third, and to me the most remarkable, class is found not incertain personages or superstitious and determined proceedings, butin sudden and capricious scenes, and in improbable and inexplainableapparitions. 

"There is scarce a Filipino, even the most enlightened, who does nottell marvelous things that have happened to him--wondrous visions, mute and speechless; ghosts, goblins, strange figures; dead people;dogs, and fabulous and never imagined animals; castles, and balls offire, that have appeared to him; frightful noises of all sorts thathave scared him; and, finally, the most improbable stories and bitsof nonsense that could be invented by the most raving maniac. 

"On hearing them recount so many of these extravagances, and seeingthat they distinguish them from dreams, I have been unable to believethat they were deceits; and observing their faces very carefullyduring the narration, I have been convinced that they were intimatelypersuaded that they had seen the things that they described. Whencecan this mental weakness come? It is not from ignorance, for I havenoticed the same thing as in the others, in several clerics who havestudied in the university for ten or twelve years. One day I was ina convent where the boards of the floor began to creak because ofdryness, and the coadjutor became so frightened that he went awayto sleep in another house; and the Christian reflections, jests, and anger of the Spanish cura could not restrain him. .. . The Filipinocura, Don J. Severiano Mallares, committed and caused to be committedfifty-seven assassinations, because he believed that he could bythis means save his mother, who, he had persuaded himself, had beenbewitched; and was hanged in the year 1840. The attorney on that causetalked in pathetic terms of the indescribable and barbarous prodigalityof blood shed by that monster. Reflecting upon this phenomenon, I aminclined to think that it is based on their natural timorousness. .. . "

[175] In D. , "indolent. "

[176] From the word "islands" to this point, is omitted in D. 

[177] "That they are tyrants, one over the other, " says Delgado(p. 311), "I do not deny. They inherited this peculiarity from theirancestors, and it has as yet been impossible to uproot it entirely, as many others which they learned from their ancestors. However, thesevices are not so common as they were formerly. And not only would theIndians of these islands have been consumed if the Spaniards had notcome hither, but they would have been conquered and enslaved by theneighboring nations, such as the Borneans, Chinese, and Japanese, as we see in the books of history. 

" . .. The principales were the aim of the popular wrath in the Ilocaninsurrection in 1807. 'Kill all the lords and ladies' was the cry, while the people hastened toward the capital to petition for theabolition of the monopolies and the fifths. The same thing happenedin the year 1814. " (Mas, p. 97. )

[178] M. Omits "and bring it back as cold as ice. "

[179] This is a general statement that is not true, says Delgado(pp. 311, 312), for the example given is merely from boys; and, besides, it never freezes in Filipinas. 

[180] This citation is missing in M. It is from Horace's Satires, book i, ll, 106, 107. E. C. Wickham (Horace for English Readers;Oxford, 1903, p. 163), translates the passage as follows: "There ismeasure in everything. There are fixed limits beyond which and shortof which right cannot find resting-place. "

[181] "That they need beatings and the rattan, " says Delgado (p. 312), "as examples prove, is a fact, and they confess it; but they resembleall other nations in this particular. .. . But it must be employedwith prudence and moderation, as the discipline is employed by ourfathers in our own lands, regarding them as sons and small children, and not as slaves or as our enemies. For God has brought us to theirlands, in order to watch over them, and maintains us here for loveof them. We must note that the Indians are not so bad as they seemto us. .. . It must also be observed that there are many Spaniards, andeven ministers, who are melancholy and crabbed, and so ill-conditionedand moody, that everything wounds them, and they are contented withnothing. All the actions of the Indians displease them, and they evenbelieve that the Indians do them purposely to make them impatientand to jest with them. From such ill-conditioned people the Indianssuffer much, and tolerate and endure much, because of their respectfor them. Consequently what the reverend father says below, namely'that it costs them more to be Christians than one would believe'is a fact and true. "

"The Spaniards cry out and are in despair at seeing the continualand great acts of rudeness of the Filipinos, some of which aredone maliciously, with the sole object of making us angry, whenthey contract hate for us. At times after they have wearied anddisgusted the Spaniards grievously, and have caused the latter togive them a buffet, this is a cause for great sport among them, and they celebrate it in the kitchen amid great guffaws, as I haveheard many times. Especially is it so if those who are made angryare women. But the Spaniards persist in not being convinced of thisfact, nor will they ever learn how to treat this people. The old menof the country say that the Spaniard is fire and the Filipino snow, and that the snow consumes the fire. " (Mas, pp. 97, 98. )

[182] M. And D. Add "His master chid him, but the lad replied thatthe hen had but one leg. "

[183] This quotation is lacking in M. And D. 

[184] M. And D. Read "in love and esteem. "

[185] "I shall not at present enter upon a discussion of whetherone ought or ought not beat the Filipino. I shall only remark, asa matter pertaining to this section, that the first thing that onesees in any of their houses is the rattan hanging in a corner. Whena father places his son in any Spanish house, this is his charge:'Sir, beat him often. ' To educate the young people, or to establishorder in any place without the use of the rattan, is a thing thatthey do not understand. " (Mas, p. 99. )

It is said that even at the present day a Filipino father will nothesitate to chastise his son corporally, even after the latter hasattained his majority. 

[186] This last phrase and the Latin quotation are lacking inM. Englished that quotation is, "The evil hate sin for fear ofpunishment. "

[187] This phrase is omitted in D. 

[188] In D. This is "even if it be a leaf. "

[189] Delgado says (p. 312): "But if his Paternity knows of thislack, how surprising that this and other things happen in regardto them, such as that all keep their faces turned toward him whoconfesses. If his Paternity would then preach them a sermon andcorrect them, I assure him that they would correct themselves, andthese backward-looking dancers who are so immodest in the church, whenthey ought to be modestly thinking of their sins and repenting of them, would correct themselves, and would not cause wonder and laughter. "

[190] M. Omits the remainder of this sentence. For "Januses, " D. Reads"worms. "

[191] Because some of the Indians are given to blasphemy, says Delgado(p. 313), it does not follow that all of them are blasphemous. 

[192] "I shall here attempt a delicate and interesting investigation, namely, the religiousness of the Filipinos. There are oppositeopinions on this matter, and serious errors are liable to arise. .. . "The women always wear scapulars about the neck, and usually somesort of a small cross; and a reliquary, containing the bones of asaint and a bit of the wood of the cross. But this has become a partof the dress, like earrings or necklaces, and both the devout womenand those who are not devout wear them. 

"The walls of the houses are often covered with the engravings ofsaints, and on the tables are many glass globes and urns containingsaints, virgins, and little figures of the Divine Child, whichgenerally have the face as well as the hands of ivory, and silverclothes richly embroidered. In well-to-do houses there are so manythat they resemble a storehouse of saints rather than a habitation. Inmany houses this is a matter of vanity and ostentation; and theyregard valuable saints as they do bureaus and mirrors elsewhere. 

"In the church great sedateness and devotion or silence reigns. Inthe villages the church is divided into three parts. In one end thewomen are seated, in the other the men, while the gobernadorcillosand principales occupy the center. However, this is not observed verystrictly in some villages. In some churches there are men in the fronthalf and women in the back half. When a small village is founded, in order to get the concession for a settlement and for a cura theyoffer to give the latter, in addition to paying the sanctórum tribute[a tribute paid to the Church by all Philippine natives of sixteenyears and over], a monthly quantity of rice, eggs, fowls, etc. , but they are afterward very remiss in living up to their offer. Manyfriars have had to have recourse to the alcaldes and to the officialsof the district; and I have even heard of one of them who had to take amusket and kill the fowls in the yards, and carry them to the convent. 

"They are very fond of singing the passion or history of the death ofJesus Christ, which is written in Tagálog verse. During the eveningsof Lent, the young men and women assemble in the houses for thispurpose. But although this was a religious gathering at the time whenit was originated, at the present time it has been converted into acarnival amusement, or to speak more plainly, into a pretext for themost scandalous vices; and the result of these canticles is that manyof the girls of the village become enceinte. So true is what I havejust said that the curas have prohibited everywhere the singing of thepassion at night; and some of the curas go out with a whip in order todisperse them--or rather, send the fiscal of the church to ascertainwho is singing, and send for such person immediately to beat him. 

"They say that all the saints are Spanish, since the patrons of theirchurches are always of this class. They would have no veneration fora saint with a flat nose and the physiognomy of a Filipino. 

"When any sick person refuses to confess, his relatives requesthim to do so. In this case they do not tell him that he will becondemned, etc. , but, 'Consider what a shame it will be; just thinkwhat people will say; consider that you will be buried outside ofholy ground. ' The idea of being buried on the beach is what givesthem most fear. This can only be explained by saying that they haveseen the cemetery and the beach and not hell, nor the other world, which, as one would believe, costs them much to conceive--althoughin reality they do believe in it, in the same way as many Europeansbelieve in it, but without understanding it, and only because thesages give assurance of it. .. . 

"In spite of this indifference regarding the future life, theygenerally order masses said for the souls of their ancestors, andnot because of compromise or vanity, but true faith and devotion, although this does not argue much in favor of their religiousness. Forthe Igorots, who are the type of the Filipinos, although they do notbelieve in the immortality of the soul, have many superstitions inregard to the shades of the dead. .. . 

