Chapter VIII: Of my stay in the kingdom of Macasar (1)

[The large and fertile island of Macasar, which is located near Borneo, is ruled by one called the sumbanco (signifying "emperor"), who has many petty kings subject to him. Commerce is brisk, and ships from Manila, Goa, and Macao, and Dutch and English ships, frequent the island. The Portuguese of Malacca and the Mahometans from Siam were the first to publish the name of God there. "Before that trade opened, they were all heathen; they thought it well to accept one of the two faiths, and to follow it. Not to err in so necessary a matter, they resolved to employ a ridiculous method, namely, to despatch at the same time a boat to Sian for Moros, and another to Malacca for religious, agreeing that they would receive the first ones who arrived." The Moros arrived first through the fault of the Portuguese. When Malacca falls to the Dutch, many Portuguese and mestizos take refuge at Macasar, where they are well received and form a considerable settlement. It is a haven for traders, for there are no duties of any kind, but the captains need only make presents to the sumbanco. The prince receives Navarrete well, and visits him at the house of an influential Portuguese. The churches of the Dominicans and Jesuits have been destroyed at the request of the bishop of Malacca, whence have arisen various troubles. Soon after, Navarrete pays a visit to the prince in the palace, where he sees various books and maps that had belonged to the missions. An embassy at that time from Jacatra finally results in war with the Dutch, who conquer the natives in 1670, and carry off the sumbanco and prince. As a consequence all the Portuguese leave the island. At Macasar, Navarrete meets the chief of Mindoro who had been captured four years before. The missionary preaches in Macasar through Lent, but the native rulers do not become Christians. Two Portuguese arrested for a murder by the sumbanco are promised life if they will renounce Christianity. One, refusing, is killed immediately; the other, acquiescing, is allowed to live, but soon escapes to Macao. Many of the Portuguese slaves have become Mahometans; and, in addition, Christians and Mahometans are living together in concubinage. In Borneo are more than four thousand captive Indians from Manila. "In all the islands of that archipelago there are Indians from Philipinas, either refugees or captives. Wherever I have been, from China to Surrate, I found people from Manila and its islands. People try, forsooth, to impute the decrease of the Indians to other and fanciful beginnings; but let them be well treated, and they will not flee. Let them be protected, and they will not be captured. No vessel leaves Manila, whether it is of Portuguese, or Siamese, or Cambodians, etc., that does not carry Indians from the islands." In May, 1658, a Portuguese ship from Goa arrives at the island with information of the loss of Ceylon. Among its passengers are some Franciscans and Jesuits. Navarrete, tired of the sea, determines to go to Macan with the other religious, and devote his life to the Chinese missions.]

CONDITION OF THE CLERGY OF THE PHILIPPINES

The procurator-general of the Dominicans in Madrid, Fray Pedro Diaz del Cosio, made a representation to the queen-regent in August, 1674, in regard to the condition of the clergy of the islands, because of the almost perpetual vacancies [in the sees] of the archbishop and bishops, and the excessive subjection in which the governors held them, and the harsh treatment accorded them. [37]

He represented that the bishopric of Nueva Caceres had been vacant for about thirty-one years; and that he who had last been presented (on September 30, 1672) had not obtained the bulls from his Holiness.

That the bishopric of Cebu had not had any bishop who was regularly appointed and who took possession, for about nineteen years, when Don Fray Juan Lopez assumed that post in 1666; that the latter had been promoted to the bishopric of Manila; that Don Diego de Aguilar was presented in 1672, a Dominican of the age of sixty years, but had not yet, at that date (1674), obtained the bulls (although he had accepted the dignity)--without doubt, because he was old and lived in Mejico.

That the bishopric of Nueva Segovia had been vacant for about fifteen years, since the death of the last bishop, Don Fray Rodrigo de Cardenas, [38] a Dominican; for he who had then (1674) been presented, namely, Don Jose Poblete, dean of the cabildo of Manila, had not yet obtained the bulls nor his authorization, for lack of money.

That the archbishopric of Manila, the one which had been vacant the least time (since the death of Don Miguel de Poblete in 1668), had been given to Don Fray Juan Lopez, bishop of Cebu, whose bulls could not arrive until 1674--six years of vacancy.

That the governors were interested in having vacancies; for they filled the posts provisionally, and for that reason they were slow in giving information of a vacancy.

That the incomes of the bishops were scant, and were collected at the will of the governors, who paid them poorly, and curtailed them. Therefore arrangements should be made to let the bishops themselves collect their dues from the tributes, as these were paid in.

That the cost of the bulls ought to be paid from the royal treasury.

That appointments ought to be given to persons not over forty years of age.

That they should be given to Dominican friars, who would obtain the bulls without any delay.

That the third part of the income of the vacancies should be given to the persons appointed, in order to pay for the bulls.

That the power of exiling bishops should be taken from the governors and Audiencia.

That three auxiliary bishops should be appointed, who should succeed, according to their seniority, [in case of vacancies] in the archbishopric and bishoprics, and should begin to govern immediately.

The father procurator, Fray Pedro del Cosio, set forth those claims, but no one took any notice of them. The memorial was presented to the Council, October 26, 1674. Having been investigated by the fiscal--whom, as well as the other persons who intervened in it, Father Cosio visited--it was examined in the Council, March 11, 1675, and gave rise to the following resolutions:

That the governors of Filipinas should report promptly to the Council the vacancies of the bishoprics, under penalty of a fine of two thousand pesos.

