The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898: Volume
XXII, 1625-29, by Various
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Title: The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898: Volume XXII, 1625-29
Explorations By Early Navigators, Descriptions Of The
Islands And Their Peoples, Their History And Records Of
The Catholic Missions, As Related In Contemporaneous Books
And Manuscripts, Showing The Political, Economic, Commercial
And Religious Conditions Of Those Islands From Their
Earliest Relations With European Nations To The Close Of
The Nineteenth Century
Author: Various
Editor: Emma Helen Blair
Release Date: July 15, 2005 [EBook #16297]
Language: English
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS ***
Produced by Jeroen Hellingman and the PG Distributed Proofreaders Team
The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898
Explorations by early navigators, descriptions of the islands and
their peoples, their history and records of the catholic missions,
as related in contemporaneous books and manuscripts, showing the
political, economic, commercial and religious conditions of those
islands from their earliest relations with European nations to the
close of the nineteenth century,
Volume XXII, 1625-29
Edited and annotated by Emma Helen Blair and James Alexander Robertson
with historical introduction and additional notes by Edward Gaylord
Bourne.
CONTENTS OF VOLUME XXII
Preface
Documents of 1625
Report of the Spanish Council of State
on the appointment of a governor for the
Philippines. Madrid, March 7.
Royal decree granting income to the Society
of Jesus. Felipe IV; Madrid, June 1.
Letter from the archbishop of Manila to Felipe
IV. Miguel García Serrano; July 25.
Royal festivities at Manila. Diego de Rueda
y Mendoza; Manila, August 1.
Letter to Felipe IV. Fernando de Silva;
Manila, August 4.
Documents of 1626
Letter from the archbishop to Felipe IV. Miguel
García Serrano; Manila, July 25.
Letter to Felipe IV. Fernando de Silva;
Manila, July 30.
Letter from the sisters of St. Clare to Felipe
IV. Jeronima de la Asunsion, and others;
Manila, July 31.
Petition for aid to the seminary of San Juan
de Letran. Juan Geronimo de Guerrero; Manila,
August 1.
Royal decrees. Felipe IV; Madrid, June-October.
Military affairs of the islands. [Unsigned];
Sevilla, 1626 (but written at Cebú)
Documents of 1627
Importance of the Philippines. Martin Castaño;
[undated; 1627?]
Relation of 1626. [Unsigned and undated;
_ca._ 1627]
Letter to Tavora. Felipe IV; Madrid,
September 3.
Laws regarding the Sangleys. [From
_Recopilación de leyes de las Indias_];
1594-1627.
Decrees regarding the religious. Felipe IV;
Madrid, May-November.
Decrees regarding the Chinese. Felipe IV;
Madrid, September 10 and November 19.
Inadvisability of a Spanish post on the
island of Formosa. Juan Cevicos; Madrid,
December 20.
Documents of 1628-1629
Relation of 1627-28. [Unsigned]; Manila,
July, 1628.
Report of appointments made by the
governor. Juan Niño de Tavora; Cavite, August
2, 1628.
Letters to Felipe IV. Juan Niño de Tavora;
August 4, 1628.
Economic reasons for suppressing the silk
trade of China in Spain and its colonies. Juan
Velazquez Madrco; October 7, 1628.
Decrees regarding the Chinese. Felipe IV;
Madrid, June, 1628-March, 1629.
Relations of 1628-29. Hernando Estrada,
and others; Manila, etc., 1628-29.
Bibliographical Data
ILLUSTRATIONS
Autograph signature of Fernando de Silva; photographic
facsimile from original MS. in Archivo general de Indias,
Sevilla.
Plan of the city and port of Macao; photographic facsimile of
engraving in Bellin's _Petit atlas maritime_ ([Paris], 1764)
no. 57; from copy in the library of Wisconsin-Historical
Society.
PREFACE
The present volume covers (1625-29) the governorship of Fernando
de Silva, and half of that of Juan Niño de Tavora. Besides the
staple topics of trade restrictions, conflicts between the civil and
ecclesiastical authorities, and hostilities with the Dutch, it contains
more than usual matter which sheds light on social conditions in
Manila and the internal affairs of the colony. A vivid and picturesque
description of social life in Manila is furnished in the document on
"Royal festivities;" and educational interests are represented in
others, regarding aid to the Jesuit college there, and a school for
orphan boys. An order of nuns has for some time been established in
Manila, and they ask for more liberty to receive novices--a proceeding
apparently objected to in that community: they receive liberal aid from
many persons, especially wealthy women. A solid bridge of stone has
been built across the Pasig River, facilitating intercourse and traffic
among the people. The Parián has been destroyed by fire, but is rebuilt
in better and more extensive form than ever before. Special efforts are
made to protect the Chinese resident there, who are often wronged and
ill-treated by the Spaniards. In this volume is much concerning the
persecution of Christians in Japan, the proceedings of the Dutch in
the Eastern seas, affairs in China, and the raids of Moro pirates upon
the Pintados Islands. The limits of Spanish domination are somewhat
extended by the establishment of a military post on Formosa Island;
but many feel that this is an expensive and burdensome enterprise.
The Spanish royal Council of State send to the king (March 7, 1625) a
report on the appointment of a governor for the Philippines, in place
of Fajardo, who had in 1623 asked permission to return to Spain. Many
candidates for this office are enumerated, with the merits and services
of each, and the number of votes given to each in the session of the
Council; the whole is submitted to the king that he may choose from
them. On June 1 of the same year Felipe grants to the Jesuit college
at Manila an annual income for sixteen years.
A letter from Archbishop Serrano to the king (July 25, 1625) reports
the arrival of the new governor, Fernando de Silva, and the auspicious
beginning of his rule. The persecution of the Christians in Japan is
increasing in severity, and Serrano therefore tries to prevent any
further passage of missionaries to that country; but the zeal of the
friars outruns their discretion, and some have gone to Japan. Serrano
asks the king to interpose his authority, and restrain the friars. The
bishop of Nueva Segovia is dead, and Serrano has placed an ecclesiastic
in charge of that diocese. The officials of the Philippine government
should be officially inspected, for which duty he recommends one
of his own subordinates, Juan Cevicos. He asks the king to aid the
Jesuit college at Manila.
The accession of Felipe IV is celebrated at Manila (January, 1623) with
"royal festivities"--bull-fights, games, decoration of the streets,
etc., which are described in picturesque and enthusiastic terms by a
citizen of Manila. Fernando de Silva, appointed successor to Fajardo,
notifies the king (August 4, 1625) of his arrival in the islands,
and reports the condition of affairs there, and various events of
interest. He complains that the Audiencia arrogates undue authority
to itself, and he has already annulled their action in assigning
encomiendas. Gerónimo de Silva has been deposed by them from the
military command, and some of them have made illegal appointments to
army and navy offices; the governor has annulled these also. Hostile
Dutch ships are menacing the rich trading vessels that ply to Nueva
España; Silva has taken measures of defense and precaution against
them. A powerful Dutch fleet has already reached Ternate; he hopes
to obtain some ships, provided by the missionaries, to defend the
islands against the foe. The royal treasury and magazines are, however,
empty; and he has had to send a cargo to Japan to buy supplies. But the
persecutions of Christians in that country lead to great restrictions
on the commerce of Spaniards there; and the embassy sent from Manila
was not even received by the Japanese. The rebellion in Cagayan
will be punished as severely as possible; and Silva will endeavor
to improve the condition of affairs in the Moluccas. He recommends
that the captive Ternatan king be restored to his own country. The
attempt to work the Igorrote gold mines has been abandoned. Silva
has sold certain municipal offices, but recommends that hereafter
these be conferred on deserving citizens. The export duty on goods
sent to Nueva España should be lowered. The governor complains of
the lawless conduct of the religious, who pay no heed to the civil
authorities and do as they please with the Indians; and he asks for
more authority to restrain them. More troops are needed in the islands;
and Silva desires to check the Dutch who are getting a foothold in
the island of Formosa. Complaint is made that the treasury officials
of Mexico exceed their rights in auditing the accounts sent them from
Manila. Silva closes by recommending to the royal favor certain of
the Spanish citizens of Manila, and asking for his wife permission
to absent herself from the islands in case of his death.
The archbishop of Manila writes to the king (July 25, 1626) about
various ecclesiastical matters. He enumerates the salaries of the
archbishop and his prebendaries, and asks that these be increased. The
cathedral's income is very inadequate, and needs aid. Serrano
enumerates the number of secular benefices in his diocese, and the
number of convents and priests belonging to the respective orders,
with the number of souls under their spiritual charge. The same
enumeration is made for the suffragan dioceses under his care. The
archbishop then commends the government (_ad interim_) and procedure
of Fernando de Silva, recounting various acts of the latter which
are beneficial to the colony. The new proprietary governor, Juan
Niño de Tavora, has arrived at Manila. The Dutch have not made their
usual raids on the islands, and trade with China, India, and other
nations has consequently been more flourishing, during the past
year. Moro pirates have, however, inflicted considerable damage;
and one of their fleets even assaulted Serrano and his company while
on an official visitation--the latter barely saving their lives
by flight. Serrano commends the auditor Messa y Lugo, and asks for
promotion for him. Dominican religious have established a mission on
the island of Hermosa, where a Spanish post was recently formed.
Fernando de Silva makes a final report to the king (July 31, 1626)
of his government, up to the arrival of his successor, Juan Niño de
Tavora. Affairs in both the Moluccas and the Philippines are in a quiet
and safe condition; the royal magazines are well supplied, and the
forts equipped with artillery. Silva has lessened the burdens imposed
on the natives, and quieted the revolt in Cagayan; and he has punished
the savage tribes who harassed the peaceful Indians. Barracks for the
troops, and a stone bridge over the Pasig, are improvements made at
Manila. The Spaniards are excluded from trade in Japan; and the Dutch
have built a fort on the island of Formosa. Silva sends an expedition
to that island, and establishes a Spanish post at its northern end. He
explains the advantage of this in restoring to Manila the Chinese
trade, which has been injured by both the Dutch and the Portuguese;
it will also be a point of vantage for the Japanese trade. Silva
concludes by expressing his personal opinion of the characters of the
respective auditors, and renewing his request that his wife may enjoy
possession of her encomiendas in the islands, without residence there.
In 1620 the order of Poor Clares had been established in the
Philippines; and, six years later, they write a letter to the king
(July 31, 1626) asking that they be not restricted in the number of
women whom they may receive into their order. A seminary for orphan
Spanish boys was opened, at nearly the same time, at Manila; its
founder asks the king, in letters of 1626, to assist his enterprise
with money and other aid; in accordance with this request, the
government assigns an income to the school. A royal decree of June 19
in that year orders that the religious (especially the Augustinians)
in the islands shall cease to commit lawless acts in contravention
of the civil authorities. Another of the same date commands that
municipal court sessions be not hindered by treasury auction sales. A
third (dated October 16) orders Tavora to see that the hospitals in
Manila be suitably aided and conducted.
The military affairs of the islands are related in an unsigned pamphlet
(Sevilla, 1626). The Moros of Mindanao discontinue their plundering
expeditions for a time, and ask aid from the Spaniards against other
Moros who are their enemies; this is promised, but hostile encounters
soon arise between them and the Spaniards, which are related in
detail. The Dutch besiege the Portuguese settlement in Macao, but
are repulsed with great loss. Captain Fernando de Silva conducts
a Spanish expedition from Manila to relieve Macao. News has come
that he is in Siam, and in danger of attack from enemies there. In
Japan the persecution of Christians increases, and all trade with
the Philippines is strictly prohibited.
In an undated document (1627?), Martin Castaño, procurator of the
Philippine colony at the Spanish court, urges upon the king the
importance of keeping his possessions in the Far East, and not allowing
his enemies the Dutch to profit by the wealth therein. Castaño urges
the duty of extending the Christian religion among the heathen, for
which the Philippines offer the best opportunity in the world. This
object is being frustrated in Japan by the influence of the Dutch
heretics, who also are monopolizing the trade of that country, and
injuring that of the Chinese with the Spaniards. If the Dutch gain
Filipinas, they will soon conquer Portuguese India, and even harass
the Spanish colonies in America. Castaño calls attention to the natural
wealth of the islands in gold and cloves, and to their valuable trade
with Japan and China--all which sources of profit should be kept for
the Spanish crown.
A. "relation of 1626" (actually covering part of 1627)--unsigned,
but evidently by a Jesuit of Manila--recounts the leading events of
those years in the countries of the Far East. In the Moluccas there has
been peace; but it is expected that, as soon as the wars in Flanders
cease, the Dutch ships will again infest the eastern seas. The pirates
of the Camucones have harried some of the islands, plundering and
killing; punitive expeditions are sent against them, but accomplish
little. Better success, however, has attended an enterprise of this
sort against the Mindanaos. A relief expedition is sent to Macao,
under Captain Fernando de Silva. On his return, he is forced by a
storm to land in Siam; and there is slain, with most of his men,
in a fight with the Siamese and Japanese. Governor Fernando de Silva
sends two Jesuits as ambassadors to Siam, to recover the property of
Spaniards that was in Captain Silva's ship; but most of it has been
plundered by the Siamese soldiers. One of the Jesuits remains there,
and begins a mission. The settlement in Formosa has been successful,
and the natives are now on friendly terms with the Spaniards. Tavora
sends supplies for the troops there, which finally reach them after
long delays from stormy weather. Trade from Manila to Japan is even
more strictly prohibited than before.
Felipe IV writes to Governor Tavora (September 3, 1627), in answer
to his letters of the previous year. The king approves of his
establishing a fort at the northern end of Celebes, promises to send
him aid and arms, and gives him directions for procedure in various
matters of detail.
From _Recopilación de leyes de las Indias_ are translated a group of
laws (1594-1627) relating to the Chinese in the Philippines. It is
decreed that they shall be charged no fee for leaving Manila; the
sale of their goods is regulated; no oppression or injury to them
shall be permitted; they shall not be allowed to live in the houses
of Spaniards; their suits shall come first before the governor of the
Parián, with appeal to the Audiencia, and that neither auditors nor
municipal officials shall begin such suits; the Audiencia shall not
meddle with the affairs of the Parián, which shall be in charge of the
governor of the islands; and assessments of fowls shall not be made
upon the Chinese. The governor is ordered to promote agriculture among
them, and not to exact personal services; their number must be limited
to six thousand, and no bribes or fees for licenses may be exacted;
they must be kept in due subjection, but always through mild and just
methods; provision is made regarding the fees for their licenses;
Chinese converts are exempted for ten years from paying tributes; and a
limit is placed to the assessment made upon them for the royal service.
The king orders the Audiencia of Manila (May 21, 1627) to punish
certain Augustinians who have attacked a government official. On June
11 following, he grants certain additional supplies to the Augustinian
convent at Manila. Later (November 4) the Council of the Indias
recommend that a grant be made to the Recollects in the islands, of
a certain amount for medicines. In a decree of September 10, the king
orders that a protector for the Chinese be appointed, who shall not be
the royal fiscal; and that any balance in the fund that they maintain
for the royal service shall be left to their disposal, or credited on
the next year's assessment. Another decree, dated November 19, recites
the oppression of the Chinese in the Parián in compelling their hair
to be cut at baptism, and levying from them an extortionate tribute;
and orders that both these vexations be abolished.
Juan Cevicos, a resident of Manila who is at the Spanish court, writes
a memorial (December 20, 1627) on "the inadvisability of a Spanish post
in the island of Hermosa." He thinks that the Dutch have established
themselves there not so much to pillage the Chinese merchant ships,
as to establish a factory on Formosa, from which they can gain the
Chinese and Japanese trade. Their success in this would result in the
destruction of Macao and ruin the Japan trade for the Philippines;
therefore they should be driven out of Formosa, and before they
have time to lure the Chinese trade also from the Spaniards. But,
even then, it is an expensive and undesirable enterprise for the
Spaniards to maintain a fort there, as the island of Formosa is of
little importance for its products, and there would be no advantage in
making it a way-station for the Chinese trade. To attempt this would
but shift thither the scene of hostilities with the Dutch, and impose
new burdens on the already overtaxed people of the Philippines. It is
useless to keep the island as a port of refuge for the Spanish ships;
there is danger that the Chinese will attack it; and even for the
conversion of the heathen the king is not under obligations to do
more than is required by his subjects in the Philippines.
The Jesuit chronicle of events for 1627-28 has much of interest. In
July and August, 1627, Tavora equips an expedition to expel the
Dutch from Formosa; but it sails too late, and is compelled by
storms to return to Cavite, some of the vessels being lost. One of
the ships reaches the Spanish fort in Formosa, only to find that one
of its officers and some of his men have been slain by treacherous
natives. The ship supplies the garrison with the food of which they
are in need, and returns to Luzon. Soon afterward a richly-laden
Portuguese fleet sails from Manila to Macao, and two Spanish galleons
are sent with it as escort, to defend it from the Dutch. The galleons,
on the return from Macao, pursue a semi-piratical career for several
months, capturing several Siamese vessels with valuable cargoes,
by way of reprisal for the injuries inflicted on Spaniards in Siam;
and taking other prizes, not all of which are regarded as lawful.
The Christian religion is flourishing in China. The coasts of
that country are infested by pirates, who even capture and destroy
towns. The noted stone of Singanfu has been discovered, making known
the early establishment of Christianity in China. The Manchu foe
Noorhachu is dead. In Formosa the Chinese are making inquiries as
to the Spanish occupation; and the commandant Carreño rescues the
mandarin envoy from hostile natives. The relief expedition to Ternate
is attacked by a Dutch ship, the Spaniards losing two vessels. The
Camucones pirates are repulsed this year. Some strange people,
probably from distant islands, are blown ashore on Cebú. A shipyard
is established in Camarines; it is attacked and plundered by Joloan
pirates. Accordingly a Spanish expedition is sent against them from
Oton and Cebú; and the Joloans are heavily punished, their finest town
being destroyed and their ships and supplies of rice burned. The
revolted province of Cagayan (Luzón), is also entered and laid
waste. Several destructive fires occur, among the losses being that
of the Parián at Manila--which is, however, rebuilt within four months.
Another relation for the same period contains some additional
information. An earthquake occurs in northern Luzón. Two Spanish
galleys enter and reconnoiter the Dutch port on Formosa; then a storm
drives them back to Luzón, and finally destroys them. The old king
of Ternate, who has been captive at Manila for many years, at last
dies there.
In conformity to the royal commands, Tavora sends to the king (August
2, 1628) a report on the appointments made by him, with their salaries,
revenues, etc.; he also recounts the merits or services of each,
for which such appointment was made. This list includes grants of
encomiendas, and appointments to offices of justice and war.
Two days later, the governor sends a full annual report
of administration in the islands--judicial, financial, and
governmental. Under the first, he refers to the king certain legal
difficulties that have arisen in the courts of the islands. These
relate to the possession of two encomiendas by married persons, the
decision of Indian lawsuits, the jurisdiction of the Audiencia in
affairs concerning the Chinese, and the privileges of the governor's
office. Tavora takes especial pains to describe the character of the
Chinese, and the power that they have secured over the Spaniards among
whom they live, through their control of all trades and of commerce. He
advises that they be tried and punished by the methods in vogue in
their own country, and not allowed to appeal to the Audiencia.
In the letter relating to affairs of the treasury, Tavora makes
some explanations regarding his relations with the royal officials
at Manila. He finds it necessary to supervise their drafts on the
royal treasury, since its funds are so low; and he has taken charge
of the business of issuing licenses to the Chinese who remain in
the islands. Tavora is endeavoring to reduce expenses and secure
economy in the necessary expenditures of government. He asks that
notarial offices be not sold, but filled by appointment, and changed
annually. In regard to the question whether the Indians should
pay their tributes in kind or in money, he urges that the former
be required, as otherwise the natives will not, through laziness,
produce food supplies. The treasury of the islands is heavily indebted,
on account of unusual expenses arising, with scanty receipts from
the revenues. The soldiers suffer great hardships, and some are
deserting. The viceroy of Nueva España must aid the Philippines more
liberally; and the governor of the islands must know on what aid he
can depend, Tavora asks to be relieved from his present office unless
the means necessary for carrying on the government can be supplied.
A third letter relates to general affairs of government, in which he
reports that peace and harmony exist among the various departments. The
bridge across the river Pasig is being constructed. The Parián at
Manila was destroyed by fire in January, but has been rebuilt in
better style; and other destructive fires are mentioned. The rice
crop has been abundant, and agriculture is improving. In conjunction
with the other royal officials, Tavora has allowed the citizens to
send goods this year to Mexico without the usual restrictions, on
account of the impoverished condition of the islands. He finds the
Indians much harassed by the exactions made upon them for the public
service, and, with the consent of all interested--the royal officials,
the encomenderos, and the ecclesiastics--prepares new instructions
and ordinances, which are designed to relieve the natives from all
oppression, and provide fair wages for their labor on public works. The
royal officials are endeavoring to secure more satisfactory methods of
government for the Chinese who are in the islands, both residents and
transients. Tavora asks for a printed copy of all the royal decrees
that apply to his government. He has done all in his power to aid
the seminary for orphan boys at Manila, but it needs more; and he
asks the king to grant an encomienda in support of this charity. He
is doing what he can for the hospitals, but asks that brethren from
a hospital order be sent to manage them. The ships from Mexico were
sent late this year, and were almost lost through storms; Tavora
urges that this be not allowed to occur, as the very existence of
the Philippine colony is thus imperiled.
A document dated October 7, 1628, presents (apparently to the Council
of the Indias) various arguments for suppressing the silk trade of
China in Spain and its colonies. The old complaint is reiterated,
that the silver coin of Nueva España is being drained away into
China; besides, this trade deprives Spain of all this money, and the
customs duties are greatly decreased from what they might amount
to. Large quantities of contraband goods are, moreover, carried
to the South American colonies, thus injuring the exports from the
mother country. The Chinese wares are apparently cheap, but their
poor quality, and their depreciating effect on the values of Spanish
goods, diminish the real profits of the Chinese trade. The necessity
of protecting the silk industry in the kingdom of Granada is used
as a strong argument against allowing the Chinese silk trade in the
Spanish colonies, as the former adds greatly to the revenues of the
crown. If Chinese silks were prohibited, those of Granada (the sale
of which is much diminished) would be in much greater demand; and
the producers there could meet their obligations, while the royal
revenues would increase accordingly.
Some decrees are issued by Felipe IV for the protection of the
Chinese. One (dated June 8, 1628) orders the governor of the
Philippines to protect them from extortion and oppression in the
matter of tributes and that of permissions granted them to travel in
the islands; another (August 17) refers to him the demand that all
Chinese except the married Christians be strictly confined within the
Parián. On March 7, 1629, the king orders him to ascertain whether the
Chinese need a protector; and, if so, to send him a list of persons
from whom such official may be chosen by the Council of the Indias.
The Jesuit annals are continued for 1628-29; there are two relations
for this year, one of which consists of letters from various fathers
of the Society, merely strung together. Hernando Estrada relates
the success of a Spanish fleet from Oton in punishing the Joloan
pirates. Pedro de Prado writes of the raids made by the Camuzones,
other pirates, and the dangers encountered by the missionaries; and
describes the animals and products of the country. Another letter
(unsigned) states that the Dutch have been driven out of their
establishments in Eastern India.
A second general relation (but unsigned) for the same year contains
mention of various events both ecclesiastical and secular. On the night
of November 25 the Jesuit church falls in ruins, for the third time;
it is being rebuilt. The monstrance and host kept in the cathedral
are stolen by sacrilegious hands, (an occurrence which causes the
death of Archbishop Serrano). An image of the Virgin Mary is seen to
weep, as if lamenting the ravages made by pirates in the Pintados. In
these raids several of the Jesuit missionaries have narrowly escaped
death. The Dutch in Java have been attacked by the natives, and are
menaced by the Portuguese there and elsewhere. The Spaniards go to
Camboja for lumber, and Dominican missionaries go with them to labor
among the heathen. Affairs with Siam are not yet restored to a peaceful
condition. The missions in Cochinchina and Tonkin are doing well. The
Chinese, at war with the Tartars, borrow aid from the Portuguese at
Macao. In Japan the Christians are being exterminated by torture and
death. There was talk of expelling the Dutch from that country; but
news arrives there of the destruction of a Japanese ship off Siam by
the Spaniards, and the Japanese begin to talk of uniting with the Dutch
to attack the Spaniards in Formosa and even Manila. "The Philipinas
Islands are at present in a ruinous condition." A postscript to this
relation describes an encounter between a small Spanish ship from
India and a large English ship, at Fayal, in which the former saves
itself, after inflicting much damage on its opponent.
The Editors
October, 1904.
DOCUMENTS OF 1625
Report of the Spanish Council of State on the appointment of
a governor for the Philippines. March 7.
Royal decree granting income to the Society of Jesus. Felipe
IV; June 1.
Letter from the archbishop of Manila to Felipe IV. Miguel
Garcia Serrano; July 25.
Royal festivities at Manila. Diego de Rueda y Mendosa;
August 1.
Letter to Felipe IV. Fernando de Silva; August 4.
_Sources_: The first, third, and fifth of these documents are from
MSS. in the Archive general de Indias, Sevilla; the second, from
Pastells's edition of Colin's _Labor evangélica_, iii, pp. 754-755;
the fourth, from a pamphlet, _Toros y cañas_ (Barcelona, 1903).
_Translations_: These are all made by James A. Robertson.
REPORT OF THE SPANISH COUNCIL OF STATE ON APPOINTMENT OF A GOVERNOR
FOR THE PHILIPPINES
Sire:
On the occasion of a letter written to your Majesty by Don Alonso
Fajardo de Tenzá, governor and captain-general of the Filipinas
Islands, and president of the royal Audiencia established therein,
on the seventeenth of August of the past year 623, petitioning among
other things for permission to come to España, the Council advised
your Majesty of what occurred to them with regard to the appointment
to that office. Your Majesty was pleased to order that persons
be proposed for it, and that a relation be made, in the report of
the Council, of the pretensions of Don Alonso; and that action be
immediate, so that he whom your Majesty should appoint might sail
in the trading-fleet bound for Nueva España--or, if he should be in
the Yndias, that he might be advised so that he could sail in March
of the coming year for Filipinas. [Your Majesty also ordered] that
Don Alonso's pay should run until his departure thence in the first
vessel, and one year longer, in order that he might come here. In
fulfilment of your Majesty's orders, it appears that the demands of
Don Alonso Fajardo are reduced to a better office in reward for his
services and those of his father and forbears; and that your Majesty,
by providing what you deem best, make good his pay during all the time
while he should be detained there without power to embark, and one
year longer, to enable him to come to these kingdoms, offering his
person to serve in this interim at the order of his successor. Don
Juan Fajardo, his brother, wrote to me, the president, in a letter
of November 4 of the past year that, since Don Alonso desires leave
to go to España, it must be after there has been time to conclude
the inspection that was ordered to be made of him and the Audiencia,
and after your Majesty has assigned him a post in the Council of War
with an adequate salary. In accordance with the charges against him,
Don Juan petitions that the permission be revoked until he himself
shall return from the expedition of Brazil and come to this court. Will
your Majesty show him the favor that may be your pleasure.
The Council having examined personally the services and merits that
follow for this office (which carries a salary of eight thousand
pesos de minas, of four hundred and fifty maravedis apiece), those
who are considered most fitting to receive that office--which must
be held for eight years, in accordance with the order given regarding
it--are proposed to your Majesty. The first two have seven votes.
Don Geronimo Agustin, of the habit of Calatrava, who has served from
the year 88. In that of 89, the duke of Terra Nova, while governor
of Milan, assigned him a Spanish infantry company of arquebusiers in
the regiment of Lombardia. The same year he went to Flandes, where,
at different periods, he served for ten years with appointments
and infantry companies; and the last three years as captain and
sargento-mayor of the regiments of the masters-of-camp, Don Yñigo
de Borja, Don Alvaro Huaser, Don Fernando Giron, and Don Alonso de
Leyla. He commanded some of the regiments; and for special services
that he performed, the king our sovereign (may he rest in peace),
your Majesty's father, granted him four hundred reals [1] income
in Milan. In the year 60-[?] he was appointed master-of-camp of
a regiment of men in the fleet of the Ocean Sea, in which he has
served. Embarking with his regiment, he went to the Terceras to
relieve three ships of Yndia which had arrived there in a dilapidated
condition; and afterward went with the marquis of Santa Cruz to the
undertaking of Alarache. Thence he went to the Mediterranean Sea until
he sighted Tunez [_i.e._, Tunis], in whose bay were burned twenty-two
pirate ships and one galliot. [2] On his return from the expedition,
he took part in the expulsion of the Moriscos [3] from Valencia,
Aragon, and Murcia. Finally, he went with his regiment to La Mamora,
and was in full command of all the companies in which served the
seigniors and cities of Andalucia and three hundred soldiers of the
coast of Granada. Through his determination, the men whom he headed
were landed; and they gained and occupied those positions, responding
with great courage to their defense and to the fortifications. In
consideration of that, he was in the former year of 617 considered for
the offices of governor and captain-general of the province of Panama
and those of Chile, and as president of the royal Audiencia of those
provinces. On account of your Majesty's assurance in his person and
services, you granted him the office of viceroy of Mallorca, which
he holds at present.
Don Gaspar Ruiz de Pereda, of the habit of San Tiago, has served
for more than thirty-six years in the Terceras, in the expedition
to Ynglaterra, in the States of Flandes, and in the fleet of the
Ocean Sea, where considerable pay and appointments were granted
him. Afterward he served in Bretaña; and the Council of State entrusted
to him matters touching the right of the infanta to that state. [4]
He was corregidor and war-captain of the four towns of the seacoast. He
attended to the preparation and building of ships and the despatch of
fleets satisfactorily. At the conclusion of his office, he returned
to that coast, and became superintendent of it all from La Raya of
Portugal to Francia. The king our sovereign (may he rest in peace)
granted him the government of Habana, which he exercised for nine
years. In the residencia taken from him he was regarded as free from
blame; and, on his arrival at these kingdoms, was appointed corregidor
of Malaga. Later, on account of the satisfaction given by his person,
your Majesty appointed him inspector-general in the States of Flandes.
The following three have five votes apiece.
Don Juan Nino de Tavora, who, having been gentleman of the bed chamber
to the archduke Alberto, and cavalry captain in the States of Flandes,
is at present master-of-camp of Spanish infantry there. With his
services and capacity there is entire satisfaction. He is the son
of Don Gabriel Nino, formerly chief master-of-camp of the king our
sovereign who is in glory.
General Don Juan de Venavides, of the habit of San Tiago, is the son
of the marquis of Jaralquinto. He has been in the service for the past
twenty-two years, seven of them with additional pay under the marquis
of Santa Cruz in the galleys of the kingdom of Portugal, and thirteen
years with the pay of thirty reals [_sc._ ducados?] per month in the
trade-route to the Yndias. He made five voyages, in that of 610 going
as captain of one of the infantry companies of the trading-fleet of
Tierra Firme. That same year, the flagship of the galleons having
been lost at the departure from Buen Aire, he, having escaped naked,
stayed to rescue the men of the ship; and having done this, took them
in a patache to Cartagena. In the year 613 he went as admiral of the
trading-fleet of Nueva España. On the return trip some ships of the
fleet were lost in a storm. He was carrying in his ship more than one
million [pesos] of silver belonging to your Majesty and to private
persons. The masts and the rudder were snapped in twain; the ship
began to leak at the bow; and yet he repaired it and anchored in the
port of San Lucar without having thrown anything overboard. In 615
he again filled the same office of admiral, and, the flagship from
Honduras having been wrecked, he saved many of its crew. In 617 he
was recommended as commander of the trading-fleet of Nueva España,
and was granted the office of its admiral. Finally, he was twice
proposed as commander of the Filipinas fleet. On January 13, 620,
he was appointed commander of the trading-fleet of Nueva España, from
which post he came with good reputation and fame. Licentiate Pedro de
Vergara Gaviria, in a letter that he wrote to your Majesty from Vera
Cruz, where he was inspecting the royal officials, declares that he
has seen in his person an excellent zeal and a manner of procedure
quite different from what is said there of other commanders, and
accordingly he is obliged to give account of it; and that the honors
and rewards that your Majesty would be pleased to bestow on him will
be well employed. In the year 623, he was for the second time granted
the office of commander of the said trading-fleet of Nueba España
(whence he had come the year before); he took the fleet and brought
it in safety. While at the port of Vera Cruz, the Mexican Audiencia
committed to him, on the occasion of the rebellion of that city, the
fort of San Juan de Ulua, and appointed him as its commandant, and as
military captain of all that coast. He served in that capacity until
he returned to España, desiring to obtain the quiet and peace of that
kingdom. In the residencias that have been taken of the appointments
as commander that he has held, he has been declared a good official,
and worthy of greater honors and emoluments. This present year he
was proposed for the office of commander of the trading-fleet of
Nueba España.
The master-of-camp, Don Francisco Zapata Ossorio, knight of the
habit of Santiago, has served for twenty-two years, sixteen in
Flandes, at fifty reals [_sc._ ducados?] pay. He was later captain
of a Spanish infantry company, with which he took part as occasion
offered. He, went to Napoles and was there governor and military
captain of the province of Calabria. In the residencia taken of that
office, he was exonerated. He commanded the galley of the Napoles
squadron at the appointment of Cardinal Çapata, in the absence of the
regularly-appointed commander, with pay of one hundred and fifty reals
[_sc._ ducados?] per month. In the year of 622 the said cardinal
appointed him master-of-camp of the seven companies of Spanish
infantry that went to the state of Milan, and captain of one of
them, namely, the one that belongs to him as master-of-camp. He came
with the permission of the duke of Alva, who wrote to your Majesty
recommending him and mentions the said Don Francisco. Your Majesty
has ordered him to go to visit the duke of Lorena; also that, going
to Flandes, he be given there the first regiment that falls vacant,
and that in the meanwhile he enjoy the salary of master-of-camp of
halberdiers--namely, one hundred and sixteen ducados per month. His
father served more than fifty years, and was in the battle of Lepanto,
in the States of Flandes, the war with Portugal, the Terceras Islands,
and the expedition to Ynglaterra; he served twice in the inspection of
many men in the department of Sevylla, and served in the government
of Alcantara, and as corregidor of Joro, and lastly in that of
Cordoba. His uncle, Don Juan Çapata Ossorio, was bishop of Çamora;
and his other ancestors, paternal and maternal, died in the service.
Don Garcia Giron has four votes. He has served since the expedition
to Ynglaterra. He was lieutenant of the cavalry captain, Don Fernando
Giron, his brother, in Lengua-doc [_i.e._, Languedoc], whence he went
to Bretaña as arquebusier captain. He took part in all the sieges and
in all the reënforcements that occurred during his time, many times
having in charge convoys. When the said his brother took two thousand
infantrymen for the fleet, he served on it. The adelantado-mayor of
Castilla gave him command of a galleon, and later the command of twenty
companies when coming from Vigo. When some thirty companies went to
Ytalia with the count of Fuentes, he took charge of them by order of
the duke of Medina-Sidonia. On those occasions and in Flandes, while
serving as captain and sargento-mayor, he gave an excellent account of
his person and served with satisfaction to his superiors. In the year
of 610, his Majesty who is in glory bestowed upon him the government
of Cartagena, I mean of Benezuela. At the expiration of the time for
which he was appointed, he was granted the government of Cartagena,
and now he has been given that of Habana.
The following seven have each one vote.
Don Antonio Sarmiento, son of Count Gondomar. After having served
on various occasions, your Majesty bestowed upon him a post in the
Council of the Treasury, in which he serves with approval.
Don Sancho de Zeyba, of whose capacity and of the services of his
forbears and his own, your Majesty has full notice.
General Don Geronimo Gomez de Sandoval, of the habit of Santiago,
captain of a company of men-of-arms in the guards of Castilla, who
has served for twenty-three years past on various occasions. In 602,
the city of Cartagena appointed him to raise one hundred and fifty
infantrymen who were embarked in the galleys of España. He went on the
expedition of Argel with appointment as Spanish infantry captain. In
the year of 604, his Majesty who is in heaven granted him twenty-five
ducados pay, which was later increased to thirty. His father being
appointed governor and captain-general of Ysla Española [_i.e._,
Hayti], and president of that Audiencia, Don Geronimo went with him,
having been appointed commandant of the fort of Santo Domingo. At
the order of the Audiencia, he took command of the ships of the fleet
there for its defense for more than four years. As commander of them,
he sailed out at various times to clear that entire coast of enemies,
engaging them with great valor. Once he captured two lanchas, and
on another occasion a ship, while he sank another. His services were
held as very considerable at that time. Having come to this coast to
request the office of commander of some fleet, he was granted the post
of admiral of that of Nueba España, which came in 621. On that voyage,
he helped the ships that were unmasted and unrigged, both going and
coming. By his great diligence he helped to withdraw one that was
burning in the port of San Juan de Ulua from among all the fleet,
by which act the greater part of the fleet escaped the fire. It
was a great peril, for all the silver and merchandise was embarked
for the voyage. In respect to that service, the prior and consuls,
as those interested in it, petitioned, in a letter to your Majesty,
that you be pleased to give him the place of commander of the fleet
in the following year. Having consulted in regard to it, your Majesty
was pleased to grant him that of admiral for the good account that
he had given of the offices which he had had in charge. Your Majesty
will have an account of his person. On this voyage he served with
especial approval as an excellent and careful mariner, and is fitted
for employment in any command of importance of this kind. Accordingly,
he was proposed for the place of captain-general of the trading-fleet
that is to go to Nueba España this year, which your Majesty bestowed
upon Don Lope de Hou y Cordova; and now your Majesty has bestowed
upon him that of Tierra Firme. He is the son, as above stated, of
Don Diego Gomez de Sandoval (whose capacity is very well known), who,
having served more than forty years in various offices, died in the
past year of 623, as governor and captain-general of Ysla Española,
where he was for five years. The Audiencia, the archbishop, and the
secular cabildo of Santo Domingo wrote in a letter to your Majesty how
well he served in governmental affairs, and in those of war, justice,
and peace. He left many debtors because he had conducted his government
uprightly; and his property was not able to pay them. They consider
Don Geronimo, his son and successor, as capable and worthy of what
your Majesty pleases to do for him and what charge you may give him.
Don Rodrigo de Vivero, who, having come to these kingdoms from Nueva
España, where he was born, and having served Queen Doña Ana, your wife,
who is in heaven, as a page, returned to that country. There he was
appointed from his youth to the most important duties by the viceroys,
for they knew his ability and good qualities. That being known to
the king our sovereign who is in glory, your Majesty's grandfather,
he appointed him governor and captain-general of the provinces of
Nueha Vizcaya, where with great valor, continuous toil, and at his
own cost, he made war upon the rebel Indians, until he had reduced
more than sixty towns, and brought down many men from the mountains,
where they were committing great depredations. By those means they
were able to discontinue several presidios, and save the great expense
that these occasioned to the royal revenues. Having been attacked by
a serious illness that was induced by the hardships of the war, he
was forced to return to Mexico, where the viceroy, Marquis de Salinas,
his uncle, appointed him governor and captain-general of the Filipinas
Islands, because of the arrival at that juncture of news of the death
of Don Pedro de Acuña. Without stopping to consider the discomfort and
lack that he was causing his family, and the short time in which his
successor would arrive, he accepted and went to take charge of the said
duties. During the period of his government, he made peace with the
Mindanaos, and reënforced the kingdom of Maluco, then besieged by the
Dutch, besides performing other special services. Don Juan de Silva,
his successor, having arrived, and he having embarked to return to
his home, a storm overtook him that forced him to put in at the coast
of Japon. There the ship foundered and many of those aboard it were
drowned. He escaped on a plank, and was captured with the others who
were rescued. That emperor afterward treated them well, gave them a
ship and passage, and lent money to Don Rodrigo. He asked the latter
to make a treaty with the king, our sovereign (may he rest in peace),
in his name, in regard to certain matters touching trade and commerce
with Nueba España. He granted passage to those who wished to return to
Filipinas. Everything was well directed on account of Don Rodrigo's
energy. The viceroys, and finally the marquis of Guadalcazar, have
given very approving relation of the good qualities that concur in his
person, and of his character, prudence, and good management. Thereby it
is learned that they are thoroughly satisfied of his person by their
treatment. In consideration of that, he was in the former year of 620
elected governor and captain-general and president of the Audiencia
of Tierra Firme, which office he at present holds.
Don Diego de Cardenas, of the habit of Santiago, brother of the
count of La Puebla de Llesena, has served ten years, six of them
in the States of Flandes, on all the occasions that offered in his
time, especially at the siege of Ostende for thirty months, where
he was wounded by an arquebus-shot in the face and a pike-thrust in
the arm. Through the satisfaction that Archduke Alebrto had in his
person and services, he was given command of a company of Spanish
pike infantry, which he had at the victories of Alinguin, Aldoncel,
and Arinverque, and at the capture and relief of Grol, and in that
of Bolduque, Obstrat, and Gave. After the conclusion of the war,
he came to España, by the permission of his Highness; and his wife,
infanta Doña Isavel, wrote to the king, our sovereign who is in glory,
your Majesty's father, recommending him. The marquis of Espinola
did the same, and in the year 609 granted him a permit to raise
two hundred and fifty infantrymen, whom he led to the expulsion of
the Moriscos from the kingdom of Valencia. Having been retired on
half-pay, he went with the marquis de la Ynojosa on the expedition
of Alarache. Lastly, he was in that of La Mamora, serving at his own
cost. In the year of 620, your Majesty rewarded him with the office
of governor and captain-general of the province of Yucatan, which he
is filling with approval, and with especial attention [to his duties],
which he exhibited in the gift that that province sent to your Majesty.
Don Juan de Velasco Castañeda, of the habit of San Tiago, has served
for thirty-eight years, commencing his service on the expedition
to Ynglaterra. Thence he went to the States of Flandes. There he
was given thirty ducados pay to serve near the person of the duke
of Parma. He was present at many sieges, captures, and reliefs. He
came to these kingdoms in the year 96 to the relief of Cadiz, with
Don Pedro de Velasco, who gave him command of an infantry company;
and in the year of 593 the adelantado-mayor of Castilla gave him
another. With it, he returned to the said States, taking under his
charge a troop of ten companies. He continued his services on all
occasions that offered, fighting and proving himself therein as
a gallant gentleman and a valiant soldier, until the year of 609,
when he took part in the expulsion of the Moriscos from Andalucia and
the kingdom of Granada. Later he was at Milan where the constable of
Castilla employed him in commissions very important to the service
of your Majesty. In the year of 617 he was granted the government of
Cremona, and afterward made lieutenant of the captain-general of the
soldiers of the kingdom of Aragon, having in charge the castle of
Xaca; in those places he has served three years with much approval,
valor, and prudence, and, in order to preserve his jurisdiction
and preëminences, has often risked his life. For that your Majesty
has considered yourself well served, and ordered him rewarded for
it. Because of the satisfaction that the Council found in his person,
they proposed him to your Majesty for the government of the province
of Cartagena, to which your Majesty was pleased to appoint him; but as
he did not choose to accept it, your Majesty gave it to another person.
Don Geronimo de Silva, knight of the Order of St. John--to whom after
having served on various occasions, the king our sovereign who is in
heaven, your Majesty's grandfather, granted him title as captain in
the year 89. He raised two hundred and fifty men for the defense of
Portugal. In the year 92, Don Alonso de Bargas gave him a company in
the Aragon expedition, where his Majesty ordered him to go to serve
with twenty-five ducados pay per month. Having gone to Flandes,
he continued with his company in the assaults of Durlans, and in
the captures of Chatelet and Cambray, always acting as a valiant and
respected gentleman. There he was grievously wounded. In the year 96
the duke of Medina-Sidonia appointed him captain and sargento-mayor
of the infantry that he was sending to Portugal. That same year, his
Majesty granted him one of the ordinary companies of light cavalry of
the state of Milan. In consideration of that, in the year 609 he was
given the place of commandant of the forces of Terrenate, and governor
of the soldiers of that presidio, which he served until the year 616,
when he was promoted to the post of master-of-camp of the military
forces of the Filipinas Islands, which he is serving, notwithstanding
that the Council has received certain letters condemning his actions.
Will your Majesty appoint one or other of these, according to your
pleasure. Madrid, March 7, 1625.
ROYAL DECREE GRANTING INCOME TO THE SOCIETY OF JESUS
Don Juan Niño de Tavora, knight of the Order of Calatraba,
comendador of Puerto Llano, whom I have appointed as my governor and
captain-general of the Philipinas Islands, or the person or persons
in whose charge is or shall be the government of the said islands:
Father Francisco Crespo, [5] procurator-general of the Society of
Jesus, of the Yndias, in the name of the college of his order in
the city of Manila, of the said islands, has reported to me that
the church and house of the residence, inasmuch as it was built
by the fathers who first went there, is very old, and that it is
falling down, on account of the earthquakes that have happened, so
that only the house has remained standing, which is in danger of
falling also; and that grammar, the arts, and theology have been
studied there for more than the last thirty years, from which has
followed the benefit that is well known. In respect to its needs,
and the expenses that have been incurred in treating the sick, since
its alms are very few, and its income very slight, they do not have
the wherewithal with which to support the religious who live there,
inasmuch as they do not ask any alms for their sacrifices [_i.e._,
masses], or for building their church or house. Although the church is
commenced, the building cannot be continued. In consideration of that,
he petitions me to concede them there the sixteen thousand ducados,
of which concession was made in the sum of one thousand ducados every
year for sixteen years to the convent of St. Augustine, of the said
city, in tributes of vacant Indians of the said islands, so that with
this grant they might continue the erection of the said church, and
build a comfortable house in which the religious may live, and apply
themselves to the said branches, and where missionaries may be trained
with whom to attend to the conversion of the Indians and the preaching
of the holy gospel. After having examined what your predecessor and
the archbishop of the said city reported to me in my royal Council
of the Indias, and after they consulted with me, I have considered
it advisable to concede to the college of the Society of Jesus in
the said city of Manila, for the present, for each of ten years,
one thousand ducados, which amount to three hundred and seventy-five
thousand maravedis, in Indians of whom the encomienda shall be vacant,
or shall first become vacant, in the said Philipinas Islands, just
in the same way as the concession was made to the said convent of the
Order of St. Augustine of the said city for its buildings. Accordingly,
I command you to assign to the said college of the Society of Jesus in
the said city of Manila, the said one thousand ducados in tributes of
the Indians whose encomienda shall be vacant, or shall first become
vacant, in the said islands, so that this sum may be paid to them in
each one of ten years, as above said. You shall give the necessary
despatch to this, so that those fathers may be assisted with it for
the said purpose. I order the officials of my treasury of the said
Filipinas Islands to obey what you shall order by virtue of this my
decree; and they shall not place any obstacle to it, notwithstanding
anything provided to the contrary. Given in Madrid, June first,
one thousand six hundred and twenty-five.