"In some places the curas have to lock the doors of the church aftermass, so that the people will not depart without hearing the sermon, and this in places quite religious, as is Pangasinan. Many of those whoare carried to Mindanao or to Jolo as captives become renegades withthe greatest ease; and then they will not return, even though they may. 

"Some make the sign of the cross as they go down the stairways. Allstop on the street at the sound of the prayer-bell; and the samething happens in the houses, where they often pray on their kneeswith true devotion. They all remove their hats when passing in frontof the church, and many stop to pray. Nevertheless, all the curasassert that they make a false confession, for they only confess thethree following sins: absence from mass, eating of meat during Lent, and vain blaspheming; although it is apparent to the curas that theyhave committed other greater sins. It is a great trouble to get themto take part in the procession, and those who can do so escape throughthe cross streets. In Manila it is necessary for the regimental headsto appoint soldiers to go to take part in this act, and to pay themone-half real; and, were it not for this expedient, it would sometimesbe impossible to do it. The curas have considerable trouble in thevillages in getting them to confess. They are given forty days ofgrace, and many come after being threatened with twenty-five lashes;while many of the degree of captain, and many who are not, getalong in spite of all without confession. In the village of Lilio, on the brow of Mount Banahao, where there are 1, 300 tributes, therewere more than 600 persons who did not confess in the year 1840; andthis has not been one of the most remiss villages in the fulfilmentof its religious duties. "

[Father Juan Ferrando, who examined Mas's MS. , says that 'the Filipinosconfess according to the instruction that is given them. In Manila, as I know by experience, they confess as well as the most ferventSpaniard, and I have heard many fathers say the same of many Indiansof the provinces. ']

"Very many of them also never go to mass in any village where thecura is not especially zealous. In the city of Vigan, where there areabout 30, 000 persons, not more than 500 or 800 went to church duringmy stay there on any feast-day, except one of especial devotion tocelebrate a virgin patroness of the city. There has been and is muchtalk of the influence of the curas in the villages. No doubt there issomething in it, but their respect and deference toward the parishpriest is influenced not a little, in my opinion by their idea (andone not ill founded) of the power of the priest, of the employmentthat he can give; and of their hope that he will protect them in anyoppression that they receive from the civil government or from thesoldiers. In reality, the friar usually addresses his parishionersin the language of peace, which is the method which fits well intothe phlegmatic Filipino. He constitutes himself their defender, evenwithout their having any regard for him--now from the injuries thatthe avarice of their governors causes them, now from the tendencyof these to acquire preponderance and to command, which is thefirst instinct of man. Consequently, the friars, by resisting andrestraining in all parts, and at so great a distance from Madrid, the tyranny or greed of the Spaniards, have been very useful to thevillages, and have been acquiring their love. And since the islandsare not kept subject by force, but by the will of the mass of theinhabitants, and the means of persuasion are principally in thehands of the religious, the government is necessarily obliged toshow the latter considerable deference. From this fact originatestheir influence in temporal affairs, and the fear mixed with therespect with which they inspire the people. Three facts naturallyresult from all this. The cura, speaking in general, is the one whogoverns the village. Consequently, when a new village is formed itsinhabitants do not care to be annexed or dependent on another villagein regard to spiritual things; but desire and petition for a parishpriest of their own, in order that they might have in him a powerfuldefender in their differences and suits with other settlements, orwith the alcalde of the province. Lastly, the ascendency that theminister is seen to enjoy is perhaps as much civil as religious, if it is not more so. And in fact . .. Although they have oftensucceeded in pacifying seditions by their mere presence alone, and the insurgents, for instance, in Ilocos in the year 1807, surrendered to the friar the cannon that they had captured from aband of 36 soldiers and two patrols of the guard, who were routed, yet at other times not only have individuals but whole masses refusedto listen to the admonitions of the religious, have completely lostrespect for them, have insulted them, threatened them, wounded them, and even assassinated them, and have not lacked the complement of allthis, profaning the churches. I shall not mention the thefts in thechurches, such as one which happened in the capital of Pangasinan whenI was there in that province; for these might be considered as singleindividual deeds, isolated and insignificant. I deduce then, as theresultant conclusion of all these observations, that there are manyFilipinos, especially among the feminine sex, who have the true fearof God, but many others who feel a great natural indifference in thismatter. They exhibit scarce a disposition toward religion, a fact thatI believe must proceed from their little consideration of the wondersof religion . .. Which is a mark of their small amount of intelligence, for they show great indifference for the punishments of the otherworld, and even the ecclesiastical punishments of this. Nothingshows this so clearly as the insincere confessions which they makein order to finish with it. It is to be noted that almost the samething happens at the hour of death, and that this is seen in the smalland remote villages where Spaniards have never been. Neither can itbe the result of errors of faith or philosophic reading, since thepeople know no other books than those of the doctrine or the passion. 

"Combining the above data and observations with what I have heardrecounted, and what we see in manuscripts and printed books aboutthe method by which the old-time religious have maintained devotionin these islands--which has been by calling the list in order toascertain those who did not observe their obligation to attend massand confession, and by punishing in the church courtyard those whoare remiss--I am inclined to believe that the law of Jesus Christ islearned here superficially; and that if the system adopted some yearsago be continued, of obliging the curas to reduce themselves only tothe means of preaching, prohibiting them rigorously from compulsiveand positive means, before a century passes there will be but fewpure-blooded natives in this archipelago who are true and devoutChristians. .. . " (Mas, pp. 100-106. )

[193] M. And D. Omit all of this last sentence and quotation. 

[194] A vice common to all the world, says Delgado (p. 313). 

[195] "Although they have but little honor, they have in effect onlytoo much vanity. When one goes to their houses, they make a greateffort to show off their wealth, even if they have to beg a loan inorder to meet the expense. They do not care to bury their relativesfor the love of God, although they try if possible to avoid the paymentof the funeral expenses. A cura told me that after a man had paid himthe burial expenses a baguio or hurricane began; whereupon the mancame to get his money, saying that he wished the burial of a pauper, because in the end, no one would have to see it. " (Mas, p. 107. )

[196] Delgado (p. 313) utters a warning against judging on thisparticular, and says "that virtues are not so distant from them, as his Paternity writes. "

[197] M. Omits this sentence to this point. 

[198] What fault do the Indians have in trying to get and defendtheir own? There may be excess in this matter, says Delgado (p. 313), but the Indians do not go to law only to cause trouble. 

[199] M. And D. Omit this sentence. 

[200] In regard to this Delgado says (pp. 313, 314) that "there is nodish more relished in this land than defamation and complaint. .. . Thisis a country where idleness sits enthroned; for when the ship isdespatched to Nueva España there is nothing to do for a whole year, but to complain and discuss the lives of others. " Delgado does notbelieve that lust is the only feature in the intercourse betweenmen and women. Neither does he believe that women are treated, as they deserve, with kicks and blows; nor that such treatment isin accordance with conjugal love, or with the text of women beingsubject to men. San Agustin's advice to Europeans is not good. 

[201] The Ayer MS. And M. Read "Machiabelo;" D. Reads "Macabeo, " i. E. , "Maccabæan. "

[202] From this point M. And D. Read: "They call this mabibig, andthis is a thing that will rouse up the entire village against one, the stones, and the land itself. Hence, the concubinages among them, and other evils, have no human remedy, nor can have; for no onewishes to be mabibig, for that is the most abominable fault and theonly sin among them. "

[203] The Indians do not tell tales of one another for a more potentreason than that of being declared mabibig, is Delgado's commentary(pp. 314, 315)--namely, the fear, of private revenge. "But the prudentIndians always advise the father minister, if there is any scandal inthe village; now in confession, so that it might be remedied withoutanyone knowing the person who has told it; now by a fictitious andanonymous letter, as has happened to me several times. One mustexercise prudence in this matter, for all that is written or spokenis not generally true. "

[204] M. And D. Read with some slight verbal differences, whichtranslate the same: "For one might happen to have a servant or two whowaste and destroy the property of their master, and no other servant, however kindly he has been treated by his master, will tell him whatis happening. "

[205] "This league of the caste of color for mutual protection anddefense from the domineering caste is very natural. The Filipinosare not so constant in maintaining it, however, that it is not brokenby two methods: by offering money to the accuser, or by bestowing somany lashes on each one who is implicated in the crime. " (Mas, p. 109. )

[206] Delgado (p. 315) finds this very natural, and dismisses it bythe reflection that liberty is dear. 

[207] In M. And D. This reads: "Therefore when they say that thereis no more sugar or no more oil, it is when there is not [sugar]enough to make a cup of chocolate, or oil enough to whet a knife. "

[208] M. And D. Read: "They will place the best cup and plate, [D. Mentions only the plate] which are much different than the others, for the master, and will only look after him, and pay no attentionto the guests. "

[209] M. And D. Omit this sentence. 

[210] Spanish, sacabuches consistol y deresistol, a transcriber'serror for con sistol y diastol (this phrase omitted in D. ); a playon words, as the sackbut forms the various tones by lengthening andshortening the instrument. The phrase systole and diastole is nowapplied to the alternate contraction and expansion of the heart;San Agustin apparently uses it through fondness for a learned phrase. 

