Chapter III: Part 3

The Dutch carried on this pillaging with little risk, and without fear, because they had learned, through some prisoners who had escaped, of the loss of our galleons. With these spoils they returned, I think, to Japon, where they will again be received as they were last year. And the worst of it is that they will delight in coming [every year to inflict as much more damage; and therefore the Chinese will not dare to come--_V.d.A._] to this city with their ships, and commerce will cease. Everything will then be lost, because the prosperity of these islands depends solely upon trade with China. May God prevent this with his powerful hand.

In the island of Oton a strange thing happened this year. The ships that usually go with supplies to aid the forces of Maluco were despatched from the city of Manila. In one of the best of these embarked Manuel Riveyro, a father of our Society from the house of Ternate. He had come here to solicit and collect the alms which his Majesty orders to be given to the fathers who labor in the Malucas Islands. For many days, for years even, nothing had been given; and, as a result, Ours were suffering great privation. The father was very successful and collected from the royal treasury a large sum of money. Part of this he spent for very rich ornaments and for images for our churches; part for ship stores, and for gifts with which to aid the poor soldiers in those strongholds of Maluco, who suffer great want. These soldiers are materially assisted by our fathers who reside there, to the great edification and gratitude of the soldiers. With these supplies the father embarked in one of the ships, and arrived at Punta de Najo [Naso--_V.d.A._], about eight leagues from the town of Arebalo, where the king's ships go to take on rice and meat for the Malucas. At this town it was necessary for the father of our Society, and other fathers of St. Francis, to go ashore to obtain some things which they needed, in order to have them ready when the ship should arrive. Therefore they disembarked to go by land, and the ship anchored off the point. One day the master, who was called Juan de Ochoa Sarape [? Lara--_V.d.A._], brought it about by deceit that the captain of the ship, Francisco Benitez, the pilot, and two soldiers who were not of his following, should disembark. There were on board also two mariners, a Galician and a Castilian, neither of whom had sided with him in the treason that he had planned with the others. He sent these down the hatchway for some ropes, and then took a lock and fastened the hatchway. Thereupon the traitors unsheathed their swords, drew their arquebuses and muskets, and lighted their fuses. Standing under arms, they cut the cables, and set sail, taking possession of the ship and of all the goods that it carried for the king, for the governor of Maluco, and for the fathers of San Francisco and of our Society, all of which, they say, might be worth more than thirty thousand pesos. The captain and the pilot, who witnessed this treason from land, embarked at once in a little vessel, and, coming near the ship, discharged three muskets, none of which did any damage. The traitors asked the pilot whether he wished to go with them. Seeing that neither he nor the captain was so inclined, they took them to land, and in their ship changed their course to Borney and Macasar. This treason was committed by twelve Spaniards, eight of whom were Biscayans and four Castilians. They made captain the master [of the ship] who was the author of the treason. Besides these [twelve Spaniards], there were on board this ship the other two Spaniards, whom, as I said, they were carrying as prisoners, as well as some Indians of this country who also were compelled to go. When Father Ribeiro considered how much labor it had cost him to get together the help he was carrying there for the fathers of Maluco, this disaster caused him some distress--all the greater when he thought of the hunger and need that they must suffer. But our Lord prevented this. The father started out to beg alms from the inhabitants of the town; and in a short time he got together an abundant supply of rice, wine, and meat for one year, for all responded liberally to relieve a necessity that had so moved them to pity. The father set, sail with all this in another ship, and we trust that, by God's help, he is already in Maluco. This is the same vessel that had been despatched this year for Nueva Espana as almiranta. It left port so heavily laden that it was necessary to put back into harbor to unload part of the merchandise, so as to be able to make the voyage. This done, they set out a second time from the port; but they encountered such violent storms that, after sailing entirely around the island of Manila, losing the masts, and imperiling their lives, they returned to Manila on the seventh of October, 617. Afterward the vessel was utilized [for Ternate] in the manner indicated above.

From the Mindanaos there came persistent rumors that they were undertaking to set out with a large fleet to besiege the fort of Caraga which was in the same island, Mindanao, and held in check a province of that island. Its inhabitants do not now engage in robberies and hostile incursions by sea, as has been their custom. [Upon receipt of this news] two galleys were despatched from the city of Manila, in order that with the caracoas that were to be found in Zebu they might go to aid the fort. They left Zebu for Caraga, but before arriving there our fleet turned back, partly because notice was received that the rumor had not been true, and partly because the winds had arisen. These winds would have greatly endangered our ships upon their entrance to and departure from that coast, which is very bold.