_I The King_
Countersigned by Don Francisco Ruis de Contreras, and signed by the
members of the Council.
LETTER FROM THE ARCHBISHOP TO FELIPE IV
I have informed your Majesty fully of the condition of these Filipinas
Islands in all the despatches that have left them, in what concerns
both ecclesiastical and secular affairs. As I am certain that my
letters have been received in that royal Council, I am now only
advising you of the arrival of Governor Don Fernando de Silva, knight
of the habit of Sanctiago, who left these islands for those kingdoms
in the former year 21, and returned to govern them about twenty days
ago, with the appointment given him by the viceroy of Nueva España,
marques de Cerralvo. [6] The choice of Don Fernando has seemed a good
one, and he is governing well, as one who knows the country and has
experience in it, and of the merits of his subordinates; and I see
these inhabitants universally contented, [_In the margin_: "Seen."]
I find it very unadvisable for religious of any order to go for the
present to the kingdom of Japon, and until God shall open the eyes of
the emperor--either so that he may receive the holy gospel, or at least
not persecute so cruelly those who preach and obey it. His severity
is such that he is not satisfied with martyring its preachers with
exquisite and extraordinary forms of martyrdoms--as well as those
who have received the preachers into their houses and districts,
even though ignorant of their identity; but he has issued an edict
that no one, under penalty of death, may receive them into his
ship. What may cause greater anxiety is the fact that, a number of
Japanese being angered by the Dutch, who make port in their kingdom,
it will be easy enough both to place these islands in danger, and,
what is more, to extinguish the spark of the Catholic faith in these
regions. Because of that I called a meeting of the provincials of
the orders, so that they should refrain from sending their religious
[to Japon] without the governor's orders and mine. Having seen the
great difficulties [thus occasioned], and although, convinced of it,
they promised compliance, yet their zeal for the saving of souls
is so great that, without informing us, they actually sent four
religious. I fear great danger from that action, and am powerless to
avert the continuation of this, unless your Majesty interpose your
powerful hand by ordering absolutely that which, according to this,
is most advisable for the service of our Lord and your service.
[_In the margin_: "Let what he says be carefully heeded."]
Our Lord took Doctor Don Juan de Renteria, bishop of Nueva Segovia,
to himself on November 4 of last year, 24, while he was coming from
his bishopric to this city of Manila. His loss has been deeply felt
in this country, as he was a man of so eminent qualities. Because of
the lack of a cabildo in that bishopric I sent a man to govern it,
and there is as yet nothing new of moment there of which to inform
your Majesty. The inspection of this royal Audiencia and the royal
officials, which your Majesty entrusted to the said bishop, was
not effected because of his death. Consequently, I am bound by my
obligations to your Majesty's service to remind you of what I said in
regard to this matter in my letter to that royal Council in the month
of August of the former year of 23, which is as follows. "Persons
entirely trustworthy and zealous for your Majesty's royal service
have informed me of the need of inspecting this royal treasury. If
your Majesty be pleased to make choice of the person of Don Juan
Cevicos who is at that court attending to affairs of this church,
for this matter and for other matters of inspection, I regard it as
certain that your Majesty will be well served, as he is one of the
most intelligent persons in the Yndias. He also has experience with
papers and accounts, so that many people in this city were wont to
send such to him; and, even though most complicated, they were very
easy for him. Also, since the person mentioned is at that royal court,
your Majesty may test his abilities, so that he may serve you therein
in like matters of your royal service. These islands have the same
need of inspection, especially the cabildo of this city of Manila." I
add to the above that no person can be found in that kingdom, nor is
there anyone who may go to those kingdoms of the Yndias, more fitted
for this employment, nor one, to my way of thinking, of greater zeal.
[_Marginal note_: "Seen."].
The Society of Jesus in these regions need the favor and grace of
your Majesty to continue the work of the church of their college
in this city of Manila, which they began, trusting to the alms of
the faithful. Since those alms have failed, as the country has been
and is very much exhausted, and since they are without any aid from
your Majesty, it is impossible for them to continue and finish it,
as has happened in the building of San Agustin and other churches on
which your Majesty has been kind enough to lay your royal hand. The
concession that your Majesty was pleased to make to the Society of
the passage from the Parián or alcaicería of the Chinese to their
lands on the other side of the river has been of vast importance to
them. But they fear lest the hospital of the said Chinese is about to
petition your Majesty, not only for confirmation of the passage that
they have to the door of the said hospital, but for a limit of distance
in which is included the said passage from the lands of the Society,
which are two arquebus-shots apart. I inform your Majesty of this,
so that, considering the need of the said college, you may order what
may be most advisable for your royal service. May our Lord preserve
the very Catholic person of your Majesty to us, with increase of your
kingdoms, as is necessary for Christendom. Manila, July 25, 1625.
_Fray Miguel Garcia Serrano_,
archbishop of Manila.
[_In the margin_: "That we are advised of this; have this clause
filed with what the Society petitions." "This clause was copied."]
[_Endorsed_: "Satisfied. Examined and decreed July 13, 626."]
ROYAL FESTIVITIES AT MANILA
On the fourth day of January, one thousand six hundred and
twenty-three, other royal festivities occurred, [7] in which twelve
bulls were fought; and four matches of cañas were played, each of
them between two gentlemen, in accordance with the inclination of
the country. The wealth, embroideries, holiday attire, liveries,
and ornaments, were so abundant, so sightly, and of so great price
and splendor, of so many floral decorations and of so many different
shades, that they surpassed those of our España in beauty and splendor.
The square was adorned with rich hangings of great value and price,
of gold, silk, and variegated cloths, so that one cannot describe so
great a variety of colors, the curious adornments in the windows,
the great beauty of the women, the richness of their ornaments
and clothing, and the concourse of so many conspicuous people; for
all the assembly appeared to be a priceless cluster of jewels, and
everything by itself a precious gem set in the cluster. And as the
country contains so many and so beautiful women--who have, as a rule,
faces so angelic--and since the festivities were of so great splendor,
and for so great a personage, the like of which were never seen,
they eclipsed everything else, and the whole scene formed a sight of
beauty and an agreeable garden. About three o'clock in the afternoon,
a trumpet began to sound, immediately after which appeared a number of
horsemen on fine horses caparisoned and equipped with many beautiful
trappings, liveries, and wealth of bands, necklaces, plumes, jewels,
and ornaments of gold, precious gems, enamel, and things of great
rarity. The ministers of justice followed, and the mace-bearers
of the city, besides the magistrates and alcaldes-in-ordinary,
who were then Doctor Juan Fernández de Ledo--a personage worthy of
attaining to great heights because of his great modesty, learning, and
capacity--and Captain Miguel de Arnalto, an influential citizen, and
a man of great virtue. Shortly behind them came the governor's guard,
the royal Audiencia, and a number of pages and servants in beautiful
and elegant livery. After they had gone the round of the square,
the royal Audiencia went to its place, which was located very near
the city hall in which are the halls of the regidors and alcaldes,
where there are very rich and beautiful balconies.
Each one having taken his seat, two companies of Spanish infantry came
in through the square, and formed a guard, one company on one side,
and the other on the other side. The arquebusiers and musketeers,
firing many shots, discharged their pieces many times against one
another in a sham battle that was made, one troop from one company
charging on one troop of the other, and the other company doing
the same. And as this city is a Salamanca [8] in arms, the soldiers
are very skilful and well-disciplined. As the master-of-camp, Don
Gerónimo de Silva, holds the soldiers under so good discipline, the
militia in these regions is very efficient. When troops have become
habituated to work and application, they give great delight; and when
the officers are firm, and represent splendor and gravity, they hold
their subordinates well in restraint and submissive--in which Scipio
Africanus, Don Alonso, first king of Naples, and the Great Captain,
[9] were marvels. After having spent a little more than half an hour in
the military exercise--which caused great pleasure to the spectators,
and aroused a furious courage in the ministers of Mars--the soldiers
began again to march, some on one side and some on another, passing
before the governor and the Audiencia; while the alférezes lowered
their banners in salute to their captain-general, and the captains made
a profound bow and courtesy, which with the many gala dresses, scarfs,
and plumes, made many foolish persons desirous of imitating them.
After the infantry had left the square, those delegated from
it--namely, General Don Fernando de Ayala, Captain Don Luis Enriquez
de Guzmán, alcalde-in-ordinary, Captain Martín de Esquivel, chief
court constable, and Captain José de Naveda, royal alférez--went
out to make preparations for the cañas match. They were very fine
gallants, and had considerable gala livery. Don Fernando de Ayala
bestrode a bay horse, with gilded stirrups, bit, buckles, and all the
trappings of the same; he wore black hose of Milan buckram, white
boots, amber-colored doublet, and jacket of the same cloth as the
hose. For a shoulder-sash he wore a heavy chain of gold; and he had
a golden plume of great value, and a heavy tuft of heron feathers,
also a gilded sword-hilt, and spurs of the same. Captain Don Luis
Enriquez bestrode a black Cuatreño horse, with a saddle embroidered
with gold and silver edging, a tuft of black and gray feathers, long
and very costly hose lined with Milan cloth, jacket of the same, an
embroidered doublet, of the workmanship of the hose, black boots, with
a chain for a shoulder-sash; a hatband set with rubies, and a plume
of great value, consisting of many heron feathers; sword and dagger
with gilded furnishings, and sword-belt and waistband embroidered
and edged with gold. Captain Martín de Esquivel bestrode a chestnut
roadster and was adorned with a plume of many heron feathers, long
black hose, black boots, a doublet corresponding to the hose, and
a cloth jacket; a gold chain and gilded sword-hilt and dagger and
spurs of the same. Captain José Naveda was carried by a bay horse,
with black tail and mane well combed and long; an embroidered saddle,
stirrups, bit, and spurs, gilded and silvered, very beautiful and
of great value; a crest of unusually elegant feathers, the one that
he carried on Banner day; [10] white boots, red shoulder-sash,
long hose of red buckram, jacket embroidered with cloth of gold,
an amber-colored doublet with rich gold buttons, a gold sword and
dagger of great value; and still more precious were the diamond band
and the plume of his hat. All came riding with their gilded staffs,
and were followed by many servants and pages, clad in costly and
gay livery. They commenced, some on one side, and some on another,
to clear the square of the crowd that had gathered to see these royal
festivities, and who filled all parts of the square.
Some gentlemen went into the square with their _rejons_. [11] About
four in the afternoon, a wild and active bull was turned loose. In two
or three light bounds, it made the round of the square, making itself
master of it all, with which it made all the people afraid. There
several lance-thrusts were given it by the people on foot and those
mounted, until, the bull having been overcome, they opened the gate
of the square, and delivered it to the secular arm of the infantry,
who in quick order gave a good account of it, as was desirable. After
three or four bulls had been run, about half past four, the gentlemen
who were to engage in the cañas [12] matches thought that it was high
time to begin them. Accordingly, they went to dress for their entrance,
which was made in the following order: One clarion-player went ahead,
being followed after a short interval by trumpeters, minstrels, and
drummers, all mounted, and clad in livery of different colors. Behind
them were two mules, laden with bundles of lances for the cañas; one
mule bore a covering with the arms of Governor Don Alonso Fajardo,
and the other a covering with the arms of the master-of-camp, Don
Gerónimo de Silva--both coverings being of velvet, and the arms of
each person being embroidered on them in gold and silver. They were
accompanied by lackeys clad in livery, while others led the horses by
the bridle. Then followed thirty-two horses with sixteen gentlemen,
besides those who led them in. They formed two files, and came from
two opposite positions. The saddlebows of the horses were hung on the
outside with the shields of their owners, with enigmas and devices
painted on them, and covered with scarfs and tassels. The horses had
their breast-leathers covered with hawk's-bells, and all had rich,
rare, and costly harnesses and headstalls of gold and silver covered
with precious stones, plumes, and sashes, in the utmost profusion.
They entered by a gate of the square and, after making a turn about
it, they went out again. When the horses had left, the gentlemen
came in on the run two by two, forming eight couples, with their
liveries, and lances in hand. Brandishing the latter in their hands,
it looked as if the butt ends of the lances of some of the gentlemen
were joined with the points [of others]. The horses, spurred on by
cries and wounded by the sharp spurs, seemed to fly.
Governor Don Alonso Fajardo made his appearance, in the place
assigned to the city, taking as his companion Captain Don Juan
Claudio de Verástegui. They were clad in robes of tawny-colored
satin embroidered with gold and silver edging. For his cipher the
governor had an "S" crowned with palms at the sides, and with scrolls
at the foot. On his shield was a blue band, and on that a heart that
two hands were opening, with a device as follows: "Well broken, but
ill requited." His cap was embroidered, and bore in cipher an "S"
of pearls, rubies, and diamonds, so beautiful, costly, and elegant,
that it attracted the eyes of the people, as a thing beyond all price;
while above his cap was a great tuft of rich feathers, blue, tawny,
white, and straw-colored. He was mounted on a grayish horse, of noble
bearing, that had a band of very fine cloth covered with pearls and
silver embroidery, an embroidered saddle, and gilded stirrups and
bit. The furnishings of his sword and dagger were of wrought gold,
and formed ornaments of considerable value. His companion had a band
of tawny-colored taffeta on his shield, with an "M" as cipher.
Then followed General Don Luis Fajardo, the governor's brother, an
energetic youth, whose judgment and talent at a so tender age promise
great hopes; and he was very splendidly dressed. His companion was
Captain Don Juan Alonso de Sosa, regidor of this city, well known
for his worth and good qualities. Their livery was of blue satin and
gold, embroidered in outline through its field, and many flowers;
as cipher they had a "J" while there was a blue band on the shield
with letters of gold, that read: "For my king;" and on the streamer
of the lance others that read, "Philipus," which was surmounted by a
golden crown. Their caps and flying ornaments were very beautiful,
and had many feathers and silver embroidery. They were followed by
many servants clad in the same livery.
Behind them went Captain Pedro de Chaves, regidor of Manila, son of
the master-of-camp, Pedro de Chaves; and as his companion, Alférez
Don Mateo de Avila, now captain of infantry. Their livery consisted
of straw-colored satin embroidered in rose color, with ornaments of
silver. On their shields were bands of rose colored taffeta, bearing
in cipher the name of "Isabel," in silver. On the streamers of the
lances were the respective ciphers "Isabel" and "Maria," in letters
of gold. They bore ornaments of gilded swords and daggers, and great
tufts of feathers. The bands of the horses were of taffeta gilded and
embroidered in gold. Their boots were silvered, their caps embroidered,
and they had many more ornaments. Behind them were Sargento-mayor
Pedro de Cuenca Montalvo and his companion Don Diego Maldonado, clad
in livery of blue and yellow satin, embroidered in orange color, with
many fringes of gold and silver, and as a cipher an "A" surmounted by
a golden crown. On the shield was a yellow band, that read in letters
of gold: "Steadfast unto death." On the streamers of the lances were
these words: "I will be steadfast," and some very green palms.
Captains Diego Lorenzo de Trezo and Luis Alonso de Roa followed in
blue livery, which was adorned with many fleurs-de-lis made of silver,
edged with wavy lines, and very bright and beautiful. On the shield
was a blue band with silver letters that read, "Long live King Philipe
Fourth," and on the streamers of the lances was the word, in silver
letters, "Philipus." Behind them entered Admiral Don Pedro de Zárate,
a prudent youth, and one of great good sense. His companion was Captain
Juan Rodriguez del Castillo. Their livery was green, embroidered
with gold and silver, and on the shields were tawny-colored bands. On
one part of the shield of Captain Juan Rodriguez del Castillo was a
tower, and on another a castle, with a chain that encircled both;
on one part of the streamers of the lances were the royal arms,
and on the other those of the city.
They were followed by Captain Mateo de Heredia, ex-factor of the
royal treasury, and Captain Silvestre de Aybar, regidor of this city,
both worthy of being promoted to higher places by their talent and
ability. They wore livery of violet velvet embroidered with many
knots of gold and silver, with figures and designs in black and gray,
orange, and green, which made an agreeable and very beautiful sight,
because of the fine livery and its brilliancy. Their shields had green
bands with silver letters that read: "My hopes are the highest." On the
streamers of the lances, in illuminated golden letters, was the cipher
of the name of "Dorotea." Their caps and the bands of the horses,
their boots, and the other ornaments and liveries of the servants
were beautiful, and so costly that their value cannot be reckoned.
Lastly went the master-of-camp, Don Gerónimo de Silva, so gallant
a trooper and so great a gentleman that with reason one may award
him the laurel, both for valor and gallantry, and for his wealth and
courage, as will yet be made known. The robe that he wore was of yellow
satin embroidered in black with palm-trees, with clusters of fruit
on them. His shield had a field of solid silver plates edged with
gold. His lance was of ebony, and twenty palmos long; and instead of
an iron head, a colic-stone, [13] so splendid to the sight and so well
made that, however beautiful may be that of a painter, it cannot equal
it. It was enclosed in a case of solid gold, a thing of inestimable
value for its efficacy and its so brilliant beauty. On the banner was a
palm-tree crowned, tassels, a red ribbon with large silver letters that
read: "Alas for the delay, if it liveth in thee; but how well lives
the faith that thou placedst in me." He wore a cap embroidered with
diamonds, rubies, and large pearls, which formed a knot and ornament
with a great quantity of seedpearls interwoven with some feathers,
and an especially beautiful plume which gleamed among all. He had
sword and dagger with furnishings of solid gold. His sword-belt was
embroidered with gold of Milán; and his stirrups and spurs, buckles,
and all the bolts of the bit and saddlebows were of solid gold. He
bestrode a grayish horse, a fine goer, of magnificent spirit and
body. He had an embroidered saddle of great value. The band on the
horse was set with many pearls and rich embroidery; so that the value
of the wealth that he bore was, in the judgment of experienced persons,
estimated at nine or ten thousand pesos. In front were lackeys, while
behind were his pages, all clad in very showy livery of yellow and
black. All had feathers that beautified and glorified the festival. Not
of less value and price were the jewels and ornaments of the governor
estimated, because of the many diamonds, rubies, topazes, pearls,
and other precious gems that he wore; and one could not estimate the
value of those of the other gentlemen who engaged in the canas matches.
The charge of this pertained to the master-of-camp, who took as his
companion Captain Don Juan Ezquerra, son of General Juan Ezquerra,
a prudent and well-inclined gentleman. The latter went out clad in
the same livery and habit, and was very splendid and showy.
Some erudite person will say what Apelles said to a painter who had
painted the picture of Queen Elena richly decked in finery, jewels,
gold, and precious stones: "Since thou didst not know how to paint her
beautiful, thou didst paint her rich." But I adhere to and declare
the truth, and I even curtail in this relation what I might say of
it. Although I confess that this relation has not been designedly
embellished, it is written rich in truth (which is the greatest
beauty and splendor that can be given a history), with which its
defects will be supplied, since there is nothing in this life that
can be said not to possess some defect.
The gentlemen who were to take part in the play made their entrance
in the above manner with great dexterity. They paraded through both
sides of the square, couple by couple, in excellent order.
After the entrance, they changed horses; the places were assigned
in divisions of fours, and they took their spears. They engaged
in a well-concerted play, one division against another, two and
two. From that post went out another division against the one that
was advancing. It lasted more than an hour, with great gallantry,
without any misfortune or disaster happening, until from the plaza
the deputies entered their midst and separated them. At that juncture
a fiery bull was let out. The gentlemen made very skilful movements
against this bull with their rejons, and against others that were run,
until the sun's light retired to illuminate the antipodes; and the
gentlemen and ladies left the square, and the balconies and galleries
[_miradors_], to return to reoccupy them on another occasion one week
thereafter, when the same cañas matches were played, and bulls were
run for four days in succession. [14] At this second cañas match,
Don Fernando Galindo, a gentleman of Ecija, and at present infantry
captain in this camp, entered instead of Don Diego Maldonado. On this
occasion, the governor had another livery of blue cloth and silver,
entirely covered with ornaments. The entrance was made as on the
first day, and the play was in the same manner--thereby causing
general rejoicing because the game had been so skilfully played,
and has been so few times seen in this city.
LETTER FROM FERNANDO DE SILVA TO FELIPE IV
Sire:
I advised your Majesty that I left Capulco April 6. That is one of
the latest dates on which the ships have set sail, and we were fearful
lest we would not make the coasts of these islands, as the weather was
contrary--although one can reach them in a voyage of three months,
which is the usual duration. When we started, the wind was so light
that my fear increased because we did not sail one hundred leguas
in thirteen days. During that time I found that my almiranta was
sailing very slowly, so that I was obliged to resolve, in order not
to risk everything, to leave it, with a goodly supply of food for a
longer voyage. Considering how easily the almiranta could be wrecked,
and that the enemy would be waiting in the strait for a prize of so
great profit; and that if once they sighted the almiranta, escape was
impossible, while I could not be of any aid, as I was quite without
resources: I thought it advisable for your Majesty's service to take
out all your silver and that of private persons, trusting that I
would not have the enemy any more to windward as had been the case
while I was coming. This seems to have been the proper course, for
I made the port of Cavite July eight. I arrived at so opportune a
season, that I believe the islands were never in so great need of a
new government and such aid. For the Audiencia having objected to the
directions sent them in your name by the marquis de Yelbes [_i.e.,_
Gelves], ordering them not to interpret doubtfully the decree in
which your Majesty gave him authority to do so, although he cited in
those decrees your Majesty's own signature, and that of the notary
before whom it was drawn, retained the government for itself, and by
its own authority gave the title of captain-general to Don Geronimo
de Ssilba. Thus did the obstacle that your Majesty has experienced
at other times of like government remain in the greatest force and
vigor. According to what I have heard, the matter came to such a pass
that most of the citizens of Manila were only waiting to abandon this
city, [that depending on] whether or not the aid should arrive from
Nueba España; for they were exhausted with the extortions and bad
treatment of the Audiencia. Their first action was to dismiss those
whom Don Alonso Fajardo had lawfully appointed to offices of justice,
without allowing them to complete their first year. [_In the margin_:
"Seen."]
Their second--the auditors being dissatisfied with the honesty of
Licentiate Don Alvaro de Mesa y Lugo, their associate, who as the
senior auditor presided over them--was to admit Licentiate Geronimo de
Legaspi into the assembly hall by a secret postern. He had been removed
from office a long time before by act of the said Don Alonso Fajardo,
a measure taken in virtue of your Majesty's decree which was sent, to
take his residencia; this was confirmed by all the Audiencia. Although
it was advisable to remedy that matter, the little time that I have
had since my arrival until now, and my heavy press of unfinished
business, and what has happened in regard to forced aid sent to
various provinces, with the despatch of the vessels to Nueva España,
and the ordinary transaction of business, have not permitted it. I
shall ask for the documents, and after examining them, and after
mature deliberation, I shall do what shall seem expedient for the
service of your Majesty and the quiet of this community, as I may
find it. My course is hastened by the return of the said Licentiate
Legaspi to his post, as it is without your Majesty's order, and as,
when he is there, he heeds only his own interests. [_In the margin:_
"See what has been decreed in this particular. Have it brought."]
From the day of my arrival until now, there have been dissensions
and quarrels among the members [of the Audiencia], because they did
not agree in the division of offices. That was a matter of no slight
importance, because not all the appointments had been given to them,
as well as the encomiendas. And although your Majesty, seeing this
danger before, prohibits it by your royal decrees, they apportioned
some of the latter. I have regarded such encomiendas as vacant,
ordering that their tributes be placed in the royal treasury. [_In
the margin:_ "It is well. Advise the new governor that this decision
is approved, and that he shall put it into practice accordingly."]
The auditors of this Audiencia are all at odds. Some among them are
continually refusing to act, influenced by the confidants, and even
abetting these. As a result, in the sessions of the court there is
nothing to be observed except dissensions; and thus the despatch of
business is delayed, by the rehearings [of cases] that proceed from the
tie-votes [of the auditors]. Thus they accept the salaries for their
posts without serving them, so far as their judicature is concerned,
which is a wrong that urgently needs remedy, for the litigants. [_In
the margin_: "Seen."] The Dutch enemy came to this coast with a fleet
of three large vessels and two small ones, while your Majesty had at
the port of Cavite two galleons of very heavy burden, three of five
hundred or six hundred toneladas of the northern sea, one patache of
more than two hundred and fifty toneladas, and two galleys, together
with many good soldiers and sailors and a goodly abundance of heavy
artillery. Within forty days or thereabout, they were all ready to
sail, and in charge of the master-of-camp, Don Geronimo de Silba. He
encountered the enemy, but did not fight, after an expense in preparing
that fleet, of many more ducados than the condition of the treasury
could warrant; I found the treasury pledged to about one hundred and
ten thousand pesos, while the infantry and substitutes were loaded with
vouchers against it, because of the lack of reënforcements for more
than a year back. The matter is so serious that the captain-general,
Don Geronimo de Ssilva, having been arrested, by the Audiencia, and
deposed from his office, appealed the cause to me, and I do not dare
write more minutely concerning it, because of the short time. The
verbal process is made, and, the said Don Geronimo's deposition
having been taken, both he and the commanders of the other ships
will be prosecuted. All claim that they will be cleared; each one
throwing the burden of guilt on the other. When the matter assumes
a proper condition I shall remit an account of it to your Majesty,
so that you may take the measures advisable. [_In the margin_: "File."]
Under pretext of the arrest and removal of Don Geronimo de Silva,
Licentiate Legaspi, not heeding the second nomination from the
ships, exercised the office of captain-general, carrying the staff
of office and making them lower the banners to him, and address
him as "your Lordship," and his wife as "my lady." He immediately
appointed his elder son to the post of sargento-mayor of this camp,
and his younger son to a company, while another company was assigned
to a relative of Auditor Don Matias Flores y Cassila. Others were
assigned to brothers of the said Don Matias, the fiscal, and other
auditors, except Don Albaro, who refused to have anything given to
his household. Upon seeing the illegality of those appointments,
I issued an act declaring them vacant and restoring those posts to
those who had held them before.
I did the same in regard to the posts that I found filled for the
ships which I am despatching now to Nueva España, as those appointments
were not made to suitable persons. Such were holding them with their
followers by illegal means and had no services or qualifications,
although there are persons of excellent abilities, as are those who
now hold them.
The ships are the best and most suitable that have sailed hence
for a number of years past, and are of five hundred or six hundred
tons burden apiece. They are well equipped with artillery and other
necessities. They are heavily laden, for, although the enemy was along
the coasts in smaller craft than other years, this year the Chinese
came and have brought the Portuguese from Macan. Regarding the danger
that might be feared on the coast of Nueba España from a Dutch fleet
which we heard would pass through the strait of Magallanes, I left the
viceroy warned, so that when those ships can reach that coast, he will
have a sentinel and lookout at the island of Cedros, in front of the
gulf of California--where they are ordered to reconnoiter the enemy's
condition, and where the foe never expect them--and with a port to
windward of the cape of Corrientes, which is the place where they may
be awaited; with that I trust, God helping, that they will be secure.
Eleven of the fourteen Dutch ships that passed [the strait] this
year went to Capulco; they were those which the pirate took from
Olanda. Seven of them were large ships, and four small; three of them
were captured in Pirú. They reached Terrenate with all of them, and
with eight hundred men aboard. Accordingly I believe that they will
come here in a few months; and as this state and its conservation
depends on maritime forces (as does that of all the islands of the
world); and as the building of three ships of the size of these
two (which, as it could not be avoided, are going to Nueva España)
resulted, I hope from the willingness with which the fathers of the
Society offer to make two ships for me in the province of Leyte
(where they have their missions), and the Franciscans another in
those of Camarines, that they will be provided for me. The condition
of the royal treasury and your Majesty's heavy expenses on the point
of Cavite require that very urgently.
Having found the magazines so empty of everything needed (which
supplies, it seems, have been stolen from them), I was accordingly
forced to send a ship to Japon with products that are esteemed there,
in order to exchange them for things needed here. [_In the margin_:
"Seen."]
Affairs in that kingdom are so bloody because of the matter of
religion, that it is a lamentable thing. Ships are sent with great
danger because of the close scrutiny that the Japanese make, in their
fear lest religious are conveyed in them. The embassy returned, after
so heavy expenses, without those barbarians having been willing to
receive it. It sailed very late, since it gave the Dutch opportunity to
believe, and to give that emperor to understand, that your Majesty's
vassals were entering under pretense of religion to despoil them of
their kingdoms.
Sargento-mayor Don Fernando de Silba, who returned with the
reënforcements that he took to Macan, put in at the kingdom of
Sian with one of your Majesty's ships, some artillery, and seventy
Spaniards. As I have been informed, endeavor was made to carry matters
with so high a hand that the natives, aided by Japanese, decapitated
him and most of his men; while about thirty of them are in prison,
and most of the property of your Lordship from this place, quite a
large amount, is in the power of that king. I shall endeavor with all
my power to collect them peaceably; for the enemy, since they are on
the lookout for us, give no opportunity to punish the deed.
We have heard that Nun Albaros Botello has had good results in two
battles in East India with the Dutch, over Ormus; and that he expected
the recovery of those forts. However, I doubt it, because of the scant
obedience of the Portuguese to the officers who commanded them in war,
[_In the margin_: "Seen."]
The province of Cagayan has continued in revolt. I shall immediately
provide a remedy, and hope to obtain one, by ordering those troops
for its conquest not to leave it, as they have done hitherto, but
to fortify and maintain themselves; for by their leaving the natives
their fields and palm plantations, two consecutive years are necessary
to reduce them. [_In the margin_: "Seen."]
The bishop of that province, Don Juan de Rrenteria, to whom your
Majesty committed the general inspection of this royal Audiencia, died
November 4 of last year. If your Majesty should decide to send another
person for this place rather than for another place, it is necessary,
as also that he be one who has experience, and is disinterested and
conscientious. [_In the margin_: "Seen."]
The forts of Terrenate are garrisoned with soldiers and necessary
supplies, although all, as I have heard, are quite discontented with
their governor, Pedro de Heredia, because of his trade and intercourse
with the enemy, of which they accuse him, and his usurpation of the
duties from the export of cloves and other things. I shall investigate
the truth and advise your Majesty of the result, and in the meantime
I shall correct the matter. The enemy have dismantled the forts
of Calomatas and Motil, and are, as I believe, somewhat weakened
in those districts. I shall send the usual expedition early, with
what is asked from me from there; and shall endeavor to secure very
friendly intercourse with the king of Macassar, who proves himself
ever a most zealous servitor of your Majesty, which is of importance
for Maluco affairs. [_In the margin_: "File."]
The Ternatans beg urgently for this king whom we are keeping here in
prison, and offer to make treaties of peace--although it would mean
no more than to divide them between father and son, and to join the
powerful Chile, for all are hostile. It would surely be advisable,
for if what they offer were not obtained, the king is nothing more
than an old and worn-out Moro, who remains here to no purpose,
consuming your Majesty's revenues. [_In the margin_: "See whether
provision has been made in this matter. Discuss it in a letter to
Don Juan Niño de Tabora."]
Your Majesty orders me to advise you of the mines of the Ygolotes, [15]
and the success of the nutmeg of La Laguna. The latter is considered as
wild nutmeg, and now as of no importance. I shall endeavor to ascertain
whether it may be cultivated, and shall attempt to do so. More than
fifty thousand pesos were spent in the mines, but nothing was found
at last. A quantity of rocks were sent to Nueba España, in order
to be assayed there, as we had no one here who understood it; and,
the soldiers having been withdrawn, that exploration was abandoned,
as a matter that did not have the desired result.
[_In the margin_: "Seen; have Don Juan Niño de Tabora inform me more
minutely of this."]
I found this city without regidors, because the Audiencia had removed
those who held that office. By virtue of a decree of your Majesty,
the observance of which was demanded by the fiscal, those offices were
offered at auction; but only two of them were sold. The purchasers were
persons whose standing did your Majesty but know, you would surely
not consider yourself served that [these offices should be sold] for
so small a price as is two thousand pesos for each--and one thousand
pesos of that sum was paid in due-bills. They should be discontinued,
to be conceded to the persons of highest standing in this community,
who because of their good character will attend more carefully to
your Majesty's service, and the conservation and increase of the
community, than do those who buy them; for the latter generally try to
get from the community the sum that the offices cost them. However,
I am ordering the proclamations to be continued; and if there are no
persons to buy the offices, after the time-limit has expired I shall
appoint the most suitable persons to them, with the guarantee that,
if your Majesty shall not consider this satisfactory, they shall pay
to the treasury the maximum price for which any of the offices shall
have been sold." [16] [_In the margin_: "Gather what has been decreed
and bring it here for all the councilors. Bring the general decree
which was despatched ordering those offices to be sold. Inform the
governor and Audiencia that there must be no innovation."]
Some years [_illegible words in MS._] in the additional two per cent
duty that your Majesty ordered to be paid on the goods sent to Nueba
España from here, attentive to the petition that they presented. I
assure your Majesty that the trade has so greatly decreased, and
the succors that the inhabitants here furnish to the royal treasury
are so great, that even if the continual personal service with which
they generally serve your Majesty did not deserve such a favor, this
additional duty should be remitted; for I consider it impossible
that at the price goods are bought here they can pay the duty. Will
your Majesty decide what is most advisable, and order what is your
pleasure. [_In the margin_: "Let those [papers] necessary be brought."]
Your Majesty has no need so pressing in any part of the world as that
your governors should have authority to remove or promote religious
missionaries to the natives from the districts where they are, because
of their lawless and loose mode of life. That has come to such a pass
that they have lost respect, by their deeds, for the alcaldes-mayor,
and the said religious do not pay any attention to their jurisdiction
or to the royal patronage. The Augustinians, who are more exorbitant
than others, are very owners of the wills of the Indians, and give
out that the quiet or disobedience of the latter hinges on them. For
when the alcalde-mayor of Balayan tried to restrain the excesses
that he saw, they entered his house armed, and bound and flogged him;
that was during the government of the Audiencia. But lately another
alcalde-mayor, in Bulacan, having arrested two Indians, seamen on
a ship of your Majesty's fleet, so that they might serve at their
posts, the religious at that place took them out of prison. Even more
oppressive acts occur daily, which need a severe remedy. I petition
your Majesty to have sent to me the decree which was sent to Nueba
España this past year, with more definite restrictions, so that they
may not have any ground for opposing it, and so that their generals,
especially he of St. Augustine, may order them to restrain themselves,
and so that his Holiness may do the same, the briefs or patents being
passed by the Council and everything being sent to me. So great haste
is necessary in order not to fall out with them. [_In the margin_:
"Send that decree, and write to the governor and archbishop to summon
the provincial of the Augustinians and tell him how advisable it is
to punish that religious, and those who act so; and have them advised
that no mission shall under any consideration be granted to religious
against whom such accusations are made. Have them advise us of what
is done." "This decree was carried out."]
I am quartering the infantry, and am surprised that it has not been
done in so many years. It is not causing any expense to the royal
treasury. For, besides that it is impossible that the soldiers be
well disciplined in any other way--three-fourths living, as they do,
outside the city--I trust that by this means a much smaller number
will die, and that many offenses against God will be avoided.
Although your Majesty has often been petitioned from this country to
aid these islands with a fleet, my experience in sailing to India
by way of the cape of Buena Esperança, and outside the island of
San Lorenço, causes me to desist from that request, as I consider it
impossible. But considering that the forces here are for naught else
than defensive war, and how important it would be to dislodge the
enemy from the Malucas Islands, it seems to me an easier and more
advisable method for your Majesty to send the soldiers and sailors
who could be a reënforcement, at the account of Philipinas, in the
merchant vessels of the trading-fleets [from España], so that in due
time they might be taken from San Juan de Ulua, together with the men
raised in Nueva España, to the port of Acapulco. For if sufficient
money be sent from Nueba España, better ships can be built no-where
than here; and thereby could be attained what I doubt greatly could
be secured in any other way.
Don Bernardino del Castillo, castellan of this fort of Santiago, has
died. I have appointed in his place, and I trust that your Majesty
will confirm it, or appoint him to that post, Governor Lucas de
Vergara Gavira, who has been governor of the forces of Terrenate,
and who served your Majesty with approval in Flandes and in these
regions for many years.
The island of Ermossa lies between Great China and the province
of Ylocos, which is situated in these islands. There is so short
a distance from one part to the other that one can cross over in
one night. Although my predecessor, Don Alonso Fajardo, was advised
that the Dutch were thinking of fortifying themselves there, and how
important it was to these islands to gain the position, he did not do
so, perhaps because the enemy were more powerful. Now the latter have a
fort with four ramparts (two of stone), which will soon be completed,
for the Chinese subjects of that kingdom are helping them. The island
has no port for large ships; but the Dutch, together with Japanese,
did considerable damage with small craft--so much, in fact, that
the past year they captured a vessel with thirty thousand pesos. If
time and opportunity permit, I shall endeavor to gain a foothold in
another port, in order to drive out the Dutch in the future from what
they have there now. If your Majesty would establish a factory there,
it would result in the complete restoration of this country to its
old-time luster, and with greater prosperity.
The treasury accountants of the City of Mexico have this year exceeded
their authority, contrary to the provisions of section 24 of the last
ordinances which your Majesty gave to the said treasury accountants,
and ordered them to observe, in the year 609. For the ordinances of
this royal Audiencia made in the year 1596 are in force--sections
67 and 69 of which treat of the manner in which the accounts of the
royal officials are to be audited; and section 29, of the powers
given to them for the exercise of their offices--and section 22 of
those given to the said accountants in the year of the foundation
of that tribunal, which was the year 1609; and the said section 24,
lastly, rules that after auditing the accounts in this Audiencia, they
shall be sent to Mexico, so that, having been examined, the officials
there may inform your Majesty of their opinion. Not heeding that,
they have, by extending their jurisdiction, rendered decisions against
the royal officials of this treasury in the review of their accounts,
and have added things to these, which [these royal officials], as they
do not bear them in mind, judge to be unnecessary. It can easily be
understood that since your Majesty, by the said section 24, ordered
these accounts to be audited here by the president, two auditors, and
the fiscal, because of the long distance to Mexico, they are not again
to be judged by an inferior tribunal; since these ministers are not to
be accused twice for one cause, nor even are additions to be lodged
against them, as those in Mexico do. Will your Majesty order them to
refrain from sending such despatches through their tribunals, without
having your Majesty's new commission for it, thus annulling the said
ordinances and sections. I assure your Majesty of what I can testify,
that the royal officials in few regions serve with greater fidelity
and trust than those here, with continual aid in the documents and
other things in their charge. [_In the margin_: "Have what the royal
officials write about this matter brought." "This section was copied."]
Your Majesty orders me to give you information as to how General
Rodrigo de Guillestegui, who is commander of the vessels that sail
to Nueva España this year, may be granted reward. According to his
good service here and his great capability, the future succession
[to the command] of this fort, or that to the post of master-of-camp,
will be very well entrusted to him.
I knew the master-of-camp, Don Luis de Bracamonte, in Flandes, all the
time while he was in those states. He served there for seven years in
a most satisfactory manner, when he came to these islands with pay of
eighty escudos. With that pay, he served in the government of Terrenate
until your Majesty appointed a person to that office. He is poor and
out of employment. I beseech your Majesty to be pleased to show him
honor and to reward him, since his rank and services deserve it.
Your Majesty also has here one Captain Don Antonio de Vera, captain in
this camp, who has served for many years, of which I can testify as
an eyewitness from the States of Flandes. He desires your Majesty to
reward him with a habit; and beyond doubt that will be well bestowed,
and a great encouragement to those who are serving here.
I found Admiral Don Cristoval de Lugo i Montalbo here, a man of very
well-known character, and who has rendered excellent service in Milan,
and in the wars of Saboya and Piamonte [_i.e._, Savoy and Piedmont]. I
have busied him in the post of chief commandant of Pintados, and as
my lieutenant in military matters of that province. He deserves honor
and reward from your Majesty.
Your Majesty conceded for another lifetime to my wife, Doña Maria de
Ssalaçar (whose parents and grandparents served your Majesty well in
these regions), the encomiendas that her mother possessed. Inasmuch as
I am so liable to die at any occasion in your Majesty's service that
may arise, which desired end I shall endeavor to attain; and since
she cannot remain decently as a widow in this country: I petition
your Majesty, in consideration of all my services and those of her
father and grandfather, to reward her, and to concede to her, for
the time while she holds it, absence from the said encomiendas, that
she may enjoy them wherever she pleases to dwell. For that will not
result in any harm to a third party, nor can the personal presence
of a woman be of any service to your Majesty. This reward can not
serve as a precedent, while there are many other precedents in other
parts of the Indias to private persons (and they not of my position)
[that render it possible].
The almiranta arrived July 29, and its being able to get here seems
miraculous, as this is the season when there are no vendavals. I am
giving employment to all the paid substitutes possible, in order to
stop to some extent the so great waste of the royal treasury, which
such men use up without any profit.
I found the deanship of this holy church vacant because of the death
of Don Francisco Gomez de Arrellano. On the twenty-eighth of the
past month the archdeanship fell vacant because of the death of
Ssantiago de Castro. I have made presentations in the following
dignities in your Majesty's name, for your royal patronage, _ad
interim_, and I trust that your Majesty will confirm them: dean,
precentor, schoolmaster, archdean, one canon for the precentorship,
one cura for the schoolmaster, canon, one racionero, in the ration
of Lorenzo Rramirez--all persons of proved virtue and deserving of
these rewards. May God preserve your Majesty. Manila, August 4, 1625.
_Fernando de Silva_
DOCUMENTS OF 1626
Letter from the archbishop to Felipe IV. Miguel Garcia Serrano;
July 25.
Letter to Felipe IV. Fernando de Silva; July 30.
Letter from the sisters of St. Clare to Felipe IV. Jeronima
de la Asunsion, and others; July 31.
Petition for aid to the seminary of San Juan Letran. Juan
Geronimo de Guerrero; August 1.
Royal decrees. Felipe IV; June-October.
Military affairs of the islands. [Unsigned]; 1626.
_Sources_: Most of these documents are obtained from MSS. in the
Archivo general de Indias, Sevilla. The last two of the "Royal decrees"
are from MSS. in the Archivo Historico Nacional, Madrid; and the
sixth document is from a rare pamphlet in the British Museum, London.
_Translations_: These are all made by James A. Robertson, except the
second, by Robert W. Haight.
LETTER FROM ARCHBISHOP SERRANO TO FELIPE IV
Sire:
In the ships that came from Nueva España to these islands this last
month of June, I received a decree of your Majesty dated Madrid,
December six of the former year six hundred and twenty-four, with
a copy of the one that your Majesty wrote to the governor of these
islands, in respect to the gold mines of the Ygolotes. I shall discuss
it with the said governor, as your Majesty orders, as soon as this
despatch shall be made, which will be at the end of this month. I
shall exert all the effort possible, so far as I am concerned, so
that your Majesty may be well served in everything. I believe that
Governor Don Juan Niño de Tavora will not be lacking in the same,
for he shows very earnest desires to employ himself in your Majesty's
service. [_In the margin_: "That it is well."]
I received two other decrees, of the fourteenth and thirtieth of
August, of the same year, in which your Majesty is pleased to lay down
the form that must be observed in the visitation of the missionary
religious; and ordering that the latter may not make arrests or employ
stocks or prisons, or fiscals or constables who make arrests, besides
those whom the archbishop or bishop shall assign, or who shall have
the latter's authority to do so in cases permitted by law--all of which
will be observed and obeyed as your Majesty orders, [_In the margin_:
"Seen."]
In another decree, of June twenty of the past year twenty-five,
your Majesty also orders me to inform you, with the distinctness and
clearness necessary for the better understanding of what you desire,
of the annual incomes and values of the benefices and revenues of this
archbishopric of Manila, and what sum pertains to the dignidades,
canonries, and prebends, both of this church and of the others of
my diocese. [Your Majesty also asks for] the number in each church;
how many beneficed curacies there are in each district, and their
income; the number of missions, their value, and whether they are in
charge of seculars or religious of the orders. I gave your Majesty
a long account of that in a letter that I wrote the former year of
six hundred and twenty-one on the twenty-fifth of July, to which I
have had answer from that royal Council that it was received in the
following year of six hundred and twenty-two. I only neglected to place
in that letter the incomes of the archbishopric and the prebends of
this church--taking that for granted, as a matter very well known,
since your Majesty sustains both the archbishop and the dignidades,
canonries, and prebends from your royal treasury, because there is
no other source, and the tithes are not sufficient. The latter are
placed in the said treasury, and are collected at the account of
your Majesty. They amount to a very small sum, since, from what I
have experienced, only the stock farms of the larger cattle of the
Spaniards pay tithes to your Majesty, and that has not, as yet,
been practiced with the Indians. Consequently your Majesty pays
the archbishop a salary of three thousand ducados of eleven reals
each; the dean, six hundred pesos of eight-real pieces; the four
dignities of archdean, precentor, schoolmaster, and treasurer, five
hundred pesos; four canons, four hundred pesos; two racions, three
hundred pesos; two media-racions, each two hundred pesos--all paid in
thirds. Consequently both the archbishop and his prebendaries suffer
abundant misery; and, because of that, your Majesty is petitioned to
favor us by increasing these salaries, since they hardly suffice to pay
their house-rent, and support them very moderately. [_In the margin_:
"Set down everything in the books that have been ordered to be made."]
This cathedral church has no other revenue than the alms received
from burials; and if it were not for the four hundred pesos that your
Majesty has granted it for a limited time, it would have nothing for
the wine, wax, and flour for divine worship. With this and with some
allotment of cargo (although little) that the city generally gives it,
the band of musicians, who come to serve on their feast days in the
same church, is maintained.