[211] The citation from Quevedo is lacking in M. San Agustin hasslightly misquoted; though it translates the same as the correctversion. The lines are as follows:

 Galalon, que en casa come poco, y á costa agena el corpanchon ahita. 

The citation is from Quevedo's Poema heroica de las necedades ylocuras de Orlando el enamorado. 

[212] That is, "Much good may it do you, " an expression used ateating or drinking. San Agustin evidently refers in the followingclause to the scanty fare supplied to those who row in the boats ascompulsory service. 

[213] This is not a general rule among the Tagálogs, and much lessamong the Visayans. Neither are all the Indians forgers. (Delgado, pp. 315, 316. )

[214] M. Omits "alcalde" and reads "prudent and experiencedman. " D. Reads "a prudent and experienced alcalde. "

[215] i. E. , "I heard your evidence, and feared. "

[216] M. Reads "some Indians;" D. , "some erudite Indians. "

[217] Rabula, "an ignorant, vociferous lawyer;" cf. English"pettifogger. "

[218] This sentence is omitted by M. D. Reads "all the alcaldes. "

[219] The Italian phrase fabro de calumina is used. 

[220] King Josiah or Josias was slain at Mageddo. See IV Kings (IIKings of the King James version), xxiii, 29, 30; and II Paralipomenon(II Chronicles of the King James version), xxxv, 22-25. 

[221] M. Reads: "the Indians making use of a whole year in orderto increase their calumny. " D. Reads: "Just see what subtlety andmoderate arithmetic they use in order to make their accusation;the Indians lumping together a whole year in order to give pastureto one single horse;" and then adds: "And there are so many cases ofthis that if I mentioned them all I would never end. "

[222] We have thus freely translated the original sin afianzarcalumnia, which is a regular law term. 

[223] "But a short time ago, when Señor Seoane was regent of theAudiencia, as the result of an urgent complaint against a Spanishcura, a verbal process was ordered to be made, and from it not theslightest charge resulted against the priest. Another judge wasentrusted with the forming of another verbal process, with the sameresult. The supreme tribunal, being persuaded that the matter wasnot all calumny, sent an expressly commissioned judge from Manila, who found no more crime than did the others. 

"I personally saw a representation signed by the gobernadorcillo andall the principales of a village, in which they affirmed that theircura had forced the wife of the first lieutenant; had punished thelieutenant for opposing her being kept to sleep in the convent; wentout on the street drunk; went into the town hall to beat individualsof the municipality; and had not celebrated mass on Sunday for thesame reason of being drunk. When a verbal process was made of it, all retracted. I became acquainted personally with this friar, whois a fine fellow. .. . " (Mas, pp. 113, 114. )

[224] From this point, M. And D. Read: "but it is to images of somenew miracle. They have the habit of devotion, but they seek the newestand forget the old. "

[225] As to the Indians being fond of making pilgrimages to new anddistant shrines where some notable miracle has occurred, Spaniardsoften have the same love. See Delgado, p. 316. 

[226] San Agustin is speaking of the Indians of Manila and itsenvirons, says Delgado (p. 316): "For this is rarely seen in theother islands. Hence in the twenty-four years that I have lived inthe Visayas, only in the city of Cebu have I ever seen any otherthan some religious drama [auto sacramental], or the pieces of theschool children. "

[227] In M. Escuitiles; and in D. Miscuitiles. 

[228] The verse number is given correctly in M. San Agustin quotesincorrectly, the proper version being:

 Segnius irritant animos demissa per aurem, Quam quæ sunt oculis subiecta fidelibus. .. . 

The translation given by Wickham (ut supra, p. 349), is as follows:"What finds entrance through the ear stirs the mind less activelythan what is submitted to the eyes, which we cannot doubt. "

"They are very fond of seeing theatrical pieces. They make sometranslations from our dramas, and they make a piece out of anythingalthough it is destitute of the rules of art. They are especially fondof very long comedies, that last a month or more, with many hours ofrepresentation daily. These are drawn from histories or from stories, and they stage them. In Tondo there was played, for instance, Matilde, ó las Cruzadas [i. E. , "Matilda, or the Crusades"]. The Celestinawas probably the origin of this taste. Filipino poets have writtenseveral dramas of this kind, as well as some epic, religious, andlove poems. But in the epoch previous to the arrival of the Spaniards, it appears that there existed only a few love songs, of whose meritsI cannot judge, as I know the language so slightly. 

"They have verses of as many as twelve syllables, which are the onesgenerally used in their poems. They are divided into quatrains, whosefour verses rhyme among themselves. The Filipino rhyme, however, consists in the last letter being a vowel or a consonant. .. . Theyread all their verses in a singing tone, and the quatrains of thetwelve-syllable verse are read with the motif of the comintan, which is their national song. The custom of singing when readingpoetry is a practice of China, and of all the Asiatic peoples whom Ihave visited. The kind of versification which I have just cited isevidently anterior to our conquest, as is also the above-mentionedair, which is adjusted to it. This air is melancholy and does notresemble at all any Chinese or Indian music that I have heard. Thereare several comintans, just as there are different boleros, Polishdances, or Tyrolian dances. Some of them have a great resemblance tothe music of Arabia. On the slopes of Camachin [which is a mountainin southern Mindanao], I heard a song which is exactly and purely ofthat sort. .. . " (Mas, pp. 115, 116. )

The Celestina mentioned by Mas is a noted dramatic story--probablywritten about 1480, and by Rodrigo Cota, of Toledo, and others--whichhas exercised a very strong influence on the Spanish national drama. Ithas great literary merit, admirable style, and well-drawn pictures ofhuman nature; and it attained so extensive and continual popularitythat even the Inquisition did not place Celestina in the Index until1793, notwithstanding its grossness of thought and language. (Ticknor, History of Spanish Literature, i, pp. 262-272. )

[229] M. And D. Read "Christ our Lord. "

[230] "In the Visayas, " says Delgado (p. 317) "very rarely do theIndians imitate the Spaniards in their dress; for almost all of themgo barefoot, according to their custom, and wear long black garmentsthat cover the entire body (which we call cassocks or lambong), verywide breeches, and the shirt outside. For they can never accustomthemselves, as do the Spaniards, to gathering it inside, as is thecustom of the country. I have seen the same among the Tagálogs, withthe exception of some servants of the Spaniards, and some officialsand clerks, among them. But these men do not make the rule for theother nations of this archipelago, who are numerous and different. Ican truly tell what I see among the Spaniards of Visayas, who dress inthe same manner as the Indians; and very rarely do they put on shoesand stockings or slippers, except on an important feast-day when theygo to the church, for they cannot endure it any other way. It is afact that the Indians do preserve somewhat their ancient customs indistricts where there is less civilization and instruction; but wherethey are well taught and directed, they have almost forgotten these. "

"A cura told me that he had surprised a man and three old womencrouched down beside the corpse of the former's dead wife. The fourpeople were all covered over with sheets, and were in the attitude oflistening with the closest of attention to see whether the deceasedwould say anything to them. They practice many simplicities like thisin all their solemn ceremonies, of which we have spoken. So general isthis that in the ordinances of good government in force, there is anarticle that orders the persecution of idolatry and aniterias. " (Mas, pp. 116, 117. )

[231] "If father Fray Gaspar had been in Madrid, he would not have beenso greatly surprised that those soliciting anything should send theirwives to obtain favors. Moreover, the Filipinos, not only fearing, but with full consciousness, generally send and even take their wivesto the Spaniards to obtain some employment, or merely for money. Themost direct means for a general to obtain the friendship of a marriedwoman is to win over the husband, just as in order to get a singlewoman one must gain over the mother. I have known very intimatelya steward who was very much in love with his wife, and was jealouseven of her shadow. Nevertheless, at the least insinuation of hismaster he took her to the latter's apartment, and it appears that hedesired her to go there very often. Upon thinking over this matter, I am convinced that a partial cause of it is the little importancethat they attach to the act of love, and especially in the fact towhich they are persuaded that no one of their women will ever loveus; and they are only handed over for the profit, and are lent usas a personal service, just like any other; and when the woman goesaway from us, she takes her heart with her, which is all for theFilipinos. " (Mas, p. 117. )

[232] M. And D. Add "most. "

[233] This phrase is omitted in D. 

[234] It is not to be wondered at that they are literal and materialin their conversation, for they know only their villages. See Delgado, p. 317. 

"I have observed none of this, especially in the women to whom Ihave talked. Almost all of them are always attentive, courteous, and kind. " (Mas, p. 118. )

[235] M. And D. Omit this sentence. 