But, although we have been free from these enemies this year, we have had to deal with others, the Camucones, [14] a people who owe allegiance to the king of Burney, They are thieves who scour the sea, plundering everything within their reach. They are so cruel that they never imprison, but kill all upon whom they can lay their hands. These people came to the Filipinas this year with seven caracoas and seventeen _ajuangas_, vessels resembling large galleys, but not so strong; ordinarily they carry four hundred men at the oars. They did very little damage, however, for they must have heard that our fleet was on the sea, and therefore they soon withdrew to their own territory. Their withdrawal was also due in no small degree to the fact that when they once landed upon an island the native Indians, sallying forth, killed some of their men and put their heads upon poles along the coast in order to terrify the rest. It was the special providence of our Lord that our father provincial did not fall into the hands of these corsairs when he went to visit the Pintados Islands, for when they [the father and his crew] were not far from the islands, a strong wind came up ahead of them, which compelled them to remain sheltered in a small bay for more than fifteen days. Here the news of these enemies came to them, and therefore the father retired to Manila. It is certain that if that contrary wind had not arisen he would have gone forward, and would have fallen into their hands.

The devotion to the Immaculate Conception of the most sainted Virgin has greatly increased among all the people. As soon as the ship from Nueva Espana arrived, bringing the news of the elaborate demonstrations that had been made in all Espana in honor of this Lady, they began to place on all the corners and upon the doors of churches notices that read, "Praised be the most holy sacrament and the Immaculate Conception of the most holy Virgin, conceived without blot of original sin." There was no lack of persons who tried to efface one of these notices that was on the door of the church of Santo Domingo, a fact which caused the people to burn with greater devotion to this Lady. It was arranged that for two nights there should be a procession of masked figures. In it a banner with an image of the Immaculate Conception was displayed; lamps were placed throughout the city; the cathedral bells began to chime; and the orders formed in line of march. One devout person placed on the corners eighteen images of the Conception of our Lady, with a legend reading, "Without blot of original sin." Other pious people adorned these images with gilded ornaments and lights that burn all night. The children continually recited before these images, in loud voices, various couplets in praise of the Immaculate Conception, thus fulfilling that saying of David, _ex ore infantium e lactentium_ ["out of the mouths of babes and sucklings"], etc.

Concerning the persecution in Japon, I can only say that with the death of Daytusama, who was the chief cause of the expulsion of our fathers, [15] it was hoped that the persecution would cease or at least would abate. On the contrary it has increased under the new administration of his son, who is so hostile to the law of Christ our Lord that simply because of our holy faith he has martyred one religious from each of the four orders there. These four religious, among many others, had gone about secretly, as in England, with great labor cultivating that vineyard. This event occasioned much rejoicing in the hearts of all the people of this city, the laity as well as the religious. They talked of making fiestas and public rejoicings in thanksgiving that our Lord had adorned the four orders that are in these islands with four martyrs so distinguished. But in order not to further provoke to wrath the ruler of Japon, who had ordered their death, and for other reasons, it was thought best to suspend for the present all kinds of fiestas. Among those who suffered this fortune or fate was a father of our Society named Juan Bautista Tavora, a native of the island of Tercera. He died in company with a father of San Francisco. Afterward they martyred two others, one of Santo Domingo, and the other of San Agustin, and in order that respect might not be paid by the Christians to their bodies, the heathen threw them into the sea. The bodies of the father of our Society and the father of Santo Domingo were placed together in one box; those of the two fathers of San Francisco and San Agustin in another. These last were afterward found, but the first were not. The account of all that happened concerning this matter I will place in the relation of that province [Japon] where these most happy deaths will be related at length.