What seculars administer in this archbishopric is divided into nine
benefices, besides the three curacies of Spaniards in Manila, Santiago
(which is in Manila's suburbs), and the port of Cavite. Twenty thousand
souls are ministered to in the said benefices. [_In the margin_:
"_Idem_."] [17]
The Order of St. Augustine has thirty-two convents, in all of which
are fifty-six priests, who have in charge ninety thousand souls.
The Order of St. Francis has thirty-eight convents, with guardianias
and presidencies, in which are forty-seven priests. In all of them
forty-eight thousand four hundred souls are ministered to.
The Order of St. Dominic has three convents in this archbishopric. It
ministers to three thousand souls, and has five religious.
The Society of Jesus has eight priests in three residences, and
ministers to ten thousand six hundred souls.
The discalced Augustinians have three convents in which are six
priests. They minister to eight thousand souls.
Consequently, the souls of the natives alone who are ministered to
in the district of this archbishopric of Manila amount to two hundred
and one thousand, six hundred souls.
The bishopric of Nueva Segovia has four secular benefices, two of
them for Spaniards, one in the said city of Nueva Segovia, and the
other in Villa Fernandina. The other two benefices are for Indians.
The Order of St. Augustine has fifteen convents in this bishopric,
and they minister to fifty-eight thousand souls there.
The Order of St. Dominic has twenty-five convents in the said
bishopric, in the province of Cagayan and that of Pangasinan. They
minister to seventy thousand souls in these.
Consequently the number of souls of the natives ministered to in
the said bishopric of Nueva Segovia is one hundred and twenty-eight
thousand.
There are six secular benefices in the bishopric of Camarines, whose
seat is in the city of Caceres. They minister to ten thousand six
hundred souls.
The Order of St. Francis has twenty-four convents, with guardianias
and presidencies, in this bishopric, and minister to forty-five
thousand souls.
All the souls ministered to in the said bishopric of Camarines amount
to fifty-six thousand eight hundred.
These two churches of Caceres and Nueva Segovia (and the bishop
of Zibu gives account of the church there to your Majesty) have no
prebendaries; and there is no one besides the cura, who serves the
said church and ministers to the few Spaniards there.
Each of the secular beneficiaries in these islands has an annual
stipend of one hundred and ninety pesos, which are paid from
your Majesty's royal treasury to those who minister to your royal
tributarios. The same sum is paid to the religious, except that the
ninety pesos are given in rice. To both classes is given one arroba
of Castilian wine, and flour for the mass. The other encomenderos
give the same to the ministers of their encomiendas.
Now then I have satisfied what your Majesty orders me by the aforesaid
royal decree, as clearly as possible. If I have not named the villages
and chief places of the benefices, the reason is that I believe myself
excused from that labor.
The government of Don Fernando de Silva, knight of the habit
of Sanctiago, during this interim in these islands has been very
successful; and he has proceeded as prudently as if he had exercised
the government for many years. He has secured peace both with the
royal Audiencia and with all the other corporations.
He has occupied a port of the island of Hermosa--the best or only good
one--which was so recommended and ordered to be occupied by his Majesty
Phillippo Second, your Majesty's grandfather, in the instructions
ordered given to Governor Don Francisco Tello; of its importance, time
will tell. It has seemed a desirable thing, at least in the present,
so that the Dutch shall not have the opportunity that they desire
for taking the silk from China and transporting it to Europa and to
Japon. That brought them very great wealth; for, selling it for the
bars of silver with which the latter kingdom abounds, the Dutch had
money enough to continue the trade with China. They shortened the
voyage every year to that country. Don Fernando de Silva also built a
galleon that is now in the port of Cavite. He built some small rooms
or quarters of stone for the soldiers in the Plaza de Armas, wherein
three hundred men may be lodged, without the expenditure of a single
peso from your Majesty's royal treasury. He is a calm and prudent man,
one of good example, fearful of God, and zealous for your Majesty's
service and the increase of your royal treasury. He has abilities
for governing, and if your Majesty occupies him in other governments,
you will be as well served as you have been during the time while he
has had this charge. [_In the margin_: "That we are advised of what
he says."]
Governor Don Juan Niño de Tavora, who just arrived in these ships that
came from Nueva España with reënforcements, shows excellent valor and
zeal for the service of your Majesty; and if God grants him life to
execute the good purposes that he evidently possesses, I doubt not
that these islands will not only lift their head, but that they will
return to their former grandeur. He has entered on his government with
a secure foothold, since he finds them free from the Dutch enemy--who
have allowed us to breathe this year, and have given opportunity for
more ships to come from China than for several years past. The same has
been true of the ships from Goa, India, and Macan. All of them have
entered the port of Cavite; so that already this community appears
another and a very different one from what it was before. I trust,
with the help of His Divine Majesty, that the governor will aid it,
for the proofs that he has hitherto given are those of an excellent
governor and Christian, and one fearful of his conscience.
Although we have had no Dutch enemies this past year, powerful
enemies of the inhabitants about these islands have not been wanting
to disturb the natives and those whom they capture suddenly in the
villages of the coast. It is a thing that I have experienced myself,
suffering so great anguish that I thought I should lose my life in it;
for I found myself surrounded by thirty-four caracoas and galeotas of
Mahometan enemies--Borneans, Joloans, Camucones, and Mindanaos--about
one hundred leguas from this city of Manila, while going to visit my
district at a village called Cabotagan. They assaulted me at five in
the morning, while I and all my retinue were asleep. We awoke at the
clamors, and had no other resolution or opportunity to take than to
flee to the mountain; for we were abed, as I have stated. I secured
my habit and girdle, which was a not slight act of mercy from the
Lord, because of what I afterward suffered in the mountain, until the
necessary clothing and food were brought to me and my followers from
Manila. Although Governor Fernando de Silva exerted himself by sending
men and several vessels in different directions after the enemy, he
did not have the good luck to fall in with them. The new governor,
Don Juan Niño de Tavora, tells me that he will make every effort to
chastise those barbarians and assure the coasts. I trust thoroughly
that he will succeed in his holy purpose, because he has so well
understood that it is greatly to the service of our Lord and of your
Majesty. [_In the margin_: "Thank him for his care in visiting his
bishopric, and say that we are assured of his zeal, and trust that
the same will be exercised in the future--in consideration of which,
account will be taken of his person as opportunity offers, so that
he may be promoted. Have a letter sent to Don Juan Niño, telling him
what the archbishop writes of him; thank him, and let him advise us
of what has been done."]
Doctor Don Alvaro de Mesa y Lugo, auditor of this royal Audiencia,
is one of the persons who most evidently excel in your Majesty's
royal service, and who most firmly defend everything touching it,
in both matters of justice and of revenue. He has ever been so keen
a defender of your Majesty's interests that he has suffered for that
many and very great annoyances and troubles. Thus has he shown by his
actions that he has a very upright conscience. From this it results
that he suffers great necessity, because he has not allowed or opened
the door even to the gratuities that seem lawful to others not so
well regulated in conscience. In short, his actions are such that I
am obliged to continue in this letter, as in others, to inform your
Majesty of his good and praiseworthy qualities. Will your Majesty, upon
knowing them, be pleased to promote him and advance him to other posts
of greater importance. I find him sufficiently capable and deserving
of much better posts; for, wherever it please your Majesty to reward
him, your Majesty will be well served, and he will be free from the
sickness and the lack of health with which he lives in this country,
to employ himself much better in your Majesty's service. [_In the
margin_: "At hand."]
I was expecting the bishop of Nueva Caçeres this year, according to
letters sent me last year. Not only has he not come, but also not
even have I had any letter from him. Consequently I am appointing a
governor of that bishopric for the good and necessary expedition of
the ecclesiastical causes, which are falling behind for lack of the
judge of appeals. Although those appeals could go to the tribunal of
the bishopric of Zibu, it is necessary to conclude definitively that
there be a third tribunal, according to the brief obtained by your
Majesty regarding appeals. Consequently, it is necessary to provide
now and henceforth for the government of the bishopric of Nueva
Segovia, until the arrival of the rightfully-appointed bishop whom
your Majesty may be pleased to send to that church. [_In the margin_:
"That it is well, and that the necessary provision has been made in
this, and the viceroy directed to make him embark."]
Because we have settled in the island of Hermosa, our obligations to
send ministers to those heathen nations who inhabit it, and are without
the light of the holy gospel, are increased. The conquest or settlement
has been effected by the energy of Fray Bartolome Martinez of the
Order of St. Dominic, the present provincial of this province. To
him is due the excellent success that it has hitherto had; for he
himself, with other three or four associates, and no other order,
went to explore it. They remained there and sent one religious here
to Manila to report what had been done, and to get an order from the
governor for what was to be done in the future. The island is densely
populated, as they will relate to your Majesty. It will be a pity for
those peoples to remain in the obscurity of their blindness, without
the light of our holy Catholic faith, for lack of ministers. Since the
fathers of St Dominic have taken that conquest in charge, it will be
very advisable for the present to settle it with religious of that
order, if your Majesty be pleased to have a goodly consignment of
religious sent to them; for, although eighteen or twenty of them came
in these ships, the need of this province was so great, because of
the many who have died, that scarcely are there sufficient for their
ministries, even if they did not have the island of Hermosa, as I
have said. [_In the margin_: "They have been given to them already."]
Governor Don Juan Niño will report on the other matters touching this
community. Consequently I shall not relate them in this letter to your
Majesty, whose very Catholic person may our Lord preserve, with the
increase of great kingdoms, as is necessary to Christendom. Manila,
July 25, 1626.
_Fray Miguel_, archbishop of Manila.
[_Endorsed:_ "Manila. To his Majesty; 1626. The archbishop of Manila,
[_MS. holed_] of July. Seen and decreed within, July 30, 627."]
LETTER FROM FERNANDO DE SILVA TO FELIPE IV
Sire:
Last year I advised your Majesty of the state in which I found these
islands; and now I could tell you that they have not been in better
condition for thirty years past. I kiss your Majesty's hand for the
great favor which you do me in sending as my successor Don Juan Niño
de Tabora, a person who, I am confident, will carry out whatever is
ordered there for the service of your Majesty; for my part I shall
aid him as much as I can, without heeding trifles.
As the despatch of last year was made early, the ships arrived at
Nueva España in less than six months, and returned to this city on the
twenty-eighth of June, the day on which the governor took possession
of these offices.
The commander of the Terrenate relief expedition arrived, and we
learn from those forts that all the aid reached them, as it was sent
early--which could not have been accomplished if it had been eight
days later. They are in peace and well provisioned, since the people
of Terrenate and Tidore are friendly. They likewise inform us that
the fort of Calomata, which the enemy dismantled, which is half a
legua from Malayo, has been fortified, because it was understood
that the Dutch were about to come back again; and that the natives
killed two hundred men of the enemy, who had arrived to punish them
with fifteen ships, which seem few for those seas.
This year there has been peace everywhere in this commonwealth, and
I have maintained it with the Audiencia--being patient with them when
necessary, and at times administering rebuke, whereby your Majesty's
service was furthered. Commodities nave been cheap, and all necessary
supplies have been procured without our having felt the much-feared
failure of iron, bronze, and tin from Japon. Through my diligence,
there is abundance in the warehouses, with which we could construct
and cast [cannon for] fifty moulds which I have had made for more
than four months, whereby the islands are fully supplied with the
necessary artillery.
Of the ships which I informed you were being built, one is in Cavite,
and the other, it is supposed, can be completed by Christmas, each
of them of a thousand toneladas of the North Sea. Two galleys are
likewise being finished, which makes a sufficient fleet for anything
which may happen here. By the way, I inform your Majesty that finding
no remedy for the thefts of rigging, on account of the many foreign
ships that arrive here, I have had a black thread put in the rigging
belonging to your Majesty, so that it can be recognized and this loss
will be obviated.
I found the natives of these islands exhausted by the harsh
repartimiento which obtained of personal services, from which the
rich and powerful chiefs were exempted, and the wretched people so
burdened that they had not enough with four pesos a year for each
Indian, and now they have it with four reals.
The affairs of the province of Cagaian are in a better state, for
with the entry made by the two companies which I sent, more than a
thousand of the rebels were reduced, with a considerable quantity
of silver recovered which they had taken from the churches; and,
under a general pardon, more of them are continually becoming peaceful.
For the punishment of the Camucones, a people who are accustomed
to rob these coasts in vessels so light that they rely upon these
alone, I sent a captain who has had experience in their islands
(which extend from Paragua to Borney), with fifty-five Spaniards and
more than six hundred Indians. They found none of the people, as they
had all retired from that kingdom to the island of Mindanao and the
coast of Caraga. An entry was made, whereby more than five thousand
tributarios were reduced to peace. Here in the neighborhood of Manila a
great many Negrillos from the mountains have been reduced and settled,
who used to inflict great injury on the neighboring villages.
Of the quarters which I informed you were being built for the infantry,
three are finished, the best which I have seen, where about three
hundred men can be lodged. I believe that the governor will continue
so beneficial a work. I have brought all the troops inside the city,
whereby it and its suburbs have been in peace, without a wounded man
having been under care for eight months, where so many used to be
killed every month.
The city had decided to build a stone bridge over the main river. It
is begun, and, if it is finished, it will much increase the value of
property, and be of the highest benefit to the community and to the
persons who hold property on the other bank.
The ship which I despatched to Japon for military supplies arrived
at Nanguaciqui, where they took precautionary measures until the
emperor was informed. This resulted in their being notified a few
days later that they must return without trading at all, and make
it known that no vessel should go from these islands under pain of
death, on account of the religious which they conveyed from here;
accordingly, it is impossible to enter that country alive. The ship
returned, and this year goes as the admiral's ship to Nueva España,
of which the new governor will inform you.
In the provincial chapter of the Augustinians held on the first of
May I was present, at their instance; for they were divided into
two parties by their usual passion. They were presided over by the
most serious friar of their order, but the bold acts of the youthful
friars at every juncture violated the rules of obedience, which they
certainly are subverting. I proceeded with the utmost moderation,
sometimes denying the aid which was asked from me, and restraining
them by threats that I would appoint secular ecclesiastics to the
missions. They were finally quieted by this, for otherwise the province
would have been divided, as they threatened. Not a little blame is
due to the fiscal, who attempted by means of his negotiations to make
himself master even of these elections.
I have received advices from Macan by six galleotas, which have arrived
with goods; they are demanding that a check be given to the progress
that the enemy are making in their fort on the island of Hermosa. [18]
They say that it is finished, and made of stone, sand-banks, and brick,
having six bastions and at the edge of the water a platform with six
cannon. The bay is eight leguas around, and an anchoring-place is on
the north side. The fresh water is below a redoubt two leguas from
the fort. The bar is thirteen feet under water with reefs, so the
large ships remain outside. There is much to be gained in all kinds of
trade with the natives, in purchases of deer-hides and merchandise for
Japon. This port is in twenty-two degrees. Their object in fortifying
it now was that this place commanded the passage of the ships from
Chincheo to this city. They have accomplished their end through the
presents which they have given to the mandarins, and the threats to
rob them, as hitherto--namely, to secure the silks and carry them to
Japon and Holland, as they are now doing, and take them away from this
country, in this way ruining it, for there is nothing of importance
except this commerce. This loss is clearly shown, for in fifty ships
which have arrived at these islands, there were not forty picos of
silk brought, while the enemy had nine hundred, excluding the woven
goods; and, if it were not for what has come from Macan, the ships
[for Nueva España] would have nothing to carry.
This trade of the Portuguese is most injurious, not only on account
of their unfriendly attitude, but because they have raised the prices
of goods, securing the profit thereon, and draining the wealth of
the citizens here. Considering this, then, and what your Majesty has
ordered regarding the pacification of the Hermosa Islands (which my
predecessor so desired), after I had used all possible diligence,
as in a matter of so great importance, and found that the security
and rehabilitation of these islands depended upon having a port
to windward from that of the enemy--as this city besought me to do,
since that was its only refuge--I made ready in all secrecy, and at so
little expense that, although I found the treasury embarrassed with a
debt of three thousand pesos, it remained with less than twenty-five
thousand of debt, which was borrowed from citizens. I despatched
from here Sargento-mayor Antonio Carreño de Valdes, with all the
necessary supplies and two galleys. He is a person remarkably fit
for this purpose, and an excellent servant of your Majesty. He left
Cagaian on the fifth of May and arrived on the eleventh at the place
where his instructions directed, which is at the head of the island,
at twenty-five degrees north. He explored the bottom and anchored
with all his fleet in the best port imaginable, a remarkable favor
from heaven, if those of Japon are closed to him [_MS. holed_]. It is
distant from the mainland of China eighteen leguas, and has a depth
at the entrance of eighteen brazas, and a capacity of five hundred
ships. The site if the fortification is naturally very strong, all of
which appears by his plan which accompanies this. He found a village
of fifteen hundred houses built of fragrant woods, with a people like
[_MS. defective_] somewhat lighter in color and differing in language
[19] [_MS. holed_] thanks be to God. The fortification was under
way and in the despatch[-boat] which he sent me with the information
there were a hundred and twenty picos of iron pikes and two hundred
and thirteen arrobas of sulphur, which is brought from Castilla
for the powder. They have supplies for a year; and the enterprise is
already proving advantageous. It is most expedient that this should be
furthered, on account of the great advantages which will result from
this post being in the vicinity of China; in that locality there are
excellent water, Castilian fruits, and partridges, although these have
not red beaks. Since some evil-intentioned person has tried to make
the governor think, as he is new in the knowledge of this country,
that this will commence a new war, I shall tell him what I think,
leaving to time the results. Let it not appear that I am praising my
own cares, because I seek no other reward for my services except that
of rendering them to so great a king.
In the first place, the trade of the enemy is established and that
from this country has stopped; but, as this is without the knowledge
of the king of China, he will, as soon as his attention is called
to it, take rigorous measures to prevent the Dutch trade. By the
measures which I have set on foot, this object could be secured
by the galley, which could patrol the coast. For fifty years they
[_i.e._, the Chinese] have had proved the steadiness of our trade and
the abundance of our silver, and they have desired nothing further
than to see us with a post where they can seek us without danger,
as they will do at present; for in so short a distance, and with so
strong currents [in the sea] the enemy cannot disturb our post--from
which will result the dismantling of his fort, for he will be outside
the line of traffic and on the coast opposite. On the other hand the
Japanese, who cannot dispense with silks, must come for them to our
port, bringing us silver. We are the masters of all their traffic as
far as Sian, Cochinchina, and Camboja, as they have to pass through
this strait; and accordingly our friendship will be valued, and a
door will be opened for the conversion [of the heathen], which is
the principal aim of your Majesty. [_In the margin_: "Let this clause
and the one which follows it be read word for word."]
Although there have been persons who thought an armed fleet necessary
to bring over the goods from the island to this city, this doubt is
unfounded, because that route can be navigated during nine months
in the year among the islands and currents, without any port on the
eastern side. During the northern monsoons it is impossible for a
vessel to hold its own in that locality while they blow, for they are
following winds for us; it is therefore certain that the enemy will
not be able to trouble us. Even in case the fleet were necessary, it
remains in port rotting, and the men are causing the same expense;
and it would be better for it to go for goods that are sure and
bought at very low prices, the duties and freight charges on which
would equal the expense of going out to drive the enemy from the
coast after he has robbed it, without profit to your Majesty, or the
citizens here, or those in Nueva España. It is not a bad port where
ships from Castilla may put in, being as safe as is that of Santisima
Trinidad. [20] The fleets which have gone out from here in my time
have not dared, for lack of such a port, to follow the enemy or to
leave the coast, for they could not make it again if they entered
the vendavals; this was one of the excuses for the last retreat
which Don Geronimo de Silva made. In his lawsuit and that of the
commanders of the "San Yldefonso" and "San Rimundo," the governor
found for an abandonment of proceedings, pronouncing sentence, I
assure your Majesty, without favor or prejudice. The master-of-camp
died on the same day when my successor arrived here; and, a few days
before, Factor Diego de Castro Lison, a good servant I appointed in
his place in the interim Captain Christoval de Mercado--a person
who is so fit for the position that I sought him out; and who has
served almost all the offices of justice which exist in the islands,
whereby he has gained knowledge of the commodities that the provinces
can furnish. He has left these with a good, clean reputation, and
personally appears to be well qualified. I shall appreciate it if
your Majesty will confirm this. I will say the same of the warder,
Pedro Sotelo de Morales, appointed to Fort Santiago without salary,
as your Majesty has commanded, in place of Lucas de Bergara, deceased.
Considering the great importance of effective collection for the
exchequer of your Majesty, and the auditing of the accounts that
are in arrears, I have accomplished as much as I could this year,
and they have been audited from the year 18 to that of 23.
For the unburdening of my conscience I will, now that my presidency is
over, tell your Majesty incidentally what I think of the officers of
this Audiencia, whose inspection is awaited; and if, as is desirable,
your Majesty send it, that will tell you better. Don Alvaro de Lugo
y Messa is an upright judge, and zealous in the service of your
Majesty. Geronimo de Legaspi does what his two sons wish, whom, on
account of their reckless lives, the governors cannot employ, and
thus are unable to satisfy their father, who is not contented except
with favors. Don Juan de Valderrama does as his wife says; and Don
Matias Flores, although a young man, is less harmful; when he is so,
it is owing to his passions or affections. He makes all the profit
he can from the office, and on the whole is not acceptable to the
community, which is always disturbed by him. I consider his office
incompatible with that of protector; but, although your Majesty had
issued a decree directing that this should not be, they annulled it. I
do not wish to annoy your Majesty any further, for there are persons
who will write this from a sense of duty; and I refer, for information
regarding my earnest desires for the service of your Majesty, to what
all classes of people will write. Since coming to serve you in these
islands I have undergone so many expenses that I am poor and in debt as
president. I beg your Majesty to remember me by giving me the favor of
the presidency of Panama, or the future succession to it [_MS. holed_]
realm or governorship of Guatemala, whichever may first be vacant; for
I have not property enough remaining to go and claim it in your court.
I likewise requested your Majesty last year not to allow my wife, since
she is such, and cannot remain here as a private citizen, to lose the
encomiendas which she inherited from her father and grandfather, who
served so long in these islands; and that you would command a decree
to be despatched so that she might enjoy them wherever you might choose
that she and her daughter should live, as the latter is the last heir;
and this I beg, for the reasons which I have mentioned to your Majesty.
At the proper time, I despatched to Sian a private ship, in order
to avoid the cost of carrying the troops, goods, and supplies which
remain there by the death of Don Fernando de Silva. [21] Everything
went well. I also sent a father of the Society, a man of great
experience, to get under way the collection from all that comes
from Yndia and other parts. Don Juan Niño will inform your Majesty
of it. May our Lord protect your royal person according to the needs
of Christendom. Manila, July 30, 626.
_Don Fernando de Silva_
[_On the back of this letter_: "The original descriptions of the
island Hermosa and the relation concerning all those localities,
are in the possession of Señor Don Andres de Rozas."]
LETTER FROM THE SISTERS OF ST. CLARE TO FELIPE IV
_Jesus, Mary_
May all empires and kingdoms be made subject to your royal Majesty. We
were sent here by the great king, Don Felipe, our sovereign (may
he rest in peace), by his royal decree and favor he ordering the
governor and royal Audiencia to receive us under his royal protection
as nuns of the first rule of St. Clare, [22] so that the daughters
of the conquistadors who do not have the means for marriage may be
aided; and [it was ordered] that, when the provincial of our order
should be present they should make regulations according to our
rule and profession--his royal Majesty ordering the above with the
earnestness that is made evident in his decree. We have found in this
kingdom so friendly a disposition and so great abundance of what is
necessary (with which we are supplied in the city), that although
at present we number only thirty-three sisters, seventy could be
supported on the alms that are bestowed upon us every week in small
contributions--besides those given in quantity by private persons and
bequeathed to us in wills; and those from women who are admitted to
the order, who have wealth for this purpose.
Our rule declares that we may not solicit the property of those who
enter to become nuns, and we are not to be careful of aught else
than their virtues; but that if any one of these wishes to give
some alms of her own freewill, we may receive it, as from any other
person. Consequently, having observed faithfully this rule--I mean,
in not desiring or striving for any more than the said benefit (and
we exercise great care in this)--our Lord moves hearts, so that one
woman alone has given us fourteen thousand pesos. With that the
work on the convent is progressing. Other women who are about to
make profession say that they will give the same amount that they
would give their husbands if they married; and that, since God is
their spouse, they wish to give it to Him so that a convent capable
of sustaining many nuns may be built, so that they may serve his
Majesty. Some have as their dowry only the spiritual wealth that
the rule requires. Consequently, there are liable to be many orphan
girls who serve God, daughters and granddaughters of conquistadors,
who are calling aloud, and they refuse to allow them to enter. It is
a pity to see so pious desires disappointed. I petition your Majesty
to send me a royal decree that no limit shall be set to the number of
nuns that the convent may contain. The rule does not limit the number,
nor does any other convent throughout all these kingdoms. The city is
very rich, and food so cheap that fourteen libras of beef cost one
real; another real buys eight libras of fish; six libras of sugar,
one real; and fowls, salt pork, and all other things in the same
proportion; of salt alone, they have given us, on this last arrival
of the ships, three hundred and seventy baras [i.e., bahars]; also
a goodly supply of wine for the mass; and linen, which is very cheap.
Consequently we, these least important vassals of your Majesty, do
not need human aid, but the divine. That aid we have entreated from
the royal favor, so that no restriction be laid on the nuns that the
convent shall contain. It is a great pity to see how they hinder the
souls who serve God in so great perfection as those women who are
here, the natives of these kingdoms. I consider beyond any doubt
that they will be most devoted servants of God, who works marvels
in all those whom He shrives, and all set themselves to observe the
warnings of the gospel. An infinite number of little girls and older
orphans come weeping, with their widowed mothers, begging us for the
love of God to give them the habit. Since the king, our sovereign,
sent them so great a spiritual and temporal consolation, and since
their parents gained it for them by conquering this country at the
cost of their own lives, we all are so bounden. Beseeching our Lord to
prosper your royal Majesty, spiritually and temporally, with infinite
increase; and may He subject to the royal power of your royal Majesty
all empires and kingdoms that He has created for the greater honor,
glory, and increase of the faithful, and the exaltation of the holy
Catholic faith. Manila, July 31. Given in this convent of La Concepcion
of the discalced nuns of St. Clare, in the year 1626.
The most humble vassals of your royal and sacred Majesty,
_Jeronima de la Asunsion_, [23]
abbess, and her sisters,
_Ana de Christo Bicaria_
_Leonor [de] San Francisco_
_Leonor de Sant Buena Bentura_
_Lüysa de Jesús_
_Magdalena de Christo_
_Juana de San Antonio_
_Maria de los Angeles_
_Maria Magdalena_
_Ana de Jesus_
_Ana de Christo Bicaria_
PETITION FOR AID TO THE SEMINARY OF SAN JUAN DE LETRAN
Sire:
Brother Juan Gerónimo Guerrero, [24] who has charge of the seminary of
Sant Juan de Letran for orphan boys in the city of Manila, declares
that in consideration of the general welfare of the said children,
and their education and teaching, your Majesty was pleased to order
Don Fernando de Silva, governor of those islands, by your royal decree
of July 16, 623, to aid the said seminary with some taxes, so that
the boys in it might be reared and supported. But, as no taxes were
found, the said royal decree has had no effect; and to this day not
more than the small sum of three hundred pesos has been assigned to the
seminary--an amount so small that it does not suffice to provide shoes
for the boys who are now there. The number there is daily increasing,
and the expenses incurred are very considerable and the alms but
little. With what they have they cannot be supported. In order that
so pious a work may continue, and so that those orphan boys may be
suitably assisted with the necessaries of life, and not be ruined:
He petitions your Majesty that, favoring by your sovereign mercy a work
so greatly to the service of our Lord, you will be pleased to order
that some encomienda of Indians, or a pension from those that shall
be allotted, may be set aside for the said seminary--or in any other
manner which your Majesty pleases, and for the period that your royal
will deems best. [I ask this] because from it will follow considerable
profit for your royal service; for the boys reared there incline to
become soldiers, and up to the present time forty of them have gone out
to serve your Majesty in that employ, while five have become friars,
and twelve are studying. And, in order that they may learn the art of
navigation, will your Majesty be pleased to command an examined pilot
to come to the said seminary to teach it to them. Will your Majesty
also be pleased to order that, inasmuch as there are many children
of Spaniards among the Indian women of these islands, conceived by
the latter, these children may be taken from them and brought to be
reared in the said seminary, so that they may not become idolaters
like the Indian women, when they are grown. Our Lord will be served
by that, and will receive especial blessing and favor.
[_Endorsed:_ "The seminary of Sant Juan de Letran for orphan boys in
the city of Manila."]
[_Instructions:_ "Señor Don Fernando Ruiz de Contreras: Let a decree
be issued for them that, in the same manner as the other three hundred
pesos, I set aside for them, from the taxes that I shall possess there,
the further sum of three hundred ducados. As for the other things
that he requests, refer them to the governor, so that he may take
what measures are advisable in everything, in order that the service
of God our Lord and of his Majesty may be attended to. November 18."]
[_In the margin_: "In regard to what is asked in this section, his
Majesty issued a decree, that the governor of Philipinas shall assign
the said seminary three hundred ducados in taxes that do not belong
to the treasury, as another three hundred pesos were assigned. All
the other things requested are referred to the governor, so that he
may provide everything advisable, in order that they may attend to
the service of God and that of his Majesty."]
Sire:
Since the beginning of the so firm foundation of this seminary of
San Juan de Letran, I have made known to your Majesty by faithful
relations the great fruit obtained for God our Lord and for the service
of your Majesty, in protecting and sheltering in the seminary so many
orphan boys, the sons of old Spanish soldiers, who [without it] would
evidently be ruined for lack of instruction and good morals. So good
results have been achieved in this, as experience has shown by those
who have left this seminary--forty for the service of your Majesty, to
serve as soldiers, six others as religious, and six who serve in this
cathedral church as acolytes. There are now in the seminary more than
fifty boys. Your Majesty, having examined the despatches, was pleased
to send me a royal decree, ordering the governors of these islands to
protect and favor this seminary with incomes. In these islands revenues
are so few, that Governor Don Fernando de Silva assigned three hundred
pesos in chattels--namely, certain small shops, which are suppressed
today and opened to-morrow. In order that this enterprise may go on
increasing for the service of God and of your Majesty, will you order
that an encomienda be given to us. With it and my feeble efforts we
could support ourselves, and so great a work as this is would not fail.
I beseech your Majesty, for the love of God, that when my life is over,
[the Confraternity of] La Misericordia may take charge of the seminary,
with the brothers of the third order; and that a boy who has been
very long in this college may remain to shelter them, so that this
work, that is so acceptable to God our Lord, may continue to increase
and not to diminish. May God preserve your Majesty for many years,
as Christendom desires and as is necessary. Manila, August first,
one thousand six hundred and twenty-six.
Your Majesty's humble vassal,
_Brother Juan Geronimo Guerrero_
[_Instructions:_ "Let the governor be again charged to observe what
has been ordered him. May 11, 628."]
ROYAL DECREES
_Ordering the correction of abuses by the Augustinians_
The King. To Don Juan Niño de Tavora, member of my Council of War,
my governor and captain-general of the Philipinas Islands, and
president of the royal Audiencia therein: In a letter written to
me by Don Fernando de Silva, in whose charge that government was
_ad interim_, dated August four of the past year one thousand six
hundred and twenty-five, he declares that there is not so great need
anywhere else as in those islands for the governors to have authority
to remove or promote religious teachers because of their unbridled
or steady lives; and that the religious have come to lose respect, by
their deeds, for the alcaldes-mayor, and pay no attention to the royal
jurisdiction and patronage--especially the Augustinians who are more
extravagant than the others. They are entirely masters of the wills
of the Indians, and give out that in them consists the quietness or
disobedience of the Indians. Inasmuch as the alcalde-mayor of Bayaban
tried to moderate the excesses that were being committed, the religious
entered his house, attacked him, and beat him. Another alcalde-mayor,
who resides in Bulacan, having arrested two Indian seamen of my royal
fleet so that they should go to serve in their places, the religious
there took them from him; and every day more dangerous incidents are
occurring, in which they need some intervention. It would therefore be
advisable to send them the decree that was issued in the former year of
six hundred and twenty-four for Nueva España, ordering that the heads
of the religious, especially he of St. Augustine, order the religious
to restrain themselves. Notwithstanding that the said decree has been
sent already to those islands, and now goes in duplicate, I order
you to summon the provincial of the Augustinians and tell him that
it is greatly advisable to punish that religious; and that he shall
accordingly do so. You are hereby advised that under no consideration
shall a mission be granted to those religious who shall be guilty of
such offenses, and you shall advise me of what you shall do. Madrid,
June nineteen, one thousand six hundred and twenty-six.
_I The King_
Countersigned by Don Fernando Ruiz de Contreras, and signed by the
members of the Council.
[_Endorsed:_ "To the governor of Philipinas, ordering him to summon the
provincial of the Augustinians, and command him to punish a certain
religious, a missionary, for the excess of which he has been guilty;
and that he see that those religious who should be guilty be not
admitted to a mission."]
_Concerning the courts of the alcaldes-in-ordinary_
The King: To the president and auditors of my Audiencia of the city of
Manila in the Filipinas Islands. Martin Castaño, procurator-general of
the islands, has made me a report, stating that the auctions of what
is sold and leased from my royal estate, at which one auditor and the
fiscal of that Audiencia are present, are held by the royal officials
in the cabildo houses of the said city, where the alcaldes-in-ordinary
hold their court to administer justice; and that, although the hall
where the aforesaid officials hold the said auctions is distinct and
separate from that of the alcaldes, you have now lately ordered that,
when the said auctions are to be held, if the said alcaldes should be
present in the said hall, they suspend court, although it is necessary
for them to conduct their hearings at the accustomed hours. He has
petitioned me that, since the court of the said alcaldes does not
disturb or hinder the auctions, but rather is the cause of more
people resorting thither, I be pleased to order you not to make any
innovation in the aforesaid practice. The matter having been examined
in my royal Council of the Indias, I have considered it expedient,
and accordingly I order you, to allow the said alcaldes-in-ordinary
to call their courts in the said cabildo houses where they hold their
court, at the usual hours, even though the said auctions happen to
be held even at the same time. Madrid, June 19, 1626.
_I The King_
By order of the king our sovereign:
_Don Fernando Ruiz de Contreras_
_Regarding the hospitals_
The King. To Don Juan Niño de Tabora, knight of the habit of Calatrava,
member of my Council of War, my governor and captain-general of the
Philipinas Islands, and president of my royal Audiencia therein:
In a letter written to me by that city on August 13, of the former
year 1624, it mentions that in the hospitals there the sick endure
great hardships, and that the hospitals are not administered with
the care that is advisable, which causes many to die (and those
chiefly soldiers); and that it would be very advisable for the
brothers of [St.] John of God to take charge of their administration
and service. Having been examined by my Council of the Indias, I order
you, as it is a pious matter and one suitable for your office, on your
part to have all care so that the poor have the best accommodation
possible, and be aided, as I expect from you; for besides fulfilling
your obligations in this you will serve me. Madrid, October 16, 1626.
_I The King_
By order of the king our sovereign:
_Don Fernando Ruiz de Contreras_
MILITARY AFFAIRS OF THE ISLANDS
_Most authentic relation, in which is narrated the present condition
of the wars against the Dutch in the Filipinas and the kingdoms of
Japon; and the famous deeds of Don Fernando de Silva, sargento-mayor,
together with the great victories of the Spaniards, who destroyed
four hundred Dutchmen. The year 1626_.
I shall relate what things are new in these remote districts. I shall
give a brief narrative both of the island of Mindanao, whose conquest
is being made at present, and of Don Fernando de Silva, captain and
commander of the soldiers, who went to China. The island of Mindanao is
one of the largest that are seen in this archipelago. It has quantities
of cinnamon, and is very rich, through the trade that they carry on
with all the nations and with these islands. Its natives are given
over to the vile worship of Mahoma to a degree not reached by the Moors
[i.e., those of Spain] themselves. That worship holds them so tightly
in its abominations that it rears them with extreme hatred toward
Christians, both Spaniards and Indians. The disposition of the people
is vile but bold, and they are given to insults and robbery. They
make raids through the islands that are instructed by the Society of
Jesus, plundering, robbing, and capturing many. But having recognized
the valor of the Spaniards on various occasions when the latter have
scattered and destroyed their fleets of small vessels, they recently
made treaties of peace, and sent ambassadors to Manila to the governor
with captives and presents--requesting an alliance, and soldiers,
in order that these make a settlement in their lands, and aid them
against others who are their enemies, inhabitants of the same island,
with whom they wage civil war. They were well received by the governor,
and given a valiant captain with five hundred soldiers; and the father
provincial of the Society of Jesus gave two fathers from his residence,
to instruct them. All assembled at the town of Arevalo, where the chief
commandant of these provinces lives, one Juan Claudio de Verastigui,
who was ordered to set out immediately for Mindanao with his fleet,
whither he himself is going in person with his ships. The alcalde-mayor
of this city [25] is going to aid with fifty other soldiers for the
said purpose. A good result is hoped from it, and that either by
friendship of by force they will get a piece of artillery and some
ammunition from the Mindanaos that they took one year ago from the
governor. The latter ordered Don Juan Claudio not to return without it.
The occasion for that piece belonging to his Majesty remaining
in Mindanao was that Cachil Coralat, the natural lord of Mindanao,
seeing himself pressed by a tyrant in his kingdom, and seeing himself
conquered in a battle that they fought with him, hastened to this city
of Zebu to ask the Spaniards for help, sending one of his captains for
it. The latter was well entertained, and the piece was given to him
among other presents, twelve Spaniards and some ammunition being also
furnished with it. After the twelve Spaniards had been there for some
time, they were withdrawn, some say through fault of the Mindanaos,
and others that of the Spaniards. Consequently, as they left in haste,
the piece of artillery remained in Coralat's possession. At this
time, the Mindanaos from Manila having reached Octong, the piece was
requested from them in his Majesty's name, or satisfaction for it. The
Spaniards took from them some gold and equivalent articles in exchange,
and tried to capture some of them by means of an alferez, adjutant,
and soldiers. The Mindanaos, however, put themselves on the defensive
so courageously, and with so great wrath (or rather barbarity), that
their chief, one Salin--in the midst of the Spanish force and arms,
and in front of a fort that his Majesty has there--drawing a dagger,
plunged it into the adjutant through his groin and left him stretched
out. The officer next to the alferez--who was a fine soldier, and,
like the other, was on the inner guard in the Sangley ship on which
they had come--defended himself as well as he could, but was finally
killed by a stroke of a campilan (a Mindanao weapon); and they took
away his sword and dagger. Seeing our soldiers, who were in their
guardship unprepared, the Mindanaos threw them overboard, and,
cutting the cable, made off with the ship. However, when that was
seen by our men, they quickly prepared boats and pursued them with a
goodly number of soldiers and killed them with arquebus-shots. Salin,
wounded in the breast, fell into the water, but did not loose his
hold on his campilan. There, while struggling with the waves, he saw
a Spaniard who had fallen overboard in the fray, hanging on to a rope
from a pirogue, who, as he could not swim, was being carried along,
thus held fast. Salin made for him, and, wounded as he was, gave
him in his fury so severe a blow with his campilan that he split the
Spaniard's head, from which blow he died. Of the Spaniards, three men
were killed; and, of the Mindanaos, three were wounded and six killed,
besides two wounded who were taken prisoners.
At this time, Don Fernando de Silva, who came as sargento-mayor of the
present governor, [26] has always given proofs of so great [ability as]
a captain that he was sent as commander of two hundred Spaniards who
went to aid the city of Macam, which the Portuguese have in China. A
Dutch fleet arrived at the city of Macam on this occasion and besieged
it, landing four hundred men. But the inhabitants of Macam issued
forth in their orderly array and concert, and attacked the Dutch
so courageously that they destroyed all the four hundred in their
camp. Then the Portuguese, ascertaining that the Dutch were gathering
force once more to avenge that injury, begged for aid from the governor
of Manila. On that so honorable occasion Captain Don Fernando de Silva
went out with his two hundred chosen Spaniards. There were very welcome
to the Portuguese, and he was always highly esteemed by them because
of his gracious manner. The Portuguese delivered to him a ship laden
with merchandise, the profits to be shared by all. He took it to the
kingdom of Siam and ascended the river for thirty leguas, unladed
his goods, and disposed of them as well as possible, for they were
injured by the water. The Japanese, many of whom live there, tried,
in their greed, to attack the Spaniards; but Don Fernando de Silva
understood them, and resisted them with his infantry. The Dutch,
who have their factory there, notified others near there to come to
their aid, in order to attack the ship with its three hundred persons,
which is supplied with arms and force sufficiently abundant for its
defense. Some evil outcome is feared, for the ship cannot leave the
bar without unlading its goods.
The persecution in Japon is even more bloody, for they returned
his present to the ambassador from Macan, and ordered him to return
home. A governor was sent down with orders to kill the Christians
and the captive religious whom he should find. In short, the order
has gone forth to suppress trade with Macan and Filipinas, and that
no ships be received from, or leave Japon for, these regions.
It has been learned by way of Macan that the Chinese seized from the
Dutch their almiranta.
With the severe persecution of Japon, we are advised that four hundred
Catholics have been slain for the faith. While two cavaliers were
present at the martyrdom _irruit spiritus Domini_, [27] and they
went forth in public, crying out: "Surely this is a good faith that
teaches so lofty things. Salvation cometh only by it, as is proven
by so many dying in order not to abandon it." Thus crying out and
acting, they went running into the fire, where they were burned,
leaving the bystanders amazed, and all the world marveling at so
wonderful an example.
It is rumored that beyond doubt the emperor of Japon will order
Nangazaqui to be razed, and all the Europeans driven out and
exiled--commanding that they depart with their children and wives;
but that, if the wives are Japanese, they as well as their daughters
must be given up, and the sons be taken away.
_Laus Deo_
Printed with permission of Don Luys Remirez de Arellano, deputy-mayor
of Sevilla.
Printed in Sevilla by Juan de Cabrera, opposite the post-office. The
year 1626.
DOCUMENTS OF 1627
Importance of the Philippines. Martin Castaño; [undated;
1627?].
Relation of 1626. [Unsigned and undated; _ca._ 1627].
Letter to Tavora. Felipe IV; September 3.
Laws regarding the Sangleys. [From _Recopilacion de leyes de
las Indias_]; 1594-1627.
Decrees regarding the religious. Felipe IV; May-November.
Decrees regarding the Chinese. Felipe IV; September 10 and
November 19.
Inadvisability of a Spanish post on the island of Formosa. Juan
Cevicos; December 20.
_Sources_: The first, fifth, and seventh of these documents are
obtained from MSS. in the Archivo general de Indias, Sevilla;
the second, from the Ventura del Arco MSS. (Ayer library), vol. i,
pp. 523-545; the third and sixth, from the Archivo Historico Nacional,
Madrid; the fourth, from _Recopilación de leyes de las Indias,_
lib. vi, tit. xviii.
_Translations_: These are all made by James A. Robertson, except the
third, by Arthur B. Myrick.
THE IMPORTANCE OF THE PHILIPPINES
Sire:
I, Martin Castaño, procurator-general of the Filipinas, declare
that--having examined and carefully considered, in the course of so
long a period as I have spent here, the region of these islands,
their great importance, and the little energy displayed in coming
to their help while the enemies from Olanda are exerting themselves
so strenuously to gain possession of them--I am convinced that such
inaction can proceed only from a failure to estimate that country at
its proper value, imagining it to be of less importance than it is,
since it is regarded as being so far away [from España]. But those
islands are the most important part of your Majesty's dominion;
and from delay it results that the enemy is continually gaining, and
your Majesty losing, while recovery becomes more difficult. If they
should be lost, and the country given up to the natives, it would be,
even if the Hollanders had not gone thither, a loss of the magnitude
which will be made evident by this paper; but if your Majesty lose
them, and your greatest enemy gain them, the loss will be beyond all
exaggeration. Therefore, I have desired to advance four important
considerations regarding those islands: namely, the extension of
the faith, and the increase of your Majesty's dominion, glory, and
riches. And in case of any doubt as to the truth of my assertions,
I will prove them by trustworthy witnesses and authentic papers,
to your entire satisfaction.
As to the increase of the faith, it is quite well known that no other
gate in all the world has been opened through which so many souls
may come into the knowledge of it as in the Filipinas; for they are
situated amid so vast kingdoms, so densely inhabited, so ready to be
christianized, as has been proved in China and Japon. And had not the
Hollanders gained the friendship of the Japanese, the greater part
of that kingdom would have been converted, as things were going; for
at Nangasaqui, the port of entry for those going from the Filipinas,
there were so many Christians that they formed processions for the
discipline during Holy Week, just as in España. But since the entrance
of the Hollanders there, Christianity has been so rooted out that
there is not one declared Christian, because of the severe punishments
inflicted at the Dutch instigation. It is a great misfortune that
these heretics have managed to gain the friendship of the emperor of
Japon, by promising him Chinese silks--depending on those that they
expect to steal from the Chinese and the citizens of Manila. It is
a misfortune that at the same time your Majesty has not preserved
your friendship with them, as we are in so much better a position
to let them have silks in trade, which are the things that they
want. This is of so great importance, that it would be advisable to
send an embassy to the emperor, to inform him that those heretics are
rebellious vassals of your Majesty; and that it is not right that any
king should receive those who have revolted from your obedience. For
the Hollanders provide themselves with all necessary munitions of
war and food supplies there, as that kingdom is so well furnished
with everything; while your Majesty's vassals are in want of those
things, although they are so near at hand. One other very great loss
is suffered, namely, that, since the Hollanders live in Japon as if
in their own land, well supplied with all necessities, and so near
Manila, they enter the bay of that city with much greater facility,
and carry away as plunder all the merchandise from China and other
countries. They remain there most of the year, because they have a
safer retreat, when the weather compels them to retire. Returning to
the increase of the faith, besides that it was extending itself in the
neighboring kingdoms, years ago I was informed, by the religious who
instructed those fields of Christendom, of the number of Christians
that were vassals of your Majesty, reckoned by congregations; and the
number exceeded six hundred thousand. Consider, then, your Majesty,
what should be done to preserve and cultivate that new plant, and
not allow it to be lost, and heresy to be substituted for it.