That the archbishop of Manila should appoint governors ad interim in the vacancies of the three bishoprics of Filipinas; and his Holiness should be petitioned for despatches, so that in such case the ecclesiastical spiritual authority should be exercised by the consecrated bishops left.

That the royal officials of Mejico should remit on separate account what was owing to the archbishop and cabildo of Manila, without the governor and royal officials of Filipinas having any part in it.

That the Audiencia alone could proceed, in accordance with law, against the ecclesiastics, and not the governor by himself alone.

That the archbishop should report the amount of the tithes of the islands, in each of the three bishoprics, in order to erect cathedrals and establish cabildos.

That the royal officials of Manila should report the amount of the third part of the [incomes of the] last vacancies of the bishoprics.

It appears further: That the Council was about to resolve that one-third of the incomes of the vacancies of the bishoprics of Filipinas should belong to the treasury, and another third part should be conceded to the bishops-elect to pay for the bulls. That it was resolved to augment the income of the archbishop to five thousand pesos, and that of the bishops to four thousand pesos. That it was about to petition Roma to lower by one-third the cost of the bulls to the bishops of Filipinas. That the archbishop should punish public scandals of incontinence, both of lewd women and of men living in concubinage. That in the disputes of Don Gerónimo Herrera with the archbishop [39] some matters were determined in favor of the latter.

PREROGATIVES OF EX-PROVINCIALS

GRANTED TO THE PROCURATORS OF THE ORDER OF HERMITS OF ST. AUGUSTINE IN FILIPINAS

Innocent XI, Pope. In future remembrance of the affair.

Not long ago it was represented to us on the part of our sons the brethren of the Order of Hermits of St. Augustine of the province of the islands known as the Philippines, in the Ocean Sea that as they had to send a religious to attend to urgent matters of the said province in the Roman and Spanish royal courts, nor was any religious found willing to undertake such burden because of the very long and toilsome journey, that could not be made without grave discomforts and danger of life, as also because such procurators after laboring three years and longer in their charge were not allowed any prerogative, the same petitioners very earnestly desire a grant from us to the effect that those who for three continuous years shall exercise the duty of procurator in the said courts shall enjoy the privileges of ex-provincials. Since, moreover, not only the whole province aforesaid, but also the late prior-general of the said order, has petitioned for the grant of such indulgence, therefore the said petitioners have humbly solicited us to make through our apostolic bounty due provision in the premises.

1. Accordingly, desiring to reward the petitioners with special favors and graces, moreover considering them all and singular to be free from any sort of excommunication, ... and being not indisposed to hearken to their prayers, with the counsel of our venerable brethren the cardinals of the Holy Roman Church who are in charge of matters appertaining to bishops and regulars, and with the consent of the aforementioned prior general, by our apostolic authority, in virtue of these presents, we grant and allow those religious of the said province who in the future shall exercise at least for three years the duty of procurator of their province in the aforesaid courts the full and lawful possession and enjoyment of all the privileges, prerogatives, and exemptions now possessed and enjoyed by ex-provincials of the same province--due regard, however, always being had in the premises to the authority of the congregation of the same cardinals.

2. Decreeing that these present letters shall always be held as binding, valid, and efficacious, and shall obtain their plenary and entire results, etc.

Given at Rome, at St. Mary Major's, under the seal of the Fisherman, December 17, 1677, the second year of our pontificate.

ROYAL PATRONAGE EXTENDED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF SANTO TOMAS

The King. Inasmuch as Fray Alonso Sandín, [40] definitor and procurator-general of the province of Santo Rosario of the Order of St. Dominic in the Filipinas Islands, has represented to me that a public academic institution was erected in the college of Santo Tomás of the city of Manila, by a bull of his Holiness Innocent X, promulgated November 20, 1645, at the instance of the king my sovereign and father (may he rest in peace) and passed by my Council of the Indias, by virtue of which degrees in the arts and theology are granted in that institution, with full rigor of examinations and publicity, to capable persons in those islands, from which follows a notable advantage for furnishing prebends and curacies, for which the students therein compete, they petition me that, considering this, in order that the students' energy may not decrease in what at present is flourishing, I be pleased to admit that university under my royal patronage, and declare myself to be its patron. My said Council, having examined the petition, together with an authentic copy of the document erecting the university and of what my fiscal said concerning it, I have considered it expedient to admit, as by this present I do, the said university of the college of Santo Tomás of the city of Manila under my protection, and declare it to be under my royal patronage. I order my president and the auditors of my Audiencia of that city, and request and charge the archbishop of the city, the bishops of the said islands, the ecclesiastical and secular cabildos, the superiors of the orders, and any other of my judges and justices of the islands, that they consider it as such, and observe it; and that they cause to be observed the privileges and exceptions that pertain to it by reason of such patronage, for so is my will. Given in Madrid, May 17, 1680.