I will conclude this account with one of the most singular events that have ever happened in the world. Although it is discreditable to the Order of St. Augustine, it should be related here with all truth, because it is so public and will be so noised about through all the world. When Fray Vicente de Sepulveda, [16] first cousin of Father Juan Laurencio, rector of the College of Mexico, finished his term of three years as provincial, the fathers of St. Augustine met in chapter in a convent near the city of Manila, to elect a new provincial. They chose Fray Geronimo de Salas, [17] not without dissensions and discords between the two parties into which they are divided. This provincial died twenty days after his election. He died, as some say (and this opinion seems not without foundation, as we shall see further on), from poison that they gave him, and consequently his death was very sudden. By the death of this Fray Geronimo de Salas, Fray Vicente de Sepulveda returned to the office of provincial, as their regulations provide. It seemed to some religious who were not of his party that it was too much for him to govern three more years, so they planned to cut the thread of life for him--by means of poison, since this would not betray them. They gave it to him more than eight times in his food and drink--in his chocolate, and even in the wine with which he was consecrated. The poison was ground glass, and it resulted in eruptions over his entire body and in illness for several days, but it did not produce death. When the conspirators saw that their attempts so far had been unsuccessful, four of them planned to kill him with their own hands. The affair was so public that not only was the conspiracy noised about among the friars but also among the laity of Manila. Thus it came to the ears of the provincial himself, who had not lived as prudently as he should have done for the safety of his person. After this, he was very careful about his food and drink; he locked himself in at night, and entrusted the key of the apartment to only a few. He ordered one, who was the author of the treason (and he was the one that was suspected), that in virtue of his [the provincial's] holy precept, he should not come into the convent of Manila, but that he should prepare to embark for Nueva Espana where they should take from him the cowl. Thereupon this individual, Fray Juan de Ocadiz--who was a native of Madrid, a priest, and one of long service in his order--formed an agreement with three others, all young men about twenty years of age, who had been ordained to preach. These were Fray Juan de Quintana and Fray Andres Encinas (both natives of Manila), and Fray Ignacio de Alcaraz, born in Nueva Espana in a place near Acapulco, called I think, Quatulco. Fray Ignacio was companion and secretary to this provincial, and so he had the opportunity of making a key to the apartment, by first making an impression of the key in wax. On the thirty-first of July, 617, the day of our Father Ignacio, at eleven o'clock at night, the four opened the door of the provincial's apartment with the key that had been prepared for the purpose. The provincial heard the noise immediately, and suspecting what it might be, rose from the bed, and went shouting to meet them. At this juncture the three evangelists repented of what had been begun, and talked of withdrawing from it. But Fray Juan de Ocadiz, bolder than the rest, since he had already begun the work, told them that if they deserted he would have to stab them. Thereupon all four together attacked the provincial, threw him upon the bed, and held his mouth. The three evangelists held his arms and legs firmly, and Fray Juan de Ocadiz, putting his knees upon his stomach, choked with his hands. While the friar was choking him, the provincial begged for confession. Fray Juan said, "Father, repent of your sins, and in token of this clasp my hand." The provincial took his hand, and the murderer absolved him, adding, "Trust, Father, in our Lord, who will pardon your sins." Upon this he seized his throat, and finished choking him. Then with diabolical cruelty, in order to be more certain [that he was dead] they twisted his neck against the bed in such a way that they disjointed the bones, no that the head fell from one side to the other as if he had been a dead fowl. All this tragedy was committed in the dark, so they went for a light, cleansed the provincial's body of the blood that had gushed from his mouth, changed his bed-linen and garments, and set everything in good order, that it might appear that he had died of some sudden accident. They did not take into consideration the many discolorations upon his body, or the twisted neck, that must soon give testimony of the hideous crime. Fray Andres Encinas took all the bloody clothing and threw it into the closets. The others closed the door from within, with a cross bar, and jumped through a little window. Although the provincial had given many loud cries, and other friars lived near the apartment, nothing was heard in the convent--a thing that seems impossible. After the crime was completed the bells rang for matins, for which it was now time. The murderers, or rather parricides, with great craftiness went to prayers. Morning came, and the hour arrived at which the provincial was accustomed to open his apartment; but he did not open it. They waited a little, but he did not come out. They knocked at the door, but he did not respond; they knocked louder, but in vain. The prior and the other friars, who were ignorant of the affair, determined to break down the doors. They did so, entered, and then beheld the crime, and saw that the provincial had been killed with violence. The prior, a certain Fray del Rincon, [18] hastened to the president of the royal Audiencia and to Don Geronimo de Sylva, captain-general, in order that they might give him help of which he was destitute because there was so great a tumult in the convent. They soon came with men. First the president ordered that all the friars should go one by one to kiss the hand of the dead man, in order that he might note the countenance of each. Finally they buried the provincial, and every one can well infer what would be said of the whole order; for people will forget that in the apostolic college there was a Judas and in Heaven a Lucifer, and yet the other apostles and the angels did not fall on this account. Reports of the affair were transmitted to the bishop of Zebu, Don Fray Pedro de Arce, of the Order of St. Augustine, and at that time governor of the archbishopric of Manila. He imprisoned some and tortured others; and in a short time, and with little trouble, the criminals were discovered. He made all the investigations, prepared the case, and handed it over to the _definitorio_, which, as they said, had by right jurisdiction in the matter. The definitorio, which was composed of nine of the most prominent friars of their order, advised with the other orders as to whether, without consulting the pope, it could condemn the criminals to actual degradation and deliver them over to the secular arm. The Society [of Jesus] avoided, as far as it could, giving its opinion upon an affair that was of such moment, and that must create such a sensation. In the decision of the affair, whether wise or unwise, it was best for us not to interfere. The authors were examined, and upon the advice of wise and learned men the definitorio resolved to give the sentence. It was read to the criminals from the pulpit of the church of St. Augustine, on the nineteenth of September, 617, before all the people, who had congregated to witness a spectacle so extraordinary. Immediately they took from him the cowl, and left them with only some short cassocks such as are worn by clergymen. They delivered them to the bishop, who was already prepared for the degradation. He immediately began to degrade them, and then delivered them over to the secular arm. They were taken to jail by the strong guard of soldiers that had been in the church ever since the criminals had been removed from the prisons to hear the sentence. But it was possible to execute this sentence against three only, because Fray Andres Encinas had escaped the night before, in company with a lay brother who was guarding him. With chains and all, the lay brother removed him from the prison at twelve o'clock at night, and, placing him upon his back, carried him along an unfinished wall of the convent, with great danger to both of falling and killing themselves. He took from him the chains and, together with another lay brother of their order, they jumped from the wall and fled in great haste. On the twenty-second of September of the same year, 617, the secular tribunal pronounced the sentence of death upon the three. They were taken from the jail amid a great retinue of religious of all orders, who were assisting, and of soldiers who were guarding the prisoners. At ten o'clock in the morning they were hanged in the square before the largest assembly of people, I think, I have ever seen in my life. They died with suitable preparation. I am unwilling to omit the account of a very peculiar circumstance. Twenty years ago they were hanging in Madrid that Augustinian friar because he wished to make a pastry-cook king of Portugal, and to marry him to Dona Ana de Austria, the mother of Fray Juan de Ocadiz. She was watching the proceeding, and all at once she began to scream and weep. When asked the cause of this she replied that she fancied she saw on the gallows her son, who was an Augustinian friar. Followed by a large crowd they took the bodies of these three men who had been hanged, to the convent of San Agustin for interment, where they will remain with their provincial until God calls them to judgment. The friars then very diligently searched for the one who had fled, in order to execute upon him the same sentence. At first they did not find him. And afterward, although they might have captured him, they did not, because they did not feel obliged to revive the painful remembrances and cause to all, and especially to his mother and the relatives whom he has here, the grief and distress that the first three deaths occasioned.