As to the increase of your Majesty's dominion, there is no doubt that
while you are master and lord of the Filipinas, your crown encircles
and embraces all the world; for today your kingdom stretches on
the eastern side from Portuguese India to Malaca, and between the
point of the mainland of Malaca and the island of Samatra is the
strait of Sincapura by which one enters the South Sea and goes to
the above-named places and the Filipinas, while on the western side
the coasts of Piru and Nuevaespaña border on the South Sea, whence
one goes likewise to the Filipinas. Thus it is proved that with those
islands your Majesty's crown encircles and embraces the whole world--a
greatness which furnishes a reason for great energy. Further, if the
enemy succeeds in getting possession of the Filipinas, toward which
end he is putting forth so great effort, not only will this richest
fragment of your Majesty's crown be lost, but the enemy will make
himself master of Portuguese India immediately; and then by way of the
South Sea, he will disturb Piru and Nuevaespaña, so that they can be
of no profit to your Majesty. And if the enemy perceives himself to
be so powerful, he will even dare to undertake other great enterprises.
As to reputation, one word is sufficient. All the kings and nations
of the world are watching to see who comes out ahead in this
undertaking--your Majesty or the rebels of Olanda.
As to wealth, to see the efforts that the Hollanders are making
for it, having experienced it--for nothing but wealth comes to
them--might well answer as sufficient proof. But yet I notify your
Majesty of three extremely great sources of wealth in the Filipinas:
first, the wonderfully rich gold mines, of which I have given accounts
separately, so that I shall not repeat them now; second, the cloves of
the Malucos, which amount to three and one-half millions per year. Of
this likewise I have given detailed reports. It is the sole inducement
of the Hollanders to go there, and therefore they have exerted great
care and effort to gain possession, as they have done, of the islands
where it is grown, so that they enjoy nearly all of it. The third is
the trade from China to Japon, and from Japon to China, in which--as
those two kingdoms bear so mortal a hatred to one another that under no
considerations can they trade with one another, and China has so much
silk that is wanted in Japon, and Japon so much silver, so desired
by the Chinese-the inhabitants of the Filipinas, which lie between
both kingdoms, traffic in these articles with very great profit. The
Hollanders desire that traffic exceedingly; and, as they have acquired
the trade of Japon, so they will be able to acquire that of China,
although the Chinese are hostile to them, because of the robberies
that the Hollanders have committed on them. But, for this very reason
it might even be feared that, seeing the Hollanders so powerful and
superior on the sea, and that they steal their property from them,
without leaving them any for their own trading, and your Majesty's
forces are so weak that they cannot defend them, they will abandon
us and become friendly with the Hollanders, just as those who were
formerly your Majesty's vassals are doing. For all those barbarous
nations, inasmuch as neither religion, kinship, nor friendship binds
them, are ever on the lookout to make friends with him who is most
powerful. Admitting all the foregoing, I beseech your Majesty not
to permit further delay in coming to the aid of this so important
matter; for the enemy is so needfully profiting by the time that is
being lost here.
[_Endorsed in writing_: "In regard to the importance of the Filipinas."]
RELATION OF 1626
_Relation of the condition of the Filipinas Islands and other regions
surrounding, in the year 1626._
Although I have been interrupted for several years in doing this,
because of occupations that have allowed me no time for it, and have
neglected to give advice of the condition of these islands, at present
I have not, although my occupations are not fewer than in the past,
attempted to shirk my duty in reporting what has happened this year
in these regions, but briefly and concisely.
Commencing with the Malucas Islands, they are at present in the best
condition that they have experienced, from our standpoint; for the
Dutch enemy are spent, inasmuch as no succor has been sent to them
from Holanda for many years--it appearing that the wars which they
have had there must have hindered them. Consequently, it has been
recognized that, when the war ceases, their ships will come here
in multitudes; and we shall enjoy war, and Flandes peace. The king
of Tidore, who was very aged, and was always our friend, died this
year. One of his sons took his place, and continues the same friendship
[with us]. The Ternatans, who have always been friends of the Dutch
and very hostile to us, made peace with us. That has had a very good
result for us, for we receive more damage from them than from the
Dutch themselves. There have been in this city since the time when the
strongholds of the Malucas were taken--which was twenty years ago,
during the term of Governor Don Pedro de Acuña--certain cachils,
who are chiefs among them, and the same king of Ternate, a great
Moro. The governor sent one of the cachils to Maluco to talk and
confer with his people, especially with Cachil Leali. The latter had,
as it were, usurped the kingdom of Ternate--and, as we understand,
prevented his fellow-countrymen from receiving the king whom we hold
captive here, even if he should return--and continued the war against
us. The matter turned out well, and now the said cachil who went
from here is returning, in the capacity of ambassador of his people,
petitioning that their king be sent to them, whom they promise to
receive as such, and to make and unmake for us. I do not know what
Governor Don Juan Niño de Tabora will do. What I know is, that the
Dutch do not like any of these agreements and friendships that we
are making with the Ternatans; but since they are at present fallen,
and can do no more, they endure it patiently.
The Dutch have no fleets in the Malucas, while there are scarcely two
hundred men in their forts in their islands of Terrenate, Machien, and
Motiel (five or six in number); and many of these are so discontented,
because of the hardships and misery which they suffer, that some six
or eight have come to our camp this year, and many more would have
come if there were a place for them, or if opportunity for it had
offered. That was a fine opportunity to attack them with our fleet,
which was already prepared in the port of Cavite. It is not certainly
known where it is going, but we suspect that it is going to attack the
fort of the Dutch in the island of Hermosa. It is also thought that
the following year will not pass without the fleet attacking them. If
the wars in Flandes continue, and help does not come to the Dutch,
we may hope for a very fine outcome.
The Camucones (who are certain robbers who infest these seas,
pillaging, and are, moreover, a vile people, to whom we have paid but
little attention) came with their fleet of small vessels in the past
year of 1625, and at dawn one morning in October attacked a village,
where the archbishop of Manila was visiting the cura. He as well as
his followers had great trouble in escaping, all without clothes or
nearly so. They captured all his wardrobe and his pontifical robes,
among which he had some very rich garments.
The enemy then attacked a boat in which there was a father of our
Society, who was returning to his house and residence, which is located
on the island of Marinduque, after having preached at some missions
of Franciscan friars who had invited him for that purpose. They spied
the enemy suddenly, in a place where it was impossible to escape,
and it was necessary for them to fight. Father Juan de las Missas
(such was the name of the father) commenced to encourage the Indians
with a crucifix to make them fight. But it happened that a shot
from a verso, fired by the enemy at the first encounter, struck the
father. The enemy immediately entered the boat even while the father
was yet alive and took his skull from his head to use as a drinking
cup--a thing which they are accustomed to do to Spaniards, without
granting life to anyone. After that event, guided by a treacherous
Chinese, they suddenly attacked the chief town of Samar, which is a
very fine village called Catbalogan. They attacked at dawn, and the
father rector and another father and a brother had no little trouble in
escaping; they were scarcely able to remove the monstrance of the most
holy sacrament, and to hide it in a thicket. The Indians also fled,
as far as they were able. Some had not time to do so much, and were
captured. Some were sick with smallpox, a kind of pestilence that was
among the Indians at that time. They were unable to escape, whereupon
the enemy arriving relieved them all of the smallpox by cutting off
their heads. In short, they plundered as much as they could, especially
the silver and ornaments of the church, which were many and excellent,
our residence there being better supplied than our others.
When news was received of the damage inflicted by the enemy, two
Spanish fleets went in pursuit of them--one from the island of Cebu,
and the other from that of Panay. But such was our misfortune that
they were unable to encounter the enemy by any means. Thus did the
latter go away, laughing at the robberies that they had committed
and greedy to make others.
Don Fernando de Silva, who was then governing, because Don Juan Niño
had not yet arrived, despatched a small fleet this year to the lands
of those enemies, to punish them. Their country lies near Borney,
to whose king they are subject. But inasmuch as they have no fixed
house or dwelling, as they generally live in their boats, today here
and tomorrow there, nothing was done. Consequently, Don Juan Niño,
upon his arrival, ordered our fleet prepared in the island of Oton,
so that when that enemy came it might attack them. The enemy came,
and our fleet sailed out; but half of the caracoas were wrecked in
a storm. However, our fleet reforming pursued the enemy, but were
unable to overtake them; for as their boats are light and have two
prows, in order to escape they do not have to turn their boats about,
but only to change the rowers and so return. At least, the result
obtained was that the enemy did no damage this year in these islands,
and did not capture anything.
The island of Mindanao, which is one of these Filipinas Islands,
has rebelled against us; and its chief places have easily accepted
the law of Mahoma, which was brought there from the Malucas by the
Ternatans. They have done us no damage this year. On the contrary,
we have done them considerable. Captain Beñitez has made some very
successful raids in their country, and has killed many and captured
others--who are made slaves, in accordance with the old-time usage of
this country, on account of the damages which we have received from
those enemies. Now the governor has offered to conquer that island,
which is not a very difficult thing to do; but there is always so much
attention to be paid to the Dutch, that he has as yet been unable to
attend to this.
The Dutch enemy, together with the English, went to attack Macan during
former years with seventeen ships. They landed many men on the shore,
but the affair turned out so badly for them that they were forced,
after many men had been killed, to retire and to raise the siege. But
the Portuguese, fearing that the enemy would attempt another year
what they had not been able to accomplish then, set about enclosing
the city with an excellent wall (for it had none before), and sent
Father Geronimo Rodriguez [28] to Manila for some good artillery,
which Don Alonso Fajardo gave him. A master founder also went there
to make many other pieces, which have been founded; and the city
is placed in a very good state of defense. The Portuguese also
asked for a good captain and some infantry for whatever occasion
might arise. Don Alonso Fajardo gave them as many as one hundred
infantrymen, with Don Fernando de Silva, sargento-mayor of the camp
of Manila, and an excellent soldier. They stayed in Macan for some
time, but the Portuguese, seeing that the Dutch enemy did not come,
and that, even if they did come, the city was more than defended;
and inasmuch as they did not get along very well with the Castilians,
since there was considerable quarreling and strife between those of the
two nations, tried to despatch them to Manila. They did so, in a vessel
that carried more than five hundred thousand ducados in merchandise.
The Spanish encountered so grievous a storm on their voyage that they
were forced to put in at Siam, where they unladed their ship; and,
trying to get over the bar of a river in order to relade, they were
wrecked. They bought in place of that ship two others, in order to
go to Manila; but as the season was advanced, and they could not get
away so quickly, they despatched a champan with some eight Spanish
sailors. The latter took some of the merchandise, and came to Manila
to give news of what had happened. At that time there was a Dutch
patache established in the river of Siam, a very beautiful and large
river. That vessel had also entered and traded in that kingdom. It was
rumored among our men that that Dutch patache had captured the champan
that our men were sending to Manila--although such a rumor was untrue,
for the said champan arrived safely at Manila. But induced by that
false report, Don Fernando de Silva, who was stationed some leguas
up the river, having one day observed the Dutch patache attacked
it at night with certain very small craft (I think they were two
small boats or lanchas, for they had not bought larger vessels); and
after fighting with the enemy, with the loss of only one Spaniard,
captured the Dutch patache. It had more than twenty thousand pesos in
silver and merchandise, and the Dutch aboard it were captured. Had
the matter ended there, it would have been a fortunate result. The
king of Siam was informed of it, and sent a message to Don Fernando
de Silva saying that he should set the Dutch at liberty and give
them back their ship and the property which he had taken or captured
from them, since it was captured while the Dutch were in his kingdom,
under his royal favor and protection. Don Fernando de Silva answered
that he would not do so, and broke out in words that might well have
been avoided toward the king. The latter quickly collected a numerous
fleet of boats, and one day attacked our ships with Japanese (who form
the guard of that kingdom) and many Siamese. Our men, fearing what
would happen, were hurriedly embarking their merchandise, in order
to come to Manila. Our men began to serve the artillery, but there
were so many hostile boats that they covered the water. The Spanish
craft ran aground in the confusion and danger, whereupon the Siamese
(and chiefly the Japanese) entered the ships. Don Fernando de Silva,
with sword and buckler in hand, sold his life dearly, and others did
the same. But the enemy killed them except those who fled at the first
stroke of the victory, who remained alive. I think some thirty were
captured. The goods were pillaged, notwithstanding the fact that the
king had ordered that good care be taken of them.
The captured Spaniards were taken to the court of the king, which
is a city more than twice as large as Sevilla. [29] They were led
manacled through the streets, receiving many blows, and regarded as
traitors. That happened in the year 1624. This disastrous event was
learned in Manila by way of Macan, but no attention was given to the
matter on account of the death of Governor Don Alonso Fajardo. In the
year 1625, another Don Fernando de Silva, of the habit of Santiago,
came to act as governor. At that time Father Pedro Morejon [30] arrived
at Manila. He came from Roma by way of Yndia and Camboja (which lies
next Siam), and was informed of that disaster there. Governor Don
Fernando de Silva, seeing that Father Pedro Morejon, as he had been
so long a minister in Japon, had great knowledge of, and access to,
the Japanese, and that those Japanese who live in Siam have a great
part in the government of that kingdom, suggested to the father to
go there as ambassador, to see whether he could get what they had
captured from our Spaniards, which belonged for the most part to the
inhabitants of Manila. The father replied that he could not neglect,
before all else, to go to Macan in order to advise his provincial of
his procuratorship to Roma; but that his Lordship should write to him,
and that he would return at the beginning of the year 1626, which
was the season when one could go to Siam. The governor wrote, and the
father provincial of Macan sent Father Pedro de Morejon for the said
time, besides another Portuguese father, called Antonio Cardin. [31]
They reached here in good time. The governor prepared a vessel with
some Spaniards of good standing, and despatched them all by the month
of January. They reached the kingdom and court of Siam and negotiated
what they were able--namely, that the captives be delivered to them,
as well as the artillery, and a quantity of iron belonging to our
king which the ships were carrying, and which they seized from us,
and some other merchandise. For although the king ordered everything
to be given up, thinking that the goods were safe, as he had ordered,
it was impossible to get them, the soldiers having pillaged them and
divided them among themselves.
Father Pedro de Morejon was given a cordial reception by the king,
who showed him many favors. At his departure the father told the
king that he was leaving Father Cardin in his kingdom, and asked
his Highness to protect him. The king offered to do so, and gave
permission for all who wished to become Christians. Father Cardin
erected his church and commenced his ministry. Father Morejon and the
Spaniards returned to Manila, where they arrived in August of 1626;
and they delivered to Governor Don Juan Niño, who had now arrived,
a present given to them by the king of Siam. Father Morejon, being
summoned by his provincial, went to Macao for the second time, where
he is now. It is now reported that the governor is not satisfied with
what they sent him. Perhaps he will attack Siam with the galleys,
in order to punish that kingdom for its actions toward the Spaniards.
In order to destroy the trade between this city of Manila and Great
China, and between Macan and Japon--the former for us, and the latter
for the Portuguese--the Dutch formed a scheme to build a fort on the
island of Hermosa. That is an island between Japon, China, and Manila,
which extends north and south for more than fifty leguas, while it
is about thirty broad. The Dutch built the said fort some years ago,
and they have been fortifying it ever since; so that they have already
erected four cavaliers, in which they have mounted twenty-four pieces
of artillery--besides others that they have mounted on a platform
which defends the entrance of the port, as those of the fort do not
command it. The Dutch also have a stock-farm, which they began with
cattle and horses brought from Japon. For its defense they built
another large cavalier in which they mounted a half-dozen pieces,
and stationed a few Dutchmen to guard it. They are now at peace with
the natives, with whom they were formerly at war and who killed some
of their men. In this way they have been established for some five
or six years at that point, which they call Pachan. The Chinese have
gone there with a great abundance of silks and other merchandise to
trade. Consequently, they have made on that account a large alcaicería,
where there are generally more than six thousand Chinese. The Japanese
have also gone there from Japon with their ships, although it is
said that they are ill satisfied because of I know not what duties
that the Dutch asked them to pay. From that, notable damage can
ensue to Castilians, Portuguese, and Chinese, since the Dutch are in
the passage by which one goes from here to China, and from Macan to
Japon. If we have not yet seen the damage so plainly with the eyes,
it has been because the enemy are in great lack of ships and men.
In order to counterbalance that scheme and the designs of the Dutch,
Don Fernando formed another scheme. He went to seize another port on
the same island of Hermosa, some twenty leguas distant from China
and thirty from the enemy. For that purpose he sent, in this year
of 1626, two galleys with many small boats, infantry, and all that
was necessary for the settlement, under an experienced captain called
Carreño. They occupied the said port, and it is very good and suitable
for our purpose. As our men entered the port, the whole population,
numbering fully a thousand houses of the natives who were settled
there, fled. Entering the houses, they were enabled to see, by the
articles that they found there, that those people were intelligent and
civilized. Our soldiers took some food, of which they kept account
in order to pay for it--as they ought to do; since I know not what
pretext they could have for showing hostility to the natives, since
they had received no injury from them.
Our soldiers have fortified themselves there excellently. However, at
the beginning, the land tried them, for many died, and they suffered
great wretchedness and hardships--eating even dogs and rats, also
grubs, and unknown herbs, because they soon finished the provisions
which they had brought with them, and others had not arrived from
Manila, as I shall relate later. But afterwards they got along very
well, for many ships came from Great China with many presents and
food. The climate is very fine, and like that of Nueva España. It has
its winter and summer quite temperate, and has many fruits such as
we have in our España--as for instance, pears and peaches, which are
indications that it is as fine a country as is reported. We have also
heard that wheat is harvested. The soldiers found skins of lions and
tigers; and although there were none of those animals, as there are
none in Filipinas, they had no lack of the skins. They sent to summon
the Indians, some of whom came. They won them by means of caresses
and presents, so that they continue to come. They are not driven
from our fort; and they even delivered two infants to us for baptism,
and others are petitioning it. There is great need of learning their
language. They bring some food, which they exchange for jars, gems,
agate, and silver, which they know thoroughly, and whose value they
esteem. They have no headman or chief who governs them, but each
village governs itself, and some villages have war with others.
The joy received in Manila at the news of the island of Hermosa was
exuberant. At that time Don Juan Niño came to govern. He was unable
to send them help at the right season [for sailing]; consequently,
after it had sailed, the ship put back and was detained for more than
four months in a port of this island. It sailed again, and again
took refuge at Macan, whence they tried to make the voyage for the
third time. They had so severe a storm that they lost their rudder,
and reached the coast of China. After great danger and opposition
from the Chinese of that region, they refitted, and finally made our
port in the island of Hermosa, where they arrived April 29, 1627,
and were received with the joy that can be imagined. They left there
the supplies they had brought, and returned to Manila.
The governor sent to Macan to ask for a mestizo, Salvator Diaz,
who was in the fort of the Dutch and who escaped from them. He has
also prohibited vessels from sailing to China which pass near the
establishment of the Dutch on the island of Hermosa. It is inferred
from that that he is thinking of attacking the fort of the Dutch.
The persecution of the missionaries in Japon has daily been assuming
greater fury, and the doors are daily being shut more closely on the
religious. It has been ordered under penalty of death, and of being
burned with their merchandise and ships, that no ship sail from Manila
to Japon. Accordingly, one ship which sailed last year and which they
had not notified of the edict, they notified and ordered to return
immediately to Manila, without allowing anyone to disembark, or to buy
or sell anything--keeping them, on the contrary, shut up on the ship
and guarded. The Japanese made a law that no Japanese could leave or
enter the kingdom unless he first forswore our holy faith, etc.
LETTER FROM FELIPE IV TO TAVORA
The King. To Don Juan Niño de Tavora, my governor and captain-general
of the Filipinas Islands, and president of my royal Audiencia there:
Six letters which you wrote me--five on the twentieth of the month of
July, and the other on the twenty-second of the same month last year
(1626)--dealing with the wars, have been received and considered in my
Council of War for the Indias, and you will be satisfied on all points.
You say that Pedro de Heredia wrote to you that he had not fortified
the island of Manados [32] and the straits of Santa Margarita, because
it seemed to him of little use. Afterward, however, seeing that many
tributarios might be acquired; that, being pagans, missionaries were
needed; and that the expenses of these strongholds might be lightened
by the rice which they furnished--he sent to you asking for fifty
men to occupy the fort which he was to build there. Seeing that he
had orders for it and that it was so advantageous for the service of
God and myself, you sent them to him. It is well, and I order you, as
having the affair under your present direction, to provide everything
which is necessary thereto.
In your advices, the said Pedro de Heredia wrote also that it would
be to our great advantage to send him the lord of Terrenate, who is
in this city, in order to bring about some agreement between him and
the king of Tidore, which will be of considerable value. Your orders
in this matter have already been sent you.
I am advised by you that three of the enemy's ships were in the port
of Malayo, and that it was understood that a fleet would arrive in
May, 1625; I am also advised of the ten ships which the said Pedro
de Heredia had.
I have considered the number of galleons and pataches with which you
are provided, and the galleys which were in process of construction. I
confide in your zeal and care to provide for the defense of those
islands, as I expect from you, doing on your part all that you
shall find possible. You will have assistance from here, and I have
written to my viceroy in Nueva España regarding the measures to be
taken therefor. He and my royal officials have now been ordered to
send at the first opportunity to these kingdoms six thousand ducados,
on account of the usual situado that goes to those islands. The money
will be sent on a separate account to the House of Trade in Sevilla,
to buy the arms that you ask for; when it arrives there, these will
be forwarded to you.
You informed me that at the death of Don Geronimo de Silva his property
was distrained, on account of the suit that was proceeding against
him for beating a retreat two years ago with the fleet. You petition
that in such a case property should be distrained from no one, except
the proceedings be always taken in conformity with justice. The same
[33] in the other matter which you mention, that in prosecuting the
commanders of the ships of the said fleet, process should be conducted
by written charges.
You say also that because the Order of Saint John was the heir to the
estate of the said Don Geronimo, you ordered that whatever property
might be found should be deposited in the probate treasury, and that
the landed property should be administered by the courts. You also
notified the said order, that it might decide what course to take,
and that any debts of the said Don Geronimo must first be paid. The
matter has been considered, and you and that Audiencia will take such
measures as are just, in case the estate is any further indebted.
You say also that the office of sargento-mayor was held at first by
alférezes, and afterward by captains--who drew, however, only the pay
of captains; and that sixty-five escudos of ten reals were assigned
to Don Fernando de Silva by the treasury council that was held in
that city--which sum you understood was paid everywhere to captains
ranking as sargentos-mayor--on condition of obtaining my approval,
which has not yet been presented, and you ask me to approve it because
it seems just that if captains and the master-of-camp receive what
is elsewhere received by the sargento-mayor, who has more arduous
duties, the latter should receive a salary accordingly. It has seemed
unwise to me to make any change. You will give orders, then, that the
payment of this salary shall proceed no further; and that no person
filling the said position of sargento-mayor shall receive any more
than the salary formerly paid; and you will cause the increase to
be collected from those who have obtained it, or ordered it, or from
their bondsmen, so that the amount shall be immediately deposited in
my royal exchequer. In order that this be more exactly fulfilled,
I have had decrees to this effect sent to the inspector of that
Audiencia and the officers of my royal exchequer in that city. This
must also be understood in the case of Don Juan de Quinones, whom
you appointed to this place.
In conformity with what you wrote regarding the sentence which Doctor
Don Alvaro de Mesa y Lugo issued against Captain Miguel de Villegas
(who had been a captain in the infantry, and was a substitute in
your personal service), of three hundred lashes and ten years in the
galleys, I have sent a decree that the said sentence shall not be
executed. The said sentence is overruled; and the said Don Alvaro
is to send to my said Council an official copy of the proceedings,
and the reasons which he had for giving that sentence. In the future
military customs must be observed, and no such punishments imposed, as
you will see by the said decree, which is sent to you with this letter.
In regard to your request that it be proclaimed that the shipmen
who serve in those islands--such as pilots, masters, and other
officers--need not pay the tax on their salaries in virtue of the
decree which I commanded to be sent, ordering the collection of dues on
all the grants for offices, incomes and gratuities that are conferred,
I think it well that the said shipmen--mariners, pilots, masters, or
other persons who draw pay on the rolls--shall be excused from paying
the said salary tax; but it must be collected from all other officers
holding commissions or decrees in which our favor is declared. You
will cause the said decree to be executed in conformity with this.
In the letter in which you spoke of the offices to which you had
made appointments after you took possession of your duties, you
say that on account of the resignation of Pedro Sotelo de Morales,
[34] who served as the warden of the Santiago fort in that city, you
appointed Don Antonio de Leoz to that office with a yearly salary
of eight hundred pesos, the same salary which his predecessors
have received, with the condition of receiving my approval within
five years. But because persons who hold the offices _ad interim_
are not to take more than half the salary which is attached to the
office, in conformity with the provisions of various royal decrees,
you will take measures and give orders that the said Don Antonio de
Leoz or his bondsmen shall return to my royal exchequer any sum that
he has received exceeding half the said salary; and I shall write to
my royal officials in that city to collect it. You are advised that
in the future such appointees are not to receive more than half the
salary. [Madrid, September 3, 1627.]
_I The King_
Countersigned by Don Fernando Ruiz de Contreras.
LAWS REGARDING THE SANGLEYS
[The following laws are translated from _Recopilación de leyes de las
Indias_ (Madrid, 1841), lib. vi, tit. xviii. For method of treatment,
sec _Vol_. XVII of this series, p. 27.]
Law III
The bishops do not permit the Christian Chinese who are converted to
our holy Catholic faith in the Filipinas Islands to return to their
own country, so that intercourse and living among heathen may not
cause them to fall into the peril of apostasy; and the governor,
knowing that they have no other manner of livelihood except their
trading in the neighborhood, buying provisions in order to supply the
community, does not allow them to leave Manila without permission,
which is a very great obstacle and stumbling-block to the conversion
of others. We order that no fee be charged for those permits; and the
governor shall have great consideration and care, that no trouble
results from them, in respect to the Chinese having free passage
through those islands. [Felipe II--Madrid, June 11, 1594.]
Law IX
The goods of the Sangleys who come to trade in Filipinas with Chinese
merchandise, and who sell them at wholesale at a price [named] by
persons deputed for it (which is what is there called _pancada_), are
left in their possession under guarantee that they will not dispose
of them without an order from the governor; and that a price will not
be set on the small things, but only on certain fine products. And
inasmuch as this is advisable, we order that the Sangleys be notified
who shall have to return to those islands, that they must and shall
pass according to the laws and orders that shall be made for them. And,
in respect to the pancada, it shall be continued with, all gentleness,
so that the Sangleys shall not receive any injury; and so that no
occasion be given them so that they shall discontinue their coming
to attend to their trading. [Felipe II--Madrid, June 11, 1594.]
Law X
We have been informed that the Sangley Indians who go from China
to Filipinas to trade, receive injuries and harsh treatment from
the Spaniards; and especially that the guards posted in their ships
by our royal officials ask and take bribes from them, in order that
they might permit and allow the Sangleys to take out certain things
that they bring from their country to give to private persons; that
the employees who go to register the ships take and scatter all the
best merchandise, and leave that which is not of so good quality,
from which there results a considerable loss on the balance, and
often the Sangleys cannot sell what is left, as they could have done
with the good merchandise which was taken away from them; that even
when the Chinese who go to register take the best, the officials
say that they will pay for it at the price for which the balance
is sold, so that they only pay the price of the worst and common
merchandise. Thus the Chinese lose what would be the most valuable
things that they have if they sold them freely; for, fearing lest the
employees who go to register take from them the merchandise at the time
of evaluation, they place on their merchandise a greater value than it
is really worth, so that they pay the duties at the rate at which the
merchandise is valued, although the truth is that they sell it later
for much less. [We are also informed] that the masts of their vessels
are taken from them, in order to step these in the vessels built in
those islands, for their masts are light; and that they are given in
exchange others so heavy that their ships cannot support them and are
wrecked, from which the Chinese suffer grievously. And since it is
right that when those people go to trade they be welcomed and given
good treatment, in order that upon their return to their country,
they may take good accounts of the treatment and welcome received
from our vassals, that others may thereby be induced to go, and by
means of that communication receive the Christian instruction and
profess our holy Catholic faith, to which our chief desire and intent
is directed: we order the governors that, after having examined the
character of these injuries, they issue the necessary orders for
the cessation of such troubles. They shall not allow the Sangley
Chinese, or any other traders, to receive any injury, molestation,
or oppression such as is mentioned herein, or others of any sort;
and they shall be very careful to treat the Sangleys well and to give
them good despatch. They shall punish those who offend and aggrieve
them. We charge this upon them very earnestly, as it is a matter of
great moment to our royal service. [Felipe II--Madrid, June 11, 1594.]
Law XIII
We order the governor and captain-general not to allow the citizens
and residents of Manila to keep Sangleys in their houses; and to
prohibit them from sleeping inside the city. He shall, if necessary,
order the judge of the foreigners to punish him who does not observe
this, severely and with heavy fines. [Felipe III--Madrid, May 6, 1608.]
Law VI
Inasmuch as the alcaldes-mayor of Manila have claimed the right
to try the suits and causes of the Chinese who live in the Parián,
jointly with its governor, we consider it fitting to order the ruling
of ley xxiv, título iii, libro v, which concedes the first instance
exclusively to the governor [of the Parián], with appeals to the
Audiencia. [35] Now it is our will, and we order the president,
governor, and captain-general, and the Audiencia, not to allow any
ordinary judge or one who has received a commission, to try civil or
criminal suits or causes of the Sangleys in the first instance, even
if they be auditors of that Audiencia, who shall be performing the
duties of criminal alcaldes; neither shall they try cases regarding
the locations or inspection of shops or their trade (for it pertains
exclusively to the governor of the Parián to try such), except it be
a case so extraordinary, necessary, and requisite that it becomes
advisable to limit this rule. [Felipe III--Ventosilla, October 15,
1603; El Pardo, June 12, 1614.]
Law XI
In the city of Manila the custom was established that a certain
number of fowls be given to the president, auditors, and officials of
the Audiencia annually at a price lower than the current rate. The
governor of the Chinese was ordered to make the assessment among
all the Chinese, obliging them to give weekly so many fowls at a
fixed and lower price, and to punish and fine him who did not obey
it. That has caused the Chinese considerable injury. The governor
of the Chinese got as many others at the same price. We order that
no such assessment be made or asked from the Chinese, and that it be
left to each person's own will to buy those fowls that are necessary
to him, and to the Chinese to sell them at the price that they can
and that is current. [Felipe III--Madrid, May 29, 1619.]
Law VIII
Many Sangleys are converted to our holy Catholic faith in the Filipinas
Islands, who are married to native Indian women of those islands,
and live in the environs of the city. If a site be given them in the
unfilled lands where they can assemble and form a village, in order to
cultivate and sow the land, in which they are very skillful, they would
become very useful to the community, and would not occupy themselves in
retailing and hawking food; while they would become more domestic and
peaceful, and the city more secure, even should the Sangleys increase
in number. We order the governor and captain-general to enact thus,
and to endeavor to preserve them and to look out for them with the
care that is advisable. [Felipe III--San Lorenzo, August 25, 1620.]
Law IV
The governor shall have particular care not to impose personal
services on the Sangleys, outside of their [usual] employment and
rules; and he shall endeavor to give them good treatment, in order
to induce and incite others to go thither, to be converted to our
holy Catholic faith. [Felipe III--San Lorenzo, September 5, 1620.]
Law I
It is advisable for the security of the city of Manila, the island
of Luzon, and all the other islands of that government, that the
number of the Chinese be very moderate, and that it do not exceed
six thousand, since that number is sufficient for the service of
the country; and, if that number be increased, the troubles that
have been experienced may result, notwithstanding the permission
that was conceded by ley lv, título xv, libro ii, [36] which is
to be understood until this limitation is reached. Likewise it is
advisable that there should not be so many Japanese in that city,
for they already exceed three thousand, because there has been
neglect and carelessness in driving them away from there; while the
number of the Chinese has been increased through greed for the eight
pesos that each one pays for his license. In regard to the above, we
order our governor and captain-general to apply the fitting remedy,
taking note that the licenses are not to be given for money, or for
any other interest, either in their own behalf, or for that of other
government employees. They shall only consider what is most advisable
to the welfare of the public cause, the security of the land, trade and
commerce, and the friendly reception of the foreigners and surrounding
peoples, and the other nations with whom there shall be peace. That
commerce and relationship shall be continued, and all care and caution
shall always be taken so that the Chinese and Japanese shall not be
so numerous, and that those who shall be there may live in quietness,
fear, and submission. But that shall not be any reason for not treating
them well. [Felipe III--Ventosilla, November 4, 1606; Madrid, May 29,
1620. Felipe IV--Madrid, December 31, 1622.]
Law II
The licenses that the governor of Filipinas shall issue so that some
Sangley Chinese may remain in the islands, shall be with the consent of
our royal officials, and account shall be rendered of all. The money
resulting therefrom (eight pesos for each license) shall be placed in
our royal treasury. A separate book shall be kept there, and names
and marks [of identification?] shall be entered in it distinctly,
so that there may be no concealment. [37] [Felipe III--Madrid,
January 12, 1614. Felipe IV--Madrid, November 21, 1625.]
Law VII
The Sangleys converted to our holy Catholic faith shall not pay tribute
for the first ten years after their conversion; after that time it
shall be collected from them as from the natives of Filipinas. [38]
[Felipe IV--Madrid, June 14, 1627.]
Law XII
The Sangley Chinese of Filipinas have a box with three keys, in
which each Sangley deposits twelve reals per year in order to meet
their obligations to our royal service with that fund. We order
that if there be any balance in any year, it be not withdrawn; and
that the Sangleys be assessed so much less the following year. [39]
[Felipe IV--Madrid, September 10, 1627.]
DECREES REGARDING THE RELIGIOUS
_Concerning lawlessness of Augustinian religious_
The King. To the president and auditors of my royal Audiencia of
the city of Manila of the Philipinas Islands: In a letter written
to me by Don Francisco de Caravajal Campo Frio, dated August two
of the former year six hundred and twenty-five, he declares that
while alcalde-mayor of the province of Balayan, he heard that Diego
Larias Maldonado had arrived there, who had run away with the wife
of a certain man. He had them arrested in the town of Batangas, a
mission of Augustinian friars. He declares that Fray Antonio Muxica,
prior of the said order, at the head of his fiscal and choristers,
broke open the gates of the prison, and loosed the prisoners,
after maltreating the government agents. And although he drew up a
report about this action, and informed their superior of it--sending
the latter a copy of the report, while he kept the original, in
order to give you an account of it--the superior did not inflict
punishment, but on the contrary exerted himself to get hold of the
original report. But as he did not succeed in this, two religious,
accompanied by over one hundred natives, went to Caravajal's house,
surrounded it, went up stairs where he was, and took away the said
[original] report from him, after having bound him and maltreated
him by word and deed. Although he informed you of it, that crime has
not yet been punished. Inasmuch as it is not right that such a crime
remain without punishment, I have considered it fitting to send you
a copy of the said letter, so that if the relation made by the said
Don Francisco de Caravajal Campo Frio be true, you may enact justice,
in order that, in the future, it may serve as a warding. For this
you shall have recourse to the provincial of the said order. Given
in Madrid, May twenty-one, one thousand six hundred and twenty-seven.
_I The King_
Countersigned by Don Juan Fernando Ruiz de Contreras, and signed by
the members of the Council.
[_Endorsed_: "To the Manila Audiencia, sending it a copy of a letter
written to your Majesty by Don Francisco Caravajal Campo Frio in
regard to the outrage committed against him by certain religious of
St. Augustine, so that, if his report be true, justice may be done."]
_Granting alms to the Augustinians_
The King. To the officials of my royal treasury of the Philipinas
Islands: You know already that it was ordered by a decree of the king
my father (who is in glory), dated August seven, of the former year
six hundred and one, that a ration for two additional religious be
given for four years longer to the convent of St. Augustine, of that
city of Manila, in the manner that it is given to four religious in
that convent; and that he prolonged the said time for another four
years by another decree of six hundred and sixteen, and for another
four years (which are completed) by another decree of May nine, six
hundred and twenty. Now Fray Hernando Guerrero, of the said order,
bishop-elect of the city of Nueva Segovia in those islands, has
reported to me in the name of the said convent, that the religious
of his order from the other convents are entertained and treated
there in their sicknesses; and that it is in a college and seminary
of grammar, the arts, and theology, whence subjects go out to preach
the holy gospel. In consideration of that, he petitions me to order
that the said ration continue to be given to the said two religious
for such time as I may choose.
The matter having been examined by the members of my royal Council of
the Indias, I have considered it advisable to order that it be given
to them for another four years, that time to run and be counted from
the day on which the said last four years were completed. Accordingly,
I order you to pay to the said monastery of the Order of St. Augustine
in that city, from any revenue that may be in that my treasury, the
said ration for the said two additional religious, during the said
four years of this prolongation, in the same form and manner as it
is given to the other four religious; for such is my will.
Given in Madrid, June eleven, one thousand six hundred and
twenty-seven.
_I The King_
Countersigned by Fernando Ruiz de Contreras.
_Recommendation of the Council of the Indias regarding the Recollects_
Sire:
Fray Pedro de la Madre de Dios, procurator of the order of discalced
Augustinians in the Philipinas Islands, has represented that the
poverty of the religious of that order is very great, as they have no
income; and inasmuch as medicines are dear, they cannot get the money
in order to buy those necessary for the sick, whence it follows that
they cannot maintain the health necessary for their attending to the
ministry of preaching and instruction among the Indians, and the relief
of the royal conscience. He petitions your Majesty, in consideration
of the above, to grant alms to the said religious, so that they be
given the medicines urgently necessary to treat themselves, as these
are given to the religious of St. Dominic and St. Francis. He says
that what they can use would amount to one hundred and fifty pesos
annually. The matter having been examined in the Council, and the
poverty of the said order appearing, and seeing that they have no
income, and having considered how well they serve our Lord in the
conversion of the natives under their charge; it seems best that
your Majesty grant favor to the said religious, for six years, of the
medicines that may be necessary in order to cure the sick, provided
that it do not exceed in any year the stated sum of one hundred and
fifty pesos above mentioned. Your Majesty will show them such favor
as is in accord with your royal will. Madrid, November 4, 1627.
[Signed by the members of the Council.]
[_Endorsed_: "Council of the Indias. November 4, 1627." "+That your
Majesty might grant concession for six years to the discalced friars
of the Order of St. Augustine, of the medicines necessary for the
treatment of their sick." _In a different hand, evidently that of
the king_: "+It is well."]
DECREES REGARDING THE CHINESE
The King. To Don Juan Niño de Tavora, my governor and captain-general
of the Filipinas Islands, and president of my royal Audiencia
resident therein: Fray Melchor de Manzano, of the Order of Preachers,
has reported to me, in the name of the Sangley Chinese who live
in those islands, that the said Chinese, in order to avoid the
wrongs that they received from the [government] ministers who were
exacting daily assessments that were levied on them for my royal
service, established a chest with three keys, in which each one was
to deposit annually twelve reals in silver, in order to aid in the
despatches of the warships, galleys, and trading-vessels for Nueva
España, the powder-house, the artillery, the building of ships and
other undertakings. Among other conditions that they required, in
order that this assessment might be made among them, was one that
they were to have no protector; but that in case one were assigned
them, he be not the fiscal of that Audiencia, as such office was
incompatible with his duties, and because of the experience of long
years that it was rather a damage than an advantage to him--and that,
for that reason, the said office of protector had been made separate
in the beginning from that of fiscal, until Don Juan de Albarado
Bracamonte, when fiscal, had so negotiated that the said occupation
be assigned to him. The father petitioned me that since the said
Sangley Chinese spend so much in aiding my service and pay so fully
the salaries to their alcalde, and chief of guard, lesser protector,
and to the ministers of instruction, without any expense therein to
my royal treasury, it be ordered that the said fund cannot be altered
or suppressed, unless the said Chinese should voluntarily wish to
do away with it or to make some alteration, or change certain of the
conditions which they established when the fund was established; and
that the said office of protector be distinct from that of fiscal,
and that the office be given to a person who will protect and defend
them. If there remain any balance in the said fund at the end of each
year, he petitions that the Chinese be allowed to spend it, without
the permission of any person, for the welfare and benefit of their
village or church. By that means they will be spared new expenses
that must necessarily be made for that purpose. After examination by
the members of my Council of the Indias, of this request and of the
statements regarding it by my fiscal of the Council, Licentiate Juan
Pardo, it was voted that I should order this my decree to be given,
by which I command you to provide and order that the said office of
protector be not held by the fiscal of that Audiencia. From now and
henceforth, you shall appoint to it a satisfactory person, giving him
the salary that is assigned. You shall charge him to look after the
said Sangley Chinese very carefully, so that they may not be annoyed
or vexed, and that no ill treatment be accorded them. You shall order
that the balance remaining each year in the said fund be left there,
and that the Chinese be assessed so much less the following year,
After the accomplishment and execution of the aforesaid, you and the
said Audiencia shall inform me of the status of matters, and what
are the facts in regard to what is mentioned by the said Fray Melchor
de Manzano, and the advantages or disadvantages, present and future,
of what he asks for; so that, after my said Council has examined it,
the advisable measures may be taken. Madrid, September 10, 1627.
_I The King_
By order of the king, our sovereign:
_Don Fernando Ruiz de Contreras_
The King. Fray Melchor Manzano, of the Order of St. Dominic, has
reported to me, in behalf of the Sangley Chinese living in the Parian
outside the walls of the city of Manila, that they experience much
extortion and injury, on account of not only what pertains to the
Christianity that they profess, but their liberty, possessions, and
honor, by making them cut their hair when they become Christians--a
thing regarded as ignominious by their nation, and which is an obstacle
to their conversion, and contrary to the orders of the decree of
the king our sovereign and grandfather, who is in glory; as also
that they pay annually sixty-four reals in silver, in addition to
the ordinary tribute, or that they return to their own country,
which means that they are forced to abandon the faith which they
received with baptism. He declares that that tribute was never paid
by the Christians until it was imposed by Don Alonso de Faxardo, my
former governor of the Filipinas Islands, contrary to the advice of
my Audiencia resident therein. Fray Melchor has petitioned me that,
attentive to the above, I be pleased to order that those converted to
our holy Catholic faith be not obliged to cut their hair, or pay the
said tribute, or anything else besides the ordinary tribute paid by
the natives of the said islands; or that it be moderated so that their
conversion may not thereby be made difficult, and that those who once
receive the faith be not obliged to abandon it by returning to their
country because of their inability to pay so large a tribute--since
the majority of those converted are poor laborers, who cannot earn
that tribute. Having examined the matter in my royal Council of the
Indias, I have considered it expedient to order this my decree to
be issued. By it I order that for the first ten years after their
conversion the said Sangley Chinese pay no tribute, and that none
be collected from them, as I have commanded shall be done in regard
to the other pagan Indians who are converted. After the ten years,
the tribute shall be collected from them, as from the natives of
the said islands. I order my governor and captain-general of the
islands to see that the above is strictly obeyed and observed, and
not to allow their hair to be cut, in observance of the decree that
has been issued concerning this matter. Madrid, November 19, 1627.
_I The King_
By order of the king, our sovereign:
_Don Fernando Ruiz De Contreras_
INADVISABILITY OF A SPANISH POST ON THE ISLAND OF FORMOSA
I would consider it a very important fact that the Spaniards of
Filipinas have seized and fortified a site on the island of Hermosa,
if that would be the efficacious means of driving out the Dutch from
their fort and from that island by force of arms, but otherwise not.
In order to discuss this proposition reasonably, it will be necessary
first to investigate the objects that the Dutch may have had in order
to have fortified, as they have done for the last three or four years,
the island of Hermosa.
Some have thought that the purpose of the Dutch must be to destroy
commerce between China and Filipinas, by plundering more at their
ease the Chinese ships, because they are there near China, and in a
place where the fleets from Manila which have sometimes defeated them,
cannot attack them. But in my judgment, this is not their purpose,
although it is a fact that they are very near the coasts of China in
the island of Hermosa. For that reason, even the Chinese, before they
set sail, ascertain by means of oared craft whether Dutch vessels are
waiting in that place. Consequently, they either do not leave their
ports, or if they leave, accomplish their voyage, since they can do so
easily by sailing so as not to go within sight of the island. But it
is impossible to escape the Dutch ships when they await the Chinese
on the coasts of Filipinas, as they have done since the year 609,
when they began that practice, until that of 625. During that time
scarcely any ship escaped them; for the Dutch generally go to the
coasts of Filipinas when there is no time to advise the Chinese not
to leave their country. The latter, having sailed, necessarily fall
into the hands of the Dutch. However, it is true that when the Dutch
await the Chinese on the coasts of Manila, they need a larger fleet;
and that they risk its loss by fighting with that of Manila. Here
the capture of the Chinese is assured, while for the above reasons
(of which the Dutch are not ignorant) that is almost impossible in
the island of Hermosa.