I the King

By order of the king our sovereign:

José de Veitialinage [41]

In the city of Manila, August 21, 1681. The president and auditors of the royal Audiencia and Chancillería of these Filipinas Islands, while in royal Council, after having examined the petition of father Fray Juan de Santa María [42] of the Order of Preachers, and rector of the university of Santo Tomás de Aquino, together with his Majesty's royal decree which is mentioned therein, in which his Majesty receives his university under his royal protection and declares it to be under his royal patronage; and that due execution and fulfilment be given thereto in this royal Audiencia, together with the petition for the fiscal in the examination given it: the aforesaid took the decree in their hands, kissed it, and placed it upon their heads, as a decree of their king and legitimate sovereign (whom may the divine Majesty preserve, with increase of new kingdoms and seigniories); and in obedience thereto declared that they would observe, fulfil, and execute it, in accordance with, and as his Majesty ordains and commands, and--leaving a certified copy of it in the record books--that the original would be returned. Thus they voted and decreed and signed it with their rubrics before the fiscal.

Before me:

Juan Sánchez

LETTER TO CARLOS II

Sire:

Although the royal Audiencia must give you information of the controversies that have arisen between the religious of St. Dominic and the fathers of the Society of Jesus--from which resulted others between the archbishop of this city and the said fathers, as he attempted to be the judge in their suits, upon which they implored your royal aid--I cannot avoid, for my own part, giving you an account thereof, in order not to fail in my obligation. I must embark in a few days for Nueva Segovia, from which place the despatch that I would send may not arrive in time [for the mail to Acapulco], on account of the storms that may arise and the perils of the way that have been experienced--especially at this present time, with the deaths of several passengers, among them a religious of St. John of God. [43]

And although in another letter (which I sent by way of Banta) I gave your Majesty a detailed account of the litigation that has begun to take shape between the college of San Joseph, which is in charge of the fathers of the Society, and that of Santo Thomas, which is administered by the fathers of St. Dominic, it has seemed needful that I should continue that account, giving it quite fully on account of the unforeseen events that since have resulted. Years ago the said fathers of St. Dominic began a lawsuit against those of the Society in regard to the priority of their college, and, too, in regard to the authorization enjoyed by the Society of power to confer degrees on their students in arts and theology. After many disputes, and declarations by the royal Audiencia, both parties had recourse to your royal Council of the Indias; the Society obtained sentence in its favor, and the royal executory decree was ordered to be issued--of which, it cannot be doubted, account can be given in the Council. And although the Society have remained in peaceable possession, during the course of so long a time as has elapsed since the said executory decree, the Order of St. Dominic have tried in every way to disturb them--giving, in the "conclusions" which they print, the impression that their university is the only one [in Manila], and that the degrees conferred in that of the Society of Jesus were null and void. And now they are again styling their college of Santo Thomas a "royal college;" and for greater ostentation they placed, on the twenty-fourth of November in the past year, your Majesty's arms over the gates of the said college. When the fathers of the Society saw this, they raised objections, demanding the observance of what was decreed and ordained by your Majesty in the above-mentioned executory decree, and that the rector of the college of Santo Thomas be notified of it, in order that he might not plead ignorance on account of not being an old resident of this city. The said rector, being notified of this opposition, purposely absented himself. Your royal Audiencia commanded that copies of the decisions of your royal Council, contained in the executory decree, be affixed to the doors of the said college of Santo Thomas, and posted in other public places in this city. The rector, without doubt, must have resented the command by your royal Audiencia; for upon one of the posted copies of the decisions of the Council a lay religious of St. Dominic placed another paper, in which he censured the fathers of the Society for trading and bartering. [44] Thereupon immediately came out your archbishop, who is of the said order, [45] with official statements against the Society, calling upon many laymen, residents of the city, to express their opinion on the point at issue, under [penalty of] censures. He also sent a notary to the ship "Santa Rossa" (which had put back to port), for the same purpose, because among those who had embarked thereon was Father Gerónimo de Ortega, [46] who had been appointed by the said order procurator-general for your royal court and that of Roma, with his companion, Father Luis de Morales. [47] This arrogant act was perhaps occasioned by seeing the said procurator and his companion lade on the ship various goods which they ordinarily send to the Marianas for the support and maintenance of the fathers who reside there, and of the others who (as is generally and publicly known) are aided by the said fathers with their accustomed charity and zeal. For these purposes they employ the liberal alms with which your Majesty has been pleased to coöperate in the promotion of a work so to the service of God our Lord, in that and other labors--as in the missions of China and other realms, where they are occupied in preaching the holy gospel. Besides, [I must not omit mention of] the disinterested manner in which they proceed in the administration of the missions which they occupy; this is sufficient testimony to their being so far removed from transactions of that sort, and evidence that we can and ought to understand; for every one knows that they do not exact fees for burials or marriages, or other functions. In this condition has remained the litigation of the said fathers--who are protected by your royal Audiencia; and since it is necessary for a definite account of the proceedings in future, I refer you in everything to the official legal report of the Audiencia. May our Lord prosper your Majesty with the happiness and success that Christendom needs for its protection and promotion. Manila, February 24, 1683.

Francisco, bishop of Nueva Segovia.

[Endorsed: "Manila; to his Majesty; 1683. The bishop of Nueva Segovia, Don Francisco Pizarro. Received on May 19, 1685, by the hand of Diego Altamirano, procurator of the Society." These lines are followed by a brief synopsis of the bishop's letter, and the comment, "Thus far no letter has been received from the Audiencia; but recently letters have come from the bishop of Nueva Caceres, Don Fray Andres Gonzalez, and the assistant bishop Barrientos, which mention, among other matters, the commercial transactions of the Society; and this information has been handed to the fiscal."]