Besides these there were found guilty in the affair Fray Joseph de Vides, a native of Mexico, who had been instructor of the novices; and Fray Pedro de Herrera, a native of Medina del Campo, who had been professor of theology, and who now was prior of a convent. As these two were not so guilty as the others the friars took from them the cowl, and sentenced them to six years at the galleys in Maluco; and to suspension [from mass] for one additional year, on account of the reverence that is due to so high and divine a mystery. They were handed over to the secular tribunal, and were put upon galleys. But in a few days they escaped, and embarked upon a small ship in company with Fray Andres Encinas and the lay brother who had freed him from prison. All four set out together upon the return to Malaca, in order to go from that place to Goa, Espana, and finally to Rome. Such is the unfortunate event which was reported last year to the pope, the king, and all the world alike. This year report will be made of the justice meted out to the malefactors. [19] And as more than four lies will be written, I have thought it best that your Reverences should know the affair just as it occurred, nothing being added or omitted. [20]

_Events at Ternate_

Since this was written, advices came from Ternate that brought us some news which I will add here. The aid that was sent from this city to the Malucas Islands arrived, and those who carried it found in the passage two Dutch ships awaiting them, to prevent their entrance to our fortifications, and even to take the supplies, if possible. They made an attack and our people thought best to withdraw; but after some days they returned by another route, to land the supplies if they could. They again found the Hollander in the road and, being attacked a second time, they fought, made a great effort to pass, and succeeded--although the enemy so pursued one ship, the admiral's, that it ran aground in the island of Tidore. Most of the people were saved, but some the enemy killed with musket-shots, and some, who threw themselves into the water, perished. Captain Alonso Martin Quirante, who was in our stronghold of Tidore, hurried out and prevented the enemy from taking anything from the ship.

Many of the provisions that were in the ship were lost, among them almost all of those that the father, as I mentioned above, was taking for our fathers. In the thick of the battle this father was the first to be wounded. He was struck on the arm by a splinter, but his wound was of little consequence. The soldiers, however, will not because of this loss be in want this year; for the English went [to the Malucas] with a shipload of rice to trade for cloves, and the viceroy sent six galeotas of provisions from India.

The above-mentioned captain, Alonso Martin Quirante, made an ambuscade, in which he killed twenty-one Hollanders and captured four. Of the enemy, twenty-five Hollanders and many of the Indians of their following deserted to our fortifications. Although the king of Tidore has always been very favorable to us, the prince his son has been very friendly and of much importance to the Hollanders. But our Lord has been pleased to destroy these friendly relations in this way. The Hollanders, for what reason I do not understand, hanged one and drowned four of the people of Tidore. On account of this the prince has been so opposed to them that he has sworn to avenge himself, and to do them all the injury that he can. And he will do this, without doubt, because he is very valiant.

So much for the Malucas. To this may be added the fact that the admiral Heredia had made, at his own expense, a beautiful, though not very large, ship with which to serve his Majesty whenever occasion might offer. Just as soon as it was launched upon the sea, it was overtaken by a storm so severe that it foundered and was lost.

I forgot to say that one [_Marginal note_--Sequeyra's ship] of the two ships that were despatched last year for Nueva Espana, but did not arrive there, was separated from the other. It must be known that a certain de Sequeira, a Portuguese of the Order of Christ [_del Habito de Christo_], went in it as captain. He had come as general of the fleet which five years ago the king sent by way of the cape of Buena Esperanca, [21] and he carried a cedula from his Majesty to the effect that they should send him back at once by the same route. Instead, they detained him four years in this city, much against his will. At last they sent him as captain of this ship in order that he might go to Espana by way of Nueva Espana. They loaded upon this ship goods of high value, although not a great quantity of them, because the vessel was small. He began his voyage with favorable winds astern, and when he had reached the latitude of more than 30 degrees, he saw that he might turn toward India; but, the brisas beginning to vex the ships, he ordered the return, and, arriving at these islands, disembarked some Castilians whom he carried but who did not wish to go with him. He steered for Malaca and India, in order to go, they say, to Espana upon the voyage which his Majesty had ordered. He arrived at Malaca and died, I think, in Cochin. Nothing more is known [of him], nor [is it known] what will be done with the goods that he carried.