In my opinion, then, the purpose of the Dutch is to establish a
factory in the island of Hermosa, in order to trade with the Chinese
by buying silks from them, and to sail with these to Japon (although
taking some of them to Europa also, as well as other goods), just as
the Portuguese of Macan do. I am persuaded of this, for, while I was
sailing from Filipinas to Nueva España as captain and master of the
ship "San Francisco," which was wrecked in Japon in the year 609--the
first time when the Dutch went to that kingdom--the Dutch petitioned
for a factory from him whom we style emperor of Japon, offering to take
him silks from China. Thereupon it was given to them, notwithstanding
that the emperor was informed by the Spaniards, and by one Guillermo
Adan [40]--an Englishman who had been living married in Japon for many
years, to whom the emperor turned for information--that the Dutch were
rebel vassals [of the Spaniards] and pirates; and that they could not
get the silks if they did not plunder them from the Chinese. Thus did
they establish their factory in the port of Firando, where they have
maintained themselves to this very day, taking the silks that they
have pillaged from the Chinese, and certain cloth stuffs from Europa,
and buying food and supplies for their forces in the Malucas and other
islands of those regions. Governor Don Juan de Silva, having conquered
on the coasts of Filipinas the fleet of the Dutch who were robbing the
Chinese in the year 610, it was learned from the instructions of Count
Mauricio that they were forbidden to plunder the Chinese and other
nations, and that they were only permitted to trade with them. Thus,
although they robbed the Chinese, it was on their own responsibility,
and incited by greed; and even that they palliated by making a price
on the silks, by weighing them, and settling the account for that
amount. Paying for the goods partly in reals--although only a small
part--they gave to the Chinese due-bills on the factory of La Sunda. I
saw those papers in their own flagship, as I was captured by the Dutch
in the said year 610, when I was returning from the wreck at Japon to
the Filipinas. Nor does it contradict this that since then they have
continued to plunder the Chinese, since they have given out that they
do it because the silks were bought for silver which the Spaniards
of Manila are sending to China; and because even supposing that the
silks be some belonging to the Chinese, they do not wish the latter
to trade with the Spaniards, their enemies. Consequently, although
the Dutch have pillaged them, it has been by affecting this pretext,
and giving them to understand that the Dutch were not their enemies.
But what most persuades me to believe that this is the object of
the Dutch is because they are not ignorant of the great advantage to
them of buying silks from the Chinese and taking their investments
to Japon; for it is evident to them from the high profits made by the
Portuguese of Macan. That profit will be greater for them because of
the greater ease of making the investment, and their nearer and easier
navigation. Whenever any other nation wishes to trade with the Chinese,
that trading must be done entirely with silver; and as the Dutch can
take so little silver from Europa, and have no opportunity to get it
from Japon unless in exchange for Chinese merchandise, it is certain
that, both because of the high profits of this trade and in order to
maintain themselves in their factory at Japon--whence they furnish the
forts of the Malucas, Ambueno, and other places with supplies and some
food--they will procure the trade with the Chinese by all possible
means, by maintaining a factory in the island of Hermosa. Thus,
becoming wealthy, they will utterly destroy Macan and deprive the
Filipinas of the trade of Chinese silks which they had in Japon,
which was formerly of so great profit that the investment generally
yielded one hundred per cent in eight or nine months.
It is to be noted that this trade of Macan and Filipinas with Japon
is the principal thing that should be aided by España, for it does
not involve the danger of having the silver of the Indias wasted in
China, if voyages are made to Macan from Lisboa by way of India,
because it comes from China to Portugal, and from Nueva España to
the Filipinas in return for what is taken to Nueva España. As for
the investments made in Macan and Filipinas for Japon, the return
for these is silver from the mines of Japon itself.
Now, then, it seems very advisable, for the above reasons, immediately
to drive out the Dutch from the island of Hermosa, if there is any
possibility and power therefor, uniting the forces of Filipinas,
if necessary, with those of Macan--to whom the question is so vital,
both because of the said reason of the commerce (which is of prime
importance), and because the island of Hermosa lies in the path of
the voyage from Macan to Japon; and also, I do not deny, because it
is possible that the Dutch have taken a port in the island of Hermosa
in order to conquer Macan therefrom, to which they are very near,
as they attempted to do in the year 622. Therefore, it will be more
expedient and convenient to drive out the Dutch from this island of
Hermosa as soon as it is attempted; and that will be very gratifying
to the Chinese, who are much offended at the Dutch because of the many
robberies of their ships in the Filipinas trade that the Dutch have
committed for the last seventeen years, and are bitterly hostile to
them. But although it seems that that hostility will be sufficient,
for the present, for the Chinese not to make any beginning in commerce
in the island of Hermosa with the Dutch, that disinclination will
disappear in a short time--both because of the kind reception that the
Chinese will experience from the Dutch, and because the Chinese are so
notably covetous that, although they are prohibited under penalty of
losing life and property from trading with Japon, some ships laden
with silks have gone to that kingdom during the last few years,
pretending in Chinese ports that they are going to the Filipinas.
The above is what occurs to me in regard to the first part. In regard
to the second, namely, that it is not advisable for us to have a
port in the island of Hermosa, whether the Dutch are there or not,
my opinion is the following.
Since the Dutch are there, one would think it advisable to prevent
them by force of arms from the commerce of China. But for that one
must attack either the Chinese or the Dutch. Since the Chinese are
our friends, and since we cannot live in the Filipinas without their
trade, I do not see how it can be done justifiably, as they are free
to trade with all. Even should we attempt it, they will oblige us
to permit them [to trade as they choose] by taking the trade from
the Filipinas. But if it should have to be by attacking the ships of
the Dutch, new and very long and costly wars would be renewed which
would complete the exhaustion of the Filipinas, as has been done in
those of Terrenate. Then, too, we would not have greater advantages
in this war in the island of Hermosa than in those of Terrenate;
for it also is a war to be carried on with ships, and the Dutch have
their factories of Japon very near by. They are not inferior to us in
accommodations, although the island of Hermosa is near the Filipinas.
But if the Dutch were expelled from it, neither do I find any advantage
in the Spaniards having a fort and settlement in that island at
present, considering the condition of the Filipinas, unless it be
to prevent the return of the enemy to refortify it. For first we
must determine for that purpose, whether we can prevent that, by the
nature of the island and by other circumstances that would render it
very difficult--as was seen in Terrenate, when, although we had five
hundred or more Spaniards there, the Dutch built another fort almost
in sight of ours (which they still hold), as soon as we gained that
small island. Now, too, although the Dutch were fortified first in
the island of Hermosa, they have not prevented us from effecting a
settlement there. For among other things, for such purposes, more
men are necessary, and the cost of those men with whom a fortress in
a kingdom not one's own is generally maintained.
But, as this object is not involved in the other considerations which
present themselves to my mind for keeping up a Spanish settlement
in that island, I do not see that, for the present, the Spaniards
are obliged to do that. For that island is not of importance to us,
either for its own products or for the commerce of China--on the
former ground, because it is a poor and barren land, of which it is now
always said in the Filipinas that it only produces fruits and timber;
nor is it for the second, for if it be made a way-station, wherein
to invest in the silks of China, that means to add a new voyage from
the Filipinas, which on account of its expenses cannot make up for
the convenience of purchasing in Filipinas those same products, which
the Chinese carry to Manila. If one tries to say that, by this means,
the Chinese ships would not be stopped by the Dutch ships that await
them on the coasts of Filipinas; and that if that voyage be made from
the island of Hermosa in Spanish ships, they will sail more secure:
I answer that there is less danger for the ships as they sail now. For,
since the Chinese do not understand latitude and the directions of the
compass perfectly, they do not know enough to go [by direct routes]
to sight land in the Filipinas, thus making safe the coast where the
Dutch await them; [41] but in that case [i.e., if they go only to
Formosa] the Dutch, changing their position, would go to await the
Chinese and our ships near our port or the island of Hermosa. Since
those ships would have to sail so well equipped that they could defend
themselves, it would be so costly an undertaking that it could not be
maintained--especially at the present time, when the Filipinas are so
exhausted and so in need of men, by reason of the reënforcements to
Maluco, the entrances into Mindanao, and the insurrections in certain
provinces of the natives. Besides, there is the so great danger to
Manila from the swarms of abandoned heathen Sangleys who live there,
besides other Chinese residents who are married and Christians, but
lazy, and the great number of non-producing Japanese there also;
and for security and defense from all these, the Spaniards do not
even possess what is necessary.
Neither has that island of Hermosa such a location that it can be
desirable for the ships of Filipinas that sail both to Japon and to
Macan, to put in or to seek shelter there; and even less so for those
returning from a port where they have taken refuge when they sail to
Nueva España, or when, in sailing from Nueva España to Filipinas,
by arriving late, the vendavals overtake them; or for ships on any
other of the courses that we sail today.
But if one would say that it is a matter of importance for greater
attempts that could be offered in time, by reason of the entrance into
or conversion of China, that is not approved now. On the contrary,
I fear from the caution and mistrust of the Chinese, that if we
maintain a settlement in the island of Hermosa, and it is not clear
to them that it is strictly necessary for that conservation, [they
will act] without heeding other ends which they must obtain by way of
diverting the trade with the Filipinas (since we see that they forced
the Portuguese to tear down the fortification that they permitted
them to erect in Macan, in view of the risk of its being captured
by the Dutch in the year 622, who threatened to return to attempt
it with a greater fleet the following year, although they had not
returned up to the year 625). They are not unaware that Castilians
and Portuguese are vassals of one and the same king. Neither have
the Dutch failed to publish (as they did in Japon), that it is the
custom of the king of España to conquer kingdoms under pretext of
religion. That report, according to the religious of Japon themselves,
has been one of the chief causes for the instigation of so terrible
a persecution against Christians. Very true is it that the success in
conversion in which his Majesty has so disinterested and holy an end,
can neither be assured nor guided only by human reason. Consequently,
what I judge to be an unsuitable thing might be the best method to
attain it. In this argument one ought also to consider the heathen
natives themselves in the island of Hermosa; but, admitting this,
even for them at present I conclude that his Majesty is under no
obligations whatever, because he has in the Filipinas not a few
Indians who pay tribute, but who do not have sufficient ministers
to instruct them. Also there are many heathen, who, because their
country is not yet conquered, are without any knowledge at all of the
holy gospel. But I shall not go into greater detail on this point,
for it may, perhaps, seem to be outside the question.
Neither do I imagine that all that has occurred to me concerning this
matter, and much more, has been left unconsidered by Don Fernando
de Silva, governor of Filipinas, at whose order a site was occupied
on Hermosa Island; for he is a very prudent gentleman and a gallant
soldier, and one who will not have permitted the desire for glory
and honor, of which the discoverers and conquerors of new lands are
justly worthy, to carry him away. Yet I do not, on that account, regard
myself as under no obligations to advise you of my opinion. Madrid,
December 20, 1627.
_Doctor Don Juan Cevicos_
DOCUMENTS OF 1628-1629
Relation of 1627-28. [Unsigned]; July, 1628.
Report of appointments made by the governor. Juan Niño de
Tavora; August 2, 1628.
Letters to Felipe IV. Juan Niño de Tavora; August 4, 1628.
Economic reasons for suppressing the silk trade of China
in Spain and its colonies. Juan Velazquez Madrco; October
7, 1628.
Decrees regarding the Chinese. Felipe IV; June, 1628-March,
1629.
Relations of 1628-29. Hernando Estrado, and others; 1628-29.
_Sources_: Most of these documents are from MSS. in the Archivo
general de Indias, Sevilla, The first one is from the Ventura del Arco
MSS. (Ayer library); the fifth, from the Archivo Historico Nacional,
Madrid; and the last, from MSS. in the Real Academia de la Historia,
Madrid.
_Translations_: The second of these documents is translated by Robert
W. Haight; the second part of the last, by Arthur B. Myrick; all the
rest, by James A. Robertson.
RELATION OF 1627-28
_Copy of a relation-written by a father of this residence of Manila
on the condition of these Filipinas Islands, and other surrounding
kingdoms and provinces, from the month of July, 1627, until that
of 1628._
In the port of Cavite, which lies three leguas away from and opposite
the city of Manila, four very fine galleons were being equipped, that
in size and strength could compare with the best in the world. For
the flagship was the "Concepción;" for almiranta, the "Santa Teresa;"
while the other two were called "San Yldefonso" and the "Peña de
Francia." Besides these there was another smaller ship called the
"Rosario," and two other pataches and two galleys. The work was
progressing rapidly; for as soon as the merchant ships that sail to
Nueva España were despatched, our people had to begin their voyage to
the island of Hermosa near China, in order to dislodge the Dutch who
were fortifying themselves there. [42] That might result in notable
damage to this city of Manila, and to Macao, by obstructing their
trade with China, Japon, and other kingdoms. The food, ammunition,
and artillery were already embarked, and many implements of war,
in order to carry on the war by sea and land. On July 7. they began
to lade the flagship with quantities of tiling which it was also
necessary to take. But, burdened with the great weight, the flagship
showed that it was not to make the voyage; for it commenced to leak
so badly that it could not be kept pumped out. Consequently, it was
necessary to unlade it, and they had to resolve to leave it behind
in the port, to their great sorrow.
The galleon "San Yldefonso" became the flagship. The season was already
advanced, and especially for the galleys, which need more calm weather
to enable them to navigate. Accordingly, the galleys were despatched
ahead July 26, under command of Don Pedro Alcarazo. On August 17,
the chief part of the fleet, namely, the galleons and pataches,
left port. Governor Don Juan Niño de Tabora was in the flagship;
master-of-camp Don Lorenzo de Olaso in the almiranta; in the "Peña de
Francia," Sargento-mayor Alonso Martin Quirante, an old and well-tried
soldier; in the ship "Rosario," Captain Lazaro de Torres, a daring
man in war; and in the other two pataches, two other captains. Each
vessel carried a quantity of artillery, each galleon having more than
forty very large pieces. There were many and very courageous men;
although when they saw that contrary weather was setting in it did
not fail to dishearten them, as was immediately seen. For scarcely
had they left the port of Cavite (even before emerging from that
bay), when so fierce a storm overtook them that the fleet was in
danger of being wrecked. One patache sprang a leak, and commenced to
take in water so badly that it was forced to make port and remain
there. The governor--seeing that as the season was so late, it was
quite possible that he could not get to the island of Hermosa and
return to port with the fleet; and as quite a long period had passed
since any reënforcement had been sent to our fort on the same island
of Hermosa; and since he imagined that they were suffering very
great need of everything necessary--in the probability of what might
happen, determined to send Captain Lázaro de Torres ahead with his
little vessel the "Rosario," which was carrying a large quantity of
food. As it was a small, swift-sailing ship, he hoped that it would
surely arrive, which was not looked for in regard to the rest of the
fleet. We shall relate the experience of this vessel later.
Our fleet proceeded on its course, but with so contrary winds from
the north that they [as it were,] consumed the vessels; and the seas
ran mountain high toward the heavens, so that one would believe
that they were trying to engulf them. They reached Cape Bojeador,
although after considerable danger. That is the end of the island of
Manila, where one crosses to the island of Hermosa. At that point the
storms increased so violently that, a council of the pilots having
been called, all thought that they should put in to port; for it was
impossible to go any farther until the next year, when the expedition
could be undertaken at a better season. They put back, and the fleet
reentered Cavite on September 6. That was considered as not a little
[good fortune by the Dutch]; for, as was afterward learned from some
Dutchmen, whom the Portuguese of Macan captured, the enemy on the
island of Hermosa were very weak and determined not to fight, but to
leave their fort at the arrival of our fleet. Now the Dutch will be
in a state of readiness, so that it will cost a triumph to capture
the fort; and, even, may it please God that we can gain such a result.
Some fathers of St. Dominic and of our Society were going in the fleet
with the intention of remaining in the island of Hermosa, in order to
engage in the conversion of its natives who are heathen. As servants
of our fathers were also going two disguised Japanese fathers, in
order to see whether they might go to Japon by way of the island of
Hermosa. Their provincial had sent them for that purpose from Macan;
for, as the door of Japon is so tightly closed, Ours seek extraordinary
means to enter there, to aid that afflicted Christian people.
But let us return to follow our galleys. One can well guess how they
would fare, when so large galleons suffered from the storm. They
were struck very severely, but they made their voyage nevertheless,
until they sighted the fort of the Dutch enemy on the island of
Hermosa. From there, they put back to this island of Manila, in the
province of Ylocos, because of the violence of the weather. While in
port there, they had so fierce a storm that, having been hardly used by
the past storm, their seams opened and they went to the bottom. Twenty
convicts were drowned, and three Spaniards. The other men, even the
commander himself, got away by swimming, and, as the land was near,
they were able to reach it without much difficulty. That disastrous
news reached this city October 20.
We come now to the ship "Rosario" in which Captain Lazaro de
Torres was sailing. It made its voyage, although not without
trouble. It reached our fort on the island of Hermosa, and its
arrival gladdened and rejoiced our men greatly, for they were in
great need of food. It had been more than a year since aid had
been sent to them from Manila. At the ship's arrival, it was found
that a disaster had overtaken our men. It happened that there was a
chief on the river of Tanchuy, not far from our fort, who professed
great friendship for our men for his reasons of state, which are not
wanting even among barbarians. Those reasons were that that chief
had wars of long standing with another chief whose domain was on the
other side of the river; and he wished to have our men on his side,
for whatever might happen. Our men trusting to his friendship, and
forced by the necessity that they were suffering, the commander sent
Captain Don Antonio de Vera with twenty Spaniards to the said river
of Tanchuy to bring back rice to our men; for that is the ordinary
bread, and that country abounds plentifully with it. Captain Antonio
de Vera and his twenty Spaniards remained one or two months with the
chief of Tanchuy, who, although he feasted them, did not conclude by
giving them the provisions to return. The captain began to fear some
detention, and sent to our fort for more men, in order to negotiate
with arquebuses what they were unable to compass by kindness; but
these were not sent. The chief concerted secretly with his opponent,
and made peace with him. One day he took Captain Don Antonio and the
other Spaniards out hunting; and suddenly attacked them, and killed
the said captain and seven others. They first sold their lives,
and with greed for death itself, killed some of their false friends,
really their enemies--among them the very chief who contrived that
treachery. The other Spaniards sought shelter in a small boat which
they had there, left the river, and went to our fort, giving news
of the disaster just as Captain Lazaro de Torres arrived. With the
help that had just come to them, they determined to take vengeance
for that perfidy. The commandant sent the said captain, Lazaro de
Torres, with one of the galleys which they had there, accompanied
by one hundred infantrymen. They entered the river of Tanchuy, which
is very beautiful, and densely inhabited by the natives. The latter
immediately deserted their settlements, and our men went to the rice
granaries, and filled their galley and four large champans, which are
used as freight ships in these seas. They could have filled fifty if
they had had them, so great is the abundance in that country. They
captured I know not how many persons; then without doing any more
evil or burning their villages, they retired with plenty of food,
which was the most important thing. This feat having been performed,
the said Lazaro de Torres returned with his ship to Manila, where he
entered February 21, 1628.
On the same day that our fleet reached the port of Cavite, which was,
as aforesaid, September 6, 1627, a _cho_ (a craft which is used in
these waters, whose sails are made of rushes) came from Macan. It
warned the Portuguese galliots which had come from that city to this
with great wealth of merchandise, and which were about to return
with about one million in silver, that they should take note that
the Dutch enemy were stationed in the passage of Macan, awaiting
them with four ships in order to capture them, and that they should
change their direction and course. Thereupon, Governor Don Juan Niño
de Tabora, seeing that our fleet was ready, and that it would be
a fine thing to effect some stroke with the Dutch, as well as for
other ends which will be told later, resolved to send two galleons,
to act as escort to the Macan galliots. The Portuguese gave twenty
thousand pesos to help the soldiers. On October 13 the said galliots,
five in number, left with the flagship "San Yldefonse," in which Don
Juan de Alcarazo went as commander; in the other galleon, the "Peña
de Francia," Don Pedro de Mendiola went as commander. Each galleon
carried about six hundred persons. They were so well equipped that they
could fight with any Dutch ships whatever. Father Ygnacio de Muxica
of our Society, and a brother, were in the flagship, and a father of
St. Francis in the other galleon. Both galleons suffered great troubles
from whirlwinds, seas, and storms all the way to Macan. One day our
flagship snapped the topmast of its mainmast and it fell down. Another
day the mast sprang, and knocked the rudder out of place, and it had
to be repaired. Another day they were all but wrecked on the reefs
of La Plata. On another occasion they lost their rudder completely,
and they had to steer the ship with the sheets of the mizzenmast;
on another, they lost their anchors while quite near Macan. They
grounded in two and one-half brazas of water, and had not the bottom
been sandy they would have been smashed into a thousand pieces. They
cut down the mainmast and lightened the ship, and got it out of the
sand after the greatest of toil, for it was almost buried. The other
galleon had its troubles too, but it was fortunate in making port at
Sanchuan on the Chinese coast, where our father St. Francis Javier
died, about thirty leguas from Macan. The galliots entered the latter
place safely, for the Dutch ships were no longer in the strait, as I
shall recount later in order not to interrupt at present the thread
of our history of our galleons and their adventures. The latter were
very ill received by the Portuguese because of the twenty thousand
pesos which they cost, and because it was seen that the Dutch had
deserted the strait. They judged the matter by the effect and not
by what might have happened had the enemy captured their galliots
with so great a sum of silver. Our galleons stayed more than three
months at that place refitting, stepping a mast and replacing the
rudder, and getting food in Macan. They bought a patache, of which
they had great need. On the eighteenth of February the two galleons
and patache sailed out to pursue their voyage. The latter was sent
by the commander, Don Juan Alcarazo, to take its station in the bay
of the kingdom of Tonquin and Cochinchina, in order to await a ship
from Siam of which it should make a prize; and then to go with it in
search of the two galleons. The fact is that they had an order from
Governor Don Juan Niño de Tabora to capture all the Siamese vessels
for reprisal, inasmuch as five years ago a ship was taken from us
in that kingdom, although it was friendly to us. The ship was said
to be valued at one million in merchandise, and was on its way from
Macan to Manila. Several Spaniards were killed. An embassy having been
sent under Father Pedro de Morejon, as I wrote in another relation,
the Siamese returned to us only the value of ten thousand pesos.
That patache, whose captain was Diego Lopez Lobo, a Portuguese, and
which carried thirty Spaniards, waited two months in the said place,
sailing about hither and thither. When the king of Cochinchina saw
it, fearing lest it capture some vessels that he was expecting in his
kingdom, he sent a father of the Society (one of those who reside in
his court and other places, who I think are sixteen in number) in a
small ship to tell the captain not to do any harm to anything belonging
to his kingdom, and that he had always been a friend to us. Answer
was returned that the presence of the ship in that region was not
to do harm to Cochinchina, but to attain certain purposes which his
captain-general had ordered him. Finally, on Thursday, the twentieth
of April, a great freight ship was sighted, one of the sort that sail
these seas. The Spaniards attacked it, and although its occupants
tried to defend themselves, they were obliged to see that they had
no defense against our artillery and musketry. They surrendered, and
it was found to be the ship which was being sought. It was one which
the king of Siam sends every year to Canton with some tribute for the
king of China. It was returning with great wealth of silks and other
things, and carried sixty Siamese and sixty Chinese. Half of the men
were placed aboard our patache, and soldiers were transferred from
the patache to the said Siamese ship. The strict vigilance necessary
was maintained, as our men were so few, so that they should not be
killed some night. The patache set out in search of the galleons, in
the direction that had been set. But the winds were contrary in that
direction, and they were unable to make any distance. Consequently,
they had to sail with a stern wind to Manila. With their captured
reprisal they reached this city on May 14. The cargo of the Siamese
ship was unladed carefully, and it was found that it was worth about
one hundred thousand pesos. It was placed on deposit in a building and
excellent treatment is being given to the Siamese. But I think that
they will be sent to their king, so that he may return us what he took
from us, in which case we shall return what we captured from him. If
that is not done, then we shall continue to capture their ships.
When the two galleons left Manila, the governor offered to send a
patache after them to a certain place, and did so a little later;
it was under command of Don Fernando Becerra, with about sixty
men. They had bad weather. They looked for our galleons, and although
they found traces of their having been in certain parts, they did
not find the vessels. They only found a fine ship which was well
equipped with artillery, and, thinking it to be one of our galleons,
drew near it. But when quite near they saw that it was a Dutch ship,
and consequently began to retire in all haste. The ship followed
our patache, but as the latter was as swift as a bird it made so
much headway in a short time that the ship abandoned the chase
in despair. Our patache continued to retire toward Manila, where
it arrived June 6, having lost fifteen men, who died of sickness,
among them a Franciscan religious who was aboard. Consequently, our
galleons were left without any patache, for one patache came in with
the Siamese ship and the other did not find them. That was a matter
of considerable damage; for, as the galleons were so large, they
drew much water, and could not well go close to the shore in order
to secure the desired results--as we shall see during the course of
their voyage, which was as follows.
As soon as they left the patache in the said passage for the purpose
of capturing the Siamese ship, they ran along the whole coast of Asia
until they reached the island of Hainam, where the fishery of Great
China is located, a place most plentifully supplied with food. They
went to the kingdom of Champa, and anchored at Pulo Condor, where
they sent out their lanchas with forty Spaniards, and about twenty
Indians and negroes, to see whether they could get the water which
was very necessary to them. In the meantime the galleons kept moving
about on one tack or another; but they were overtaken by so violent a
storm that they had to go to another island called Pulo Ubi, leaving
the lanchas with their men ashore, and as yet nothing has been heard
of the latter. But it is thought that they are in Camboja, for that
king is friendly to us, and will have welcomed them, as they were only
eight leguas from the bar of Camboja. [43] Thus the galleons were left
without pataches or lanchas. They went to Pulo to land at the kingdom
of Pan, where they anchored and got water; and they took food from the
inhabitants of the country until the latter arose against and wounded
some of our men. But our men killed some of them, among them a nephew
of the king of Pan himself. The Spaniards took away two boats from
them, from which they made boats such as we use. While at that place,
a ship manned by Chinese and Malays was captured. They were coming with
flags and passports from the Dutch, with whom they were trading. They
were captured on that account, although they had nothing of any value,
for they had left their merchandise in the kingdom of Pan. It was
heard that there were Dutch ships in the strait of Malaca, which
were committing depredations. The Spaniards sent a lancha manned by
soldiers and an adjutant, to reconnoiter; but after spying carefully
until they were quite near Malaca, no Dutch were discovered, and they
returned to the galleons with that news. While they were there, the
king of Pan wrote in very complimentary manner to our commander, and,
not saying that he knew of the death of his nephew, offered our men
everything that they needed, so great fear had seized him. A lancha
was sent to the kingdom of Patani to see whether there was a Dutch
factory there, as was usual. Two Javanese were brought back, who said
that two years ago, when that kingdom was in power, they had driven
the Dutch from that place. They had a great quantity of pepper (which
is the product yielded by that kingdom), for there was no one to whom
to sell it, as they had sold it to the Dutch before. The commander
wrote to them to have their men take a load of it to Manila, and
that it would be bought from them; and also that he would give them
indemnity for a slight injury which some of his men had done them,
not knowing that they were friends, by taking a small quantity of
rice from them, which the fleet and those who brought it needed. The
men fled, without giving any account of themselves.
The galleons went to the coasts of Ligor and Siam, and discovered
three _somas_, freight ships of these seas. The lanchas attacked them;
and, while fighting with them, fire was set to two jars of powder
that the Spaniards had there. Twelve persons were burned, seven of
whom died. Thereupon they retired, and the somas escaped. Afterward
three other somas were discovered, which were coming from Siam. The
lanchas were sent after them and defeated them, and brought them to
the galleons. They were carrying as merchandise, rice, considerable
pepper, and some cloth. The last named was much needed by the infantry,
who already had rib shirts on account of the long voyage. The galleons
entered the bay of Siam, and found three somas on the bar. One was
Japanese, and carried drugs and merchandise. It was captured in good
faith, but the justification of this act is being discussed. It is
thought that the Japanese will be remunerated for the injury received,
as they ought not to have been harmed.
Another of the somas belonged to the Siamese king, and was being laden
to go to China for the purpose of trading lead, ivory, silver, leather,
etc. As they were unable to get it outside of the bar, for it was
very large and needed the high tide, they set fire to it and took the
Siamese to the galleons. That would have been a prize or reprisal of
importance had it been captured, and not burned. Then another Siamese
soma laden with pepper and tin was captured, and a reprisal was made
of it. The galleons returned, reconnoitering all those ports, to see
whether there were any Dutch in them. Although they did not find any,
they left those kingdoms in terror, for although our galleons were
very large, report made them much greater. Rumor said that each one
contained more than one thousand men, and pieces of vast size, which
fear magnified greatly. Finally, the two galleons returned to port on
the thirteenth of June after an eight months' voyage, with the death of
more than forty men. The galleon "Peña de Francia" had many sick men,
but only one man had died in the flagship; and he had died in port,
as he was sick when he had embarked. The chief cause was the great
care taken of the sick. That was attended to chiefly by the father
and brother of our Society who were in the said flagship. Thus they
all arrived safe and sound and happy, and all this city was joyful
over their return. [44]
I said above that when our galleons arrived at Macan with the galliots
they did not find the Dutch ships, and I said that I would tell why;
and I shall do so now, before passing on. While the Chinese of Macan
were awaiting the ships from Yndia, and thinking of making the usual
voyage to Japon with four ships which they had already prepared, two
ships and a patache and a galliot of the Dutch came in sight of the
city, on July 21. The larger ship and the galliot stationed themselves
in an entrance where the galliots from India enter and those for Japon
leave. The other smaller ship and the patache took the other entrance,
where the vessels that sail from Manila and other places enter. The
design of the Dutch was to capture the vessels en route from Yndia,
Filipinas, and other kingdoms; and to prevent the voyage to Japon,
which forms the chief gain of the city of Macan. The people, seeing
their affliction--and that a galliot en route from Yndia had escaped
the enemy as by a miracle, and entered the city safely; and that
they had scarcely been able to despatch to Japon one of the ships
which they had prepared, at great risk of the Dutch capturing it,
which the latter made all possible efforts to do--set about preparing
a small fleet of merchant vessels to see whether they could lure
away some vessel of the enemy, and attack and capture it. Five ships
and six chos were prepared, the latter weak vessels which sail the
Chinese seas. Artillery was mounted in them which could not have been
very large, for the ships were not very large or strong. Commanders
were appointed for all of them. A father of our Society embarked in
each one for the expedition. In short, everything was prepared with
the efficient care and solicitude of the chief captain of Macan,
Don Felipe Lobo, who was governing that city. It only remained to
assign the chief commander of all, over which there was great strife,
for all wished to command and no one to obey. Consequently, one thing
was resolved upon, which except among the Portuguese of Yndia, where
there is so little practice in war or military knowledge, could not
pass, and will cause laughter to whoever reads it--namely, that each
one of the commanders of the ships should have command for his day,
and should be superior of the others. They were to begin by lot, and he
who should get the first lot was to have command the first day, and he
the second who should get the second lot, and so one with the others,
until the five days were finished. Then they were to take command
again in the same way. They left port and found that the flagship of
the Dutch was alone; for the galliot which accompanied it had gone to
Japon, and the other ship with the patache had gone to their fort on
the island of Hermosa. The Portuguese attacked the ship with great
energy and valor, although with little plan, and defeated it. The
Dutch captain-general, who was a circumspect man, by name Nicholas
Cadem, sailed out to seek a hot engagement, and was killed. Thereupon
the Dutch boldly set fire to the powder-barrels and blew up a great
part of the ship, many of the Dutch jumping into the water. They were
picked up by the Portuguese and taken into their ships. Twelve men
of the Portuguese were killed and twenty-seven of the Dutch, while
some thirty odd were captured. The half-burnt ship of the enemy was
taken to Macan. They captured fourteen pieces of artillery in it and
more than one thousand balls and other weapons. It was a pity that
that ship was burned, for it was very fine and was well built. It was
covered and lined with leather and sheets of lead. However, it is said
that it will be of use if repaired. That victory happened on August
25, 1627. Consequently, when our galleons arrived with the galliots,
the sea was already cleared of the enemy.
Since we do not find a port of China in Macan it will be right for us
to enter the interior, and we shall tell what is passing [there] in
the spiritual and temporal. Christianity continues to increase. There
are twenty-two members of the Society in all China, established at
the court of Pequin and other chief cities. Ours go about there with
more liberty and publicity than they have ever done. Happy times are
expected if the uncle of the king who is now reigning enters into the
kingdom, as is heard, and if the king is held in guardianship, as he
is a boy. The latter succeeded his brother who died. [45] Immediately
upon entering his kingdom, he exiled from his court a eunuch, a prime
favorite of his brother, who had command of everything and even played
the tyrant; he also exiled other favorites. The seas of that kingdom
of China are infested with pirates from China itself, and they are so
numerous that it is said that there are more than a thousand ships of
them. They pillage everything and infest all places, and have sacked
and burned many maritime places of that great kingdom. They have been
the cause this year of very few ships coming to these islands to trade;
for the mandarins have put an embargo on all ships, in order to build
a large fleet to oppose the said pirates. A large stone was found
in the interior of China with Chinese and some Chaldean characters,
which tell how preachers of the gospel came to China a thousand years
ago and preached the gospel. They had bishops, and many churches and
Christians, and the mysteries of our faith were established there. As
it is a long matter I shall not relate it here, but shall only say
that after having examined the circumstances, it appears to be true,
without ground for doubt of it. [46]
Father Juan Adan, of the Society of Jesus, wrote the following. He
lives in Pequin.
"The affairs of this kingdom of China are in a condition of perfect
peace. A rumor was current many days ago that the Tartar king, the fear
of this empire, was dead. [47] As he had many sons, and had conquered
many lands from his other neighbors, the sons will be kept quite
busy for some few years in coming to terms with one another, and in
dividing and maintaining what their aged father left them. A few days
ago, a mandarin related to Father Nicolas Longobardo [48] that he had
seen in the palace an image of a woman with two small boys and an old
man. It must be David who was playing the harp for them. It is not an
idol of the Chinese, for the image is about a thousand years old, and
was a present from foreigners in the time of Tam-Chao, when our holy
law entered China, as your Reverence will already know from the stone
which was found, and the painting of the old man on linen, a figure
which resembles us. This point needs investigation, in order that we
may know what it is with greater certainty." The father continues,
making mention of an earthquake that happened in China.
Let us return to the island of Hermosa, whence a boat came on March 13,
with the news that a great mandarin had come from China to our fort,
to ascertain what people they had recently received as neighbors. I
will briefly state the reason for his coming. A Chinaman bribed
by the Dutch took certain memoranda to the mandarins, in which a
thousand evil things were said of the Spaniards (namely, that they
were certain robbers), while the Dutch were praised--all with the
object that trade be forbidden with Manila, and opened with the
Dutch, which is the thing that they have always been trying to do,
and to which the Chinese have always been opposed. Another Chinaman
was not wanting who took up the matter on his own account, and said:
"The Dutch who pillage those kingdoms, and are rebels to their king,
are rather the robbers and pirates, and not the Spaniards, who are
good men; with them we trade in Manila, and they do not constrain us
except by many very good works." Upon seeing that, the viceroy of the
maritime provinces sent the said mandarin to the new port which we had
occupied in the island of Hermosa, to examine and investigate what kind
of people we were, and what were our purposes in making a settlement so
near China. The mandarin was very cordially received by the commandant
of the island of Hermosa, Antonio Carreño de Valdes, who regaled him
and made much of him, and gave him a fine present at his departure. He
told the mandarin that our intentions were good, and that we did not
intend to harm China, but rather to aid them by punishing the pirates
who infested those seas. The mandarin was despatched, but put back
once and twice to the fort. He was received well each time and well
treated by the said commandant. He put back the third time, and for
shame refused to return to our fort, but anchored not far from it;
there the natives cut his moorings one night, and, drawing the ship
to land, entered it and pillaged whatever they wished, and treated the
mandarin with contumely. In the morning, when the commandant got wind
of the affair, he sent a troop of soldiers. Attacking the natives with
orders not to kill them (for the soldiers shot their bullets into the
sky), they captured some chiefs. Thereupon, the chiefs restored to
the Chinese mandarin what they had pillaged from him; and, in order
to regain their liberty, handed over to us their sons as hostages,
who are being reared in our fort. Thereupon the mandarin was sent
away, very thankful. An account of all this affair was sent to Manila
to the governor, who immediately despatched the father-provincial of
St. Dominic--who knows the Chinese language, and has tried by various
ways and means for many years to enter China, but never has been able
to succeed. [49] This despatch seemed now to be a good means to him--I
mean to the said father-provincial--so that in company with the said
commandant of the island of Hermosa, they might go to the viceroy
of the maritime provinces with a very rich present of silver, cloth,
and other things. Those articles were sent for that purpose so that
those provinces might make a treaty with our fort on the island of
Hermosa, where the said father-provincial is preparing to go with the
commandant on the embassy, the result of which I shall tell next year.
The aid of food and ammunition was sent to the forts which we have in
the Malucas Islands this year, as usual. Three pataches went, under
the command of a valiant soldier, Captain Francisco Hernandez. The
Dutch had received a very large and well-equipped ship, with which
they were waiting to capture our relief expedition. The two pataches
easily escaped, and sought the protection of our forts. But the ship
in which the said Captain Francisco Hernandez was, seeing that it
could not escape, courageously went to attack the [Dutch] ship. When
that was seen from our fort of Terrenate, the galley was despatched to
the aid of our ship. The latter grappled with the hostile vessel and
fought so courageously, that its men were about to enter the latter,
when, the Dutch firing a piece, it struck in the powder which had
been brought up on deck for the fight. Thereupon our vessel caught
fire, and the men took to the water, and reached the shore, which
was near, by swimming. The galley, which through fear of the powder
of our ship which was blown up, had approached very near the enemy's
ship, was capsized by all the men going to one side. Consequently,
all its men took to the water in order to escape by swimming. Thus the
enemy were victorious, although more of their men were killed than of
ours. They tried to take the galley, notwithstanding its condition,
but it sank in a few moments. That was a great misfortune. The enemy
were triumphant, and made much ado about the outcome.
The Camucones are certain robbers who live on the sea, and constantly
infest our seas of Filipinas; they came this year, as they have done in
others. A small fleet of our caracoas--vessels that look like galleys,
although they are smaller and weaker--went out to attack them from the
island of Oton. Our vessels captured three of the enemy's caracoas,
while four others grounded on the beach. The latter were burned by our
Indians, and the Camucones who disembarked were killed. Therefore, we
are free from that canaille for this year, and they nave done us but
little harm. A large hostile caracoa was discovered on the coast of
the city of Cebu. The Spaniards went out to it and, having overtaken
it, its people instead of surrendering and delivering up themselves,
received our men with a volley of stones which they cast from certain
slings, and showers of spears. When our men saw that the enemy would
not easily come to terms, they attacked and killed them. Only six
of them were left alive, who with the prize and boat were taken
to the said city of Cebu, where the attempt was made to ascertain
their purpose and from what land they came. But it was impossible to
ascertain anything, for they understood none of the languages spoken
here, although there are so many. They were thought to be people
who had been blown from some island. [50] They were naked, and had
no firearms, nor even weapons of iron. Their ship had no nails, and
a chisel that was found was made of bone. They ate lice with a good
grace--by that propensity, being people of good taste. Some thought
them to be from an island more distant than Borney; for the inhabitants
of that island eat lice, and the fat ones with especial liking.
The governor established a shipyard this year in the province of
Camarines--which is a part of this island of Manila--in order to
build a couple of galleons, two or three galleys, and a like number
of brigantines, for there was need of all. For that purpose he sent
some Spaniards, and a number of Chinese and Indians, to build the
ships; a considerable quantity of iron for nails, much rice for food,
four pieces of artillery to garrison themselves, and, in short, all
that was necessary. They settled at the said place and began their
building. The king of Jolo left his island, which was subject and
tributary for a long time, and it was years since he was rebellious. He
went out with two thousand men, in more than thirty caracoas, which
are called _joangas_ when they are large. He came among our islands,
and first captured from us a ship and a quantity of iron (which
is an article that they esteem highly). They also captured balls,
fuses, and all that the ship was carrying to the shipyard. Then they
captured another ship from us with sixty Indians and two Spaniards,
who were going to cut wood for the building of the ships. They had
interpreters, and found out where the shipyard was located. They
went there before dawn, landed seven hundred well-armed men, and
commenced to kill and rob. The Spaniards were quite off their guard,
and had not fortified themselves and mounted the artillery, as they
ought to have done. They quickly seized their arms, and began to fire
their arquebuses. The enemy first killed for us two of our Spaniards,
whereupon only twelve Spaniards were left. Of the other men the enemy
took no account, for many were already captured or killed. Some tried
to flee, and some sought the shelter of our arquebuses in a storehouse
where the provisions were kept, where the Spaniards had retired,
and where they remained fighting, because of their few number, until
shortly after midday. By that time five of them were wounded, and only
seven were left who could fight. They ran short of ammunition and
fuses, because the enemy had taken them, as I have said. Thereupon,
they resolved to embark in a large boat which they had, back of
the said storehouse on a river, his Majesty's silver, all the arms,
the women and children, and the other Indians who had taken shelter
there. Immediately the twelve Spaniards, both the wounded and the
sound, embarked, and went up the river. Therefore, the camp was left
to the king of Jolo and his men. They remained there for some days,
eating and drinking as if in their own homes. They embarked the four
pieces of artillery which our men could not take, and collected all
the iron that they could load into their ships; and even then they did
not take all that there was, for there was much of it. Consequently,
they left a great part of it ashore. They robbed many things of
value, and a great quantity of rice which they found--a matter of
about one thousand fanegas--they scattered and threw into the sea,
for they had no need of it. They killed and captured many, and among
them a Spanish woman, and thereupon they retired triumphant. However
they were surprised that so few Castilians, as they say, made front
for so long against so many of their men. The king left a letter for
the governor; and one of the seigniors of Europa could not apparently
write more prudently or in more just manner. He said in the letter
that he had made that demonstration because a chief of his named Achen,
having been sent as ambassador to Manila, had been ill-treated here. He
had been thrust into prison and his possessions taken away from him,
among them three exceedingly beautiful pearls of extraordinary size,
such as are obtained in that kingdom and island. It is a fact that
all the above was done to his ambassador Achen; but the reason for
it was because, after he had been honorably despatched from Manila
in order that he might return to his country, he sailed out with his
vessel, which resembled a beautiful small galley, pillaging all whom he
met. Consequently, men were sent against him; and they captured him on
his way and took him to Manila, where they took away his possessions
and imprisoned him. Although they might have hanged him, they did
not do so, but despatched him to his country once more. He returned
thence for the second time as ambassador, with a very haughty and
arrogant message. They sent him away, and he went to the limits of
these Filipinas Islands; and as soon as he thought that he would be
safe, began to pillage, and took refuge [with his allies]. Accordingly
the king of Jolo was ill informed in what he wrote. The latter, on
leaving the shipyard, attacked another of our islands, called Bantayan,
where he was resisted by three Spaniards and one secular priest with
arquebuses, until their powder was gone. That happened during the
night; and then the Spaniards and the ecclesiastic retired, whereupon
the Joloans landed. Inasmuch as the island abounds in certain large
thorns, which form its greatest defense against a barefooted enemy,
such as are the Joloans, they wore as a protection certain wooden
shoes resembling coarse leather sandals [_abarca_] with which they
landed. They captured many of the natives. Then they attacked Ogonuc,
a village in charge of the fathers of the Society, and pillaged it,
as well as what our house and church contained, even to the bells. The
father was not there, and so they did not capture him. The enemy took
heavy spoils in everything; but, what was a cause for greater pain,
they captured more than three hundred Indians. They sell them as
slaves to heathen kingdoms, and in the end the slaves become like
the masters. While the above was happening, as report of it had
already gone forth, the commandant of Cebu and lieutenant of the
captain-general, Christobal de Lugo, prepared his fleet of caracoas,
in order to go out to engage the enemy and take away their booty. He
sailed out and sighted the enemy at two in the afternoon. The enemy,
seeing him, began to flee; and in order to do so with greater freedom,
abandoned astern some eight small boats boats--a matter of small
importance. Our fleet continued to pursue them, but they put so much
strength into their rowing that they distanced our men. Their craft are
extremely swift, and have two prows, so that it is unnecessary to turn
about in order to flee. The night descended, and the enemy escaped,
to the great grief of our men. They, seeing the so great disaster
that was happening to us, and that the enemy had gone away making a
jest of us, sent Father Fabricio Sarsali of our Society from the city
of Cebu with orders to go to Manila to inform the governor, and get
permission from him to go to seek the enemy in their own country. For
that purpose they needed food, some silver, and some soldiers, besides
those that they had there. The father came, negotiated successfully,
and all that he requested was given him; and they were ordered to
go to punish the Joloan enemy. However they were not to approach a
strong fort that the Joloans had on a hill on top of a steep rock,
as that was a very dangerous undertaking, where twice in former years
the Spaniards had been defeated. Accordingly, the capture of that
fort required a greater force and a more favorable opportunity. The
father returned with his despatch. The caracoas of the island of
Oton and those of Cebu were prepared, which formed, as it were, two
squadrons. Many other caracoas of volunteer Indian chiefs joined them,
so that all together they numbered thirty or forty. About two hundred
Spaniards and more than one thousand six hundred Indians embarked in
them. On April 22, they reached the beach of the island of Jolo. At
one o'clock of the day, the commander landed one hundred Spaniards and
a number of Indians, leaving the other men behind for the defense of
the fleet so that it might come to no hurt. They espied a flourishing
settlement, of which they had hitherto had no information; for the
king and his men live on top of the hill, for greater safety. But,
being desirous of enjoying trade and commerce with other kingdoms,
they had built that city. Between it and us was the river. Seeing that
this matter was one of quickness and determination, they immediately
crossed the river, part in boats, but the majority in water up to
their waists. They attacked the settlement, and although the Joloans
tried to resist, they were unable; accordingly, they retired, and our
men entered the settlement and sacked it. It contained quantities
of gold, cloth, and other things, especially in the palaces of the
king, which were very rich and beautiful, and curiously carved,
as was also the mosque. That island is inhabited by Moros. Our men
captured three versos and two falcons, one hundred and fifty muskets
and arquebuses, and a flag which the enemy had captured from us in the
shipyard. They esteemed the flag very highly, as they had captured
it from Spaniards. The Spaniards set fire to the settlement and to
a village of Lutaos, who are fishermen, as well as to the alcaicería
which the Chinese had there. Everything was burned, including a very
large supply of rice which they had gathered, and which will cause
them great want. A quantity of powder and sulphur was also burned,
besides more than sixty joangas. These were the ships of their fleet,
in which they went out to pillage, using besides more than a hundred
other small craft, which also were broken up and burned; so that not a
single ship was left to them. Then the Spaniards looked for the tombs
of the kings, in accordance with the order given from Manila by the
governor. The tombs are highly esteemed by the Joloans. They found
three wonderful and splendid ones, especially one of them, which was
the one for the present king. They also burned these, although the
Joloans tried to prevent them. All this was accomplished in the same
afternoon when much of the fleet arrived; the men then retired to their
ships. Next day, which was Easter Sunday, the Spaniards heard that at
a certain point there was a large joanga belonging to the same king,
and three versos. Again they disembarked and burned the said joanga
and captured the versos. Upon all these occasions the captain-general
was the first to disembark, the last to enter the vessel, and the first
in all places where they went. With him went Father Fabricio Sarsali,
with a banner on which was an image of our father St Francis Javier,
who had been taken as patron of that expedition.