[Endorsed: "Council; let two other letters be brought--one from this bishop, and the other from the assistant bishop Duran."]

[Endorsed: "Council; June 4, 1685. Carry this to the fiscal, so that he can examine with it all the other papers relating to this subject; and let a clerk make a brief of the whole matter."]

INSURRECTIONS BY FILIPINOS IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY

Gadanes; 1621

[An account of this uprising is given by Aduarte in book ii, chap. xvii, of his Historia; see our VOL. XXXII, pp. 113-120.]

In Bohol and Leyte; 1622

[See account of the Bohol revolt in VOL. XXIV, pp. 116-119; it also spread to Leyte. We present here some further account, obtained from Murillo Velarde's Hist. de Philipinas, fol. 17, 18; Diaz's Conquistas, pp. 132-136. Concepción (in Hist. de Philipinas, v, pp. 20-25) adds nothing new.]

The majority of the ministers in the island of Bohol [48] had gone to Zebu, to celebrate the feasts of the beatification of St. Xavier; in their absence Lucifer attempted to possess himself again of those souls. The divata, or demon, appeared to some Indians in the woods--its face covered, like that of one taking the discipline--and commanded them to quit the gospel ministers and the Spanish vassalage, and take refuge in the hills; and to build him a chapel, where he would aid them and give them whatever they needed to pass their lives in happiness and abundance, without the encumbrance of paying tribute to the Spaniards or dues to the churches. Two or three Indians, who on account of their evil deeds were wandering as fugitives, became priests of this divata, in order to persuade the people to apostasy and rebellion; and, to take away the fear which they naturally feel toward the Spaniards, these priests told them that, if they would attack the Spaniards, the divata would cause the mountains to rise against their foe; that the muskets of the latter would not go off, or else the bullets would rebound on those who fired them; that if any Indian should die, the demon would resuscitate him; that the leaves of the trees would be converted into saranga (which is a large fish); that when they cut bejucos, these would distil wine instead of water; that from the banana-leaves they would make fine linen; and, in short, that all would be pleasure, enjoyment, and delight. With these magnificent promises, so attractive to men--and especially to the Indians, who are so inclined to idleness and sloth--four villages revolted; only Loboc (which is the chief village) and Baclayon remained firm in the faith, and in loyalty to the king.

Information of this reached Zebu, and immediately Don Juan de Alcarazo, alcalde-mayor of Zebu, went to quiet the island; [49] he invited them to make peace, for which the rebels did not care. Their boldness increasing, they burned the four villages and their churches; they flung on the ground the rosaries and crosses, and pierced an image of the blessed Virgin eighteen times with javelins--although afterward in Zebu some tried to make amends to her with the most affectionate demonstrations of reverence, and she was placed in our church. Thereupon the chief ordered troops from Zebu, fifty Spaniards and a thousand friendly Indians, [50] accompanied by a father; and on New Year's day, 1622, he began the march to the mountains, where the insurgents were. For five days they traveled through rugged hills and deep ravines, crossing marshes where the mud came to their knees, or even to their waists, and shedding their blood on the thorns and briars. On the fifth day, the insurgents killed a friendly Indian; this they celebrated with loud shouts, and it greatly increased their arrogance. On the following day, more than 1,500 rebel Indians attacked our vanguard, which consisted of sixteen Spaniards and three hundred Indians; but when our muskets were fired so many fell dead that the rebels began to retreat to a bamboo thicket. When we followed them, a heavy rain fell, which encouraged the rebels, for they said that our muskets were then useless. But Heaven favored our cause with a marvel, since, although the pans of the musket-locks were full of water, the soldiers declared that the powder never failed to catch fire, nor did the matches go out. At this the rebels fled into the mountains; and our men arrived at a village of more than a thousand houses, in the midst of which was the temple of their divata. Our troops found there much food, various jewels of silver and gold, and many bells of the sort those people use--all which was given to our Indians. The rebels were in a fortification of stone, in which they had placed many stones and clods of earth to throw at our men; but the latter, covering themselves with their shields, seized the redoubt, with the death of many of the enemy, [51] and in a fortnight returned to Loboc. Captain Alcarazo, who was foremost in all these engagements, commanded that some of the rebels be hanged, and published a pardon to the rest; and he returned to Zebu, [52] where the victory was celebrated. This success had very important results, for it checked the revolt of other islands and other villages--who were expecting the favorable result which the demon had promised them, so that they could shake off the mild yoke of Christ, and with it their vassalage to the Spaniards. Many of them, now undeceived, accepted the pardon; but others, who were stubborn, fortified themselves at the summit of a rugged and lofty hill, difficult of access, and closed the road [to it] with brambles and thorns. [53] They also filled the paths with very sharp stakes driven into the soil, and placed among the branches of the trees many crossbows, [54] in order that these, being discharged as our men passed them, might wound the soldiers; and above they provided many stones to throw at the Spaniards, hurling them from the top of the hill. Six months later the same Don Juan Alcarazo returned, to dislodge those rebels with forty Spaniards and many Indians. After suffering great hardships in making the paths accessible, nearly all his men were hurt, by the time they reached the fort, by the many stones which the enemy hurled down from the summit; but our soldiers courageously climbed the ascent, firing their muskets, and killed many of the rebels, putting the rest to flight. Thus was dispersed that sedition, which was one of the most dangerous that had occurred in the islands--not only because the Boholans were the most warlike and valiant of the Indians, but on account of the conspiracy spreading to many other tribes. Noble examples of fidelity in this great disturbance are not lacking. [Murillo Velarde here mentions two instances of this.]