The ships from Nueva Espana arrived very late, at the beginning of July. It was fortunate that the vendavals were very much delayed this season; for, if they had begun when they usually do, it would have been impossible for the ships to reach these islands this year. But God chose to bring to us the governor [22] who was so much desired. A grand reception, with many costly triumphal arches, was prepared for him in Manila. But he embarked from the port of Cabite in a galley, and entered quietly into the palace through a postern gate near by, and therefore the whole reception fiesta was a failure. And when they desired him to go out of the city again, in order that he might enter with solemnity, he said that he did not wish them to carry him in procession as if he were a penitent, and so he remained there.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PHILIPPINAS ISLANDS

The governmental district of the islands commonly called Philippinas comprises seven principal provinces, not to mention many other islands and smaller provinces within its jurisdiction. Five of these principal provinces are in the island of Luzon, which is four hundred and sixty leguas in periphery and extends about from the thirteenth to the twenty-first parallel. One can travel two hundred leguas in a straight line on this island, for it is even longer than this. From east to west, between the Cape of Spiritu Santo (the first sighted when coming from Nueba Espana) and the bay of Manila, it is eighty leguas; and from south to north, between the same bay and Cape Boseador, in the province of Cagayan, which is opposite Japon and China, it is one hundred and twenty leguas. The capital of Cagayan is the city of Nueba Segobia, which was settled by Governor Don Goncalo Ronquillo de Penalosa in fifteen hundred and eighty-one. The shape of this island of Luzon, taken as a whole, is more like a semi-quadrant than anything else, although there are many irregularities in places. Some parts are narrow, because of the numerous arms of the sea which bound and penetrate the island; but in some parts, principally those on the north side, the island grows broader and more spacious, as I will show in the proper place. In other parts it is rough, rugged, and not a little mountainous. When the island is considered as shaped like a semi-quadrant, the great bay of Manila lies in the angle, where the sides meet the city--which is in the center of the island, near the entrance to the same bay; and has as a port Cavite, a little more than two leguas to the south.

_Camarines_

The first, of the five provinces in the island of Luzon, beginning on the eastern coast, is Camarines, which includes all the territory near the mouth of the channel of Capul. The capital of Camarines is the city of Cazeres, sixty leguas from Manila. It was settled by Doctor Francisco de Sande, governor of these islands, in fifteen hundred and seventy-four. He settled on the Vicor, a large and peaceful river, whose waters are very fresh and healthful, because it runs through many veins of gold, as do most or all of the rivers of these islands. There are in Camarines as many as twenty encomiendas, counting the four into which the island of Catanduanes (which is included in this district) is divided. The largest of these encomiendas does not contain more than fifteen hundred tributes; there are a few of one thousand; most of them must have from seven to eight hundred; while some have four hundred or even less. Among these peoples a great deal of gold was formerly obtained from the mines or placers of Paracali and from the island of Catanduanes. Camarines yields no rice, and it has not so good a food supply as other parts of Luzon, owing to the fact that Luzon is very narrow here, and in many places is rough and mountainous. It is believed that as much gold is mined now as usually, yet it seems a small quantity; for, although the Indians in general have more money than formerly, obtained through their [various] sources of income, they keep back the gold to work up into chains and jewelry, with which they adorn and parade themselves freely. They pay tribute in tin reals. The Camarines have become a very settled and tractable people through the religious instruction and careful teaching of the discalced Franciscan fathers, their ministers. They had been, of all the people of these islands, the most warlike and the most feared, as was shown by their resistance; indeed, one can hardly assert that they were conquered. The number of the inhabitants of this province can be but roughly estimated, as it is difficult to count them accurately. It is probable, however, that there are more than one hundred and fifty [thousand], counting the intractable black people who live in the interior of the country. Of this number some estimate that one-fourth are Christians.

_Judicial offices of the province of Camarines_ [23]

With respect to royal jurisdiction, this province has these three offices:

The alcaldia-mayor of Caseres, which is ordinarily called the alcaldia-mayor of Camarines, because Caseres is the capital of the province, and has jurisdiction over the larger and better part of it; the corregimiento of Ybalon, which is at the mouth of the channel; and the corregimiento of the island of Catanduanes, which is also near the same channel mouth.

_The province of Manilla_

The second province [in the island of Luzon] and the principal one in importance and wealth, because of its extensive commerce and of the fact that it is in the center of the kingdom, is Manila. Within its jurisdiction are included other smaller provinces. These are the two lake provinces, Bonbon and Bay; and (the most important of all) Panpanga, which, at the outside, is not more than twelve leguas from Manila. This is an inundated valley, and yields a great amount of rice, owing to the richness and location of its lands, as well as to the wealth and superior character of its natives--among whom there are at present many who have aided and served as faithful subjects and friends, whenever opportunity has offered. In Panpanga your Majesty has as many as six thousand tributes in the four governmental districts and principal villages, among which are Betis, Lubao, Guagua, Mexico, and other smaller places. All the neighboring country, and particularly the royal magazines, secure their rice from this province [of Pampanga]. There must be in the province of Manila forty thousand tributes belonging to private individuals, and almost twenty thousand belonging to your Majesty. There must be in all more than five hundred thousand people, of whom one-fourth are Christians. In this, however, estimates vary. The adelantado, Miguel Lopez de Legaspi, settled the important city of Manila in the year fifteen hundred and sixty-one, [24] after having lived for six years in the islands of Zubu and Panay, of which I shall speak more in detail in another place.