After all that had been accomplished, the commander, Don Cristobal
de Lugo, sent a letter to the king which had been sent him from
Manila by the governor, in reply to that which the king had written
him. The governor had ordered that the letter should not be sent
until after the punishment had been accomplished. The king replied,
as the senate of Venecia might have done, with more courtesies and
reasons of state. For writing it he employed as secretary the Spanish
woman whom he had captured at the shipyard, who is named Doña Lucia,
of whom he is very fond. Consequently, although the Spanish commander
tried to ransom her and offered as much as six hundred pesos for her,
the king would not surrender her--answering that it was not consistent
with his greatness to give her up for money; but that he would send her
freely, if they would give him in recompense the falcons and versos
which they had captured from him, and one of the slave women who was
in our power. The slave woman was sent him, but not the artillery,
and a fine thing it would have been to arm the enemy to ransom one
woman. Thus did she remain in their power, but made half a queen. Some
of the enemy were killed, and others captured. Some of those whom
the king had captured from us came to us, but not all, for most of
them had been sold in other kingdoms. Great was the booty, and the
Indians who went on that expedition were rich and eager for other
expeditions. Not a single one of our men was killed or wounded. Thus
all of them returned to embark, laden with spoils and happy. The
enemy were left chastised and ruined for many years. Then our fleet
went to another island near there, called Taguima, whose inhabitants
went out to pillage with the Joloans. They had already been advised,
and accordingly fled to the mountains. Our men landed, and burned a
large village, in which there was nothing but common things. They laid
waste all the palm-trees, and did them all the damage possible. Then
the fleet went to the island of Mindanao. A letter was despatched
from the port of La Caldera to the sultan of that island, notifying
him to come to see our commander, but he refused to do so, and made
excuses; but the truth was, that he was afraid. He sent an ambassador
and wrote a letter to the governor of Manila, in which he begged for
fathers of the Society and one hundred infantrymen to build a fort
(which is the thing that we desire), from which to destroy the Joloans,
who are also his enemy at present.
A great portion of the province of Cagayan, which is located in this
island of Manila, has been in revolt for some years. An extensive
raid was made this year by our Spaniards and two thousand friendly
Indians. Some of the enemy were killed, and eight villages burned. The
country was laid waste, with the fields that the enemy had there;
and thus were they punished for the insolent acts that they had
committed. Consequently, these islands have four wars on the tapis at
present: in the island of Hermosa, with the natives and the Dutch;
in Terrenate and the Malucas Islands, with the Dutch also; in Jolo
and other near-by islands whose inhabitants infest our seas; and in
Cagayan with the insurgents. For so much war we must have greater aid
from España and Nueva España, so that the condition of these islands
may not fall lower.
I will conclude this relation with the fires that we have experienced
this year, which have been many and important.
The convent of St. Francis, the hospital, and other houses were burned
in Maluco. The convent of St. Nicolas (which belongs to the Recollects)
in Cebu was burned March 29; and that of St. Augustine and a great
portion of the city on April 8. It was a miracle that our residence
escaped, for the fire was near it.
Fire caught, at one o'clock at night on March 13, in the Parián or
alcaiceria of the Chinese, where more than twelve thousand Chinese
live, outside the walls of this city of Manila. Inside of five hours
it was all leveled. It naturally seems impossible that so large a
settlement, with wooden pillars which two men could not encircle,
could have burned in so short a time. But that must have been the
fire and punishment of heaven for the so horrible sins by which those
heathen Chinese have provoked the wrath of God. The church and convent
of St. Dominic, which is one of the most splendid wooden buildings
that there can be, escaped from the midst of this fire of Sodom. A
house owned there by the Society, which was even yet unfinished, was
also unburnt. All the rest was burned to the very foundations. The
inhabitants of Manila, who owned many of the houses, lost considerable
in that fire. But in the space of four months, most of that alcaicería
has been rebuilt in squares and straight streets and uniform houses. It
presents a very beautiful appearance, and is as large as the city of
Manila itself. It is no wonder that a city should be built entire in
so short a time, when more than three thousand men have worked on
it. I do not know whether there can be any other part of the world
than Manila where there are so many workmen and so abundant materials.
[Volume i of the Ventura del Arco MSS. (Ayer library) contains the
following synopsis of another relation for the years 1627-1628.]
_Events in the Filipinas Islands from August, 1627, until June, 1628._
In August, 1627, Governor Don Juan Niño de Tabora left the bay of
Manila with the fleet, going toward the island of Hermosa in order to
drive away the Dutch who had established themselves there two years
before the Spaniards.
The fleet sailed out of season, for the relief ships from Nueva
España arrived a month later than they ought. Accordingly, the fleet
encountered northerly winds when they reached Cape Bojeador. They
remained there for some days, beating to windward, until after several
storms they had to put back to Manila.
The galleys joined the fleet at Bangui, which is located at the same
cape. The smaller vessels, not being able to withstand the weather,
became separated from the fleet; and one of them, with the heavy
storm that overtook them, ended its voyage at a port of China, in
the province of Fo-chiu, and another at the island of Hermosa. The
galleys lost their moorings at Bangui, where the earth and even the sea
trembled fourteen times in one day. Hills were toppled over; and one
called Los Caraballos, which was on the road to Nueva Segovia, and was
inaccessible, sank and became very level. Some of the convents of the
Dominican religious (who instruct that province) fell. The hurricane
wrecked immense numbers of trees, which covered the beaches of the
sea. By the middle of September the weather moderated. The commander
of the galleys, not knowing that the galleons had put back, continued
his voyage, and reached the point on the island of Hermosa, and
entered the Dutch port without knowing it. He went within cannon-shot,
reconnoitered the port, and sounded the coast. He observed the fort,
and the preparations made by the Dutch, who were fearful of some
attack. Then he went to a small island inhabited by Chinese fishermen,
who received him cordially; they expressed hatred for the Dutch, and
their desire to aid the Spaniards to drive them from the island of
Hermosa. They had some Dutch prisoners, who had been shipwrecked from
a galleon that had been lost on their coasts, or on the reefs of the
said island. The galleys sailed thence toward our port in the island
of Hermosa, but so furious a north wind caught them, when near it,
that they were carried to Cape Bojeador in five days; and they were
able to make the port called Japones. There another storm struck them
on the first of October, and the two galleys were smashed to pieces,
although the artillery and men were saved.
The ship that put in at Fo-chiu returned to the port of the island
of Hermosa with whose infantry and that of another small patache,
which had arrived before, and with some silver and clothing which it
carried, the fort was relieved; and its garrison were able to punish,
as they did, the Chinese who had killed two captains, with twenty-five
or thirty Spaniards.
The governor, having returned to the bay of Manila with his galleons,
was notified from Macao, before he had disembarked, that four Dutch
vessels had been sighted, whose intention was to make prizes and
prevent the commerce. He sent two galleons as a convoy for the
Portuguese galleys of that port; but when they reached Macao the
Dutch vessels were no longer there, the battle having already occurred
which was referred to in the preceding document.
The two galleons having been freed [from the convoy] went--after
suffering a severe storm in which they were nearly wrecked, from
the effects of which they had to be repaired--in accordance with the
orders of the governor, to scour all the coast as far as Malaca in
pursuit of the Dutch. For that purpose they equipped a patache before
leaving Macao, while another patache was despatched from Manila to
join them. During the eight months while the voyage lasted, those
four boats scoured all the places where the Dutch are accustomed
to go, without omitting any save to enter Jacatra [51] itself. They
went first to the island of Aynao [_i.e._, Hainan], which has four
cities, and is the pearl fishery of Great China. Then they skirted
the coast of Cochinchina, where the king sent to request them,
through a Spaniard who was there and the superior of the mission
which the fathers of the Society have there, not to attack them,
since he was our friend. They did not meddle with his possessions,
but, before leaving the coast, captured a junk belonging to the king
of Siam, which was coming from Canton laden with silks, earthenware,
and tobacco, which was valued at more than fifty thousand ducados.
Between the islands of Pulo Condor and Puluibi, which are opposite
the kingdom of Camboja, one of the two pataches met a very large
Dutch ship, which it was thought was going to Siam, where the galleons
were awaiting it. But it was not so, and it was believed to have gone
to Japon.
The raid of the fleet, and especially of those galleons, was feared
by all the kings of the coast and by those of Java and Borneo, and
they desired peace with the Spaniards. Even the mandarin of Fo-chiu
thought that the fleet was going to attack China, and ordered an
agent to go to the island of Hermosa to find out about it.
The relief expedition sent to Maluco had the outcome mentioned in
the preceding document.
During that year, the old king of Ternate died at Manila. He had
been captured at the recovery of the Malucas. He was a Moro, of royal
appearance and speech; and died in the Moro belief, of which he had
always been most observant. He thoroughly understood the teachings of
our holy faith, and said that the only reason that he did not embrace
it was because it was not fitting for a king to change his religion
because he had been captured.
This document refers to the invasion of the islands by the king of
Jolo, in the same manner as the preceding document; and concludes by
saying that after he had been punished, the Spaniards began to build
three galleys, four brigantines, and forty large caracoas at the
order of the governor; and that they must be preparing themselves to
take vengeance on the Moros of Borneo, and the Camucones and Joloans,
for the damages sustained from them during the preceding years.
REPORT OF APPOINTMENTS MADE BY GOVERNOR TAVORA
Sire:
Proceeding in conformity with what your Majesty orders me by royal
decree, dated at Madrid on the twentieth of January, one thousand six
hundred and twenty-five, and countersigned by Señor Don Fernando Ruiz
de Contreras, directing that I should send a relation of the places,
offices, encomiendas, gratuities, incomes, allowances, additional
pay, and whatsoever other advantages I might confer, making a special
record for this; after having complied with this, and sent an account
in the ships which left this island for Nueva España in the year six
hundred and twenty-seven, I have thus far made appointments to the
following encomiendas, places, and offices:
Captain Blas Lopez Baltadano was granted, in the name of your
Majesty, the encomienda of natives at Agonoc and its dependencies in
the province of Camarines, which was left vacant by the demise and
death of Don Diego Arias Xiron; it contains four hundred and sixty
tributary Indians, each one of them paying every year ten reals, two
for the royal revenue, and the rest for the encomendero. Four reals
of the latter are paid in kind--a hundred and ten gantas of rice in
the husk, fit for sowing and cooking; and two fowls for one real;
the rest being in money, of which two reals are paid to the minister
who instructs them. This grant was extended to him in conformity with
the law of succession, for services which he has rendered your Majesty
during the twenty-eight years past while he has been in these islands,
at first as a soldier in the company of Captain Juan de Laxara. He
was in the expedition for the discovery of the province of Tuy, as
an adventurer and head of the veteran soldiers. He was corregidor
of Butuan, and afterward went to the coast of Caraga, against the
natives of Mindanao, as commander of a caracoa which belonged to him;
and likewise in other parts of Mindanao, where he burned six caracoas
and protected and defended the natives of his jurisdiction. Later,
while corregidor of Ybalon, he attended to furnishing provisions for
the galleys which were sent there to await the ships from Nueva España,
as the Dutch were there again. He spent therein a great deal of labor,
as he was obliged to bring the supplies from another jurisdiction,
since there were not sufficient in his own. Twice he was alcalde-mayor
of Pangasinan, where he brought about the reduction of the rebellious
Indians, through the wise counsels of war which he gave. A few of them
were executed, and they surrendered and sued for peace. He was in the
expedition which Governor Don Luis Perez das Marinas made to Camboxa,
holding a captaincy and paying his own expenses. In the port of Pinal
he performed great labors in seeking supplies and money for the troops
of another fleet. At that time he was appointed royal alférez, and came
out wounded in his left arm from an encounter which he had with the
Portuguese of Macan, in attempting to capture their commander. After
his arrival at this city, he was made captain of Spanish infantry in
the said province of Pangasinan, and twice their commander-in-chief,
beside being alcalde-mayor and corregidor of Butuan at two other
times. During this time he performed other services, as appears from
the documents which he presented before me. On the said encomienda
there was levied and exacted from him fifty pesos of pension, each
year, which are to be given and paid to Alférez Juan Gomez, these being
a part of the hundred which he holds from the encomienda of Yguey and
its dependencies, belonging to Captain Juan Bautista Perez de Helquera,
in the said province of Camarines, by a grant which was made of that
sum to the said Alferez Juan Gomez by the royal Audiencia of these
islands, when their government was in its charge through the death
of Governor Juan de Silva. The said fifty pesos are taken away from
the said encomienda of Yguey that it may be free from them, as it has
few tributarios; and I have imposed them upon this said encomienda
so that the said Alférez Juan Gomez may enjoy them, comformably
to the grant which was made him. The said Captain Baltadano must
secure a confirmation of this grant from your Majesty inside of four
years, reckoned from the day of sailing of the first ships which are
despatched from these and the other islands for Nueva España--as is
ordered by the royal decrees of the twelfth of October, six hundred
and twelve, and the twelfth of July, six hundred and twenty-five,
under the penalties therein provided. He must likewise send a special
power of attorney to petition for the said confirmation, in the form
which is provided by another decree dated at Madrid, the twenty-eighth
of May, one thousand six hundred and twenty-five; and he must send and
remit to that court [a statement of] the amount of his monthly income,
when he sends for the said confirmation--in failure whereof the said
confirmation will not be accorded him, as your Majesty commands by
another decree of the eighth of June, one thousand six hundred and
twenty-six. I sent him the commission on the twenty-ninth of October,
one thousand six hundred and twenty-seven, having previously posted
notices in public places in the said city, for the benefit of those
who might have claims on the said encomienda, as is ordered by another
royal decree of the twenty-fifth of June, one thousand six hundred and
twenty-six; and have found by investigation that it is not included
in the royal decree which treats of the appointment to encomiendas
and offices in the form which is therein provided.
Captain Francisco de la Haya was granted the encomienda of natives at
Lobo and Galban, and their dependencies, in the province of Balayan,
which was vacated by the demise and death of Don Joseph Arnalte. It
has three hundred and eighty-three tributarios, each one paying
every year ten reals, two for the royal revenue, and eight for the
encomendero. Four reals of these are in kind--sixty gantas of rice
in the husk, fit for sowing and cooking; and one fowl for one real;
and the other three reals in money, two of which are given to the
minister who instructs them. If they are paid in white cotton blankets,
of the ordinary size of three baras and a half in length and three
quarters of a bara in width, these are to be counted at two reals
apiece; and if they are of _soyol_, which are fine, at four reals;
and if hand-worked for altar cloths, at five reals. The grant was
made him in conformity with the law of succession, on account of his
meritorious acts and services which he has rendered to your Majesty
during the twenty-five years past, having enlisted as a soldier in
those kingdoms, in the company of Captain Don Fernando de Silva. In
that company he came to these islands, where he continued to serve,
being present in such occasions for service as occurred. In particular
he was present at the battle which was fought by Governor Don Juan
de Silva against the Dutch enemy in Playa Honda, in the year six
hundred and ten, where he received a wound, a musket-ball traversing
his right thigh. Afterward he accompanied the said governor in the
fleet which he took to the ports of Terrenate. He was at the capture
of Sabugo. [52] He was alférez in the company of Captain Antonio de
Morga. He was present with Governor Don Juan de Silva in the fleet
which the latter took to the strait of Sincapura; and afterward was
likewise in that of General Don Juan Ronquillo, who fought against
the said Dutch at the said Playa Honda, he being present on the
admiral's galley. He was a second time made alférez in this camp,
and resigned from service in the infantry to embark in the fleet which
Governor Don Alonso Fajardo prepared to oppose that of the Dutch, in
the year six hundred and nineteen, where he served as a soldier in
the company of Master-of-camp Don Geronimo de Silva. The next year
he was in the fleet of General Don Luis Fajardo, for the protection
of these coasts; and in the said position of soldier he served three
years, one hundred and eighty-four days, until he was advanced to
fill the place of adjutant sargento-mayor of this camp. Serving in
this capacity, he went in the fleet which left in the year six hundred
and twenty-five to oppose the Dutch who were upon this coast, having
as commander the said Master-of-camp Don Hieronimo de Silva. Finally
he was captain of infantry in this camp, and during this time has
rendered other services, as appeared more at length by his papers
which he presented before me. On the said encomienda there was levied
and exacted from him fifty pesos of pension each year which were to be
paid to Alférez Juan Gomez, which are a part of the hundred which he
holds as a pension from the encomienda of Yguey and its dependencies,
belonging to Captain Juan Baptista Perez de Helquerra, by a grant
which was made to the said Alférez Juan Gomez by the royal Audiencia
of these islands, while the government was in its charge through the
death of the said Governor Don Juan de Silva. I have taken the said
fifty pesos from the encomienda of Yguey, so that the said Captain
Bautista Perez may be free therefrom, as the tributarios which he
has are few; and I have imposed it upon this said encomienda so that
the said Alférez Juan Gomez may enjoy it, comformably to the grant
which was made him. The said Captain Francisco de la Haya is bound
to secure a confirmation thereof from your Majesty inside of four
years reckoned from the day of sailing of the first vessels which are
despatched from the islands for Nueva España, as is ordered by the
said two royal decrees cited, and under the penalties there provided;
and likewise he must send special power of attorney to petition for
and secure the said confirmation; and when he shall send for it he
must remit to that court the amount of his monthly income, failing
which the said confirmation will not be given him, as is provided
in the said royal decrees cited. I sent him the commission on the
twenty-ninth of October, one thousand six hundred and twenty-seven,
having previously posted edicts in public places in this city for
a reasonable length of time, for the benefit of those who may have
claims on the said encomienda, as is ordered by another said royal
decree cited. I have ascertained by investigation that it does not
come under the provisions for the appointment to encomiendas and
offices in the form therein provided.
Captain Pedro de Navarrete was granted the encomienda of natives in
the villages of Tabuco and its subjects, in the province of La Laguna
de Vay, which was vacated by the death of Captain Don Luis Enrriquez
de Guzman. There are five hundred and two tributarios, each one of
them paying every year ten reals, two for the royal treasury and
eight for the encomendero. Four of these are paid in kind--fifty-five
gantas of rice in the husk, half of which is cleaned for sowing and
cooking; and one fowl at one real; and the other three in money. Of
this the minister who teaches them is paid each year at the rate of a
hundred pesos of eight reals, a hundred fanegas of rice in the husk,
and one arroba of wine for the celebration of mass, for every five
hundred tributarios to whom they minister. This grant was made to
him for his merits, and the services which he has rendered your
Majesty during more than twenty-five years since he came over to
these islands with Governor Don Pedro de Acuña, in the capacity of
a soldier in the company of Don Thomas Bravo de Acuña. He served in
the said employment in this camp, and afterward went to the province
of Zibu, in the Pintados, where he remained more than four years,
connected with the company which was in Zibu, going out on all the
armed expeditions which occurred--namely, six times, against the enemy
from Mindanao, Caraga, and the Sanguiles, who were robbing and harrying
those regions, causing much damage, death, and pillage. He was present
at the taking of the fort of Sagao and the islands of Caraga, when
the natives there rebelled, and refused obedience to the king. He
was one of the soldiers who distinguished themselves, and climbed
to the crest of the ridge, until it surrendered, and many Indians
were captured, bringing the rebels back to the royal obedience. On
this occasion he received a wound in the head, from the many stones
which they threw. He served at his own expense and voluntarily, on
the said occasions; and in the said garrison of Zibu he performed
watch and sentinel duty with the other soldiers. He was present at
the rebellion of the Japanese against this city outside of its walls,
and was one of those who went out to fight against them in the year
six hundred and eight, and in that of six hundred and sixteen. He
was alférez of a Spanish company in this camp, and served in that
capacity in the post at Cavite, for its protection and defense, when
the Dutch had come with six ships to the harbor mouth of Mariveles,
intending to enter the bay, at the time when Governor Don Juan de
Silva had gone with his royal fleet to the strait of Sincapura. He
was personally present on the rampart of the curtains of the said
fort, which were breached at four points. He expended much of his
property, maintaining therewith a number of soldiers of his company
on account of the poverty of the royal treasury. In the year six
hundred and eighteen, he was made captain of infantry of the company
which was in garrison in the said fort of Cavite; and the next year
he was made a second time captain of another company of this camp,
where he served until it was disbanded. On many occasions when the
royal treasury was embarrassed, he has lent it a great quantity of
money. He is married to Doña Augustina de Morales, legitimate daughter
of Captain Pedro Navarro and Doña Luisa de Morales, and granddaughter
of Captain Gaspar Ruiz de Morales, one of the first conquerors and
settlers of these islands, prominent people of rank. During this
time he has rendered other services to your Majesty, all of which
appears more at length from his papers which he has presented before
me. Beside this, command is given by a royal decree dated at Madrid
on the nineteenth of June, six hundred and twenty-six, countersigned
by Señor Don Fernando Rruiz de Contreras, to the effect that in every
possible way should be furthered the work for the protection and aid
of orphan children and those lacking support, which was administered
and managed by Brother Juan Geronimo Guerrero in this city, as that
is so pious and charitable a cause, and it is so necessary to secure
its perpetuity and the support of the said children, whose fathers
have died in these islands in the royal service. As means were to be
sought for this, since they could not come from the royal treasury, the
said Captain Pedro de Navarrete, as one of the benefactors of the said
work, offered and bound himself to give as alms five thousand pesos of
eight reals at the coming of the ships which were expected from Nueva
España this present year; that sum is to be distributed and expended
in the said work, and to erect a building for the orphans, as that
which they have is in danger of falling. He bound himself to deliver
the said amount to the person who should be designated by myself. In
consideration of all which has been recounted, I have extended to
him this grant, charging him to secure a confirmation thereof from
your Majesty within four years reckoned from the day of sailing of
the first ships from these islands for Nueva España, and to send a
special power of attorney to petition for the said confirmation in
that court. Likewise he must remit there the amount of his monthly
income when he sends for the said confirmation, as is ordered
and commanded by the royal decrees cited, and under the penalties
therein provided. I had previously posted notices in public places
of this city for those who might have claims to the said encomienda,
a reasonable time before, as is ordered by the said royal decree
cited, which treats of this matter. I have found by investigation that
this is not included in the provisions for the order of appointments
to encomiendas and offices, as is therein provided. I sent him the
commission on the fourth of December, one thousand six hundred and
twenty-seven.
_Appointments to offices of justice and war_
I have appointed Sergeant Pedro Diaz Barroso as corregidor of the
island of Mariveles and its jurisdiction, as he is a man with the
qualifications which that office seems to require, and has served
your Majesty in these islands for a long time. He has a yearly salary
of one hundred and fifty pesos, which is the same as was enjoyed
by his predecessor. I sent the commission on the sixth of August,
one thousand six hundred and twenty-seven.
I appointed Alférez Geronimo Banegas, a citizen of this island,
as corregidor of the Negros Islands and their jurisdiction, and as
military commander there; for he is a person of the qualifications
which this position demands, and an old settler in this country who
has served your Majesty here. He has a salary of a hundred and fifty
pesos of common gold per year, and with that is to serve both offices,
which is the same as his predecessors have had. I sent his commission
on the third of August of one thousand six hundred and twenty-seven.
I have appointed Alférez Andres Martin as corregidor of the island
of Mindoro and its jurisdiction, and as military commander there;
for he is a person of the qualifications which the place demands. He
has served your Majesty more than twenty years in these islands and
those of Terrenate, and been present at the various battles which have
occurred. He has a salary of a hundred pesos of common gold per year,
for which he serves both offices. I sent him the commission on the
fifth of August of one thousand six hundred and twenty-seven.
I have appointed Captain Juan de Mendoza as alcalde-mayor of
the province of Pangasinan and its jurisdiction; and military
commander there; for he is a person of the necessary abilities and
qualifications, and has been more than twenty years in these islands
in your Majesty's service, when occasion offered. He has a salary of
three hundred pesos of common gold per year, and with this serves
both offices. I sent his commission on the ninth of August of one
thousand six hundred and twenty-seven.
Admiral Don Christoval de Lugo y Montalvo, who is fulfilling the duties
of my lieutenant-governor and commander-in-chief in the provinces of
the Pintados, I have appointed alcalde-mayor of the province of Zibu
and its jurisdiction, and captain of infantry of the company which is
in garrison in that camp; for he is a person of many merits, and has
served your Majesty in these islands and other regions sufficiently
to deserve all the said offices of my lieutenant, alcalde-mayor, and
captain of infantry. He has only the salary of a captain, amounting
to about six hundred pesos per year, and no more. Thereby is saved
to the royal treasury the eight hundred which he drew merely for
the office of my lieutenant-governor and commander-in-chief. I sent
him the commissions on the ninth of August, one thousand six hundred
and twenty-seven.
Captain Don Fernando Galindo I have appointed alcalde-mayor of the
province of La Laguna de Vay and its jurisdiction, and military
commander there; for he is a person of many excellent qualifications
for this office, and has been occupied in the service of your Majesty
in these islands whenever occasion has offered, where he has acquitted
himself very well. He has a yearly salary of three hundred pesos of
common gold, and for it serves both offices. I sent him the commission
on the tenth of August, one thousand six hundred and twenty-seven.
I have appointed Captain Diego Lorenso de Trexo alcalde-mayor of the
province of Calilaya and its jurisdiction, and military commander
there, as he is a person of the qualifications and parts required for
this office. For thirty-two years he has been in these islands, and
has served whenever occasion offered, and acquitted himself well. He
has a yearly salary of three hundred pesos of common gold, for which
he serves both offices. I sent his commission on the eighth of August,
one thousand six hundred and twenty-seven.
I have appointed Captain and Sargento-mayor Juan Garcia Pelaez chief
justice of the port of Cavite, and military commander, and keeper of
Fort San Philipe there, as he is a person of many excellent qualities,
and has served your Majesty many years in these islands. For these
three offices he has no appointed salary from the royal treasury,
and accordingly serves without it. I sent him the commission as chief
justice on the thirteenth of August of one thousand six hundred and
twenty-seven.
Alférez Luis Triscomia I have appointed alcalde-mayor of the Calamianes
Islands and their jurisdiction, and military commander there, as he has
been more than seventeen years in these islands, serving your Majesty
when occasion offered, and has the necessary qualifications. He has
a salary of three hundred pesos per year, for which he serves both
offices. I sent his commission on the third of August of one thousand
six hundred and twenty-seven.
I have appointed Alférez Pedro Alvarez corregidor of the jurisdiction
of Ybalon, and military commander there, as he is possessed of the
qualifications required for this office, and has served your Majesty
in these islands more than sixteen years when occasion offered. He
has a salary of a hundred pesos of common gold per year, for which he
serves both offices. I sent him the commission on the fifth of August,
one thousand six hundred and twenty-seven.
I have appointed Captain Silvestre de Aybar warden of the camp and fort
San Gabriel, which overlooks the Parián of the Sangleys, with power to
administer justice in all matters which may arise in the said Parián;
for he is a person of proved capability, and of the qualifications
and abilities which are necessary for this office. He has served your
Majesty for thirty years past in those kingdoms, Nueva España and
these islands. He has a salary of a thousand pesos per year, which
is not paid from the royal treasury, but from that maintained by the
community of Sangleys in the said Parián, where they contribute each
year for matters necessary there, and for others pertaining to the
royal service. I sent his commission on the seventeenth of September,
one thousand six hundred and twenty-seven.
I have appointed General Don Andres Perez Franco as warden of the
fort San Philippe at the port of Cavite, and military commander there
and chief justice; for he has many talents and qualifications, and is
well acquainted with the said port, where he has been at other times
and has occupied honorable offices. He has no salary appointed from
the royal treasury, and accordingly serves without it, on account
of the promotion of Sargento-mayor Juan Garcia Pelaez, who held the
said offices, to be commander-in-chief of the provinces of Cagaian,
Ylocos, and Pangásinan. I sent him the commission as such warden
on the twenty-eighth of September of one thousand six hundred and
twenty-seven.
General Don Juan de Alcarazo I have appointed chief commander of the
two galleons "San Yldifonso" and "Nuestra Señora de Peña de Francia,"
which I sent as a fleet against the Dutch enemy who was at the port
of Macan awaiting the ships of the Portuguese, which were going back
from here with the produce from the merchandise which they brought. The
said galleons went to protect and guard them, and for other purposes
pertaining to the service of your Majesty in the localities which the
Dutch infested. I made this appointment on account of his many good
qualities and because he has served your Majesty in the military habit
and profession twenty-three years--both in the royal navy in those
parts, and in these islands--whenever occasion offered, occupying posts
and offices of the most honor, wherein he has acquitted himself very
well. He performed the said office for six hundred Castilian ducados
per month, which is the salary drawn by similar commanders. I sent
him the commission on the ninth of October, one thousand six hundred
and twenty-seven.
Captain and Sargento-mayor Don Pedro Muñoz de Mendiola, who serves in
this royal camp of Manila, I have appointed commander of the galleon
"Nuestra Señora de Peña de Francia," one of those which was sent in
charge of the said Don Juan de Alcaraso, to the said port of the city
of Macan, and other places, against the said Dutch enemy. For he is
possessed of the suitable abilities and qualifications, and has served
your Majesty in these islands, Flandez, and other parts of Europe,
in the military profession; and had been serving in the said office,
retaining the said position as sargento-mayor and with the same salary
which he gained before, and no other. I sent him his commission on
the fifth of October, one thousand six hundred and twenty-seven.
I have appointed Captain Francisco Hernandez as captain of the
company of Spanish infantry which served in the forts of Therrenate
under Captain and Sargento-mayor Pedro Tufiño, and as commander
of the royal galleys for the protection of those islands, because
permission has been given to the said Tufiño to come to this city. I
made this appointment of the said Captain Francisco Hernandez because
he is possessed of the necessary qualifications and ability, and has
served your Majesty in the military profession for twenty-two years
in this region. He came to these islands as a soldier, and from them
went to the said forts of Terrenate, where he served twenty years
as a soldier and with extra pay as head of a squadron, sergeant,
alférez, adjutant, and captain of infantry, being present whenever
occasion for his service arose, and rendering especial services
there. He has a salary of six hundred pesos per year, for which he
has to serve both offices, as soon as the said company is delivered
to him. I sent him the commission on the twenty-ninth of October,
one thousand six hundred and twenty-seven.
On the said day I appointed the said Captain Francisco Hernandez
commander of the relief that is carried to the forts of Therrenate,
as he is in every way satisfactory, and possessed of the necessary
qualifications, as has been said in the previous clause. For his
services in the said duty he received six hundred Castilian ducados
per month, during the whole time that he served, which is the salary
drawn by similar commanders.
I have appointed Adjutant Alonso Serrano a captain of Spanish infantry,
of the company which serves in the forts of Therrenate under Captain
Lorenso Hernandez, as the latter had permission to come to this
city. I made this appointment because he has the qualifications and
abilities which are required. Twenty-four years ago he came to these
islands in the capacity of a soldier, and during twenty of them has
resided and served in the said fort--being a soldier, commander of a
squadron with extra pay, sergeant, alférez, and adjutant, and being
present on all occasions when his services were necessary. He has
a salary of six hundred pesos per year, reckoning from the day when
the company is given over to him. I sent him his commission on the
eighteenth of November, one thousand six hundred and twenty-seven.
Former Adjutant Alonso de Peraza, of this camp, I have appointed
captain of infantry, of the company which served in the said forts of
Therrenate under Captain Don Juan de Santiesteban Bracamonte, as the
latter had permission to come to this city. I made this appointment
because he has the necessary qualifications and abilities, and has
served your Majesty twenty-four years in this region in the military
profession, in these islands and those of Therrenate. He was present
at the recovery of the latter, and during the two fights when the
Dutch General Pablos Blancanden was taken, and in other encounters
and battles which took place on land and sea, against the Dutch,
and the natives of Therrenate. He became a sergeant, and was present
at the battle between General Don Juan Rronquillo and the Dutch. He
was a second time made sergeant, and again alférez, from which he
was promoted to be an adjutant, and has rendered other distinguished
services. He has a salary of six hundred pesos per year, which he is
to enjoy, from the day when the said company is given over to him. I
sent him his commission on the seventeenth of November, one thousand
six hundred and twenty-seven.
Captain Roderigo de Mesa I have appointed captain of a company which
was brought to this city, and which he took to reinforce the forts of
Therrenate. For he is a person of the necessary qualifications, and has
served your Majesty twenty-four years in this region in the military
profession, both in these islands and in those of Therrenate--where he
served fifteen years with success as a private musketeer, a commander
of a squadron with extra pay, sergeant, alférez, and adjutant, in the
said camp--being present whenever there was occasion for his service,
on land or sea, and rendering distinguished services, as appeared
by his papers. He draws as salary six hundred pesos per year. I sent
his commission on the twenty-seventh of November of one thousand six
hundred and twenty-seven.
I have appointed Captain Alonso de Balle alcalde-mayor and
military commander of the province of Ylocos, owing to the death of
Captain Alvaro de Loazes, for there are found in him the necessary
qualifications and abilities. He has served your Majesty for twenty-two
years past in these islands, being present when occasion offered,
and has acquitted himself well. From the offices with which he is
entrusted he draws a salary of three hundred pesos of common gold per
year, for which he serves both offices. I sent his commission on the
sixth of December, one thousand six hundred and twenty-seven.
Captain Don Fernando Bezerra I have appointed commander of the ship
"Santisima Trinidad," which I sent with reënforcements and supplies
to join the two armed galleons which General Don Juan de Alcaraso took
in his charge to Pulotimon, and other parts of Sian, to secure thereby
good results for the service of your Majesty, because it was impossible
to take with them a patache when they left for Macan. I gave him this
appointment because he has the qualifications needed, and has served
in the military profession in these islands and in Therrenate for a
long time, rendering distinguished services. He drew a salary at the
rate of six hundred Castilian ducados a month, which is the wages of
similar commanders. I sent him the commission on the thirteenth of
December of the year one thousand six hundred and twenty-seven.
Captain Don Lope de Sosa I have appointed alcalde-mayor of the
jurisdiction of Tondo, and military commander there, as he is of the
abilities and qualifications which are necessary. He came to these
islands twenty years ago, and has here served when occasion arose, and
held honorable offices and charges, wherein he has acquitted himself
well. He has three hundred pesos of common gold per year as a salary,
for which he serves both offices. I sent him the commission on the
eleventh of January, one thousand six hundred and twenty-eight.
Alférez Pedro de Mora Salcedo I have appointed corregidor of the
jurisdiction of Leyte, Zamare, and Babao, and captain and military
commander there, as he has the qualifications and ability demanded
by the office. He came to these islands ten years ago in the service
of your Majesty, and has served here and in Therrenate, having been
a sergeant, and alférez, and a substitute. In an encounter with the
Dutch, at which he was present, the two lower bones of his right
leg were both broken by a musket-ball, and he was present in other
engagements. He has a yearly salary of two hundred pesos of common
gold. I sent him his commission on the nineteenth of January of one
thousand, six hundred and twenty-eight.
I appointed Captain Fernando Lopez de Perona alcalde-mayor of the
province of Bulacan and military commander there, as he is possessed
of the necessary qualifications and abilities for this office, and
has served your Majesty for sixteen years, both in the fleet of the
Ocean Sea and in these islands, and acquitted himself well of what
has been entrusted to him. He has a yearly salary of three hundred
pesos of common gold, for which he serves both offices. I sent him
his commission on the fifteenth of March, one thousand six hundred
and twenty-eight.
Alférez Martin Larios, deputy warden of Fort Santiago of this city
of Manila, I have promoted to be captain of Spanish infantry, of the
company which served under Captain and Sargento-mayor Don Antonio
de Vera in the garrison of San Salvador in Hermosa Island; for he
has the necessary qualifications and abilities, and has served your
Majesty thirteen years past in military habit and profession in the
states of Flandez, having been a soldier, commander of a squadron,
and a sergeant, being present on the occasions and at the places
where his services were needed, where he performed distinguished
services. He came over to these islands with the reënforcements which
he brought here. He was alférez in Nueva España of a company which
was raised in Zacatecas; and in that position he came to this city,
where he was appointed lieutenant of the said Fort Santiago. He has a
salary of six hundred pesos of common gold per year, as do the rest
in this camp. I sent him his commission on the sixteenth of March,
one thousand six hundred and twenty-eight.
Alférez Juan Moreno Criado I have appointed lieutenant warden of
the said Fort Santiago of this city, as he is of the requisite
qualifications and has served in military habit and profession more
than twenty-four years past, since he came to these islands. He was
present at the recovering of the forts at Therrenate, where he served,
and was present at the actions which took place, as he likewise was
in these islands, rendering especial service. He has four hundred
and twenty pesos a year as salary. I sent him his commission on the
twentieth of March of one thousand six hundred and twenty-eight.
Captain Juan de Herrera I appointed alcalde-mayor and military
commander of the province of Camarines, as he was of the qualifications
and ability necessary for that office. He came to these islands
twenty-three years ago and has served your Majesty in military
profession and in offices of justice, and other employments in which he
has been occupied, wherein he has acquitted himself well. He has three
hundred pesos a year as salary, for which he serves both offices. I
sent him his commission on the fourteenth of April of one thousand
six hundred and twenty-eight.
Captain Francisco Ramos, a soldier of the company of Captain Diego
Lopez Lobo, I have appointed captain of the galley "Nuestra Señora
de Loreto," which was built in the province of Camarines, and is to
be sent to the forts of Therrenate; for he possesses the required
qualifications and ability, and for eighteen years has served
your Majesty in these islands and in those of Therrenate. He has
a salary of thirty-five Castilian ducados per month, which is the
wage of galley-captains of the forts of Therrenate. I sent him his
commission on the thirteenth of April of one thousand six hundred
and twenty-eight.
Alférez Francisco de los Rios Coronel I have appointed corregidor and
military commander of the Catanduanes Islands, as he has the required
qualifications, and has served in the capacity of soldier in these
islands since the year one thousand six hundred and nine, when he came
out here, and has been present at the actions which have occurred. He
has a salary of a hundred pesos per year. I sent him the commission
on the twentieth of May of one thousand six hundred and twenty-eight.
Captain Francisco Gimenez I have appointed captain of Spanish infantry,
of the company which served in the garrison of Hermosa Island under
Captain Don Benito Flores, and as sargento-mayor of all the infantry
of the said garrison; for he possesses the required qualifications and
ability. During the twenty years while he has served your Majesty in
military service in these islands he has been present when occasion
offered, and likewise in the forts of Therrenate. He has always
acquitted himself well, and performed distinguished services. He
draws a salary of six hundred pesos per year, as do the rest of this
camp, and with it serves both offices. I sent him the commission
on the twenty-sixth of June of the year one thousand six hundred
and twenty-eight.
Alférez Don Pedro de Axqueda Menchaca I have appointed alférez-royal
of the ships which are despatched this present year to Nueva España,
as he has the requisite qualifications and ability. He has served
in military service in this camp in the capacity of soldier, and in
that of alférez. He is the son of the master-of-camp Christoval de
Axcueta Menchaca, who died in these islands in the service of your
Majesty. He has eight hundred pesos per year of salary. 1 sent him
his commission on the fourth of July of the year one thousand six
hundred and twenty-eight.
Alférez-royal Augustin de Salduendo I have appointed captain of
infantry, of the Spanish infantry company, which served in this camp
under Captain Don Diego de Axqueta Menchaca--who was promoted to the
position of admiral of the ships which this year go to Nueva España;
and later to the command of them, on account of Sargento-mayor
Don Gonzalo Rronquillo remaining in these islands, who had been
appointed commander of them. I gave this appointment to the said
Augustin de Salduendo because he was possessed of the requisite
qualifications and abilities, and had served your Majesty in these
islands in military habit and profession nineteen years in the
capacity of soldier, commander of squadron with extra pay, sergeant,
alférez, and other offices, and was present when occasion offered,
and rendered especial services. He has a salary of six hundred pesos
per year. I sent him his commission on the twenty-eighth of July of
one thousand six hundred and twenty-eight.
I appointed Alférez Domingo Francisco de Portilla as corregidor of the
island of Mindoro and its jurisdiction, and military commander there,
as he has the requisite qualifications, and has served your Majesty
in these islands for twenty years past in military service. He has
a salary of a hundred pesos per year. I sent his commission on the
thirteenth of July, one thousand six hundred and twenty-eight.
Sargento-mayor Don Philippe de Lezcano I appointed captain of
infantry, of the company which is in garrison at the fort of Tanda,
in the province of Caraga, and keeper of the fort there, and military
commander, as he has the requisite qualifications and ability. He has
served your Majesty thirteen years in military service in Flandez,
and passed to these islands in the position of sargento-mayor of
infantry which came as reinforcements last year, one thousand six
hundred and twenty-seven. He is assigned a salary of six hundred
pesos per year, which is what the other captains of this camp have,
and with this he will serve the two offices. I sent him the commission
on the twentieth of July of one thousand six hundred and twenty-eight.
Admiral Don Diego de Axcueta Menchaca, who was appointed admiral of
the ships which go to Nueva España this year, I have promoted to the
office of commander of them on account of Sargento-mayor Don Gonzalo
Rronquillo (who was appointed to this office) remaining in these
islands. I have made this appointment because the said Don Diego de
Axcueta has the requisite qualifications and ability. He has served
your Majesty in military service in these islands for nineteen years
past, having been a soldier, alférez, and several times a captain of
infantry, and one of the guard of Governor Don Juan de Silva. He was
present at the battle with the Dutch enemy under the said governor
in the year six hundred and ten, at Playa Honda. He went with the
governor to the forts of Therrenate, and was present at the taking
of Xilolo and Sabugo. On his return to this city he went to the
strait of Sincapura with the said governor, and was afterward in the
battle with the Dutch enemy in the year sixteen at the said Plaia
Honda where Master-of-camp Don Juan Rronquillo acted as general of
the fleet. He afterward became captain of infantry in this camp;
and while he held this position I appointed him commander of a ship
which went with the fleet in my charge to Hermosa Island. He is the
son of Master-of-camp Christoval de Axcueta Menchaca, who died in these
islands in the service of your Majesty. He has a decree directing that
he be occupied in offices of justice and war, conformably to his rank
and ability. He has performed other distinguished services for your
Majesty. He has a yearly salary of three thousand Castilian ducados,
which is the same as has been enjoyed by the commanders of similar
vessels. I sent him the commission on the twenty-fourth of July of
one thousand six hundred and twenty-eight.
Captain Don Fernando Galindo I have appointed admiral of the ships
which will go this present year to Nueva España, as he has the
requisite qualifications and ability, and has served your Majesty in
military service for twenty-two years past in the galleys of Ytalia
and other parts of Europa, and in these islands. While here he was
captain of infantry three times, once in this camp and twice in the
garrison of Cagayan. He was alcalde-mayor and military commander
in that province, and afterward was made alcalde-mayor and military
commander in the province of La Laguna de Vay. He was present when
occasion offered for his services, and acquitted himself well with
what was entrusted to him, rendering other important services to your
Majesty. He has a yearly salary of two thousand Castilian ducados. I
sent him the commission on the twenty-eighth of July, one thousand
six hundred and twenty-eight.
Concerning the other appointments that may be made, I will send a
report during the coming year, in the same manner as your Majesty
orders me. May God our Lord protect you many years, with the addition
of greater kingdoms and seigniories, according to the needs of
Christendom. At the port of Cavite, on the second day of the month
of August of the year one thousand six hundred and twenty-eight.
In the ships which have just arrived from Nueva Spaña in these islands
there came a royal decree by which your Majesty was pleased to confirm
and approve the grant which Governor Don Alonso Faxardo made to these
islands, while he was governor, to Don Luis Faxardo, his brother, on
the first of April of the former year one thousand six hundred and
twenty-one, giving him the encomienda of natives at Bombon and its
dependencies, in the province of Balayan, which contains two thousand
seven hundred and twenty-five tributarios. For this within four years
he was to secure a confirmation from your Majesty, as appeared from
the royal decree under date of the tenth of September of one thousand
six hundred and twenty-six, countersigned by the secretary Don Fernando
Ruiz de Contreras--which decided me not to proceed to the execution of
this without first informing your Majesty as to what has passed in this
matter, and the state in which affairs are at present. I found, Sire,
when I arrived in these islands and undertook the government thereof
in the said year of one thousand six hundred and twenty-six, that the
said encomienda was vacated, and declared so by Governor Don Fernando
de Silva, because the said Don Luis Faxardo had not secured the said
confirmation from your Majesty within the designated period. During
the vacancy, the proceeds of the products and the profits were placed
in the royal treasury. This encomienda had two thousand five hundred
and seven tributarios, which, as they appeared to me to be a large
number, I divided. I made a grant thereof in the name of your Majesty,
according to law, as being vacant, to two persons of considerable rank,
ability, merits, and services. One of these is general Don Antonio
de Leoz, to whom I gave one thousand six hundred tributarios thereof,
as I knew that he had served your Majesty for twenty-four years past,
both in the kingdom of Napoles and in these islands--whither he
came from that kingdom with Governor Don Juan de Silva, as alférez
of the company. Afterward he was made captain, and served in this
camp with other offices, being present when occasion arose. He has
always acquitted himself well of what was entrusted to him, as will
appear by his papers and commission--which I have despatched to him;
and which I understand should already be in that court to petition
for and secure the confirmation, according to the command. He is
married to Doña Juana Gallinato, legitimate daughter and sole heir
of Master-of-camp Juan Xuarez Gallinato, who died in these islands in
your Majesty's service, being a person of many services. I charged him
with a pension, from the said tributarios, of one hundred and fifty
pesos, which he each year gives and pays to Doña Beatriz Cornexo de
Tapia--a widow, who had been the wife of Doctor Juan Manuel de La
Vega, formerly auditor of the royal Audiencia and of these islands;
for she was very poor and was suffering need. In consideration of
making this grant Doña Juana Gallinato resigned one thousand two
hundred tributarios, which she held as an encomienda for a second
life, so that these might be assigned to other persons. The other
nine hundred and seven tributarios remaining I assigned to General
Don Juan de Arcarasso, likewise a person of great ability and merit,
and many services. He has served your Majesty for thirty-four years
past in those lands of Europa, in the royal fleet and elsewhere,
as well as in these islands--where he came as captain of a company
of Spanish infantry, which came with the reënforcements of the year
six hundred and fourteen. He has held and served in other charges
and honorable offices, being present when occasion arose. Thus far
and ever he has acquitted himself very well, as will appear more
at length by his paper and the commission which I sent him--which
should already be in that court to secure the confirmation of the
said encomienda. They are likewise recounted in a clause of a letter
which I despatched to your Majesty in the past year of one thousand
six hundred and twenty-seven, with the report concerning encomiendas
and offices. I made these two grants on the eleventh of December one
thousand six hundred and twenty-six, and issued decrees for them,
having fulfilled all the requirements which are ordered by the royal
decrees. I beseech your Majesty to have examined the matter referred
to, and the said encomienda considered vacant and so declared, in
conformity to the royal decrees which treat of this matter; and as
such to have the appointment given to the said two worthy persons,
who are in possession thereof by a just title. Above all, I beseech
you to command that it be your pleasure that this be observed and
complied with; and in the meantime I shall make no change, because it
appears to me that I acted justly, and that it is expedient for the
service of your Majesty. Dated _ut supra_. Sire, the humble vassal
of your Majesty.