[236] M. Adds: "and run away, for he is the bugaboo, with which thechildren are frightened. "

[237] Dogs do not bark at the Spaniards only, in any country, butat those who are strange to them. Neither do the Indians detest thefathers from birth. The fact that the Indians yield to anyone whoassumes a boasting attitude, especially if he be drunk, and have aknife, is not so much cowardice as prudence. "I believe that thereverend father was very melancholy, and tired of the ministry, when he began to write his letter. " (Delgado, pp. 317, 318. )

"If our father had traveled, he would have known that dogs bark atanyone whose clothes are unfamiliar to them. In regard to their horrorof white faces, he at least exaggerates. It is not at all strangethat a child should cry at an object being presented to him that hehas never had in his ken before. I have seen many children burst intosobs at the sight of my eye-glasses. It is a fact that some of themhave just as little as possible to do with us, either for contempt, embarrassment, or antipathy; but there are a very great number whoprofess affection for us. When the government secretary, Cambronero, died in the year 1840, all his servants shed tears abundantly. Aserving-maid of the Señora de Recaño was left desolate, when the latterembarked for España a short time ago. An old woman on the occasion of[the engagement of] Movales in the year 1823, gave Col. Santa Romanaproofs of great affection and fidelity. During the same engagement, while Don Domingo Benito was haranguing his artillery sergeantsand telling them 'I shall die the first, ' one of them answered, 'No, Sir, I shall die before you. ' When the Jesuits were exiled, the villages that they administered grieved exceedingly. In thearchives of St. Augustine, I have seen the relation of one of thefriars who went there for their relief, and he paints in lively colorsthe memory preserved of the Jesuits: 'Here they cannot look upon awhite habit; notwithstanding the kind words that we speak to them, and the presents that we make them, we cannot attract to ourselvesthe good-will of these people; hence, when we call a child, he runsaway instead of coming to us. ' I have seen some servants ready andanxious to go with their master to any part of the world; and, ifthe Spaniards would take than, many would go to España. When someinsurgents in the island of Leite put Alcalde Lara in the stocks, his servant feigned to be in accord with them. He made them drunk, and then took his master from the stocks. He fitted up a barangayquickly, in which they attempted to escape, but the night was stormy, and all were drowned. And finally, I myself have received severaldisinterested proofs of their good-will. " (Mas, pp. 118, 119. )

[238] "It is difficult to ascertain whether the Filipino is a braveman or a coward. On one side, we see any braggart terrify a multitude;and on the other, some face dangers and death with unmoved spirit. Whenone of them decides to kill another, he does it without thinking atall of the consequences. A man of Vigan killed a girl who did not lovehim, six other persons, and a buffalo; and then stabbed at a tree, and killed himself. Another servant of the tobacco superintendentkilled a girl for the same reason, before a crowd of people, andthen himself. A soldier killed a girl for the same reason while Iwas passing in front of Santo Thomás. A coachman, in November, 1841, tried to kill another man, because of a love affair; and, failingin the attempt, killed himself. Filipino sailors have committed manycruelties, and have a reputation throughout the entire Indian Sea asturbulent fellows and assassins. The [insurance] companies of Bengaldo not insure at full risk a vessel in which one-half the crew iscomposed of islanders. When I was in the island of Pinang, at thestrait of Malacca, I tried to get passage to Singapor, in order togo to Filipinas, in the brigantine "Juana" and to take in my companyas a servant one of the seventeen sailors of Manila, who had beendischarged from a Portuguese vessel because of a row that they had hadwith the captain. The commander of the "Juana" was a Chinese, and thecrew Malayan; counting sailors and Chinese passengers there were about40 persons aboard. Under no consideration would the captain admit metogether with the servant, telling me: 'No, no, even if you give me ahundred pesos, I will take no man from Manila. ' In fact, after muchbegging, I had to resign myself and leave him ashore, and take shipwithout knowing who would guide and serve me; for I understood neitherChinese nor Malayan. At the same time, I have heard that the Filipinosare cowards in a storm. The infantry captain Molla told me that thecaptain of a pontín which encountered a heavy tempest began to weep, and the sailors hid in order not to work; and he had to drive themout of the corners with a stick, for which they began to mutiny andto try to pitch him overboard. Ashore they have given some proofs ofboldness by attacking Spaniards to their faces. .. . Sergeant Mateo wasboldly confronted in the insurrection of 1823. The soldiers have theexcellent quality of being obedient, and if they have Spanish officersand sergeants, will not turn their backs on the fire; but alone theyhave never given proof of gallantry. In the war with the English, theyalways fled . .. And the few Europeans whom Anda had were his hope, andthe soul of all his operations. I have asked many officers who havefought with Filipinos, either against the savages in the mountains, or against ladrones; and they all have told me that when it comes tofighting, they preferred to have twenty-five Europeans to one hundredFilipinos. Many allege, in proof of their bravery, the indifferencewith which they die; but this is rather a sign of stupidity than ofgood courage. From all of the above data, we might deduce that theindividual whom we are analyzing is more often found to be cowardlythan impassive and fearless; but that he is apt to become desperate, as is very frequently observed. They express that by the idea thathe is hot-headed, and at such times they commit the most atrociouscrimes and suicide. He is cruel, and sheds blood with but littlesymptoms of horror, and awaits death calmly. This is because he doesnot feel so strongly as we do the instinct of life. He has no greatspirit for hazardous enterprises, as for instance that of boarding awarship, breaking a square, gaining a bridge, or assaulting a breach, unless he be inflamed by the most violent passions, that render himfrantic. " (Mas, pp. 119-121. )

[239] In M. , "to a great degree;" and in D. , "in a certain manner. "

[240] D. Reads "on this occasion. "

[241] Delgado says (p. 318) that the sin of intoxication isoverstated. Among the Visayans, intoxicating beverages are indulgedin in differing degrees, while many are abstemious. "I would liketo hear what the Tagálog Indians who live among Spaniards in Manilawould say to this stain, that is imputed to them alone. "

"Perhaps this may have been so in the time of Father Gaspar, as theFilipinos preserved more of their ancient customs than now, for wesee that intoxication is very common in the independent tribes livingin the mountains, but today it is not observed that the [civilizedFilipinos] drink more than the individuals of other nations who areconsidered sober. " (Mas, pp. 121, 122. )

[242] Delgado denies that the Indians are robbers (p. 318). 

[243] Delgado says (p. 318): "This passage is absolutely malicious, sofar as the Visayans are concerned; for no Visayan woman of good bloodwill marry with other than her equal, however poor she be. And althoughall are of one color, they make great distinctions among themselves. "

"The same thing is recounted by Father Mozo to be the case among themountain savages. " (Mas, p. 122. )

[244] i. E. , "At least as to manner. "

[245] D. Omits this last clause. 

[246] An adaptation of an old proverb, probably meaning here, "Althoughsins are committed here, they are not so frequent as in other places. "

[247] San Agustin speaks without sufficient authority, says Delgado(pp. 318, 319), for he only remained a short time in Panay, andlearned nothing of the other parts of the Visayans. "I know very wellthat what he imputes to the Visayan women is not absolutely true. Forgenerally they detest not only Cafres and negroes, but also inequalityin birth. They are not so easy as his Paternity declares in admittingany temptation, and there are many of them who are very modest andreserved. " Bad women exist everywhere, even among the whites. 

"There is no doubt that modesty is a peculiar feature in thesewomen. From the prudent and even humble manner in which the singleyouths approach their sweethearts, one can see that these youngladies hold their lovers within strict bounds and cause themselvesto be treated by them with the greatest respect. I have not seenlooseness and impudence, even among prostitutes. Many of the girlsfeign resistance, and desire to be conquered by a brave arm. This isthe way, they say, among the beautiful sex in Filipinas. In Manila nowoman makes the least sign or even calls out to a man on the street, or from the windows, as happens in Europa; and this does not resultfrom fear of the police, for there is complete freedom in this point, as in many others. But in the midst of this delicacy of intercoursethere are very few Filipino girls who do not relent to their gallantsand to their presents. It appears that there are very few youngwomen who marry as virgins and very many have had children beforemarriage. No great importance is attached to these slips, howevermuch the curas endeavor to make them do so. Some curas have assuredme that not only do the girls not consider it dishonorable, but think, on the contrary, that they can prove by this means that they have hadlovers. If this is so, then we shall have another proof that theseFilipinos preserve not a little of their character and primitivecustoms; since, according to the account of Father Juan Francisco deSan Antonio, it was a shame for any woman, whether married or single, before the arrival of the Spaniards, not to have a lover, althoughit was at the same time a settled thing that no one would give heraffection freely. 

"That they are more affectionate than men is also a fact, but thisis common to the sex in all countries. .. . 