_The judicial offices in the province of Manila_.

The offices to which appointments are made in the province of Manila, not to mention the judicial officers of greater or less importance who are maintained by the city within its walls, are as follows:

The alcaldia-mayor of the Parian or alcayzeria of the Chinese; the alcaldia-mayor of the coast near this city, its capital being the town of Tondo; the alcaldia-mayor of the Lake of Manila, ordinarily called Laguna de Bay; the alcaldia-mayor of Bulacan and Calumpite, one of the two alcaldias of Panpanga; the alcaldia-mayor of Panpanga, which includes the rest of the province; the alcaldia-mayor of Balayan and Bonbon, twenty leguas from Manila; the corregimiento of Mindoro and Baco, twenty-five leguas from Manila--which, although it is itself an island, is a division of this province for judicial and religious administration; the alcaldia-mayor of Calilaya, forty leguas from Manila; the corregimiento of Masbate, an island fifty leguas, or a little more, from Manila, between this island [of Luzon] and the Pintados.

_Pangassina_

Next after Panpanga comes the district comprising all of Sambales and Pangasinan. This, although here considered as a separate province, is under the jurisdiction of Manila in judicial and religious matters. Its natives are chiefly those called Negrillos. They are mountain Indians and are either very tawny in color, or black. They are so restless, so warlike, and so averse to trade and communication with other people, that up to this time it has not been possible to subdue them effectively. Although on different occasions they have been severely chastised, there is still no security from them. They are in the habit of making sudden assaults upon their neighbors, continually, and cutting off many heads. In this consists the whole happiness of these barbarians. These Negrillos belong to the same race of people as those who live farthest in the interior and in the most rugged parts of these islands. It is a very well established and common belief that they are the real aborigines; and that the rest of the Indians are immigrants who conquered them, and compelled them to leave the shores and plains, and to retire to the most isolated and rugged parts of the islands, where they now are. They are still so brutal and so averse to civilization that they scarcely deserve more than the name of men; for they often cut off the heads of their own fathers and brothers as a pastime, for no other reason than their natural cruelty and brutality. Very few of them have fixed settlements, nor do they plant crops; but they live upon camotes (a kind of potato), other herbs and roots, and the game which they hunt. They hardly ever come to the plains or coasts except to make assaults and to cut off heads. The one who has cut off the greatest number of these is most feared and respected among them. The skulls they keep in their huts as trophies, or to serve as jugs and cups in their drinking-bouts. There is such abundance of wild game in the province of Pangasinan that within a space of only twenty leguas over sixty thousand, and sometimes as many as eighty thousand, deer are killed every year. The Indians pay these deerskins as tributes; while trade in them is a source of great profit for Japon, because the Japonese make of them good leather for various purposes.

_Ten thousand tributes_. There must be in Pangasinan between ten thousand and twelve thousand half-pacified tributes, two thousand belonging to his Majesty, and the rest to private individuals. The capital of this province is a place called Binabatonga. It formerly contained about three thousand houses, or, according to other estimates, a greater number; but it now has only about two thousand. The province has some good ports. One is that of Agoo, commonly called "the port of Japon," because it was the first port which the Japonese occupied in these islands [when our people first saw them here]. Another port is Bolinao, which is better than any other.

_Judicial offices in Pangasinan_. There is only one judicial office in this province, namely, the alcaldia-mayor of Pangasinan.

_The province of Ilocos_

Next after Pangasinan, toward the north, on the same coast, comes the province of the llocos, a people on the whole more settled and tractable; and although there have been some disturbances among them, they are now very peaceable. They are well supplied with provisions, especially with rice--a great quantity of which comes to Manila every year during February and a part of March, for at this time the winds are favorable for going from Ilocos to Manila and back again. The capital of this province is the town called Fernandina [now Vigan], which was settled by the master-of-camp Guido de Lavazares, who governed these islands in fifteen hundred and seventy-three, upon the death of the adelantado, Legaspi. This province must nave between fourteen thousand and fifteen thousand tributes, which are collected without resistance. Five thousand of them belong to his Majesty, and the rest to private individuals. There used to be in it, also, a great quantity of gold but the Ygolotes Indians diminished the amount for the reason given above. [25] This diminution is quite noticeable.

_Judicial offices of the province of Ilocos_. There is in this province only one judicial office, the alcaldia-mayor of Ilocos.

_The province of Cagayan or Nueva Segobia_

After Ilocos comes the province of Cagayan, the northernmost portion of the island of Luzon, where there is a great deal of incompletely pacified country. It contains villages inhabited by a very strong and warlike people, who have given us much trouble.