The natives of Carigara in the island of Leyte became impatient, and revolted without waiting for the result in Bohol, incited thereto by Bancao, the ruling chief of Limasava--who in the year 1565 [55] received with friendly welcome Miguel Lopez de Legazpi and the Spaniards who came to his island, supplying them with what they needed, for which Phelipe II sent him a royal decree, thanking him for the kind hospitality which he showed to those first Spaniards. He was baptised and, although a young man, showed that he was loyal to the Christians; but, conquered by the enemy [of souls], he changed sides in his old age. [56] This man lived in the island of Leyte, and with a son of his and another man, Pagali (whom he chose as priest of his idolatry), erected a sacred place to the divata, or devil; and they induced six villages in the island to rebel. In order to remove from them their fear of the Spaniards, these men told their followers that they could change the Spaniards into stones as soon as they saw them, by repeating the word bato, which signifies "stone;" and that a woman or a child could change them into clay by flinging earth upon them. Father Melchor de Vera went to Zebu to give warning of this sedition and obtain aid to check it. Captain Alcarazo equipped an armada of forty vessels, in which were embarked some Spaniards and many friendly Indians, also the father rector of Zebu and Father Vera; these united with the forces (both Spanish and Indian) that the alcalde of Leyte had. They offered peace to the rebels, but the latter spurned it with contempt. Our men, divided into three bodies, attacked them; and, when that which Don Juan de Alcarazo commanded came in sight of the rebels, they fled to the hills. Our soldiers followed them, and on the way put to the sword or shot those whom they encountered; and, although the compassion of the Spaniards spared the children and women, [57] these could not escape the fury of the Indians. Many of the rebels died, the enchantment not availing them by which they had thought to turn the Spaniards into stone or clay; the rest saved themselves by flight. The Spaniards came to a large building which the rebels had erected for their divata; they encamped in it ten days, and then burned it. Some one pierced with a lance Bancao, the chief instigator of the rebellion, not knowing who he was, whom two of his slaves were carrying on their shoulders and immediately his head was placed on a stake as a public warning. He and his children came to a wretched end, as a punishment for their infidelity and apostasy; for his second son was beheaded as a traitor, and a daughter of his was taken captive. To inspire greater terror, the captain gave orders to shoot three or four rebels, and to burn [58] one of their priests--in order that, by the light of that fire, the blindness in which the divata had kept them deluded might be removed. The Spaniards also cut off the head of an Indian who had robbed Father Vinancio [i.e., Vilancio] and broken to pieces an image of the Virgin, and kicked a crucifix; and his head was set up in the same place where he had committed those horrible sacrileges. There were many who, in the midst of so furious a tempest, remained constant in their religious belief. [Several instances of this are related by the author.]

Mandayas; 1625

[For particulars of this insurrection, see Aduarte's Historia, book ii, chaps, xxviii, xxx, in our VOL. XXXII, pp. 147-152, 162. Cf. Ferrando's account, Hist. de los PP. Dominicos, ii, pp. 114-117; and our VOL. XXII, pp. 69, 95.]

In Caraga and in Cagayan; 1629

[See VOL. XXIV, pp. 165, 175, 177, 216, 217, 229; and fuller account of that in Caraga, in Concepción's Hist. de Philipinas, v, pp. 163-179 (in our VOL. XXXV, pp. 89-91).]

In Nueva Segovia; 1639

[See Santa Cruz's account (Hist. Sant. Rosario) in our VOL. XXXV, pp. 47-51.]

In Pampanga, 1645; and in Bulacán, 1643

[The following is taken from Diaz's Conquistas, pp. 483, 484:]

This fearful earthquake [59] was general in all these Filipinas, although it was more severe in some regions than in others--for in the province of Cagayán, in [the land of] one people called Maynanes, a great mountain was cleft open; and the havoc made by it extended as far as Maluco. In the heights of Gapang, [60] in the province of Pampanga, it was very severe, and lasted several days. Even greater damage might have been done by an uprising that was plotted by an Indian of evil disposition in the villages of Gapang, Santor, Caranglán, and Patabangán, exhorting the natives there to rebel and restore themselves to their former liberty, by slaying the Spaniards and the religious. He assured them that in Manila there were no Spaniards left, because the earth had swallowed them, with the entire city, on the night of the earthquake that occurred on St. Andrew's day; and that the demon, with whom he had compact and intercourse, had promised him that he would aid the natives so that they might maintain themselves without paying tribute, and might enjoy much prosperity, and provided that they would slay the fathers and burn the churches. The delusion of the Indians of Gapang went so far that they seized arms, and summoned to their aid many heathen Zambals, and burned the churches of Santor and Pantabangán. When this was known in Manila, the encomendero of those villages, Admiral Rodrigo de Mesa, offered his services to pacify them, and went to Gapang with Alférez Callejas, their collectors of tribute, and some friendly Indians; but the insurgents, who now were numerous, badly wounded the encomendero, who fled on horseback, and a year later died from that wound at Manila. They slew Alférez Callejas and many of the loyal Indians who went in his company, and fortified themselves in the mountains. The prior and minister, Fray Juan Cabello, escaped by the aid of some other Indians who were not of the hostile party, came to Manila, and gave information of the progress of the rebellion. Opinions differed as to the methods which should be employed in pacifying the insurgents; and our father provincial, Fray Alonso Carbajal, decided to send the father lecturer Fray Juan de Abarca, [61] a religious for whom the natives of that district had much affection and respect, since he had been their minister for many years. With this commission this religious set out for Pampanga, taking with him a companion, Master-of-camp Don Agustin Songsong, a valiant Pampango, with as many soldiers of that people as seemed necessary. They arrived at Gapang, and by means of father Fray Juan de Abarca's preaching and his earnest efforts--which would take too long to relate, as would the many perils of death to which he exposed himself--that sedition was finally quelled, and the insurgents returned to their former quiet. But the Indian sorcerer, the cause of this disturbance, did not make his appearance, notwithstanding all the efforts that were made to find him.