"That they rarely love any Spaniards is also true. The beard, andespecially the mustache, causes them a disagreeable impression, and he who believes the contrary is much mistaken. Besides, oureducation, our tastes, and our rank place a very high wall betweenthe two persons. The basis of love is confidence; and a rude Filipinogirl acquires with great difficulty confidence toward an Europeanwho is accustomed to operas and society. They may place themselvesin the arms of Europeans through interest or persuasion; but afterthe moment of illusion is over, they do not know what to say and onegets tired of the other. The Filipino girl does not grow weary ofher Filipino, for the attainments, inclinations, and acquaintances ofboth are the same. Notwithstanding the Filipinos live, as I am told, convinced that not one of their beauties has the slightest affectionfor us, and that they bestow their smiles upon us only for reasonsof convenience, yet I imagine that sometimes the joke is turned uponthemselves--especially if the Spaniard is very young, has but littlebeard, and is of a low class, or can lower himself to the level ofthe poor Filipino girl. " (Mas, pp. 123-125. )

[248] M. Reads "fishing. "

[249] D. Reads "gloomily. "

[250] M. Reads "For to define them categorically, with an essentialand real definition. " D. Reads "For to define them categorically, with an essential and real substantial definition, awaits another. "

[251] M. Omits the remainder of this paragraph; and the last sentencein D. Reads: "But it they had undertaken the task of defining theIndians, they would not have been so successful. "

[252] This was the French poet and theologian John Barclay, whowas born at Pont-à-Mousson, in 1582, and died at Rome, August 12, 1621. He refused to enter the Society of Jesus, and followed hisfather to England where he published a poem at the coronation ofJames I, which found considerable favor. While in London he wasaccused of heresy, and was summoned to Rome by Paul V. In Londonhe published a continuation of his Euphormion, the first part ofwhich had appeared in 1610. This consists of a Latin satire in twobooks. His Argenis was published in Paris in 1621, and there was aLeyden edition in 1630. It is a story, written in prose and poetry, of the vices of the court. It was very popular and was translatedinto many languages. See Hoefer's Nouvelle biographie générale. 

[253] Probably Joannes Rodenborgh, who wrote the fifth part of Logicæcompendiosæ (Utrecht, 1676). 

[254] See ante, p. 192, note 109. 

[255] See ante, p. 191, note 105. 

[256] i. E. , "Passion does not come from custom. " This is lacking in M. 

[257] i. E. , "And infamous need. " This is from the Aeneid, book, vi, line 276. 

[258] St. Antony of Thebes was the founder of monachism. He is saidto have been born at Koma, Egypt, near Heraklea, A. D. 251, and tohave died A. D. 356. In early life he retired to the wilderness, andlived in seclusion until 305, when he founded the monastery of Fayum, near Memphis and Arsinoë. He is the patron of hospitallers, and his dayis celebrated on January 17. His life was written by St. Athanasius, a condensed translation of which is given by S. Baring-Gould in hisLives of the Saints (London, 1897, 1898), i, pp. 249-272. See alsoAddis and Arnold's Catholic Dictionary, p. 596; and New InternationalEncyclopædia. 

[259] Formerly called Thebaica regio, one of the three great divisionsof ancient Egypt, and equivalent to Upper Egypt. This district wasfamous for its deserts, which became the habitation of many of theearly Christians, among them both Sts. Antony and Arsenius. SeeLarousse's Grand Dictionnaire. 

[260] St. Arsenius was a Roman of a noble and wealthy family, whobecame the tutor of the two sons of Theodosius at Constantinople. Hefled to Egypt after the death of Theodosius, in shame at the poorresults of his teaching. There he lived in the desert, where he wascalled "the father of the emperors. " He died about 440, after a longlife of seclusion. He figures in Kingsley's story of Hypatia. His dayis celebrated on July 19, and he is especially revered in France andBelgium. See Baring-Gould (ut supra), viii, pp. 446-448. 

[261] D. Reads wrongly "Theodorico. "

[262] D. Reads "gético. "

[263] In the first line of the above citation, which is from theEpistolarum ex Ponto, book i, epistle 3 (to Rufinus) read "littore"in place of "frigore. " The translation of the two lines is as follows:"What is better than Rome? What is worse than the Scythian shore? Yetthe barbarian flees thither from that city. "

[264] i. E. , "Though composed of many, it draws to itself the natureof the more worthy simple form. "

[265] "Among the Filipino Indians there are many who are very good, and are very capable of being directed and taught in good and holycustoms; and because there are many bad ones, who govern themselvesnot by reason, but by the pressure of public opinion, it cannot besaid rightly and conscientiously that all are bad. " (Delgado, p. 320. )

"This paragraph appears admirable to me, and a more exact idea of theFilipino cannot be given in so few words--at least such as he is atpresent, either because of circumstances, or because of his physicalconstitution, or of the two things together. " (Mas, p. 127. )

[266] M. And D. Add "it is in favor of their comfort, and they commitother greater acts of insolence, for. "

[267] i. E. , "They enter into the joy of their lord;" a reference toMatthew XXV, 21, 23. 

[268] i. E. , "Not as to the cause, but as the effect. " D. Reversesthe position of the negative. 

[269] Heliogabalus the Roman emperor, who ascended the throne in218 A. D. , at the age of fourteen, and was assassinated after threeyears. He is known chiefly for his acts of madness and bestiality, and his cruelty. 

[270] San Agustin has quoted these lines incorrectly. They are found inll. 527-531 of Marcus Annæus Lucanus's Pharsalia, and are as follows:

 . .. O vitæ tuta facultas Pauperis angustique lares! O munera nondum Intellecta deum! Quibus hoc Contingere templis Aut potuit muris nullo Trepidare tumultu Cæsarea pulsante manu?. .. 

The translation of this passage is as follows: "O secure opportunityof life, and lares of the needy poor man! O gifts not yet recognizedas a god! What temples could enjoy this blessing, or what walls bein confusion in any tumult, if the hand of Cæsar move?"

[271] "All religious agree that they die with the utmost indifference, and that when they come to the bedside of the dying one, in order tocomfort him, they remain cold upon seeing how little those peopleare changed by the words that their approaching peril inspires inthem. Confessions at such a time are generally somewhat more sincere, but always very short and stupid. The relatives are not at all carefulabout talking of his death in the presence of the sick person--as, for example, one of them remarking to the cura in a very naturaland quiet voice in his uncle's presence (who still fully retainedhis feeling and hearing): 'See, Father, it would be wise for youto consecrate the winding-sheet, for I think that he is about todie soon. ' The same indifference is to be observed in a criminalcondemned to any punishment. He is seated on his heels on a bamboobench, smoking. Every few moments the religious enters to give him aChristian word, to which the criminal generally answers: 'Yes, Father, I know quite well that I have to die; what am I to do about it? I am anevil man; God so decrees; such was my fate;' and other things of thissort. He eats regularly, and sleeps as on any other day. .. . [This]is only one additional proof, and in my opinion, a not slight one, that the Filipino race is inferior, at least in spiritual matters, to our race. " (Mas, pp. 128, 129. )

[272] The location of the above quotation is not given in the Ayer MS. , but is given in both M. And D. 

[273] D. Reads "chatcere. "

[274] Possibly a reference to Proverbs ii instead of xx (where thereis nothing that corresponds to this passage). The translation of theabove is: "I walk in the ways of justice, in the midst of the pathsof judgment, so that I may call myself diligent. "

[275] This is not quoted correctly, but should be: Venite ad me omnes, qui laboratis et onerati estis, et ego reficiam vos. The editor ofD. Has emended this passage. 

[276] This is the wrong reference. In the King James version, it islxxii, 13, and in the Douay version, lxxi, 13. 

[277] i. E. , "For to him that is little, mercy is granted. " This isnot in M. 

[278] The remainder of this paragraph, and all the next, are lackingin M. 

[279] i. E. , "No sacrifice is more acceptable to God than the zealfor souls. "

[280] i. E. , "Ye therefore, my friends who are in the world, proceedwith security, and cry out and announce my will. I will dwell in yourheart and in your mouth: I will be your leader on the way, and youconsolation at death. I will not leave you. Proceed with eagerness, for glory increases from the labor. " D. Reads "audacter, " "boldly, "instead of "alacriter. " M. Gives but a portion of the citation. 

[281] This quotation is not exact, the correct version being asfollows: Patientia enim vobis necessaria est: ut voluntatem Deifacientis, reportetis promissionem. It is not in M. 

[282] In D. "placing. "

[283] M. Is the only one of the three versions of this letter thatlocates this citation correctly. We adopt the reading of the LatinVulgate, as San Agustin has not quoted exactly. 

[284] M. And D. Omit these last four words. 

[285] M. And D. Read "variety of combinations of. "

[286] Of the remainder of the letter, Delgado says (p. 323): "Inregard to all the rest that the reverend writer adds, concerningthe manner in which those who live with the Indians ought to comportthemselves, I have nothing more to say or to add. For it is all wellwritten and noted, and those who come new to these islands will dovery well to read it and to do as the reverend father prescribes, teaching the Indians to read and write and other knowledge, for theyhave great capacity for all and at the same time, civilization, whichis very necessary to them; and where they fail and sin, punish themas children, and not as slaves. By so doing they will obtain fromthem whatever they wish. "

Mas says (pp. 130, 131) of the advice given by San Agustin "I wouldbe very glad, and it would be very advantageous for them, if all theSpaniards would adopt this system which is both wise and unique. Butquite to the contrary, many persons think that the Filipinos ought tounderstand them at the slightest insinuation and very readily. Forany fault they become impatient and call the Filipinos brutes, andcarabaos, and express themselves in the presence of the Filipinosin the most violent manner, and in the most insulting terms aboutthe race in general, even to the point of wishing to destroy themand other barbarous and sanguinary ideas of which their heart is notcapable. And they do not take note that such outbreaks of wrath onlyserve the purpose of confusing the Filipinos, rendering them morestupid, and rousing up hatred against them and all the Spaniards. "

[287] In M. "mildly. "

[288] M. Gives the reference wrongly as the nineteenth verse. 