_Twelve thousand_ [_tributes_]. Between twelve thousand and thirteen thousand tributes are collected in the pacified portions of the province. Fifteen hundred, or a little more, belong to his Majesty, and the rest to private individuals.

The capital of this province is, as has been said, the city and port of Nueba Segobia, opposite and facing China and Japon, one hundred and twenty leguas from Manila. It is so near China that from Cape Bojeador, one of the points or promontories of Cagayan, it is not more than a seventy leguas' journey to the nearest towns on the coast of Chincheo, a maritime province of that great kingdom. The greater part of the Sangleys who come to these islands are natives of that place. For this reason, and because of the natural restlessness of the people of Cagayan, there has been established in Nueba Segobia a regular garrison, sometimes with fifty, and sometimes with a hundred, or even more, soldiers, as necessity demands. Nueba Segobia contains the cathedral church and is the capital of the archbishopric of the province of Cagayan, just as the city of Caseres is of Camarines. There are then, in the island of Luzon, not counting the archbishopric of Manila, which is the capital of the kingdom, the two archbishoprics above mentioned. It must be noted that there are in this island many races and kinds of people, such as the Camarines, Camintanes, Tagalos, Panpangas, Sanbales, Ilocos, Cagayanes, and many others. They differ noticeably not only in language and in physical characteristics, but also in disposition and customs. But the Tagala dialect, that of Manila and the surrounding country, is a common language. It is spoken and understood everywhere, not only by the above-mentioned natives of the island of Luzon, but by the natives of all the islands. From this fact those who know something concerning the past of these people infer that the other nations of the archipelago have long carried on trade and commerce with Manila. Because the island is the center of an infinite number of nations and barbarous people, some heathens and some Mahometans; and because of its nearness to and trade with the rich and powerful kingdoms of Japon and China, as well as for other reasons that might be mentioned, Manila is considered of greater importance in this governmental district than can here be indicated.

_Judicial offices of the province of Nueba Segobia_. There is only one judicial office in Cagayan, the alcaldia-mayor of the entire province.

_Province of Panay in the Pintados_

The sixth province, one of those outside of Luzon, is the island of Panay, situated in the Pintados, one hundred leguas south of the city of Manila. It is more fertile, and yields more rice and other provisions, than any other province of the kingdom except Manila. Neither is there any province relatively more densely populated, for, although it is not eighty leguas in periphery, it contains thirty thousand of the most profitable and peaceable tributes in the whole kingdom. The capital of this island is the town of Arebalo, which was settled by the adelantado Legaspi in fifteen hundred and sixty-seven, and enlarged by Don Gonzalo Ronquillo in fifteen hundred and eighty-two. It is near the village of Oton and the port of Yloylo, the most southerly port of the governmental district. For this reason, and because of the fertility of this province, it is better fitted than any other for provisioning and sending aid to the Malucas Islands and to the presidios of Terrenate. This province is on the coast facing toward Mindanao, Maluco, and all the "islands of enemies," as the islands to the south are designated. In religious instruction and ecclesiastical jurisdiction, this province is included in the bishopric of Zubu.

_Judicial offices in the island of Panay_. There are in Panay three judicial offices. These are, the corregimiento of Panay and Aclan, the rivers and principal settlements of the island; the corregimiento of the island of Negros, which is included in the district of Panay; the alcaldia-mayor of the town of Arebalo (commonly called the alcaldia-mayor of Otong) and including the purveyorship--the best and most important office of that province.