_Don Juan Niño de Tavora_
[_Endorsed_: "Examined; have it joined with the others on this
matter." "In the Council, October 9, 630."]
LETTERS TO FELIPE IV FROM GOVERNOR TAVORA
_Doubts in judicial matters_
Sire:
1. Problems in regard to matters of justice are continually arising,
of which to inform your Majesty, in order that you may have the
advisable decision made therein, and so that the dissensions that
are wont to arise here from such doubts may be avoided. In regard to
the Spaniards and inhabitants of these islands, but one problem has
arisen--namely, when an encomendero marries an encomendera, whether
they may both retain encomiendas; or whether, after choosing the one
that they may esteem better, the other should he vacated. The practice
of these islands is that one of the two encomiendas is vacated. In
virtue of that, your Majesty's fiscal is at present petitioning
before the royal Audiencia for the revenues of a certain encomienda
given to a citizen. The auditors cannot find any order or decree from
your Majesty, by which this is ordered. Consequently, there is not
sufficient justification to declare judgment in favor of the fiscal. It
will be advisable for your Majesty to declare it; and to my mind,
in considering the fact that the encomiendas are few in number, it
would be advisable that there be no change in the practice--namely,
that by the very fact of an encomendero marrying an encomendera,
they choose that encomienda from the two which they consider better;
and that they leave the other, so that it may be regarded as belonging
to another citizen. [_In the margin_: "Observe the decree in regard
to this matter."] [_Note:_ "In this despatch arose the doubt that is
written on a separate piece of paper enclosed with this letter. There
it is decreed what must be executed."]
2. In regard to the native Indians of these islands, I last year
represented to your Majesty that it would be advisable to have
judgments in their suits not rendered in the Audiencia, but by the
government, by having one or two advocates or salaried men for that
purpose, as is done in Nueva España, inasmuch as the same reasons
exist here. I trust that your Majesty will have it considered, and
answer in accordance with your pleasure.
3. The most usual doubts have been in regard to the Chinese or
Sangleys who reside in these islands. An edict was published, at
the instance of the inhabitants, in regard to the measures, quality,
and prices of lumber, tile, brick, and other materials, in order to
avoid the frauds and illegalities which were being introduced into this
region, to the great damage of this community. The edict was published
under the auspices of the government, and its execution was charged
upon the alcaldes-in-ordinary. A few days after that a denunciation
was made; but, when the alcalde tried to enforce the penalty, the
Sangleys appealed to the royal Audiencia. The matter seemed a knotty
one to me, because the edict was notoriously a government measure,
and it was not advisable for its proper execution that the Sangleys
be allowed such delays. I considered it best to advise the auditors
of this, quoting to them the royal decrees, which ruled that they
should not mix in matters of government. They, desiring to extend
their jurisdiction, claimed that the trial of that appeal belonged
to them, as well as the decision whether the penalty of the edict
was excessive or not. I ordered the lawyers to be consulted, and all
those here gave their opinion in writing, namely, that the Audiencia
had no right to try such causes. Consequently, after having seen your
Majesty's decree of November 4, 1606, given to Don Pedro de Acuña,
in which is stated the method that must be followed in such doubts,
I resolved to order that the Audiencia should not try such appeal
until your Majesty, after having been informed of the matter, should
rule otherwise. [_In the margin_: "Have the fiscal examine it." "It
was taken to him." "Answered on a separate paper."]
4. Almost similar was another question that arose a few days after,
when some Chinese merchants had been condemned, by the judge who visits
the Chinese ships, to pay the penalty which they had incurred because
of not having brought the ammunition and stores for your Majesty's
magazines which were ordered from them since the time of Don Juan de
Silva. They appealed to the royal Audiencia, who ordered the judge to
come to report on the matter. It seemed to me that the same argument
ruled in that as in the preceding case, and even more closely, as it
was a matter of war. However, I had the lawyers consulted again. They
decided that it was a military matter, and that it did not belong to
the royal Audiencia. Consequently, I ordered that they do nothing
further in the matter until your Majesty should be informed. [_In
the margin_: "Have the fiscal examine this also." "It was taken to
him." "Answered on a separate paper."]
5. Another appeal has also come in these last few days to the royal
Audiencia from the governor of the Sangleys themselves. He is a person
appointed to govern them in their own manner, and to take charge of the
suits that are brought before him, written in the Chinese characters,
and according, to their custom. And although I did not think that
such appeals should be listened to, and gave my reason therefor, still
the auditors persisted in endeavoring to try this case. In order not
to irritate them, I have overlooked the matter, as it seemed to me
that they could act in this case with less evil consequences than
in the others. I advise your Majesty of it, petitioning you that it
may be to your royal service to have the Audiencia notified as to
what regulations cover not only the governmental and military suits,
but also those of justice, touching the Chinese or Sangleys. For this
some arguments occur to me, which I shall represent to your Majesty,
in order to say at one time what I believe in this matter. [_In the
margin_: "Take this to the fiscal also." "It was taken." "Answered
on a separate paper."]
6. The Chinese, Sire, who live in these islands are almost all
infidels. Their god is silver, and their religion the various ways
that they have of gaining it. Their nature is cowardly; and those who
come to this country have so little character that, as they are not
entitled to anything among their own countrymen, they come to get their
livelihood among us, serving in the most menial trades. They engage in
suits and disputes very readily, in which they threaten one another;
and each day they arm themselves for their sinister ends. They have
innumerable methods of hiding the truth. They furnish as many false
witnesses as they choose, for, as they are infidels, they do not fear
God; and as they are so greedy for money, they swear [falsely], and
even sell their own parents. Their names and occupations are changed
in every step, although for this there may be no better reason or
argument than their own ideas. They are many strangers, coming and
going. Every year some go and others come, and consequently, the
uncertainty and confusion is unavoidable. They are as freehanded in
their bribes as interested in their gains. As they have control of all
the merchandise, trading, gains, and mechanical trades of the country,
their extreme readiness to scatter bribes is remarkable. There is no
Spaniard, secular or religious, who obtains his food, clothing, or
shoes, except through them. Consequently, there is scarce a Sangley
who does not have his protector. Among themselves they have great
system and energy in all those of one trade acting together in all
matters that affect them. They guard one another against the Spaniard
to such an extent that, if I wish to change my shoemaker, I will not
be able to find among all those engaged in that occupation another who
will sell me a shoe. If anyone would dare to do so, the others upon
his return to China would bring suit before their mandarins, and thus
they would destroy him and all his relatives. [_In the margin_: "Take
it to the fiscal." "It was taken." "Answered on a separate paper."]
7. Therefore, since those of this nation are infidels and of so mean
a condition, one can easily infer that to attempt to govern them
with the method, rigor, and terms of our laws and regulations is
the highest injustice and a great abuse. The usual method of judging
them in their country is by a summary and verbal investigation, and
an immediate punishment with the bamboo. The latter is the strap or
whip which the mandarins always carry with them, as any superior is
allowed to flog his inferior, without other justification or authority
than that of his own plain reason. By that method is attained greater
respect and obedience than in any other nation. We do not have less
need for them to fear us and to obey our edicts, since they are our
feet and hands for all that arises for the service of the community
and that of your Majesty. But we shall never obtain that obedience
and respect, unless we conform (as far as the Christian religion
allows) to the methods practiced by their mandarins in commanding
them. This consists in having them punished instantly by the nearest
justices whenever they are found in disobedience or fraud--namely,
their governor and the alcaldes-in-ordinary--without giving them any
opportunity to go from one tribunal to another, or to drag them from
one prison to another. In that they are the greater losers, as their
property is wasted among the constables, attorneys, and notaries,
all of whom are doing their best to skin [_pelar_] them. At the end,
and in the long run, the truth is not laid bare, nor is the service
of your Majesty accomplished. The Sangleys have so many methods of
placing private persons, both religious and laymen, under obligation,
by services and by presents, that when anything is ordered for
them which does not suit them--even though it be for your Majesty's
service, or very necessary for the common welfare--they manage to
prevent the execution of it by a thousand methods, of favors and
negotiations. Therefore, if in addition to all the above, the door
of appeal to the royal Audiencia be opened to them from what is
ordered for them, well can one see that justice itself will become
the obstacle of what it should be the support. [_In the margin_:
"And this." "It was taken." "Reply in a separate section."]
8. I have desired to represent all the above, so that your Majesty may
be pleased to order the royal Audiencia not to meddle in the affairs of
the Sangleys, whether they concern government, or war, or justice. For
if it has been advisable to order that--as is ordered in Nueva España
(and the same is petitioned here)--the Audiencia do not meddle with
the suits of the Indians, it will be much more advisable to observe
the same in regard to the Sangleys, for the above stated reasons.
9. Likewise I have been advised that it is necessary for many
matters, both of grace and of justice, that it be declared whether
the governor of these islands possesses your Majesty's authority in
his government and district; and whether he represents your royal
person with the privilege of alternates which the viceroys possess
in their districts. Although one would believe that it must be so by
law, since the person of the governor is that which is here in your
Majesty's name, and the so great distance to that court dictates how
necessary it is in many cases that the governors have the authority
of doing what your Majesty would do if present, with the obligation
of reporting it to your Majesty; still in certain cases of grace and
justice that have arisen since my arrival at these islands, the lawyers
have declared that this was not plainly stated; and, consequently,
I propose them to your Majesty. [_In the margin_: "Let him observe the
tenor of his warrant, and the decrees and orders given regarding it."]
10. Likewise it would be necessary that the same courtesy be ordered to
be shown to the governors of the Filipinas Islands as to the viceroys
in Nueva España, since in regard to them there are also here the same
reasons and advisability for doing so. By this some little matters
that have caused me innovations would be avoided. Although I pass
these over, it might be that in the time of my successors they would
cause some opposition. Such are for instance, that the auditors, do
not permit the governor's wife to go to the church with her husband
when the assembly goes there in a body; and that the preachers do not
salute the governor with words, as it is the custom to do in all the
kingdoms to the person who has the authority of representing that of
your Majesty. [_In the margin_: "Let the custom be followed."]
11. This very day a case occurred while in the hall of the public
assembly, which I have thought best to refer to your Majesty. It was
in regard to a decision that I gave, apropos of one of the parties,
for the royal Audiencia. The secretary having come to sign the decision
that the Audiencia gave in approbation of the one that I had given,
called me in the record of the decision "the lord governor." One of
the auditors thought that that should not be the manner of naming
me in decisions; and chided the secretary before me, saying that he
was doing it to flatter me, and other things of like purport. The
secretary defended himself, saying that that was the style that he
had always used, and to prove it showed other decisions where not
only my person is named as "lord," but also those of the auditors. I
asked the others who were present for their opinion, and they replied
that it was very proper that the Audiencia should exercise that
courtesy toward the governor and captain-general of these islands;
and with greater reason, since he was their president, they were not
to treat him the same as an alcalde-in-ordinary. Thereupon I ordered
the secretary to do the same as heretofore, until your Majesty should
be pleased to order differently. I petition your Majesty to be pleased
to give the auditors to understand the estimation that it may please
you to have for the person of your governor and captain-general;
for this matter is not at all understood here. That is the reason
why the governors have always been at odds with the Audiencia. I am
not at odds with them, nor will I be, for I am the one who suffers,
and I shall suffer it, since I am under greater obligations than
they. I petition that what your Majesty may be pleased to order me
be expressed so clearly that they cannot give it any other meaning;
for this matter of interpreting your Majesty's decrees is done with
great ease in the Yndias, and truly rare are the decrees, if they touch
upon any controversy, in which it is not necessary for your Majesty
to declare them over again. [_In the margin_: "Let the custom be kept;
and in the records and decisions, let the governor be called 'lord.'"]
12. I am enclosing an official record with this letter in regard to
what is forbidden to the auditors touching the suits and appeals of the
Chinese or Sangleys--a caution that I am taking, as I have seen that
they are complaining confusedly to your Majesty that I am preventing
them from receiving suits as alcaldes of the court, not specifying
as clearly as is possible what those suits and appeals are. It is my
opinion that the Audiencia should not meddle with matters pertaining
to the Sangleys, for the reasons that I have given for it in this
despatch, and in that of the year past. Will your Majesty order what
is most advisable, being assured that experience has obliged me to
give the report that I submit. May our Lord preserve the Catholic and
royal person of your Majesty with the increase of new kingdoms, as
we your vassals desire, and as we need. Manila, August 4, 1628. Your
Majesty's humble vassal,
_Don Juan Niño de Tavora_
[_In the margin_: "Let the fiscal see it." "It was taken to
him." "Answered on a separate paper."]
_Affairs of the treasury_
Sire:
Since I have to give account in this letter to your Majesty of what
there is to tell in regard to your royal treasury, I shall begin it
by explaining some decrees that I received the past year, which were
despatched at the instance of the royal officials.
In the first decree, they complained that my predecessor, Don Alonso
Faxardo, did not allow them to exercise their duties in the port
of Cavite; and that he had appointed as lieutenant of the governor
and captain-general, Don Andres Perez Franco, castellan of those
forts. Your Majesty orders that they be allowed to perform their
duties, and that commissaries be not appointed for what pertains
to them. They will not conduct those suits with him; for, although
I retain Don Andres Perez Franco in Cavite, I have not given him
the title given him by Don Alonso--although he never used it, as
I am informed. The efficient collection and care of the revenues
of your Majesty belong to the royal officials; and with that power
they take part in all the equipping, building, and despatch of the
vessels. But the appointments of the officials of the vessels, and
all else touching government and war, have always been attended to by
the governors, who for this have maintained in Cavite a castellan,
commandant, and chief justice, of the abilities and experience of
Don Andres Perez Franco; so that, although I could rest, still I
have not been negligent, but have gone in person, on the occasions
for the equipment and building of vessels, every week to that port,
which is a very necessary thing. [_In the margin_: "Seen."]
In the second decree they informed your Majesty that the said my
predecessor did not accept the replies that were made to them in
accordance with the ordinances. I trust that there will be no fault
to find with me in this regard. However it is advisable to have it
well understood that it cannot be done and that it is not advisable,
because of the accidents that happen by observing the ordinances with
the strictness that some ministers demand at times. What is certain is,
that I shall never depart from what I consider to be for the greater
service of your Majesty. [_In the margin_: "Seen."]
In the third decree the royal officials petition for the suppression
of the rule that was introduced in the time of Don Juan de Silva,
by which the royal officials should not pay anyone without an order
from the governor. Your Majesty orders me to observe toward them
their rights and instructions. What is done in my time is that the
royal officials adjust the accounts and issue warrants; but they are
not paid without my order. The reason therefor is that, because this
government has not one-half the money necessary to meet expenses
and debts--as well as the support of the infantry, the building of
ships, the repair of the fleets that guard these coasts, relief for
the Malucas and the island of Hermosa and other presidios--besides
inevitable things, it is necessary that the governor, who is charged
with all this, know how much money there is in the treasury, and that
he divide it so that it may not fail for the most necessary things,
If he trusted to the royal officials in this, without having a private
book of the receipts and disbursements of the treasury (as I have),
when he imagined that there was money for the reënforcements of the
infantry and the despatch of the fleets he would find nothing. If the
treasury were supplied, there would be enough for all, and the royal
officials by justifying the payments would be fulfilling their duties;
but since there is not more money than for one-half of what is needed,
and since we live by the art of enchantment, it is necessary that the
royal officials do not pay whomever they wish, but what is most urgent
and inevitable for the preservation of these kingdoms. Accordingly,
the measures introduced in this regard during the term of Don Juan
de Silva were very commendable and necessary. As it was so necessary
a thing, persons of great experience advised me of it even before I
had taken over the government, and experience shows me that it cannot
be dispensed with. [_In the margin_: "Take it to the fiscal." "The
fiscal says that after having considered the reasons written by the
governor, the practice which the latter declares has been followed,
and is followed, namely, of not permitting the royal officials to make
any payments from the royal treasury without his advice and decree,
can be tolerated; for in such cases the other viceroys and governors
are wont to provide the same, notwithstanding that it is ordered that
they allow the royal officials to perform their duties freely. Madrid,
November 19, 1630." "That for the present, the plan now followed in
this be observed, and note shall be taken that the payments made be
with all justification."]
The fourth decree is in regard to the collection of the licenses which
are given to the Sangleys allowing them to remain in the islands, that
this shall be made by the royal officials, and the proceeds from it
punctually deposited in the royal treasury, without its being given,
under any consideration, into the possession of another person. What
I have to say in this particular is that, although since my arrival
at these islands that money has always been deposited with the judge
of the licenses, it was always delivered every week and month to the
royal officials. The collection has been so well attended to that,
although there were the same number of Sangleys in the time of Don
Alonso Faxardo, during the interim of the Audiencia, and that of Don
Fernando de Silva, when the most that was collected was eight thousand
pesos, during these last two years it amounted one year to ninety-eight
thousand pesos, and the other to ninety-five thousand. Besides this,
when at the last everything was exhausted, old notes were presented;
and during these last two years about twenty thousand pesos were
paid. Now although the royal officials have no time so that they
can take part in this collection--as it is different from all other
collections that are made, and one has to keep at it all day--I have
ordered them by an act, in accordance with the decree of your Majesty,
that it be done in a room assigned for it, in order that it may be
paid in these royal houses; and so that they may really collect in
person the money which the judge whom I appoint (as I cannot attend
to it), and the agents whom I hire, collect from the Sangleys who
shall bring it to them. By that method your Majesty's order will be
accomplished. That is not its intention, but only to keep tab on the
Sangleys, and on the profit that results from the licenses. This sum is
distributed in official service, and is a matter of justice. Diligent
toil is expended on this collection, and the Sangleys are sought in
the hills and in a thousand places where they hide, in order not to
pay. Only the authority of the governor, to whom your Majesty has
assigned the giving of licenses allowing the Sangleys to remain
in the country, can issue the licenses and order the collection,
but no other person. Your Majesty may be assured that your service
is performed with great affection and care; and that I am looking
out for your royal revenues much more than for my own. For since I
arrived in these islands considerable has been saved for your Majesty;
as it will be seen by the accounts that what cost six in former years
and did not gain any profit, today costs four and is profitable; and
the profit is not lost, for it is carefully expended. I know that it
will be impossible for the royal officials to collect personally;
but they can authorize some one to collect and deposit the money
in the royal treasury every night. By that means everything will be
regulated, although they never remain satisfied, for they do not have
the profits which they have desired. [_In the margin:_ "Seen."]
Another decree came by which your Majesty orders me to investigate
the troubles which the royal Audiencia had represented as being
due to the sale of the offices of the notaries for the provinces of
these islands. I discussed the matter in an assembly of persons of
considerable experience, both seculars and religious; and all were
of the opinion that it was not advisable to sell the said offices,
but that they should be filled by appointment, and changed annually
along with the alcaldes-mayor. For besides that they are of very small
profit to your Majesty, it is certain that if the said notaries were
permanent, the said Indians would not dare to bring suits against
them at the time of their residencia, which is taken each year when
the alcaldes-mayor finish their office. Consequently, they come to be
so tyrannical that they destroy the poor Indians. For that purpose,
I had already resolved before the reception of the decree not to
continue the sale of the said offices; and, when those which I found
sold became vacant, not to resell them. Will your Majesty please
consider this matter favorably, since what is most important for
your royal service is that these afflicted natives be not injured by
your agents. [_In the margin_: "Take it to the fiscal." "The fiscal
says that, notwithstanding what the governor writes in this section,
these notaryships must be ordered to be sold, or at least one in the
capital of each province. For while some troubles may result from
this, those which are experienced daily in regulating the notaries
who are called 'appointed' are greater. Consequently, general decrees
are despatched ordering the suppression of this practice in all parts
of the Yndias, although it has been carried out in but few, because
the said governors refuse. He petitions that it be so provided and
ordered, and justice done. Madrid, November 19, 1630." "Let what is
decreed be obeyed." "Observe what is decreed, in accordance with what
the fiscal says."]
By the last decree concerning this matter of revenue, your Majesty
orders me to investigate whether it would be advisable to make a
new appraisement of the tribute which the Indians are ordered to
pay in kind; and whether it will be advisable for the Indians not to
be compelled to pay in kind, but in gold or silver, or in what they
were able and willing to pay. What I can say to your Majesty about
this is, that the present practice in these islands was introduced
by order of Governor Don Pedro de Acuña, with the consent of the
royal Audiencia and the ecclesiastical prelates, by which the natives
pay four reals of their tribute in kind, and one fowl besides, and
the rest in money. In regard to the quantity and kinds of products
which had to be given for the said four reals, the appraisement was
made according as the circumstances of each province required. After
the religious and ministers who instruct the provinces had conferred
among themselves, at the command of the said governor this was done,
in the year 604. Since then times have changed, and the prices have
been different. Accordingly, the quantity of rice or other products
that the Indians are ordered to pay on account of the said four
reals is too much in some provinces. Consequently, I think that your
Majesty ought to order, with the assistance of another council that
was called in the time of Don Pedro de Acuña that the matter be again
conferred over, and decision made whether it is advisable to make a
new appraisement; and that, if that be found desirable, it be done
at once. But in regard to leaving it to the Indians whether they
will or will not pay the said four reals in kind, besides the fowl,
in no consideration am I of the opinion that that should be left to
their choice; for the natives are generally so inclined to laziness
that they do not sow or cultivate the lands, unless forced to do so
by the obligation of paying the tribute in kind, as it is assigned
in accordance with the different fruits and products of the many
different provinces in these islands. It is seen in these provinces
by experience that the obligation of sowing in order to pay their
tribute is what keeps them supplied with all kinds of food. These
considerations occur to me in regard to this decree, and to the others
that I received the past year concerning this matter. [_In the margin_:
"Take it to the fiscal." "The fiscal says that he agrees with what
the governor writes in this section, and he is certain that it is
advisable for the Indians to pay a portion of their taxes in kind;
for, in any other way, they would not have the care that is advisable
in rearing and planting. Madrid, November 19, 1630." "Observe what
the fiscal says."]
Coming now to the special consideration of the revenues of this year,
the receipts have been less than ever. One hundred and eighty thousand
pesos came from Nueva España. The licenses will have amounted to
ninety thousand; and the other revenues--duties, situados, moneys from
vacant offices, and balances of accounts--to another fifty thousand,
including in this twenty thousand that the procurators of the city of
Macan gave as aid in the voyage which the galleons made in convoy of
their galliots. In all it does not amount to more than three hundred
and fifty thousand pesos. The expenses are more than five hundred
thousand pesos; but they have been greater [than in other years],
for besides the stipends of this holy church, the salaries of the
royal Audiencia and other officials, the pay of the infantry of
this camp and the presidios, the aid for Terrenate and the island of
Hermosa, the naval storehouse at Cavite, and other ordinary expenses,
many extraordinary ones have arisen. These include the fleet, the
voyage of the galleons, and the embassy to China; the construction
of three galleons, four brigantines, and one galleon which is being
built--together with more than seven thousand pesos that the governor
of Terrenate bought in food and clothing, in order to supply the
lack of those which were in the flagship which was lost; and also
the unavoidable expenses of this government, although the infantry
have not received their entire pay. Your Majesty can easily see how
we shall have passed this year. The relief has been mostly through
the large contributions by which I am exhausting the inhabitants;
by loans; by neglecting to collect many salaries; and by sending more
than one-half of the camp on ships through those seas for eight months,
in order to save the effective succor which it was necessary to give
them while ashore. Consequently, I find myself owing, in loans and
debts contracted in this year, to the amount of one hundred and fifty
thousand pesos. That sum must be paid on the arrival of the succor
from Nueva España. If that succor is as short as it was last year,
it will mean to drive us out by the gates, and render it impossible
for this government to do anything for its increase and the service
of your Majesty. [_In the margin_: "Seen."]
Nothing has placed the states of Flandes and those wars in greater
stress than the mutinies. Your Majesty has a large body of infantry
in these islands; and although it is in the Yndias, where it seems
to those in España that everything is in superabundance, that is
a delusion; for the soldiers experience much misery and hardships,
and see only a scanty relief, and every year a large amount of pay
remains still due to them. All the remote presidios suffer, and in
Terrenate the soldiers desert to the enemy. I humbly entreat your
Majesty to consider these reasons, and have the viceroys of Nueva
España strictly ordered to send us what is asked from them. For in
no other way will they succor these islands, as is advisable; nor do
they, in other things, provide anyone to whom can be entrusted the
assaying [of metals]. Some persons have done this, but have not had
the certainty that was desired. I trust in God that He will help me
to attain some success. I shall not desist from the effort--and that,
be it understood, without expense to your Majesty. I have some ores
in my house again, which I am assaying--mainly because I have no
one who understands it thoroughly--although I am proceeding almost
blindly. [_In the margin_: "Seen."]
After having written this, news came of the arrival of the ships of
this year, and a report of the succor that is sent in it, namely,
250,000 pesos in reals. The treasury now owes 150,000 pesos to the
citizens for loans, and for food which has been taken from the natives
on credit, for the expenses of this year. We cannot neglect to pay
any part of that sum as soon as the ships reach port, in order not
to lose credit with the inhabitants and natives, who are the ones who
support us most. Taking then 150,000 pesos from the 250,000 that come,
only 100,000 remain to be deposited in the treasury for the expenses of
this year. Last year, when the succor arrived there was nothing owing
for loans or food. In the matter of expenses I have been so moderate
that I have not paid the salaries of the government employees, nor
the debts of any of the back years. I have kept the infantry on ships
for the space of eight months, in order to save the succor and actual
cash that would have to be given them if they were ashore. Yet at the
end of the year the treasury has been found pledged to the extent of
the said 150,000 pesos. Since at least 80,000 pesos in reals are to be
expended from the treasury this year in relief expeditions, and since
we can not fail to have the expenses of last year, I find that in the
coming July of 629, when the ships which I am now despatching arrive
(if God be pleased to bring them back safely), we will owe 250,000
pesos in loans and food. That will be all the succor that I can count
upon as being ordered to be sent me. Neither of those can I get here in
this country, for the loan is a grievous burden on the inhabitants. My
rigor cannot be greater than that of the present year. And, even did
I secure these supplies, we shall be ruined none the less on that
account in the following year, since at the time of the arrival of
the succor, we shall be owing it all. [_In the margin_: "Seen."]
The ordinary expense of these islands, if the infantry are given
the full amount of their pay, is seven hundred and fifty thousand
pesos per year, at appears from the reports of accounts that I am now
sending. The unavoidable expense of necessary aid, factories, salaries,
and stipends, amounts to 550,000 pesos. What these islands produce
from year to year, in money which can be deposited in the treasury,
as an aid to the ordinary expenses, amounts to 150,000 pesos. That
leaves 400,000 pesos, which must be sent in reals every year from
Nueva España. That should be by way of a gift or consignment (as your
Majesty does in other places of less importance and danger than these);
and it should not remain at the will of the viceroys of Nueva España
whether they will send the money or not--even if they have to get it by
loans. And even if this be ordered in the manner in which I request,
the treasury will still remain under the obligations and shortage in
which it will have been involved all these current years. With good
administration and better intelligence--and every day I am trying
to further the increase of the royal possessions--I hope that this
will be retrieved. For if we have the means necessary to maintain the
fleets in activity, we shall endeavor therewith to retrieve most of our
arrears. But if the necessary funds be not given, we must necessarily
lose what is now sent, which will be of no advantage when our fleet is
rendered useless for lack of what is needed. [_In the margin_: "Seen."]
I am very sure that your Majesty will have heard by different ways of
my care in watching your royal treasury, and the change that has taken
place in it, and the reform in the expenses since my arrival in this
government. But I feel obliged humbly to petition your Majesty to be
pleased to withdraw me from it in case that there is no opportunity
of succoring it, as I petition; for I am very certain of the rapidity
with which it is hastening to its final destruction, and it is not
proper that a possession of so great importance for the Roman church
and the crown of your Majesty be lost in the hands of persons of my
character and desires. May our Lord preserve the Catholic and royal
person of your Majesty, with the increase and prosperity which we
your vassals desire and as we need. Manila, August 4, 1628.
Just now has been brought to me what this royal Audiencia writes to
your Majesty, all complaining that the thirds of their salaries are
not paid to them with the promptness that is ordered; that sometimes
two or three thirds are owing to them; and that the cause of this is
the annoyance and trouble brought about by the governors ordering
that they be not paid without their special order. What has been
done in this matter during my term will be seen by the testimony
that I enclose with the present letter. It would be a strong case if
there were any money in the royal treasury, in view of the shortness
of the succors as the ships cannot be expected for the last third,
that of April. The same measure has been taken this year with all the
officials in general, as well as to myself. The treasury owes me ten
thousand pesos, and to the citizens a great sum in loans, for since
the needs of the treasury are so pressing, we all must feel it. The
ships have arrived late, and order has been given to pay immediately
the third that is due. What remains to be paid will be paid by the end
of this month, when it will be due. Thus have we been doing hitherto,
and there has been no delay in any third, unless for two or three
days that are spent in making out the vouchers and giving the decree
or order--without which nothing is paid, for the reason that I gave
above in the third section of this letter. This appears a vexation
to the Audiencia. May God preserve the Catholic and royal person of
your Majesty, as Christendom needs. Manila, August 4, 1628. Sire,
the humble vassal of your Majesty,
_Don Juan Niño de Tavora_
[_In the margin_: "Take it to the fiscal." "The fiscal says that in
regard to the governor taking charge of the payments that are to be
made in the royal treasury, he refers to what he has said in another
section of this letter. In regard to his holding back the thirds of
the salaries of the auditors, it must be ordered that that be not done
unless it is rendered necessary by a very urgent occasion. Madrid,
November 19, 1630." "Let him see that their salaries are not withheld
from the auditors, preferring them to all the other payments that
shall be made."]
_Governmental affairs_
Sire:
What occurs to me, of which to write your Majesty concerning this
government, in addition to the matters of justice, revenue, and war
(of which I am writing in separate letters), is, first, of the peace
and quiet that has been enjoyed in this community. All the tribunals
maintain peace among themselves, and act with great harmony and
unanimity. And although a few occasions and controversies do not
fail to arise in the course of the year in all of the tribunals,
I endeavor to lean toward that which is of most importance to us,
namely, peace. [_In the margin:_ "Seen."]
The city has been beautified by the building of a bridge which was
desired for a long time; and, although it had been regarded as almost
impossible, we now see it in such condition that we can cross by it
within two months. Then we shall be able to attend to the conducting
of the water or fountain with which your Majesty so earnestly charged
me. In this and other buildings, I exert myself very willingly. If
the inhabitants were in so easy circumstances that taxes could be
imposed on their possessions to carry this construction forward,
there would be much more work, [_In the margin:_ "Seen."]
One night in the month of January, fire was carelessly set (as far as
could be learned) in the Parián of the Sangleys or Chinese who live
close to the walls of this city. All the buildings were of wood and
straw; and consequently, although we went to the rescue as quickly and
energetically as possible, the fire could not be extinguished. I viewed
the fire from the guard-house itself, which looks out on the Parián,
in order to prevent the movements that the Chinese might attempt under
such circumstances. The master-of-camp, Don Lorenço Olaco, entered the
Parián itself, and by his timely efforts, and through God's help, he
saved the convent and church of the fathers of St. Dominic, who have
charge of the Chinese. The latter, being infidels, were not a little
surprised at seeing only the convent and house of the fathers escape
so great a fire. Almost all the Parián has been rebuilt, with much
better outlines and edifices than before, and that to such an extent
that this city is beautified by buildings so fine. [_In the margin_:
"Seen."]
There have also been other fires this year. One was in the city of
Cibu, where the convents of the calced and discalced religious of
St. Augustine were burned, together with some houses of the most
influential inhabitants. Another was in the city of [Nuestra Señora]
del Rosario de Terrenate, where the convent of St. Francis and the
royal hospital were burned, together with a considerable portion of
the native village. The edifices in these regions are generally of
wood or bamboo, and the roofs of straw. Consequently, they are very
liable to such disasters. Now edifices of stone are being introduced,
roofed with tile or brick, and therefore these troubles are being
averted. [_In the margin_: "Seen."]
The year has been a productive one for rice, which is the wheat of this
country. We are experiencing the great blessing that will result from
the cultivated farms that have recently commenced to be established by
the Spaniards. They are cultivated by the Chinese, who are excellent
farmers. I am encouraging it to the best of my ability, as I believe
this is the shortest road to provide this city with plenty of food.
In regard to the trade and commerce of silks and other products
of China, in which consists all the substance of the inhabitants
of this community, certain straits will be experienced this year,
because the returns from Nueva España have been very slight, and
prices here are very high. Consequently, all the city has thought,
with the general consent, that there should be no [record of]
investment, or register, in the ships that are despatched this year
to Nueva España for aid. Thus was I petitioned in the name of the
whole city. I discussed it in the session with the auditors, and in
a treasury meeting with those who attend that. All thought that what
the city petitioned should be conceded, as it was well known that
it would tend to its increase and profit, or to say better, to the
restoration of this community. Your Majesty has much more interest
in that than in the duties on the investment and register, which
are of slight consideration to this treasury and to that of Mexico;
while it is of great interest to all the monarchy that so much silver
be not sent to China as was going every year from these kingdoms of
your Majesty. Since your royal decrees make so much of the harm that
would follow to those kingdoms and to all the monarchy from excesses
in these regions, I do not doubt that the decision to set aside the
[record of] investment for this year will be quite in accord with
its welfare and to your Majesty's pleasure. [_In the margin_: "Take
it to the fiscal." "The fiscal says that, in spite of the causes
mentioned by the governor in this section of his letter, he has
been notified from Mexico and various other places in regard to this
particular; and that the ships were laden with merchandise of great
value. Hence the omission of the register only served to defraud the
royal duties. Consequently, the governor should be censured for his
act and a greater demonstration [of displeasure] reserved for what
should result from his inspection and residencia from Mexico, that
being one of the matters referred to that city." "Let the decision
of the fiscal be followed; and advise the inspector of this, so that
he may charge those who are guilty."]
Not less attention has been paid to the government of the Indians
and natives of these provinces. I found them greatly oppressed and
harassed by the many burdens, assessments, and services that were
imposed on them for the service of your Majesty and the support of the
government employees and justices. In regard to this matter, I held
several conferences with the ecclesiastical prelates, the regulars,
and the seculars. At these were present your Majesty's fiscal, the
assessor of the government, and two encomenderos in the name of the
others, and I conferred with them on the most important points. Later,
with general consent, I made a new set of instructions and ordinances
concerning the justices and encomenderos. By them was prohibited under
heavy penalties whatever had been introduced that was harmful to the
Indians. An attested copy of certain points was given to the superiors
of the orders and to the ministers who are not regulars, of which it
seemed best that they should be notified at the same meeting. They were
strictly charged with the execution of those clauses; under penalty
that if redress were not made by their own action, your Majesty will
enforce it. And in order that some cooperation might be supplied on
the part of your royal treasury to this general relief which we are
trying to effect for the Indians, it was resolved, with the consent
of the tribunal of the treasury, to pay the natives who serve in the
naval storehouse, the rope-factory, and in the repairs of the ships of
your Majesty, a moderate sum which seemed a just recompense for their
labor. By that means, and without any remarkable cost to your Majesty
(since other expenses were cut down), the villages were relieved of
many thousands of ducados which they had to contribute (to their own
ruin) every year for the just payment of the aforesaid services. Thus,
adding to all this the efforts that, as I wrote in the letter on
military affairs, have been made and are being undertaken in regard to
their protection, I think everything possible will have been done this
year for the just government and administration of these unfortunate
natives. [_In the margin_: "Take it to the fiscal." "The fiscal says
that from what this section shows, the zeal and care of the governor
in the welfare, protection, and instruction of those natives ought
to be esteemed, and he ought to be ordered to go ahead. At present
nothing else in particular can be answered or advised, because this
letter does not contain the matters mentioned in it and said to have
been given to the religious orders, etc." "Advise him that the papers
have not come, and that we are awaiting them, in order to decide as
shall be most advisable."]
Quite a number of meetings were also held in regard to the government
of the Sangleys or Chinese, both those naturalized in the country
and those who are transient--the traders and mechanics, who are very
numerous. All that needed reform was discussed very deliberately, and
is being carried out in accordance with the decisions of the other
tribunals. However, we cannot help having a million difficulties
in regard to all the matters concerning that nation, as we do not
govern them after their own manner--as I state in greater detail to
your Majesty in the letter on judicial matters, when discussing the
manner in which I think those people should be governed. It is sure
and certain that so long as there cannot be the remedy that I ask for
in this matter, what is desired and expedient cannot be attained. [_In
the margin_: "Seen; and have particular care in this."]
The decrees, instructions, and ordinances sent to these islands,
both to the governors and to other tribunals and officials, are the
rule for the right government of the islands. Very many of them
are missing--some being lost by carelessness, and others hidden
through malice--and orders are not found for many things that would
be necessary, while others, because they were carelessly drawn up,
are, when placed in practice, overruled by saying that there was a
decree for it. Consequently, desirous of the clarity required in so
important a matter, I petition your Majesty to be pleased to have some
folios of them printed and sent to this government. [_In the margin:_
"For all the Council." "Have a pamphlet printed of all these orders
and send it to him, and for that purpose send Antonio de Leon to
me." "I have made an agreement with Don Fernando and Antonio de Leon."]
A seminary for orphan boys is a work of great importance for this city,
as there arc usually, in lands so remote, many who are unprotected and
without parents or relatives. Your Majesty orders me by a royal decree
to favor it, and to seek means by which to found it. Consequently,
in accordance with the order, I granted an encomienda of five
hundred tributes to one of the foremost inhabitants of this city,
namely, Captain Pedro de Navarrete, on condition that he would give a
pension of five thousand pesos in ready cash as revenue for the work
of the said seminary. By that means was made good the deficiency in
his services--which, although they have not been of moment in war
affairs, still were sufficient for him to be granted an encomienda;
and on condition of the five thousand pesos he was to be preferred
to the others. I am awaiting another similar opportunity in order to
get enough to be enabled to finish the work [on a building for them]
The services of the fathers of the boys who are reared in this house
make up for the deficiency of those who do not furnish services,
but who can give like sums. By this means, I believe that the house
will be established. But in order that it may have some fixed income,
it will be necessary for your Majesty to be pleased to command me to
give them one thousand five hundred or two thousand tributes that are
vacant. With this the seminary will be placed in good condition, and
can have a secular priest as rector to govern it, who will be chosen
by the governors. Your Majesty will have the patronage of this boys'
seminary, as you have in that of the girls of Santa Potenciana--and at
less cost, since all the expenses will be met from encomiendas--than
if these had to be enjoyed by worthy men; but their sons will enjoy the
encomiendas, since this seminary is founded in order to rear them. [_In
the margin_: "[To be considered by] the whole Council. Take it to
the fiscal." "The fiscal says that he does not consider the means
employed by the governor to get these five thousand pesos as good,
for it really means selling the encomiendas, and giving them for
prices to those who do not deserve them. It will result in the general
affliction and discontent of the deserving. Consequently, in case that
the sum given in this may be approved, the governor must be ordered
that no others be given henceforth in like manner. He considers it as
better and more suitable that the governor assign some encomiendas
for the revenues and income of this seminary, to the quantity that
shall be deemed advisable. Thus has it been, and is being, done with
other like foundations in Peru and Nueva España. Madrid, December 5,
1630." "That the encomienda given was well done, under the conditions
that existed. For the support [of the said seminary], the governor
shall continue to impose pensions on the encomiendas up to the sum
of one thousand ducados, and shall advise us of what is done."]
Since my arrival, I have had the care of the hospitals of this city,
ordered to me by your Majesty in one of your royal decrees received
this year. The hospitals are in charge of the discalced religious
of St. Francis. I do not doubt that if there were some brothers of
[St.] John of God here, they would administer them better; but I have
not found them in these islands as yet. I am charging the fathers to
look after them carefully, and I personally visit and aid the sick
whenever my occupations admit; and I wish that that were often. [_In
the margin_: "Thank him, and tell him to continue what he is doing,
since it is not advisable to send any of those brothers at present."]
I wrote at length my opinion in regard to the spiritual matters of
the convents and orders, and at present nothing especial occurs 10
me of which to advise your Majesty. [_In the margin_: "Seen."]
The characters of Juan Ruiz de Escalona, treasurer of the royal
revenues of these islands, and of the accountant, Martin Ruiz
de Salazar, are excellent. They attend to their duties with all
punctuality and earnest zeal, which deserve from your Majesty the
favor that all who comply with their obligations may hope from your
royal hand. They are informing you of their especial petitions,
and hence I shall not go into greater detail. [_In the margin_:
"Let persons of these abilities be kept in mind."]
The inspector who was assigned to this royal Audiencia has not
come this year because of his lack of health, according to what he
writes me. That is a pity, for it is important to the service of your
Majesty that these islands be inspected. [But that should be done]
with the mildness and prudence that is proper; for I do not consider
it advisable to unearth old matters that now have no redress, and
to investigate them will have no other result than to disturb this
community. [_In the margin_: "That this is already provided."]
This despatch is being made August 4, one day after the arrival at
this port of the ships from Nueva España. Those ships spent just
four months in a voyage that can be and usually is made in less than
three, and after suffering innumerable storms and maladies--with the
evident risk of leaving these islands without help, because they had
not left Nueva España a fortnight earlier. Sire, this government,
notwithstanding the strenuous efforts of him who may govern here,
will be only, what the viceroys of Nueva España wish. If aid comes
in time and is abundant (or at least sufficient), all goes well
and affairs progress, for everything is obtained. If the aid comes
late, and does not contain what is necessary, everything is lost and
destroyed, as was pointed out more minutely to your Majesty in the
letters of war and revenue. I petition you humbly that--although I
have come to these islands so desirous of furthering their prosperity,
but have found them tied down by undertakings and expenses greater
than in the time of my predecessors--since I do not merit being
aided as they were, or cannot be aided because of the inclemency of
the weather, your Majesty will be pleased to use me in another place
where the employment and attainment of my desires is not impossible
through the lack of coöperation and outside aid. May God preserve
the Catholic royal person of your Majesty with the increase that we,
your vassals, desire, and which Christendom needs. Manila, August 4,
1628. Sire, your Majesty's humble vassals,
_Don Juan Niño de Tavora_
[_In the margin_: "Seen. Have the viceroy charged to be very punctual
in this."]