Another rebellion, which threatened a great outbreak, was checked (in the year 1643) by father Fray Cristobal Enriquez. In the district of Malolos in the province of Bulacán, an Indian named Don Pedro Ladía, a native of Borney, went about promoting sedition; he proclaimed that to him belonged the right of being king over the provinces of Tagalos, alleging that he was a descendant of Raja Matanda, [62] the petty king whom the Spaniards found at Manila in the year 1571. With these and other impostures, aided by wine--the chief counselor in matters of policy and war, among those natives--and with the consultations with the demon which always figure on these occasions, he kept many villages of that district disquieted. But the sagacious procedure of father Fray Cristobal Enriquez intercepted all these misfortunes which were threatening us, by furnishing a plan for the arrest of Don Pedro Ladía--who already was styling himself "king of the Tagálogs;" he was sent to Manila, where, he paid with his life for his vain presumption. And thus this revolt, lacking even that weak foundation, was entirely quieted.

In the Pintados; 1649-50

[The best authorities on this insurrection are the Jesuit historians, since it arose in regions under their spiritual charge. We select the earliest account, that of Combés, written while the incidents of that time were fresh in men's minds; it is found in his Hist. de Mindanao, col. 489-498. Murillo Velarde also relates these events, in Hist. de Philipinas, fol. 171b-175. Cf. the Augustinian Diaz, in Conquistas, pp. 517-523; and the Recollect Concepción, Hist. de Philipinas, vi, pp. 247-280.]

The queen of Joló, Tuambaloca, wrote at the same time, asking permission to come to end her days in the island of Basilan, and all was so secure from war that she remained as arbiter of peace for all the islands of Samboangan; and, as such, even the governor of Manila availed himself of her power [63] in order to pacify the disturbances in the islands....

This occasion made sufficiently evident the greatness of the benefit that the islands owe to the Society for the [treaties of] peace made with these kings--thus finding the royal arms at liberty for more pressing exigencies, and being set free, as regards those kings, from the most painful anxiety lest their forces would be allied with our dangers. With this, attention could be given to the punishment of Burney, a pirate as cruel as impious; and to finding external relief in the domestic losses and evils which had rendered our safety so uncertain. [Our forces were thus ready] in an almost general revolt of all the islands, in the provinces that were most subjugated and had never tested the keenness of our arms; for they had yielded to the echoes of our trumpets, receiving our troops in peace. But in these recent years had been operating in these new worlds the influences of that malign planet which was ruining Europe (and especially our España), with revolts of entire kingdoms, and has caused rivers of blood to run in the populous kingdom of China; and it reached these islands, to wreak on them its fierceness. And God--permitting evil, for the credit of virtue and the reward of the good--gave warlike courage to the most pusillanimous tribes, and armed the nakedness of these Indians to resist the unconquerable steel of our Spaniards.