_The Province of Subu and its jurisdiction_

Forty leguas eastward from Oton, and one hundred and twenty leguas from the bay of Manila, is the island of Zubu. The capital of this province, as well as of all the provinces of the Pintados, is the city of Santissimo Nombre de Jhesus--celebrated throughout the kingdom, not so much on account of its good harbor as because it was the first town to submit to his Majesty; and because it is the first city which the adelantado Miguel Lopez de Legaspi settled and pacified in these islands. It is also noted because it is but half a legua from the island of Matan, where the famous Magallanes died fighting; and more than all else on account of the holy relic, [an image] of the child Jesus, which our fathers found there, which is now at the capital city in the convent of San Agustin, and has been signalized by some miracles that have occurred there. Zubu is a small island, and it yields but few provisions, because it is rugged and mountainous. But it has an abundance, of game, and secures sufficient [of other] provisions and supplies from the islands and provinces under its jurisdiction. These are: Leyte, Camar, Ybabao, Bohol, and many other islands of lesser importance, besides that part of the island of Mindanao opposite Zubu which was formerly at peace--that is, all the country along the Butuan River, forty leguas from Zubu, and the coasts of Surigao, Dapitan, and Caragas, a little further from Zubu. Eight or ten years ago, all of these revolted from this province. There are in the provinces of Zubu and its jurisdiction, according to some estimates, over twenty thousand, and according to others, twenty-four thousand, very peaceable tributes. Three thousand of these belong to his Majesty and the rest to private individuals. To the two provinces of Zebu and Panay only is given the name Bisayas, but to all this group of islands taken together is given the name Pintados. The Pintados are now giving more trouble than any others in the whole governmental district; not because the inhabitants are restless (for none are more peaceable or more useful), but because they are on the frontier toward the seas of Mindanao and Maluco. The natives of Mindanao and Maluco--principally the Mindanaos and other allied tribes, the Sangiles, Joloans, and others of that region--have been emboldened by their great successes during the last ten years to infest the coasts of the islands (and especially of the Pintados, which are nearest to them), so frequently that they have kept the forces of the kingdom diverted [to that region]. They have been greatly aided by the artifice and craft of Silongan, their principal chief, and most of all by the remissness of our fleets. For these reasons they have harassed and are now harassing all the Pintados, where they have at different times robbed many places, captured many thousands of friendly Indians, burned and sacked the churches and barbarously profaned sacred things. And yet for these excesses they have neither made amends nor been punished, and since these Moros have power and courage to continue the war, many evil consequences result; for in spite of the pretended treaties of peace, which they are always promising but never keep, they persist in their offenses. [For instance], at the end of November, 1616, these Mahometan Indians, by the coming of the Dutch ships which reached this bay on the last of October led to think that our forces would be engaged, improved the occasion like good strategists, and burned three of his Majesty's ships in the dockyards of Masbate. About twenty leguas from Manila, they burned some villages and captured many Spaniards; and what two galleys did let some other person tell his Majesty. We know their designs by experience, and the opinion grows that it would be well to punish them for once, with sufficient force to keep them sufficiently under restraint and subjection to make it possible to apportion the island [in encomiendas], and to establish in it fortified posts. This is the true way to prevent their disturbances. Since Mindanao is directly opposite the Pintados, and so near to Matheo and Terrenate; since it has so many encomiendas to distribute (as it is over four hundred leguas in extent); and since it yields gold, wax, cinnamon, and a great quantity of rice and other valuable products--great benefits would accrue to his Majesty by its pacification.

_Judicial offices of the province of Zubu; three_. Returning to the province of Zubu, from which I have been diverted by a discussion of the affairs of Mindanao, I may say that there are three judicial offices here. They are the alcaldia-mayor of Zubu, which is the principal office in the province; the corregimiento of the islands of Leyte, Camar, and Babao; and the corregimiento of Botuan, which is the portion of the island of Mindanao that used to be peaceful.

Summary of the tributes--160,000. Each tribute consists of a man and wife.

I wrote this in Manila, in 1618, to give to Governor D. Pedro de Bivero.

DUTCH FACTORIES AND POSTS IN THE ORIENT

_Account of the factories, and the posts garrisoned with infantry and artillery, that the Dutch enemies maintain in the islands of the East._

_Item_. From these factories are taken food and other provisions for Maluco, and a ship of a thousand toneladas of pepper every year.

_Item_. In the island of Caramandel they maintain two factories without a garrison. One of them is in the port and country of Achen, [26] and the other in the same island, which is called Chambi. There is sent from these factories a shipload of a thousand toneladas of pepper, gold, and jewels.

_Item_. In Negapatan they have a factory, without a garrison; from it are carried cloths, which the Terrenate Indians of Maluco wear.

_Item_. In the island of Jor [27] there is at present one factory, without a garrison; and 400 bares of pepper are shipped from it every year. A bare [_i.e._, bahar] is known to contain 600 libras.

_Item_. In Patane there is a factory, without a garrison; from it are shipped glazed earthenware, silk, and various drugs which come from China, and one shipload of more than 600 toneladas of pepper each year.

_Item_. In Cian [_i.e._, Siam] they have a factory, without a garrison; from it are carried jewels and various drugs of much value.

_Item_. In Borneo they have a factory, without a garrison. Thence are sent gold, jewels, and camphor.

_Item_. In Japon they have a factory, without a garrison. Thence are shipped military supplies and provisions for Maluco; and thus the Dutch greatly hinder the progress of Christianity in that country.

_Item_. In Macazar they had two factories; but have removed them thence because the king and the natives do not get along well with them.

_Item_. In the island of Banda they have a garrison, with artillery and troops. They gather there Masatrella nutmegs to the amount of more than 1,600 bares each year.

_Item_. In the island of Caramandel they have a fortress with a garrison and two factories, one called Masapotamia, [28] and the other Petapulli; from them is carried cloth to trade and barter in Maluco.

_Item_. In the island of Bachan they have a garrisoned fortress; more than a hundred bares of cloves are shipped thence each year.

_Item_. In the island of Maquian they have three garrisoned fortresses; and 1,200 bares of cloves are gathered there each year.

_Item_. In the island of Mutiel they have a garrisoned fortress. From this island they ship more than 350 bares of cloves each year.

_Item_. In the island of Tidore they have a garrisoned fortress, and his Majesty has another. The whole island yields each year about 600 bares of cloves, of which half, or a little less, is secured by the Dutch.

_Item_. In the island of Terrenate they have two garrisoned fortresses, and his Majesty has one. The island yields each year more than 700 bares of cloves; and the profitable part of it is gathered by the Dutch, as they have friendly relations with the natives, while his Majesty obtains never a pound--although it is true that the greater part is lost through war.