[289] i. E. , "Care must, in fact, be taken that the teacher and thefather and the mother give discipline to their subjects. "

[290] Not in M. 

[291] In D. "and the merit lies in the patience. "

[292] i. E. , "Help the poor because of the commandment; and send himnot away empty-handed because of his poverty, etc. " M. And D. Addthe thirteenth verse, as follows: Perde pecuniam propter fratrem etamicum tuum, et non abscondas illam sub lapide in perditionem. TheEnglish of this is: "Lose thy money for thy brother and thy friend:and hide it not under a stone to be lost. " To the above paragraphM. And D. Add the following: "For the merit becomes greater inproportion to their ingratitude if we fulfil our obligation andif they act according to their disposition. For, as says the royalprophet David (Psalm xxxvi, 21), Mutuabitur peccator, et non solvet:justus autem miseretur et tribuet. "

[293] This paragraph is divided into two paragraphs in M. And D. Andis very much abridged. It is as follows: "It is necessary that thoseIndians who are taken as servants, be shown no love if they arechildren, but always uprightness, for one must consider it as mostcertain that in proportion as they are better clothed and caressed, the worse they will become when they grow up. This is the teaching ofthe Holy Spirit: [the verse from Proverbs as above follows]. They mustbe treated with great uprightness and prudence, for otherwise theywill gradually lose their respect to the character that God presentsto them in the Spaniard. [The fable of King Log follows as above. ]"

[294] i. E. , "He who blows his nose too violently generally drawsforth blood. "

[295] M. And D. Make two paragraphs of the above, and read as follows:"One must not press them to give more of themselves than they can, aswe do with the lemon, for that which will be expressed will be bitter, and, as says the proverb [in D. --"and as says a law commentary"]Qui nimis emungit solet extorquere cruorem. We must remember inall this the teaching of the holy Council of Trent, session 13[in D. --"3"] de reformat, chapter I, whose words, although they arevery well worth reading, I omit on account of their length. It is notproper to go up into their houses, except when necessity requires it, keeping therein the evangelical precept (Luke x, 7 [wrongly cited asxx]): Nolite transire de domo in domum. For one will lose much inestimation, while their vices [in D. --"coldness"] do not make thisa desirable diversion. "

[296] M. And D. Add: "anything is entrusted to them. " The remainderof San Agustin's letter is omitted in D. 

[297] M. And D. Add here: "for thus does the Holy Spirit advise us. "

"One day a friend of mine ordered a servant in my presence to go to acertain house to ask in his name for the last gazettes from Europa. Iadvised my friend to give the servant a note, since the latter woulddoubtless give expression to some bit of nonsense. He took no noticeof me, and sent the servant. In fact, the man understood "aceite"[i. E. , "olive oil"], for "gaceta" [i. E. , "gazette"], and returnedwith a bottle of olive oil. His master was very much put out, whileI burst into a roar of laughter. A peculiar thing is often observedin servants, namely, when one of them is ordered, 'Go to the houseof Don Antonio, ' before the message is finished the servant beginsto go; and one has to call him back and say to him, 'But, man alive, where are you going?' and, if he is allowed to go, he reaches hisdestination and says that he has been sent there, and then returnswhence he came, or utters some foolish remark. " (Mas, p. 133. )

[298] In the Vulgate, the last word of the Latin in this citationis eum. 

[299] i. E. , "at least in passing. " This is not in M. 

[300] M. Reads "denude themselves of their customs. "

[301] M. Reads: "For the Indian who is ordained does not give himselfa trade because of the more perfect estate. "

[302] M. Has instead of "from the oar, " "from handling a bolo. "

[303] Spanish, la cuña del mismo palo; another application of an oldSpanish proverb. 

[304] M. Adds "and those farthest from Manila, where also the remedyis very far away. "

[305] Spanish, sobre quítame allá esas pajas--literally, "regarding'carry away these straws from me, '" defined by the Academy's dictionaryas, "about a thing of little importance or value. "

[306] Picota: "a column [the insignia of jurisdiction] or gibbet ofstone, which is usually placed at the entrances of towns or villages;on which are ignominiously exposed the heads of persons executed orof criminals" (Bárcia, Dicc. Etimológico). 

[307] M. Adds "to the father cura. " The reason for this letter may befound possibly in this paragraph, in the hostility of the religiousorders to admitting the Filipinos to the priesthood. 

[308] M. Reads "How well it could be subdued and composed. "

[309] M. Adds "in his happiness. "

[310] M. Reads: "And while they were all gallantly seated in the hall, and she was, very finely adorned with jewels, in the room, surroundedby many ladies. "

[311] M. Reads: "The bride spied the mouse from a long distance, and, not being able to restrain herself out of respect for that function, she arose and began to run the length of the hall. She overthrew thepeople, and they were unable to restrain the fair bride, and causeher to desist from her undertaking. The angry groom said to them. "

[312] The rest of this sentence reads in M. , "even though they shouldbecome bishops. "

[313] Matthew xxv, 21. 

[314] i. E. , "The priesthood is the apex of all good things whichexist among men. "

St. Ignatius the Martyr was born about the middle of the first centuryof the Christian era, and is said to have been baptized by the apostleJohn. He was bishop of Antioch for forty years. Arrested by the Romanauthorities because of his preaching, he was sent to Rome, where he waskilled by wild beasts in the arena, probably about 107 A. D. He met thefamous Polycarp while on his way to Rome. Many epistles exist which aresaid to have been written by him, although some of them are probablyspurious. His day is celebrated on February 1. See S. Baring-Gould(ut supra), ii, pp. 1-5, and New International Encyclopædia. 

[315] i. E. , "Concerning the dignity of the priesthood. " M. Adds:"Nihil est in hoc secula excelentius sacerdotibus [i. E. , 'There isnothing more excellent in this world than the priesthood']; and above, horur igitur, et sublimitas sacerdotalis nullis poterit compurationibusadequari si regum fulgori compares, et principum Diademati longe eritinferius, quam si plumbi metallum aduri fugorem compares. [i. E. , "Therefore the priestly reverence and height can be equaled by nocomparisons. If it be compared to the splendor of kings and thediadem of princes, the comparison is far more inferior than if themetal lead were compared to gleaming gold. "] And of this Father DonAntonio Molina speaks at length in his admirable book. "

[316] St. Ambrose was one of the four doctors of the western church. Hewas born at Trèves about 340 A. D. , and received a good education inRome, and entered into the Roman civil service. Elected to the officeof bishop of Milan, in what was regarded as a miraculous manner, he soon became one of the great strongholds of the young religion ofChristianity. To him was due the honor of receiving the great Augustineinto the Church. His death occurred in 397 A. D. His day is celebratedon December 7; and in Milan he is regarded as a patron saint. TheAmbrosian Library of that city is named for him. See S. Baring-Gould(ut supra), xv, pp. 74-104; and New International Encyclopædia. 

[317] Antonio de Molina was a Spanish theologian, who was born atVilla-Nueva-de-los-Infantes (Castilla). Entering the Augustinian order, he taught theology, until he later retired to the house at Miradores, where he died September 12, 1612. He wrote a book called Instruccionde Sacerdotes, which was published in various places in Spain, andlater translated into various languages, among them the Latin. SeeHoefer's Nouvelle biographie générale, xxxv, col. 892. 

[318] Paulo Segneri, S. J. Was one of the most illustrious men thatthe Jesuit order has produced. He was a native of Nettuno, Italy, being born March 22, 1624, and entered the Society December 2, 1637. He early became deaf through his excessive study. Afterteaching the humanities and rhetoric, he became a preacher andmissionary, traversing Italy on his missionary journeys during theyears 1665-1692. In 1692 he was called to Rome by Innocent XII, totake the place of his preacher-in-ordinary. His death occurred atRome, December 9, 1694. His influence on Italy is ranked by some onlysecond to that of Savonarola. His style in writing is regarded as ofchief rank in purity and accuracy for his century. His writings werenumerous, and have been translated into many languages, some of theminto Greek and Arabian. The book mentioned in the text is Il parrocoinstruito: opera in cui si dimostra a qualsisia curato novello ildebito che lo strigne, e la via da tenerse nell' adempirlo (Firenze, 1692). See Sommervogel's Bibliothèque; and Hoefer (ut supra), xliii, cols. 685, 686. 

[319] The dignity of patriarch in the Catholic church (leavingaside the papal rank) is the highest grade in the hierarchyof jurisdiction. Antioch early occupied a high place among thepatriarchates, although with the lapse of time it lost its highposition; and finally, after the schism between the eastern andwestern churches, the appointee to that dignity did not actually assumethe office. See Addis and Arnold's Catholic Dictionary, pp. 35, 36, and 640. The patriarch mentioned in the text was the famous CardinalCharles Thomas Millard de Tournon. See Vol. XXVIII, p. 118, and note56; Concepción, ix, pp. 1-123; and Crétineau-Joly, v, pp. 38-54. 

[320] These last two sentences are missing in M. 

[321] At this point the letter proper in M. Ends with the words:"May God preserve you for many years, " and no signature follows. Thisis followed by the questions for men and women of Murillo Velarde. 

[322] In the text, legitimos; probably a transcriber's error forilegitimos ("of illegitimate birth"). 