The first region to declare against us was the province of Ibabao, which is in the island of Samar; it is the coast which faces the north, beaten by the sea of Nueva España. There the Society has a new residence, which is occupied by six fathers. All the villages connected with it revolted, following the audacious stand of the chief among them, which is Palapag. This was occasioned by the oppressions arising from our public works--which is a motive that should appeal to them, since they were the ones interested in the defense [of the coasts against their enemies]. But the Indians, as barbarians, do not heed future perils, but rather present fatigues; and to these their slothful nature opposes itself. The losses of galleons made it necessary to maintain in that province a shipyard. This drafted all the carpenters from Manila, and, in order to supply those that were needed on that shore, it was necessary to demand from each province a certain number--a quota of hardly one to each village, and this so equitably that to worldly prudence these allotments seemed advantageous, for which many would eagerly ask. But as the Indians have grown up in their wretchedness and in the life of brutes in their remote mountains, it seems to them that they are maintaining their liberty. They resented greatly this political compulsion to citizenship and the formation of a village, [so that they would live] as men. Those in the provinces that were most civilized and were nearest to Manila had obeyed the decree without opposition, but these [remote] provinces immediately made such demonstrations of displeasure that all of us perceived the difficulty [of enforcing the demand], and several undertook to represent it [to the authorities]. Don Diego de Faxardo was the governor, a man so harsh in his methods, and having so little pious regard for the [religious] ministers, that their intercessions only made him more cruel, on account of the dogmatic opinion which he followed, that the ministers are the ones who oppose the royal service. Accordingly they all gave up any active opposition, but moderated in a thousand ways the execution [of the decree] (which they saw could not be avoided), sometimes with gifts, sometimes with considerations of utility. The men of Ibabao, trusting in the ruggedness of their coast or the inaccessibility of their mountains, or in the succor which had been positively promised to them by the Dutch--who every year make port on their coasts, awaiting with their armed fleets the relief [sent us] from Nueva España--immediately declared themselves [against us]. At the outset, in their stubbornness and disobedience, until their affairs were settled and their retreat prevented, they talked of fleeing to the mountains. This was their first opinion; but a malicious Indian interfered in the discussion, and told them that they could not accomplish anything by that course, because the village would not be destroyed, nor would the promoters [of the rebellion] have the following that they desired, unless they ordered that all should rebel, and slay the father, and burn the church; for their guilt in such action would intimidate all of them. As their councils were held in the excitement of wine, all readily approved this extravagant proposal. Immediately the demon offered them, for its execution, the evilly-inclined mind of a vile Indian named Sumoroy, who, although he had been much favored by the fathers as being a skilful pilot on the sea, and on this account had always enjoyed immunity from tribute and personal services, and was actually the castellan of the fortified residence that they had there, yet desired--because they had removed an obstacle [64] which for many years had kept him at variance with and separated from his lawful wife--to find an opportunity for vengeance. This man offered to kill the father; and, confirming his resolve with many draughts to his success, and loud shouts, they dreamed that they were already masters of the entire world, and had slain all the Spaniards. He had already prejudiced their minds against his enemy, telling each Indian in the village separately that he had been assigned by the father to go to the Manila shore; consequently, no one now repaired to mass or took notice of public affairs. The father rector--who was Father Miguel Ponce Barberan, a native of the kingdom of Aragon--saw plainly the hostile disposition of the people, but never could have imagined so insane a resolve; and if any one could most confidently throw aside anxiety it was this father, for he had been, without contradiction, the most beloved and cherished by the natives, of all the fathers who had itinerated there--and, as well, the one who had spent most years in ministering to those people. A Tuesday, then, the first day of June in the year 1649, the traitor selected for his sacrilegious parricide; and, as a thief in the house, who knew its avenues of entrance and egress very well, he took his stand within, awaiting the father at the top of the stairway, when he should ascend it after supper. While the father halted on the stairs to say a prayer for the souls in purgatory--for which, it happened, the bells were ringing--Sumoroy hurled a javelin at him from above, which pierced his breast and immediately brought him to the ground; nor did he breathe again, spending his last energy in pronouncing the sweet names of Jesus and Mary.

For two days the fathers remained at home in suspense, without understanding the cause of this evil deed, or knowing who was its author; and the rebels themselves delayed to commit sacrileges by breaking with shame and declaring themselves [rebels]. Finally, on the day of Corpus Christi, about noon, the murderer came in sight, leading the multitude, and openly declared that it was he who had slain the father, loudly defying the whole world. They gave the fathers and the brother whom they found in the house the opportunity to leave it, provided that they removed nothing from it; and immediately, as barbarians and enemies of God--forgetting the faith and Christian belief of so many years, in which they had grown up--they sacked and burned the church and house, profaning the ornaments, and cutting from them drawers and turbans according to their old-time usage. If there were any of the faithful [among the crowd], they let themselves be persuaded by the argument of the barbarians for their timidity, that if they remained among the insurgents the anger of the Spaniards would be moderated, and accordingly they followed the perverse ones. The report of this sacrilegious act fanned the flame of infernal zeal itself, and found the minds of the people so ready that, almost as if there had been a general decision and they only awaited the signal for putting it into execution, in almost all the villages on that coast they burned their churches, the ministers fled, and the rebels retreated to the mountains, where they fancied they could maintain their former brutal mode of life.

In the rest of the provinces--either because they perhaps regarded it as somewhat discreditable that the men of Ibabao should display their valor in order to oppose the Spaniards, and they themselves not do so; or because all of them were (as some desire to be) in communication with the Dutch--they proceeded to follow the example and imitate the boldness of the men of Palapag. Our arms would be found greatly embarrassed if those of the Dutch were to add confidence to the insolence of the Indians; and, at the very least, there would not remain a province which would not be up in arms, and no minister or Spaniard of those who were scattered among them would escape. But God our Lord, who chastised as a father, and chose to correct with clemency the wickedness with which the Spaniards abuse the subject condition of these natives--and as a warning to the latter, to confirm them in the truth of our holy faith and disabuse them of their errors--so adjusted the times that although the Dutch fleets had not failed to come to the islands for ten years past, about that very month [i.e., June], in this year the peace kept them away, and the publication of it arrived here in good time, so that our forces were left free for the punishment [of the rebels].