Other papal letters give leave to dispense with the above classes, whocould not, otherwise, be promoted to holy orders. Both classes could, also, be raised to church dignities, but only to minor dignities, and not to high ones as bishoprics, etc. The distinction betweenespurios and [i]legitimos seems merely to have been a legal one, as both terms mean the same in effect. --Rev. T. C. Middleton, O. S. A. 

[323] i. E. , "It was lately related to us. "

[324] In the copy of this letter conserved in the collection ofFray Eduardo Navarro of the Colegio de Filipinas, Valladolid, Spain(of which we have the transcription of a few pages at the end), this word reads divina. 

[325] Antonio (not Pedro) Urceo, who was also called Codrus, was anerudite Italian, who was born August 14, 1446 at Rubiera, and diedat Bologna in 1500. He was a good educator of youth, but of cholerictemper. While acting as tutor in one of the noble Italian families, a fire destroyed most of his papers, which so worked upon him that heretired into almost complete seclusion for six months. In 1482 he wentto Bologna, where he taught grammar and eloquence. Although duringhis life he gave doubts of his orthodoxy, his death was all thatcould have been wished. His works were published in four editions, the first being at Bologna in 1502, under the title In hoc CodriVolumine hæc continentur Orationes, seu sermones ut ipse appelabatEpistolae. Silvae. Satyrae. Eglogae. Epigrammata. The translation ofthe above citation is as follows:

 "Although thou be freeborn and sprung from noble parents; Still even yet thou mayst be a base beast. Add that thou art an honor to thy country, and claim the noblest kin; Still even yet thou mayst be a base beast. Thou mayst have wealth, thou mayst have abundance of elegant furniture; Still even yet thou mayst be a base beast. In short, whatever thou shalt be, unless thou have prudence, I declare that thou wilt ever be a base beast. "

Of the native priests of the Philippines, Delgado says (pp. 293-296):"I know some seculars in the islands, who although Indians, canserve as an example and confusion to the European priests. I shallonly bring forward two examples: one, the bachelor Don Eugenio deSanta Cruz, judge-provisor of this bishopric of Santísimo Nombrede Jesús, and calificador of the Holy Office, a full blooded Indianand a native of Pampanga. And inasmuch as the author of this letterconfesses that the Pampangos are a different people, I shall nameanother, namely, the bachelor Don Bartolomé Saguinsin, a Tagálog, a cura of the district of Quiape (outside the walls of Manila), anIndian, and a native of the village of Antipolo. I knew his parents, and had friendly relations with them while I was minister in thatvillage. Both men were esteemed for their abilities and venerated fortheir virtues, in Tagalos and Visayas. " In addition, "those rearedin any of the four colleges in Manila, for the clerical estate areall the sons of chiefs, people of distinction among the Indiansthemselves, and not of the timaua, or of the class of olipon, as theVisayan says, or maharlica or alipin, as the Tagálog calls the slavesand freedmen. The reverend fathers of St. Dominic or of the Societyrear these boys and instruct them in virtue and learning; and if theyhave any of the vices of Indians, these are corrected and suppressedby the teaching and conversation of the fathers. Furthermore, when the most illustrious bishops promote any of these men to holyorders, they do not proceed blindly, ordering any one whomever to beadvanced--but only with great consideration and prudence, and afterinforming themselves of his birth and his morals, and examining andtesting him first before the ministry of souls is entrusted to him;and to say the contrary is to censure the most illustrious prelates, to whom we owe so much veneration and reverence. Furthermore, thereare among these Indians, many (and perhaps most of them) who areas noble, in their line of descent as Indians, as is any Spaniard;and some of them much more than many Spaniards who esteem themselvesas nobles in this land. For, although their fate keeps them, in thepresent order of things, in an almost abject condition, many of themare seigniors of vassals. Their seigniory has not been suppressed bythe king, nor can it be suppressed. Such we call cabezas de barangayin Tagálog, and Ginhaopan in Visayan. They and their children andrelatives lose nothing of their nobility because they serve the kingin cutting timber, in the fleets, or in other personal services whichare necessary in this land. As they lose nothing, it is also muchhonor for them that the king be served by them. Accordingly, there aresargentos-mayor, masters-of-camp, captains, governors of the villages, and lieutenants, and all are Indians of distinction. These would notgo to row in a banca, and their hands would certainly be freed fromhandling a bolo or an ax in the cutting of timber, and their mothers, wives, and daughters would not have become spinners, if it were notfor España. And although all the Indians seem of one color to thefather, this color is well distinguished among them; and they arevery respectful to their chiefs and much more so to their priests, even though these be Indians like themselves. " Delgado continuesby saying that, although some of the native priests have turned outbadly, that is not sufficient to condemn them all. It is arbitraryto declare that the Indian enters the priesthood solely for his owncomfort, and because of the respect shown him, and not because of thespiritual blessings. Many Spaniards also enter the ecclesiasticalestate merely for a living. There are examples of Negro, Japanese, and Chinese priests. "Consequently, it is not to be wondered at thatthe most illustrious prelates and bishops should ordain Indians hereand in Nueva España, and in other parts of the Indias. "

[326] The date of the Navarro copy is wrongly given as 1725. 

[327] Pedro Murillo Velarde was born August 6, 1696, at Villa Laujar, Granada, and entered the Jesuit novitiate at the age of 22. Havingentered the Philippine missions, he was long a professor in theuniversity of Manila; and later was rector at Antipolo, visitor tothe Mindanao missions, and procurator at Rome and Madrid. He diedat the hospital of Puerto Santa Maria, November 30, 1753. MurilloVelarde is one of the more noted among Jesuit writers. His principalworks are the following: Cursus juris canonici, hispani et indici(Madrid, 1743); Historia de la provincia de Philipinas de la Compañiade Jesus (Manila, 1749); and Geographica historica (Madrid, 1752), in ten volumes. In the Historia (which work we have used freely inthe present series, as material for annotation) was published hisnoted map of the Philippine Islands, the first detailed map of thearchipelago; it was made by order of the governor of the island, Valdes Tamón, in 1734. 

[328] A kind of sausage composed of lean pork, almonds, pineapplekernels, and honey. 

[329] This sentence is missing in Father Navarro's copy. 

[330] Literally "lose a foothold. "

[331] Delgado here refers to the "Opinion" by Murillo Velarde whichis prefixed to vol. I of San Antonio's Chronicas; this is dated atSan Miguel, May 19, 1738, and contains a detailed description of theproducts of the islands--vegetable, animal, and mineral--from whichwe extract his description of the peoples therein, as follows:

"The natives of these islands are generally called Indians, because these islands are included in the demarcation of the WesternIndias--although properly they are in the Eastern hemisphere, because, as they are distant from España more than a hundred and eightydegrees of longitude, which makes the half-circuit [of the globe], it necessarily follows that they must be on the side of the East. Allthe Indians resemble one another, especially in the yellowish-browncolor and the flattened nose; and there is little difference betweenthe individuals. In the island of Negros, between Cavitan and Sipalay, I encountered heathen blacks with crinkled hair, as if they were fromGuinea. The people who are here called creoles are of a swarthy browncolor, with withered skin, and are quite civilized and capable. As forthe origin of the Indians, I am inclined to think that they originatefrom Malayos, on account of the similarity of their language; forby examining on various occasions a Malay (a native of Maláca) whocould speak several languages fluently, and a Ternatan, and Lutaosand Subanos, I have ascertained the following: In the Malay, "sky"is called languit, and the same in Tagálog, in Lutáo, and Subáno;"man" [varon] is lalaqui in Malay, as in the Tagálog and Bisayan;"tongue" is dila in Malay, as in Tagálog; "white" is puti in Malay, as in Tagálog, Subáno, and Lutáo. In other words the difference is butslight; thus, in Malay "land" is nigri, in Tagálog lupa, in Lutáo tana, in Boholan yuta; and "man" [hombre] is in Malay oran, in Tagálog tavo, in Lutáo aa, in Subáno gatao. The Indians are exceedingly clever inevery kind of handiwork, not for inventing, but for imitating what theysee. They write beautifully; many of them are tailors and barbers, forthey learn both these trades with little effort; and there are amongthem excellent embroiderers, painters, and silversmiths; and engraverswhose work has no equal in all the Indias--and I was even goingto place it far ahead of all the rest, if shame had not restrainedme--as is very obvious in the many and excellent engravings whichthey are all the time producing. They are good carvers, gilders, andcarpenters. They build vessels for these islands--galleys, galliots, pataches, and ships for the Acapulco trade-route. They are good seamen, artillerists, and divers--for there is hardly an Indian who does notknow how to swim very well. They are the pilots of these seas. Theyexcel in making bejuquillos, which are golden chains of delicateand exquisite workmanship. From palm-leaves, rattan, and nito theymake hats, and petates or rugs, and mats, that are very handsome, and wrought with various kinds of flowers and other figures. Theyare noted as mechanics and puppet-players, and make complicatedmechanisms which, by means of figures, go through various motions withpropriety and accuracy. Some are watchmakers. They make gunpowder, and cast mortars, cannon, and bells. I have seen them make guns, as handsomely constructed as those made in Europe, although I do notthink that they would be as substantial and reliable as those. Thereare in Manila three printing-houses, and all keep Indian workmen;and the errors that they make are not numerous. They have remarkableskill in music; and there is no village, however small, that hasnot a very respectable musician to officiate in the church. Amongthem are excellent voices--trebles, contraltos, tenors, and basses;almost all can play on the harp, and there are many violinists, andplayers on the oboe and flute. It is especially noticeable that notonly those whose trade it is to make these instruments do so, butvarious Indians, through love [for such work], make guitars, harps, flutes, and violins, with their bolos or machetes; and they learn toplay these instruments by only seeing them played, and without anyspecial instruction. Almost the same thing occurs in other matters; andon this account it is said that the Indians have their understanding intheir eyes, since they so closely imitate what they see. Such are theIndians, when observed on the outside surface of their aspect; but whenone penetrates into the interior of their dispositions, peculiarities, and customs, they are a labyrinth, in which the most sagacious manloses his way. They appear ingenious and simple in countenance andwords, but they are masters eminent in deceit and feigning; under anapparent simplicity they conceal an artful and crafty dissimulation. Ibelieve that the Indian never fails to deceive, unless when his owninterests are hindered. In their lawsuits and business dealings theyare like flies, which never quit what they are seeking, no matter howmuch they are brushed away; and thus they surpass and conquer us. TheChinese say that the Spaniard is fire, and the Indian is water, andthat water quenches fire. They neither resent an injury nor thank onefor a kindness. If you give them anything, they immediately ask foranother. There is no fixed rule for construing them; for each one isneeded a new syntax, because they are anomalous. With them the argumentis not concluded by induction, since no Indian resembles another, nor even is one like himself; for in the short round of one day hechanges his colors oftener than a chameleon, takes more shapes than aProteus, and has more movements than a Euripus. He who deals with themmost knows them least. They are, in fine, a union of contrarieties, which the greatest logician could not reconcile; they are an obscureand confused Chaos, in which species cannot be perceived or formalqualities distinguished; and if I had to define them I would say:

 "Obstabatque alijs aliud, quia corpore in vno Frigida pugnabant calidis, humentia siccis, Mollia cum duris, sine pondere habentia pondus. "

[332] Alluding to the irregular tides in the straits of Euripus, between Euboea and Greece; during a large part of the month these tidesoccur as often as eleven to fourteen times during the twenty-fourhours. Their irregularity occasioned among the Greeks a proverb, which Delgado here uses. 

[333] A name given by the inhabitants of Cuba to the natives of Mexico, and in Vera Cruz to those of the interior. The name is also appliedto shrewd and brusque persons. (New Velázquez Dictionary. )

[334] These two rules are respectively: "Evil once, evil is alwayspresupposed;" and "Evil [may spring] from any failing. "

[335] These chains were also of Chinese manufacture; apparently theFilipinos took up this industry through their tendency to imitate. 

[336] The Lygodium scandens, also called Gnito and nitongputi, a climbing fern found throughout the Philippines. Blanco gives thename of the genus as Ugena. The glossy, wiry stems are used in themaking of fine hats, mats, cigarette and cigar cases, etc. See Censusof Philippines, iv, p. 166. 

[337] The balate is an echinoderm found abundantly in the Visayas, ofwhich Delgado describes three varieties (p. 935): namely the Holothuriascabra (Jager), which is white; the Holothuria atra (Jager), whichis black; and the bacongan or Synapta similis (Semper), which is oflarger size. The second variety is most esteemed. It was sold dryin the Visayas or taken to Manila and sold, where they were worththirty-five or forty or even more silver pesos per pico. The Chineseespecially esteemed them (and do so yet) and large sums were paidfor them in that country. The Filipinos occasionally ate them fresh, but only in the absence of fish. 

[338] Juan Francisco de San Antonio was born in Madrid in 1682, andmade his profession in the Franciscan order at the age of twenty. In1724 he brought a mission band to the islands, and spent there the restof his life. His lifelong employ was in preaching, and as instructor intheology--save fifteen years spent in Indian villages near Manila. Hedied in that city May 29, 1744, the same year in which the last volumeof his Cronicas was published. See Huerta's Estado, p. 537. 

[339] These are the Tagablis or Tagabili, also called Tagabelíes, Tagabaloy, Taga-bulú, Tagbalooys, etc. Murillo Velarde, in his map, places them west of Caraga and Bislig in Mindanao, but this districthas been found to contain only Manobos and Mandayas. They are probablythe heathen Malay people living between the bay of Sarangani and LakeBuluan, whence their name, meaning perhaps "people of Buluan. " SeeBlumentritt's Native Tribes of Philippines (Mason's translation), and Census of Philippines, i, p. 476. 

[340] The cloth made from abacá alone is called sinamay; thatmade of abacá and pineapple fiber, jusi; and that from a speciallyselected grade of abacá, much finer and more difficult to extractthan commercial hemp or that used in making other cloths, lupis. SeeCensus of Philippines, iv, p. 19. 

[341] Zúñiga (Estadismo) mentions the Chinese mestizo population ofTambóbong or Malabón (now in Rizal province) as about 7, 500. Some ofthem had acquired by trade property to the value of 40, 000 pesos. Thetribute collected from all the Chinese mestizos of Luzon numbered10, 500, over 8, 000 of which came from the provinces immediately northof Manila--Tondó, Bulacán, and Pampanga. The Chinese mestizo elementis very evident today in the provinces of Bulacán and Pampanga, and probably forms the principal element among the native owners ofhaciendas. See Census of Philippines, i, pp. 435, 436, 438. 

[342] Spanish, con que se da Borney la mano; literally "shakes hands. "

[343] An evident lapsus calami for Legazpi, such as has occurred inother writers. 

[344] A Moorish garment resembling a herdsman's jacket, with whichthe body is covered and girt. It is still used on some festiveoccasions. (Dicc. Academia, 1726. )

[345] See ante, p. 123, note 48. 

[346] Spanish, amusco, pero encendido; the last word, encendido, isliterally "kindled, " or "glowing"--that is, as here used, evidentlyreferring to a reddish tint given by the blood showing throughthe skin. 

[347] The name of this book is probably the Origen de los Indios deel nuevo mondo, e Indias occidentales (Valencia, 1607; 8vo). Garciawas also the author of a book entitled Historia ecclesiastica y seglarde la Yndia oriental y occidental, y predicacion del sancto evangelioen ella por los apostolos (Baeça, 1626; 8vo). 

[348] See this report in Vol. VII, pp. 173-196. See also Vol. XVI, pp. 321-329. But San Antonio quite overlooks the earlier relation byMiguel de Loarca (Vol. V, pp. 34-187). 

[349] Antonio de Padua or de la Llave went to the Philippineswith Gomez Perez Dasmariñas in 1590. He took the habit March 17, 1591, and professed in the province of San Gregorio March 19, 1592, changing his former name of Gonzalo to Antonio. After studying inthe Manila Franciscan convent, he became missionary in the villageof San Miguel de Guilinguiling, in 1602, and afterwards in thevillages of Paete, Santa Cruz, Siniloan, Lilio, and Pila. He acted asdefinitor ad interim, from October 7, 1634 to January 13, 1635, andafter becoming missionary of Pila was appointed commissary-visitor, holding that office from June 12 to December 16, 1637. He served asdefinitor again in 1639, and finally died in the Franciscan conventof Mahayhay in 1645. He was the first chronicler of the province ofSan Gregorio, and wrote the annals of his order from its founding inthe Philippines in 1577 to the year 1644, in two volumes; and a lifeof Gerónima de la Asuncion, foundress of the royal convent of PoorClares in Manila. See Huerta's Estado, pp. 452, 453. 

[350] Possibly a misprint for magaanito, as it is called elsewhere. 

[351] See ante, p. 191, note 101. 

[352] Noceda and Sanlucar's Vocabulario de la lengua Tagala (Manila, 1860) defines tictic as the "song of a nocturnal bird called apira, whence the name was transferred to the bird itself. It is also knownby the names of Lapira and Pirapira. "

[353] That is, evidently without having enjoyed any of the fruits ofthe theft. 

[354] The Spanish edition of Juan de Solorzano Pereyra's Disputationemde Indiarum jure (Matriti, 1629-39; 2 vols. , fol. ), and of whichlater editions were published. The title of the first edition of theSpanish work is Politica Indiana sacada en lengua castellana de losdos tomos del derecho i govierno municipal de las Indias Occidentalesque mas copiosamente escribio en la Latina. . .. Por el mesmo autor. .. Anadidas muchas cosas que no estan en los tomos Latinos (Madrid, 1648, fol. ). 

[355] i. E. , Sunday, Domingo being the Spanish word; evidence thatthis method of styling the week was evolved after the conquest. 

[356] See Vol. III, p. 161, note 42. 

[357] The distance from the extremity of the thumb to the extremityof the index finger, when outstretched; hence a span. 

[358] For the above weights and measures, see Vols. III, p. 71, note20; p. 184, note 50; p. 253, note 87; and XV, p. 179, note 116. Seealso Census of Philippines, i, p. 327; and iv, pp. 447-457 (a long listof weights and measures, with many tables, used in the Philippines).