Immediately the province of Camarines, on the mainland of Manila, declared itself against us, and the father guardian [of the Franciscans] was banished from Solsogon; and their lead was followed by their island of Masbate, where an alférez was put to death. This presumptuous act disturbed the peace of Cebú Island; and its natives also, without fearing the strong fort and the city to near them, also defied us, another officer being slain there. In the province of Caraga, the men of Linao revolted, displaying their evil intentions by the murder of the father prior (a discalced Augustinian), and of the Spaniards in a small garrison which was kept there, some dozen in number; but few escaped, and those were badly wounded. In the province of Iligan, which borders on Caraga, the Manobos, a barbarian tribe, seized the peaceable village of Cagayan. The entire coast [i.e., of northern Mindanao], and the adjacent island of Camigin, followed their example; in Camigin they bound the father prior (also a discalced Augustinian), the impious Indians going so far as to place their brutal feet on the neck of the holy religious. In the jurisdiction of Samboangan, the Subanos went astray--their principal village, named Siocon, releasing itself from obedience with the sacrilegious parricide of Father Juan del Campo, and the atrocious murder of his companions, as we shall afterward relate. The Boholans, on account of their valor, retained their esteem for the faith. Thus, for the punishment of so many atrocious deeds and for quelling the insolence of the barbarians, there remained to us no other arms than those of Samboangan, and no other auxiliaries than those people who had been our friends for so few years.

Those of Ibabao aroused the utmost anxiety, their insolence continually calling us to arms; for, not content with atrocities in their own country, they went to disquiet another region. They even disturbed those who dwelt on the opposite coast of Samar, threatening them with ruin if they did not follow the lead of the others. Their attempts began to be dangerous, since they stirred up the village of Paranas, which is only two leguas from the seat of our jurisdiction there--Catbalogan, where the alcalde-mayor resides; and in fact many fled to the mountains, without regard to the war which menaced them, when the Spaniards were placed under arms, two leguas from their abode. In the other villages [the natives] were in arms, and regarded us all with apprehension. At the outset, the alcalde-mayor was ready with such force as he could assemble--adventurers in the province, mestizos, and Indians; but, as the former were all collectors [of tribute] and the latter all relatives [of the insurgents], some were not accustomed to arms and the hardships of campaigning, and the others could not use weapons against those of their own blood. Accordingly this, instead of checking their fury, only rendered their boldness more insolent, and gave unwonted force to their arms; and men who before did not find enough woods in which to hide themselves from a Camucon ship, now went so far as to make daybreak assaults on our troops, and slew our men before our eyes. And as a final token of their contempt, when the captain demanded from them the head of Sumoroy, by way of atonement for what he had done, they sent down the river to him the head of a swine--although in the end, worn out, they considered it good luck that they could again secure peace.

[The authorities] in Manila, seeing that the revolt was continually gathering strength, and that the insolence of the insurgents was passing all bounds, recognized how important it was to repress it, undertaking its chastisement in earnest. For this purpose they despatched General Andres Lopez de Azaldigui (who was chief of the royal galleys of these islands), with the title of lieutenant of the captain-general; and with this authority he levied many Spaniards, being empowered to obtain them from all the fortified posts. He made all the necessary arrangements for the enterprise, but he soon recognized the danger that he incurred among the natives--who all, regarding those of Palapag as restorers of their liberty, were rejoicing over their successes--and that in our reverses we had cause to fear them as enemies, since they were on the watch to know what fortune those of Palapag had in order to follow it if they were sure of the result. A large fleet of native boats was needed for the transportation of provisions and military supplies; but, the greater the number of these that were thus assembled, the more was the danger increased. On this account the general wrote to Manila, demanding galleys; and there, in order to avoid the expense of galleys and the perils of seas so rough, they despatched orders that the armada should come from Zamboangan--for the loyalty of those people against the Bisayans, as against their old-time enemies, could not be doubted. And with the support of these [auxiliaries] effective aid might be rendered by those of the inland provinces, which had been ruled without risk by the Spaniards because they did not go there entirely in the hands of the natives.

The armada was despatched as promptly as possible by the commandant [of Zamboanga]. Sargento-mayor Pedro Duran, with two captains in active service--as chief, Captain Juan Muñoz, who was commander of the armada; and as second in command Captain Juan de Ulloa--with the most choice and distinguished soldiers of the Lutaos. As leader of these, since he was the military chief of that people, was sent General Don Francisco Ugbo (whom I have previously mentioned), with the master-of-camp, sargento-mayor, and captains of the tribe, and as many as four hundred of its men. Father Francisco Martinez had then arrived at Samboangan, to act as rector of the new [Jesuit] college there--of which the official recognition from our father general came in this same year--a religious who deserved well of those Christian churches, for he had sustained them in their earliest infancy, having labored in the arduous beginnings of [the missions in] Joló and Samboangan. By this [departure of the Lutaos] Father Alexandro Lopez found his occupation gone, and was therefore able to embark with the armada, which needed his presence and aid, as it was going for so important an enterprise--on the fortunate result of which, as many thought, depended the fidelity of all the provinces of Pintados. All fortified themselves with the holy sacraments, as solicitously as Christians of very long standing could do; and, as if they were such, on all occasions which arose in the voyage and in the battle itself they made evident, by their reverence for their holy name [of Christians] and appreciation of the danger, how they felt these obligations in their hearts. The sargento-mayor of the tribe (who belonged to its highest nobility) encountered a temptation to his own perdition; but he put it behind him by saying that he was going to war, and could not at that time discuss a matter which would work injury to his soul.