ECONOMIC REASONS FOR SUPPRESSING THE SILK TRADE OF CHINA IN SPAIN
AND ITS COLONIES
_Reasons of expediency existing why the importation of the silk
of China and the other merchandise of that country ought not to be
permitted in the Indias and these kingdoms, but rather prohibited;
and the damages and troubles that follow from its not being prohibited
in every point, and its trade, are the following._
It is very pernicious to permit the importation of the silk of China
and its trade, both in the Indias and in España. For although not
more than two hundred and fifty thousand pesos de Tipuzque can be
taken from Nueva España to the Filipinas annually, besides that sum
another incalculable quantity of money is taken in reals of eight;
for the said silk can be bought or traded for nothing else, nor will
the Chinese give or exchange it for other merchandise. Consequently,
they manage to get hold of and carry away annually the greater part
of the eight-real pieces which are made in the said Nueva España,
in exchange for grass, which is the substance of that coarse and
harsh silk which is so plentiful among the Chinese. [53] Thus do they
weaken our strength and increase their own; and consequently they can
make war on us whenever they wish, without any cost to them as far
as we are concerned. And since this money does not come to España,
it cannot be invested there in merchandise, and the customs duties and
the excise duty cannot be collected from them; and they cannot return
with a greater sum of money with which to make larger investments,
resulting in the great increase of the said royal incomes, and the
common benefit of his Majesty's vassals. Besides, if that silk were
not taken from China to Nueva España, it would not be used there;
nor would it be poured into Piru and Tierra Firme, as is done. For,
notwithstanding the prohibition established forbidding any merchandise
to be taken there from China, a very large quantity of it is taken
to the said provinces from Nueva España, and it is used there--the
viceroys, generals, and justices concealing and favoring it for
their own private interest and benefit. For that reason much less
Spanish merchandise is used in the said Piru and Tierra Firme than
was formerly consumed, and than would be used if the merchandise of
China were not sent there. That condition causes the merchandise of
España to have one-half less value than before. Hence it results
that daily fewer trading ships arc sent from these kingdoms than
formerly, and than would be sent if the said trade with China were to
cease. That is the reason why the Spanish silks and other merchandise
are so seldom demanded or consumed in the Indias. That, with the low
prices at which they are sold, and the numerous duties which are paid,
and the trade so ruined, makes the exporters and merchants derive so
little gain from their investments that they do not care to increase
or to continue their trade, and cease to attend to it. On that account,
the said Indias do not depend, as it is right that they should depend,
on these kingdoms; while, as there and in these kingdoms is consumed
the merchandise of China, which is only bought with standard reals of
eight, an enormous amount of coin is taken there in exchange for the
merchandise, and thus is not sent to these kingdoms to be invested
here, in order to return them to the said Indias. [If that were
done], the duties thereon (together with the great cargoes and the
increase of business in all directions) would increase very greatly,
as would be clearly and quickly seen in the increase of the royal
revenues. The prohibition of the said merchandise of China is of much
greater advantage to the royal revenues than the permission; besides,
it is the universal remedy [for the troubles] of these kingdoms
and of the said Indias, that the said merchandise be not exported
to either the former or the latter. [There is a parallel to this in
our domestic trade], for in place of the wheat (because of the lack
of it that is generally experienced in the maritime towns of this
kingdom), foreigners are continually carrying away from us so great
an amount of money through the permissions given to them for export,
and with what they demand besides, for the wheat, and in exchange for
the copper coins that they force on us, and other articles that they
bring to us, which they have in plenty--but which we do not need, as
we have all of them in our España. Thus they weaken our resources and
strengthen their own; but this would be avoided if we did not need the
wheat, and they were not permitted to bring the other things. Just so,
not having need (as there is none) of the wares from China, because
we have so many of them in these kingdoms (which moreover are known
to be so much better in quality), we should cease this trade, which
only carries to China that great treasure which is annually withdrawn
and conveyed thither, without any hope that any part of it will ever
return to us. For the Chinese have a great surplus of all goods,
and never come to buy anything, but only to sell--and that only for
reals of eight; and consequently, they make their prices so cheap, in
order to get the reals, that they constrain one to buy a much greater
quantity of their merchandise than he would buy if the prices were
higher and the profits less. And although the profits are seemingly
large at first, they are not so in reality, because of the little
durability of the Chinese goods, and because of the damage caused to
the merchandise of España by their importation; for, by permitting
it, the consumption of Spanish goods is lessened, and they have less
value. Consequently--setting aside the so universal damage to all the
natives [of España], and in particular that to the producers of the
said silk (and its production is daily diminishing, to such an extent,
indeed, that in a very few years so little will be produced that
the damage will be made plainly evident in the royal duties, and
in its lack and scarcity), and how much greater benefit would be
the prohibition than the permission of the said silk of China--his
Majesty and his ministers, in attending to his royal revenues, are
under obligation to furnish suitable relief for this, for the welfare
of his kingdoms and vassals. Since the towns of the kingdom of Granada
were given, after their insurrection, [54] under an annuity obligation
[censo] to private persons so that they might settle therein, and
the annuity amounts to more than one hundred thousand ducados of
revenue, which are paid through the increase in the production of
the silk; and [it is necessary] that there should be a ready sale
and handling of it, for the estates that were given to them have no
other important products from which they could obtain the money to pay
the said annuity; necessarily, if the production of the silk ceases,
then the payment of the annuity will cease. For in that and in the
ready sale of the said silk consists the power [to pay the annuity];
and it also consists in the many people who, having the silk, would
occupy themselves in its production, culture, and preparation, who
will consume and use a great quantity of food. That would cause an
excise duty on the food of more than one hundred thousand additional
ducados per year; but this income would cease if the production and
cultivation of the silk ceased, and his Majesty would lose the said
one hundred thousand ducados. Besides, the said silk paying, as it
does, three hundred and two maravedis per libra--without reckoning
the tenth, or the forty per cent on the gross price at which it is
at once sold in the alcaicerias--as soon as it is sold, while there
would be less produced and sold, and the price of it would be lower,
the duties will be less. And since the silk of China does not pay more
than fifteen per cent of import tax and excise, because it is foreign,
his Majesty loses twenty-five per cent on each libra of the silk of
the kingdom of Granada. That silk is produced in less quantity by
the importation of that of China; and since our silk pays higher
duties than the foreign--either because of its excellent quality,
or because it is native, or for some other reason--that freedom from
duties ought to be extended to it rather than to the Chinese silk,
instead of burdening it with greater duties. These latter should be
imposed upon the Chinese silk, so that, less of it being imported
for that reason, less money would be taken from Nueva España to
Filipinas for its purchase; while more money would be brought to
these kingdoms. That would result in greater investments and cargoes,
and more silk would be produced in these kingdoms. For so little
silk has been produced in the kingdom of Granada for the last two
years, because of its little sale and value and its great cost, that
the duties from the revenues of their silk have been worth thirty
thousand ducados less each of those two years than they were worth
during the years before. Two signal losses have resulted from that,
and they will become greater every day, and more irreparable. The
first is that as so little silk is produced, and the producers have
left the leaves on the mulberry-trees, the trees have come to such a
pass that for lack of pruning and care they will be ruined in little
time and destroyed--so that when one may try to remedy them he will be
unable. The other is that the little silk that has been produced has
been of so little profit to the producers because of its diminished
value during this time--on account of the quantity of foreign silk
that has been imported and its better sale, because of the lower price
at which it has been sold--that the said producers and the holders
of the annuity grants have not had sufficient means to pay the said
annuities; and for the last two years they have owed his Majesty two
hundred thousand ducados. It will be impossible to pay that sum and
what shall be owing in the future years, as long as the importation
and sale of that foreign silk is not prohibited. But if that be done,
the production will be increased, and the trade and value [of the
Spanish silk] will return to its former figure. By that benefit all
the producers will be encouraged to persevere in it, and will cause
greater duties, not only for the larger amount of silk that there will
be, but in the excise duty for the consumption of food. The producers
will have the means to pay what they owe on the annuities that are due
and will fall due. And although the silks will be dearer than now, the
greater durability of what will be made from them, because of their
good quality and worth, will make them cheaper. For if the Chinese
silk is not imported, nor ours mixed with it (which is the thing that
spoils, harms, and damages ours), what is woven will never break,
and will not be dear at any price. The money [now] invested in the silk
of China and taken to that country will come to these kingdoms, and
will be invested in our silks and merchandise and the returns from them
will continue to increase both in the increase of the royal revenues,
and in the universal welfare of his Majesty's vassals. Thus will it
be seen in a very short time how well advised has been the decision
that will be made in the prohibition of the said silks of China, as
well as the great damage that its importation has caused. Besides,
the danger of navigation will not be so great, because of both its
less distance and its greater safety; nor will there be so many losses
of ships and property as there arc continually now. This trade will
proceed with less coercion by the enemies; consequently, the power of
the latter will not be so great, nor will the depredations that they
commit on our own coasts by robbing us have to be feared. That is all
worth very considerable thought, in order that one may see how just is
this claim, and so that the remedy for this difficulty be procured,
as it is the one that demands reform most urgently of all that now
present themselves to our attention.
_Juan Velazquez Madrco_
[_Endorsed in writing_: [55] "Arguments why the silk of China should
not be admitted into the Yndias or into España. October 7, 628." "File
it with the papers that treat of this matter."]
DECREES REGARDING THE CHINESE
The King. To Don Juan Niño de Tavora, member of my Council of war, my
governor and captain-general of the Filipinas Islands, and president of
my royal Audiencia therein, or the person or persons in whose charge
their government may be: Fray Melchor de Manzano, of the Order of
St. Dominic, has reported to me, in the name of the Chinese living
in those islands, that the said Chinese pay me annually sixty-four
reals in silver for the sole purpose of remaining in that country,
in addition to five more, which is the usual tribute, and twelve
more for the treasury, which are spent in assessments for affairs
of my service; and that, for a few years back, the alcaldes-mayor
have introduced the practice that no Chinese enter or live in their
districts without their permission (even though they have yours),
and the permission given by the alcaldes-mayor is for a very short
period, in order to get from them the fees for the said permission very
frequently. Although orders have been issued in this matter by that
Audiencia of mine, prohibiting the granting of the said permissions,
those orders have not been obeyed. On the contrary, those officials
proceed in their own interest, and oblige the Chinese at the same time
to attend to the service of the city, by going to fish and to provide
all the necessaries of life; and, whenever they go they experience
many annoyances. He petitions me that I will be pleased to order that,
since the Chinese pay so large fees to live in that country, the
permissions that you shall grant them be valid in all the districts
of the said alcaldes-mayor; and that the latter take no other fee,
or the former have no need of any other permission, besides yours;
and that for yours not more than one real in silver be collected. If
the expedition made by the said Chinese should not last longer than
one month, the permission of the alcalde-mayor of their district
will be sufficient, and they shall not be obliged to get another in
that place to which they go, within the said month. That given by
the said alcalde-mayor shall not carry fees in excess of one-half
real. If the alcalde-mayor of the Parián grant such permission, he
shall collect no fee, since the said Chinese pay ten pesos to him,
and the same amount to the clerk of the salary fund. Having examined
the matter in my royal Council of the Indias, I have considered
it advisable to refer the matter herein contained to you, so that
you may provide that the said Chinese be not annoyed or molested,
in order that there may be no occasion for their coming to complain;
and you shall advise the said my royal Council of the Indias of the
correction that you shall apply in this matter. Madrid, June 8, 1628
_I The King_
By order of the king our sovereign:
_Don Fernando Ruiz de Contreras_
The King. To the president and auditors of my royal Audiencia resident
in the city of Manila of the Filipinas Islands: Fray Melchor Manzano,
of the Order of Preachers, in the name of the Chinese living in those
islands has reported to me that it has been ordered for the security
of the islands that the Chinese live in the village of the Parián,
outside the walls of that city; but that for a few years past they
have been scattered among different settlements outside of the said
village. There with difficulty can the wrongs experienced at various
times by such settlements be righted, as many of them do not go to mass
or hear the word of God, but indulge in excessive gambling, to their
own hurt and that of the inhabitants of that city. Any insurrection can
easily be feared because they can arrange one very safely in the said
settlements, where they can hold secret assemblies and meetings--from
which resulted the impositions, false testimonies one against another,
and false witnesses; and the fortifications of the walls of that city
are in great danger. For if the said Chinese live in the village of
the Parián, one can derive from that means to fortify the walls and
prevent destruction and losses; but if they live outside the Parián,
that will be lacking, and consequently the safety of that city [will
be endangered]. I have been petitioned that I be pleased to order,
under severe penalties, that no Chinese be permitted to have a dwelling
outside the Parián; and that those now outside return there, except
the married Christians who may live in the village of Vindanoc [i.e.,
Binondo], which has been assigned to them. Having examined the matter
in my royal Council of the Indias, I have considered it fitting to
refer the matter to you, so that you may proceed in it with all the
haste that may be advisable for the service of God our Lord and my
own, in order that those troubles cease. You shall advise me of what
you shall do, on the first opportunity. Madrid, August 17, 1628.
_I The King_
By order of his Majesty:
_Don Fernando Ruiz de Contreras_
The King. To Don Juan Niño de Tavora, member of my Council of War, my
governor and captain-general of the Filipinas Islands, and president of
my royal Audiencia therein, or the person or persons in whose charge
their government may be: I ordered you by a decree of September 10,
627, to appoint to the office of protector of the Sangley Chinese
(which was held by the fiscal of that Audiencia) a person who should
prove competent, with the salary that was assigned to him; and to order
that my said fiscal of those regions exercise the office no longer. You
were ordered to charge the person whom you thus appointed to watch
over the said Sangley Chinese most carefully, so that they might not
be troubled or annoyed, or any ill-treatment shown them; and that any
balance left any year in the fund that he keeps should remain there,
in order that the Sangleys may be assessed so much less the following
year. When that order was executed, you were to inform me of what had
been done and what took place in respect to those who are mentioned
in the said decree, as well as the advantages or troubles that its
execution might cause, as is contained more in detail in the decree,
to which I refer. Doctor Don Juan de Quesada Hurtado de Mendoza,
whom I have appointed as my fiscal of that Audiencia, has reported to
me that, having petitioned that the documents be given to him as to
his predecessors, and one of them being the decree that orders that
the fiscal of that my Audiencia be the protector of the natives and
the Sangleys, he found that the above decree had been despatched,
ordering you to appoint a competent person. The cause therefor was
that Fray Melchor Manzano, of the Order of St. Dominic, urged it for
private purposes, until he actually obtained it. The fiscal declared
that it was advisable for my service to have the decree suspended,
and that my fiscals of that Audiencia exercise the said office, as
they had always done; and that the said Fray Melchor Manzano, while he
was in those islands, and other religious of his order, having made
themselves protectors of the said Sangleys, and having petitioned
the governor to order that the fiscal be not the protector of them,
and that the salary of whoever should be protector be moderated,
the said governor did not change the custom of whether the fiscal
should or should not be the protector. In regard to the salary,
it was moderated only to eight hundred pesos. When the matter came
before that my Audiencia, it declared by acts of examination and
review that the said protection pertained to the said my fiscal. In
consideration of that, Don Fernando de Silva, my governor _ad interim_
of those islands, ordered that the said acts be executed; and that, in
conformity with them, the office of protector of natives and Sangleys
be exercised by Licentiate Marcos Zapata de Galvèz, my fiscal of that
my Audiencia at that time. I am petitioned, in consideration of that,
to be pleased to have a decree despatched ordering that he and other
fiscals who shall succeed him in that my Audiencia be protectors of
the said Sangleys and natives, as they have been, notwithstanding
the ruling of the said decree of September 10, 627. Having examined
the matter in my royal Council of the Indias, together with what
Licentiate Juan Pardo, my fiscal therein, stated and alleged--for
I wish to know whether the Sangleys have need of that protector and
whether they ask for him--I order you to inform me of what you find
out concerning this; and in case that it appears necessary that they
have one, I order you and that Audiencia to appoint six persons who
may be suitable for such protector. You shall cause such nominations
to be sent to the said my Council, so that it may indicate that one
of the six appointees who is most suitable. He must not have trade
or business relations with the said Sangleys; and the one named by
the said Council shall be, for the time being, the one who shall seem
most suitable to the Council. Madrid, March 27, 1629.
_I The King_
By order of his Majesty:
_Andres de Rozas_
RELATIONS OF 1628-29
I
_Relation of affairs in the Filipinas and in other regions, for the
year of 1628 and 629, sent by the fathers [of the Society]; and of
a victory gained by our men_.
An excellent and large fleet has left this great island of Mindanao
during these last few days to punish the insolence of the Dutch and of
the Joloans, the neighbors of Mindanao, who are robbing the country
from us and capturing the Indians of these Filipinas. The fleet is
there, and I was to embark with it, but in order not to leave this
district alone Father Fabricio Sersali, a Sicilian, went. The fleet
consisted of thirty ships and more, and in them sailed two hundred
Spaniards and innumerable Indian soldiers and rowers. May our Lord
give us the success that we hope. [56]
A fleet of two galleons with high freeboard has also left, and in them
four companies of soldiers, in pursuit of the Dutch enemy who were in
Macan and along the coast of Great China. Advices were received of a
Dutch ship which was carrying one million pesos' worth of wealth. The
result has not been ascertained as yet.
[_Word in MS. illegible_] On March 13, fire fell from heaven upon
the Parian or fair of the Chinese (according to what they themselves
swear, namely, that they saw it fall), and burned it all, without a
single one of the more than eight hundred houses that it contained
being left; and the only thing that was left standing was a church
which was in the Parian. [57] The Parian of Manila and almost all
the city of Zebu were burned, with great loss.
The fleet which went from the province of Oton to punish Jolo has
arrived at this very moment. I shall relate here a very fortunate
result that our Lord gave them. It is as follows. The island of
Jolo is next to that of Mindanao. The fleet left here, as I said,
on the first of April. At dawn of Holy Saturday it reached the mouth
of the river of Jolo, and entering it and attacking the village,
the enemy fled as a single man to the mountain, so that the energy
of all our men was directed to pillaging. The sack amounted to thirty
thousand pesos. What was pillaged from the house of the king amounted
to six thousand pesos in silk, cloth, wax, huge quantities of wax,
innumerable weapons, and other things of great value. It was all
divided among the villagers. That news was one of the best which
this country has heard, as that enemy was the one who does us most
harm. Father Fabricio Sersali, who was with the fleet, preceded them
all with an image of St. Francis Xavier raised on a spear. In this
manner did the aged saint enter the mosque, and leap for joy. Now boats
are being prepared in this town of Arebalo to complete the uprooting
from these islands of those nations who disturb them. They burned the
town, and the house of the king, the mosque, and the rice which they
could not carry away. They felled the palm trees, so that they might
deprive those people of support. They did all that in one day. They
burned one hundred and forty ships--forty large ones and the others
of less burden. Such and such people were captured; and then they set
out on their return in high spirits, in order to go out another time,
for which they are preparing. Oton, May 30, 628.
_Hernando Estrada_ [58]
Will your Reverence aid me with your holy sacrifices and prayers, so
that I may imitate many apostolic laborers whom we have had here, and
of whom we have at present many, who have come from all those provinces
of España; they have made and are making gardens pleasant to the sight
of God, from the obscure forests which the devil has possessed so many
thousands of years and still possesses in these islands. For, as we
have been told, there are eleven thousand islands, of which that of
Manila is the largest and most important. It has more Christians [than
the others], and yet even in it there are many infidels, who make war
on us. Among the other islands there are very few [with Christians]
because of the many which are so full of infidel people who profess
the devilish worship of Mahoma. I cannot depict to your Reverence how
surrounded we are by that canaille on all sides, and the wars that
they so frequently make upon us--so that, in the summer especially,
no one can be safe in his house. Daily do they enter our villages,
burn them and their churches, break into bits the saints and images,
and capture the poor Indians.
I left Manila in a champan, which is a boat used by the Chinese, and
in which they come from their country here. We were four of the Society
who embarked in it, and God was pleased to give it so favorable a wind
that by means of it we escaped from the hands of the enemy, who were
in ambush, watching for an opportune moment. The father-provincial
[59] took the same route in a caracoa--a boat used in this country;
but that craft was knocked to pieces before reaching the place where
the enemy had established themselves. Hence it was necessary for
him and his associate to come overland, suffering extraordinary
hardships, over mountains and through rivers, for more than one
hundred leguas. Thus does it seem that they escaped as by a miracle,
as well as did the champan.
Soon thirty or more boatloads of Camuzones Indians arrived here. They
were naked, having only a bit of cloth with which they cover,
etc. Their weapons are certain pointed bamboos, but those bamboos
are very strong. They entered a village which was under my charge,
and burned it, together with its house and church. They broke the
saints into pieces, although the ornaments were saved. Nine persons
were captured here.
Another brother and I were going to another village, without thought
of enemies. We entered the bar of a river at about one in the
afternoon. That afternoon the enemy entered the same river. The next
day, while we were giving thanks, they made a sudden attack on the
village, whereupon all the people fled. We two went to the mountains,
where we remained eleven days. Thence the enemy took their way toward
another village, where the father-provincial was, together with Father
Juan Lopez, [60] his associate, and other fathers. Before the enemy
arrived, they received the warning which I sent them. Consequently,
all took to the mountains, and the father-provincial and the other
fathers were among the mountains for a number of days, where they
suffered hardships. But our Lord was pleased to order that the enemy
should not reach that village nor the village where I was staying,
for fear of the narrowness of the rivers, lest they could not get
through them when they departed. But they went thence to another town
located on the seashore, and burned it entirely. The enemy also went
to other villages of our missions and burned them, and the fathers
escaped as by a miracle from their hands. When the enemy capture the
fathers they cut off their heads, as they did two years ago with a
father whom they captured. They treat the Spaniards whom they capture
in the same way. Consequently, we all go about as if we were soldiers;
our ships are laden with arms; and forts have been built in the chief
villages and fortified with firearms, with which to defend ourselves;
while forts are being built in the other villages.
All those coasts of this sea have been crowded with sentinels this
year, for it was rumored that many Dutch ships were to come, and they
always come to sight land at the cape of Espiritu Santo.
When we go from some villages to others, we cross many deep rivers,
which are all generally full of caymans or crocodiles. These [reptiles]
swallow a bull, a cow, or a deer even to their horns, thus causing
great loss. They also catch and eat the Indians daily.
There is a most abundant quantity of snakes, almost all of which
cause death when they sting. There is but one remedy for the wounds,
namely, if they happen to have a little of the earth from San Pablo. By
having it blessed, they are infallibly cured; and he who is treated
with this remedy does not die. There are other snakes which are not
poisonous. They are so large that they can swallow a large wild boar,
or a large deer, horns and all. A father and some Indians killed one
which was eating a hog; they ran up on hearing the grunts of the hog,
and speared and killed the snake.
There is great abundance of material products, and the country is very
fertile. The grain of these regions is rice, and as a rule each fanega
of grain sowed yields one hundred fanegas, and many yield two hundred
fanegas, especially if it is irrigated and transplanted. There are
oranges of many varieties, some of them resembling large melons. Honey
and wax is found in the trees, where the bees make it. The wax is worth
sixteen or twenty reals an arroba, and a jar of honey one real. I
saw a tree which had many honeycombs hanging on the branches. The
mountains are fuller of wild boars than are the commons of España
of swine and cattle in acorn time. One of those swine, if it is fat,
is worth two reals, but only one if not fat; and a deer is worth the
same sum. There are almost no fruits of España. There are melons,
cucumbers, pumpkins, and radishes of the country, and quantities of
cabbages and lettuce. There are many native fruits, some of which are
excellent, but they are not so many or so good as those of España,
while the food does not have the same nourishment as in España. The
swine here are excellent, and better and more healthful than those
of España; for they are eaten like mutton, and are given to the sick
as mutton is in España.
God is ever our physician and apothecary in sickness, and but few times
does one fall grievously sick when our Lord does not supply the lack
of medicines, without which [_MS. holed_: we?] get along very well,
and God helps [us]. Panbohen, July 6, 1629.
_Pedro de Prado_
We received a letter from Eastern India which gives very good news of
its condition; for the Dutch are now in small numbers and are very
much disaccredited, with both the Moros and the heathen, and these
have revolted against the Dutch and driven them from their lands and
from the houses of trade that they owned, because they have found
them false in their commerce and deceitful in their trading. Our men
went to help drive out the Dutch.
Good news comes from Zeilan and Tebet of the great conversion to
Christianity that is being effected there and in other regions,
and that the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ continues to increase.
Ruy Freire went to besiege Ormuz with some ships, and the viceroy told
him that he was going in person with [_MS. holed_] ships to capture it.
Father Geronimo Perez [61] had cut down, at a residence, a tree
which was called nino, in order to dispel the superstitions of the
Indians. That tree was twenty-five brazas in circumference, and there
are other trees of this species whose trunks are used by the Indians
as houses. [62]
Father Muxica writes from Macan that Father Trigautio had come from
China to Macan, and said that there were many highborn and influential
people in China who were being converted, and that they were living
very exemplary lives. Manila, July 5, 1628 [_sic_].
II
_A relation of events in the Philipinas Islands, and other neighboring
kingdoms, from the month of July, 1628, to July,1629._
Continuing my project begun last year, I will proceed in this account
to relate the events which have happened this year, without observing
any other order than that in which they occur to me.
At half past one on the night of November 25, Our church fell,
with so terrible a crash that it seemed as if the heavens were
falling. It was due to God's great providence that it did not happen
several hours later, for without doubt some of our fathers would have
been caught in the ruins. It is the third time that this church has
fallen; for years ago, just as they finished saying the last mass,
and locked the doors, the whole vault, which was built of brick,
fell in a great earthquake. If it had happened an hour before, it
would have wrought great injury, by imprisoning beneath it all the
people who were in the church. Then six years later, in the month of
September, on the same day, just as they were beginning to decorate
the church for celebrating the feasts of St. Ignatius and St. Xavier,
one large pillar and two arches fell, leaving the roof in the air,
without any means of support for more than eight yards--a thing which
seemed miraculous; two of Ours were caught, but neither received
much harm. On this last occasion the ruin was greater, because one
pillar, when it fell, carried with it half of the church. Thus it
remained, without repairs being possible; there was nothing to be
done but to finish the work of destruction, and build a hut in which
to accommodate our fathers in their ministries, until we finish the
new church building and house--which is a very good one, and well on
its way to completion. [63]
On the twentieth of December, at eight o'clock in the evening, they
omitted the holy sacrament in the Cathedral church of this city,
because it had been stolen, together with the monstrance in which
it was kept. Diligent search was made for it, arresting some and
putting others to the torture, and making earnest prayers to placate
the wrath of God, but no trace of the thief could be found in these
or any other ways, even to the present day. [64]
On the twentieth of June an eclipse of the sun began at eleven o'clock,
and at thirteen minutes after twelve it was so far eclipsed that it
could not be seen at all. It seemed as if it were night, and the stars
were seen in the sky, so that we were forced to light candles in order
to eat; for there was a dinner that afternoon, on the occasion of a
certain feast. As far as I know, this eclipse was not seen in Nueva
España; it is the most complete one that I have ever seen, though I
have seen many.
On the eighteenth of July last, in the village of Guiguan, which is
a mission of the Society, an image of the Immaculate Conception of
Our Lady with a gilded face, began to weep piteously--in the sight
of all, and of the father who was expounding Christian doctrine in
that village--with a saddened countenance, to the great terror of
all who were present. It seemed as if this was the announcement of
the disasters and calamities which have been suffered by those poor
islands of the Pintados (which are in our missionary charge) from
their enemies the Camucones and the Joloans, who have become very
insolent--plundering many ships on the sea, some of them valuable;
robbing and burning towns, capturing the people, and destroying the
images, which the fathers have kept well until their flight and refuge
in the mountains. It has been considered a singular providence that
no one of our fathers has been captured (although there are fears
about one, but nothing certain is known about it). The enemy suddenly
landing, one father was surprised in bed, but made his escape almost in
his shirt; they surprised another while saying mass, and he was obliged
to make his escape in his chasuble, fleeing through the marshes;
another they found sprinkling with holy water the whole population
of the town in the church; another they met on the sea, and having
given chase to his vessel, the father leaped overboard and finally
escaped. The father provincial was in great danger several times, but
in the end God preserved him and all the other fathers. The greatest
hardship is, that it seems as if those who conduct the government do
not endeavor to check these raids; may the Lord do so by restraining
the enemies.
Relief was sent this year to the Malucas Islands, as has usually been
done in past years, in several pataches and a galley. The Dutch enemy
had at their Malayo fort (which is almost within sight of our fort
at Terrenate), a very powerful ship which passed in front of our fort
several times discharging their artillery as if defying us to come out
and fight. After this bravado our men and Pedro de Heredia, governor
of those fortifications, armed two pataches and the galley (a force
much inferior to that of so powerful a ship) and went out to meet the
enemy. He boarded it and began to attack the soldiers in it; the enemy,
seeing that the fight was going against them, cut loose from our ship,
and retreated or fled to their fort. There their people arrested the
captain, because, although he had had the advantage on his side, he
had not sunk our little pataches, but instead had taken to flight. Some
of the Dutch and some of our men were killed in this fight.
At Xacatra, which is the capital of the Dutch possessions in all
these eastern regions, and at which their governor and captain-general
resides, there have been many harassing wars this year, because King
Xabo with a very powerful army had besieged them for many months,
seized and burned the suburbs, and killed many men. However, on account
of the many winter floods, Xabo had to retreat; but the Dutch are left
in considerable fear lest he will return, with the Portuguese giving
him assistance. On that account they have still further fortified their
forts, made greater provision of all necessaries, and detailed there
six galleons from the great fleet, which they maintain at Ormus for
the aid and defense of the Persian, [65] in order that the Portuguese,
who are threatening that fortress, may not recover it.
With the aim of relieving these islands and their natives from
the suffering that they endured in building galleys and ships, the
governor decided to send some Spaniards to the kingdom of Camboja,
which abounds in fine woods, to establish dock-yards; this purpose
was carried out. With the Spaniards it was decided to send some of
the Society, but for certain reasons this was not done, nor would
we permit it. The fathers of St. Dominic, however, permitted it;
and so some of them went there with the Spaniards, and were very well
received by the king of Camboja. They immediately commenced to carry
out their plans for the ships, while the religious built a church. The
king gave them permission to baptize and convert to Christianity any
persons in his kingdom who wished it.
I wrote last year, that, annoyed by the injuries which these islands
had received from the king of Sian, who had seized in one of his ports
a ship of ours richly laden with silks, our galleons had gone there
and made reprisals on some of his ships. The latest news is that
a ship was sent there with some of the Sianese who were captured,
and some Spaniards, to give an account of the affair; and to tell the
king that our people desired to continue in peace and friendship, but
that he must satisfy us for what he had seized from us, and in return
we would satisfy him for what we had seized from his people. As yet
we have had no answer from there, nor have we heard how the matter
was concluded--much less if our fathers who reside there lost their
lives when our galleons did so much damage to the Sianese ships.
The outlook for Christianity in Cochinchina was very promising, and
in the year 1627 eight hundred adults were baptized; but this year
we have had news that the fathers had encountered adverse fortune,
and were fearing expulsion from that kingdom--but now they write that
the tempest has already abated, and the skies are clearing.
In late years, there have been many wars in the kingdom of Tongin,
which adjoins that of Cochinchina; but the Christians have been
left in peace, and thus many have been converted to Christianity. It
is even reported that this same king and a brother of his had been
or were to be baptized. Would to Heaven that it were so! although
hitherto there has been no certainty of anything, because we have
had no letters from our fathers, on account of the said wars.
The Tartars have again revolted against the Chinese, who are so hard
pressed that they have sent to Macan for artillerymen and artillery
for the war. The Portuguese lent them two heavy guns, and thirty men
to go with them, among whom was Father Palmerin, the visitor of that
province [_in the margin_: in the secular habit], to visit, on this
occasion, the houses and the residences in China.
As to the condition of Christianity in Japon, I cannot better give
account than by inserting here letters and relations sent from
there. The first, dated 1627, reads as follows:
"The persecution of the Christians here, which was begun several
years ago, continues without any remission of its vigor, but rather
increases with every day--not throughout the whole kingdom, however,
but in certain parts of the Xymo or Tacab, in which the Christians
are persecuted more than they have been hitherto. It commenced among
the Christian converts of Tacacu and the lands of Arima, by soliciting
the tono of that region, Gentir, to return to the favor of the lord of
Japon, of which he has been deprived for some time, and to dissuade
from the faith all the Christians who should enter his lands. An
official was sent to all places with orders that they should not
fail to go through every village, and to cause everyone, by any way
or means whatever, to renounce the faith, in order that they might
instead adopt one of the Japanese sects. The officials obeyed their
orders and searched out all, whether steadfast or wavering; and some,
in order not to risk their faith, left their homes secretly. Some of
the strong ones were rigorously treated, and others gently, among
whom some exiled themselves. Those Christians suffered, for their
constancy, various and extreme torments never before seen in Japon,
which at the said tono's command were inflicted in order to subdue
them--stripping both men and women, and hanging them in their shame;
hurling them from a height into cold water, in the depth of winter;
placing them near a fire so that they would burn; and burning them
with lighted torches. Two of them they roasted on burning coals, as
St. Laurence suffered. Others were left so that they died in a few
days. They also burned the men with a hot iron upon the forehead,
leaving the word "Christian" stamped upon it. They cut the fingers
from the hands, even of children, inflicting other indignities that
cannot be written. The inhuman pagan, not content with this, had
some men and women conducted through the streets of certain villages
with insignia of dishonor commonly applied among the heathen to
criminals, but of great glory to our Lord God, for whose love they
suffered. When the servants of the Lord arrived at some of these
places, they bound them in a shameful manner to stakes, in order
to frighten the Christian inhabitants in this fashion; but with all
their efforts they were not strong enough to conquer any Christian,
or make him recant. Forty-seven, of all ages, were condemned to death;
three were beheaded, and the rest drowned in the sea. Eighteen others,
of all ages, they took to a mountain, where there were some very hot
baths; and, binding them with ropes, they put them into the water,
asking them again and again if they would not recant. Seeing their
constancy, they bound them to stones, with which they were sunk in the
sea. Twenty-six others, of varying ages, they also took to the said
baths; and having especially distinguished ten of these by torments,
they kept them for some time on the edge of the baths, repeatedly
asking them if they would give up their religion. At the same time
they poured upon their shoulders jars of that boiling hot water,
drawing from them cries of pain; until, becoming convinced of their
constancy, they drowned them in the said baths. Because the body of
one of them was not burst open like the rest by the heat of the water,
they cut it open in various places with a knife. In this torture he
died, and, like the others, was flung into the baths. Adding to these
two others who died of the terrible torture inflicted upon them, the
number of those who died in the province of Tacacu, by fire, blood,
and water was forty-seven. They went to rest and abide with Christ,
and will always be able to say with David: _Transivimus per ignem et
aqua e reduxisti nos in refrigerium_. [66] We would never finish if we
undertook to tell in detail all the particulars of these martyrdoms,
which we shall leave for a more extended relation, in which they may
be viewed; and great consolation will be had from the fact that those
Christians have endured such atrocious and unheard-of torments with
such constancy, for the love of Christ.
"Let us speak of the persecution which another pagan tono set in
motion against the Christians in his lands, adjacent to those of
Tacacu. They buried three of the martyrs whom the tono of Tacacu
had condemned, and three others were captured who were going there;
he ordered them to recant if they wished to save their lives, or
else they would be subjected to various torments, but these they
suffered rather than lose the life of the soul. Besides this, the
Japanese persecuted the Christians of that town, and others near
by, trying every means in their power to divert them from our holy
faith. Some of them were steadfast, and others wavered. The tono,
however, ordered them not to kill anyone then as a Christian, and this
order was obeyed--although two widows, named Maria, gave a noble [_word
illegible in MS_.] in order to show that they were more constant. They
insulted these women in many ways, putting them to shame; and
finally, as they were triumphant over every injury and torment,
they were set free. Then they hastened to the city of Nangasaqui,
the chief of Christian communities in Japon, where on August 16, 1627,
they arrested and burned alive father Fray Francisco de Santa Maria,
and the lay brother, Fray Bartholome, both Franciscans, together with
their servants and other men and women. Others they beheaded, among
whom the lot fell to a woman with three children, two of whom were
two years old and the other older. On the sixth of September of the
same year, they arrested and burned alive a Japanese father of Ours,
together with two chiefs, his servants. The governor and president
of that city was present at all these murders. He, in conformity
with his orders, tried to make all the Christian inhabitants recant,
without respect to age or estate, and to persuade them all to adopt
some one of the Japanese sects, making use of many ingenious artifices
for this purpose. Seeing that he could not effect his purpose, he
tried locking some of them in their houses, nailing up the doors,
and depriving them of all communication with relatives and friends, to
which end he set guards around them. Some weak-spirited persons obeyed
him; but the greater number, both chiefs and common people, resisted
him. The governor, seeing that so many resisted, as he had no orders
to take their lives, but only to send them as prisoners to the court,
sent those whom he thought best, and among them fifteen of the most
prominent persons. Fearing because some of these were persons of rank,
and had many relatives, and some of them were actually officials in
the same city, in order to prevent any revolt from arising he asked
the neighboring tonos for a large number of soldiers. A great many
of these came, who were lodged throughout the city; but, seeing that
there was no resistance he ordered them back to their fortresses,
and, the confessors being much rejoiced, he sent them prisoners to
the court. Others are kept in captivity until the arrival of a decree
from the court. Four distinguished families were exiled to Macan, with
four hundred and thirty of the common people, who were driven to the
neighboring mountains as a warning and intimidation to many others,
and all intercourse and communication with them was cut off. It was
ordered that no one should admit them to their houses. They were
commanded not to build huts, even for the infant children, to defend
them from the inclemencies of the weather. Guards were set over them
so that no one should grant them even a mat for their shelter, the
persecutors hoping by this means to bend them to their will. Although
the confessors of Christ undergo great suffering, they do so with joy
and invincible constancy. Others who were not banished were deprived
of their employment, to force them to abandon their resistance. Many
fled for this reason, leaving the most populous city in Japan almost
depopulated, although it still contains confessors who ennoble it. [67]
"On the twenty-ninth of July of this year (1627) they burned alive at
Omura, together with another who wished to accompany them, a Dominican
father and three domestics, who had been kept in close captivity since
the year 1626. This persecution was begun because, having confiscated
the property belonging to the Franciscan fathers in Nangasaqui,
they found a list in which those fathers enumerated the servants and
houses which each one possessed in the land of Omura; and because they
had sent a ship with a cargo of flour to Manila, in order to bring
religious to Japon on its return--although those of Omura were more
than twice advised by the religious of Nangasaqui to consider that it
was against the Japanese law, and that by so doing they were exposing
themselves and others to the risk of destruction, by furnishing pagans
and renegade Christians with a pretext to persecute them, especially
the religious at the port from which the ship sailed. Twenty-five of
the constant ones were murdered--of all ages, men and women--some
for having displayed their constancy, and others for admitting
religious into their houses. Among others who died by burning alive,
one, a good laboring woman, was especially distinguished, whom,
because she was discovered to have admitted religious to her house,
they exposed to public shame, taking her in this manner for more
than twenty leguas round about. Finally, she was burned alive, ever
displaying the most remarkable constancy. The same fortitude was shown
by three men, whom they buried up to their shoulders. Another who saw
some one being burned alive, displayed no less courage; for, filled
with fervor, he voluntarily plunged into the flames, where he was
entirely consumed. All these were martyred at Omura for their faith,
or for receiving religious into their houses. More than forty were
executed for sending the said ship, and even now the punishment is
not concluded. Thus that Christian community, one of the earliest in
Xapon, is greatly afflicted [_apparently some words missing in MS._]
in order that it may be preserved and aided.
"From the kingdom of Figen, they passed to that of Fingo. At Amacusa,
in Fingo, there was no general persecution, leaving the chiefs
and laborers, so that if it were conducted rigorously with all,
some would be found to be weak-spirited. However, they martyred one
man, who showed unusual constancy. At the end of this year 1627,
this Christian church had devoted one hundred and eight martyrs to
the Lord. In other parts of Japon the Christians and their ministers
were left in comparative quiet, so that in the year 1626 their ranks
were increased by more than two thousand converts who were baptized
by members of our Society, to say nothing of those who were baptized
by religious of other orders. We believe that in the year 27 there
will be a still greater number of converts in the kingdom of Oxu,
because in this kingdom (which is the farthest in Japan) many of the
people are well disposed. There are at present there four of Ours,
five Franciscans, and one Augustinian. May the Lord assist them there
in all Xapon, opening doors so long locked, through which many others
can enter."
This is the first relation. The second is a letter from the father
provincial of Xapon, Matheo de Couros, dated February 25, 1626. It
reads as follows: "The Xongu [i.e., shogun] lives with his queen,
obeyed and feared by all. There is no human hope of any change
here. All these kingdoms enjoy considerable peace during the tempest,
and Christianity only is persecuted with fire and sword. From others
you may have learned that the Franciscan fathers sent a ship to
the city of Manila. This has more than twice resulted in the total
destruction of Christian work in Omura; and its lord, although he
is a child, runs the risk that they will behead him (or at least
his governors), because the said ship was fitted out in one of his
ports. We do not know how this will end. On January 21, they arrested
Father Antonio of the Franciscan order at Nangasaqui. The embassy of
the Dutch had an unfortunate ending at the court of Xapon, because
it was known to be only a pretext. It is also said that one of the
great governors of Xapon remarked at court that it would be a great
injury to that kingdom, were it said that they welcomed in their
ports a people who came only to rob upon the high seas, and that it
was taken ill in foreign kingdoms."
In another letter, of November 28, 1627, it is said by Father Xacome
Antonio, after the departure of the galeotas, that "there is no
news from these countries; the persecution at Nangasaqui has ended,
because the presidents had all gone to the court, and so at present
there is comparative quiet. At first those who were banished to the
mountains were not allowed, under the penalty of burning, imposed by
the ministers of justice, to build any shelter from the inclemencies
of the weather; but afterward they were allowed to build huts of
straw. It was also granted that no minister of justice dwell among
them, which is a great blessing. The Christians who were sent to court
arrived there in safety; and although at the beginning they found no
one to welcome them the governors afterward ordered that houses be
given them. They are well accommodated in a monastery of bonzes, who,
beyond the kind treatment they accord them, are urging the governors to
accord to them, and to the other Christians at Nangasaqui, liberty of
conscience. The chief bonze of this monastery, a man of great authority
on account of his dignity, is pushing this negotiation. Besides this,
these same Christians presented a petition or memorial, asking the
governors at this court to intercede for them, and procure for them
such liberty at Nangasaqui as they had had in the days of the Daifu,
so that their inhabitants might live there as Christians. It was well
received, and they were given hopes of a favorable decision. The same
encouragement is given to all those who come to the court. Even the
heathen talk of it, and say that the permission will doubtless be
accorded. May the Lord grant it; for if it succeeds the whole country
in the neighborhood of Nangasaqui will remain in some peace."
In another of March 16, 1628, the same father, Xacome Antonio, says
that father Fray Juan de Ribera, of the Dominican order, while he was
returning from Manila to Xapon, was left on the Lechios [i.e., Riu-Kiu
Islands], where it is said that he was murdered in an attempt to rob
him, though the motive is not certainly known. Three of the same order
came last year to Japon, and when they were within sight of land, the
Chinese crews threw them overboard, on account of some superstitious
fear. It was known afterward, because on their return a sudden squall
struck the Chinese ship two leguas from Nangasaqui. The vessel was
wrecked and many lost, eight saving their lives by swimming. This
was a punishment for their sins, and for the large amount of silver
that they took from the said religious, which they say must amount
to two thousand sacks of treasure; [68] they took it on condition of
returning the same amount at their return from the voyage.
The last news we have from Xapon is as follows: There was a great
outbreak in the palace, in the emperor's anteroom, and a tono among
great governors of the kingdom was killed. The emperor came forth
at the noise, and, attempting to put his hand upon his sword, he was
foully stabbed in the abdomen, an example showing how skilled they are
in wielding arms. This death has caused much restlessness, and many
risings, which will not be crushed for a long time. The Indians of
the island of Hermosa sent ambassadors to the emperor of Xapon, asking
for assistance to help them expel the Dutch from that port where they
have their fortress. They were well received and help was offered to
them, and they were sent back with assurances of friendship. The Dutch
themselves were arrested in Xapon and their ships detained, because
they owed large sums and did not pay; and there was talk of expelling
them from the entire land of Xapon. Just then, unfortunately for us,
news arrived there of the Japanese ship that our galleons burned last
year on the bar of Sian, [69] whereupon the tables were turned; the
prospects of the Dutch improved, and ours grew worse. There was talk of
making an agreement with them, and even of raising an armada of Dutch
and Japanese, to proceed against our fort at the island of Hermosa
and even against Manila--a matter which does not fail to occasion
considerable anxiety, though it is not known how it will turn out.
We have had no news from the island of Hermosa, which keeps us in great
anxiety, because more than two hundred thousand pesos were sent there
from this city of Manila to be invested in Chinese silks. We do not
know what has been done with it, or whether the money has been lost,
an uncertainty which occasions anxiety to the merchants. In short,
these Philipinas Islands are at present in a ruinous condition, with
many powerful and triumphant enemies, our forces weakened, and our
people in dread of other large fleets. May the Lord remedy all this,
and assist with His divine favor, in the preservation of the faith
in these lands. Manila, July 18, 1629.
[A document of this same collection ("Papeles de los Jesuítas"), with
pressmark "Tomo 169 numero 2," is identical with the above relation,
except for slight verbal differences which do not change the sense
in any way. But at the end occurs the following additional letter:]
_Letter of Father Sebastian de Morais_
Since the letters carried by the little ship from India are lost, the
following was learned from another letter. On the octave of Espíritu
Santo, a sudden attack was made from Fayal Island to Tercera Island,
as a little ship from India, called "San Felipe," was making port
there. That ship left Cochin December 22, 1629, and reached Fayal
seven days after Pentecost. There it was met by an English ship
which mounted twenty-four pieces, many carrying balls of sixteen
libras. It had sixty musketeers, while our ship had only thirty
white men and twenty Indians, and mounted fourteen small pieces of
artillery. However we cut down the yard of the pirate's foremast with
the first volley. They fought one day and night. They killed our
master and two sailors, and our men killed the enemy's captain and
many of their men, while the ship was so hardly used that it would
have sunk but for the calking. Our ship bore down upon it; but another
pirate, of heavier burden, appeared within range. Consequently, our
ship retired to Fayal, where some ships from the island of Terceras
went to get it. They cast anchor at that point with great rejoicing,
our ship being quite like a sieve because of the balls that remained
sticking in its sides and upper works. Even that image of our patron
saint, St. Philip, had in it eighteen balls. The ship carries three
thousand five hundred quintals of pepper for the king, and a quantity
of merchandise. The ships of General Roque Senteno were going for it
[as convoy].
A fleet of forty sail had gone to Socotra against the enemy, with
volunteer forces, who were encouraged by the sight of a crucifix
which the enemy had insulted on a certain occasion. We had a glorious
victory over many galleys of the [king] of Achen, although our craft
were very inferior.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL DATA
Most of the documents in this volume are obtained from MSS. in the
Archivo general de Indias, Sevilla; their pressmarks are indicated
thus:
1. _Report of Spanish Council_.--"Simancas--Secular; Audiencia de
Filipinas; consultas originales correspondientes a dicha Audiencia;
años 1586 á 1636; est 67, caj. 6, leg. 1."
2. _Letter from Serrano_, 1625.--"Simancas--Eclesiastico; Audiencia
de Filipinas; cartas y expedientes dei arzobispo de Manila vistos en
el Consejo; años 1579 á 1679; est. 68, caj. 1, leg. 32."
3. _Letter from Fernando de Silva_, 1625.--"Simancas-Secular; Audiencia
de Filipinas; cartas y espedientes del gobernador de Filipinas vistos
en el Consejo; años 1600 á 1628; est. 67, caj. 6, leg. 7."
4. _Letter from Serrano_, 1626.--The same as No. 2.
5. _Letter from Fernando de Silva_, 1626.--The same as No. 3.
6. _Letter from sisters of St.Clare_.--"Simancas--Eclesiastico;
Audiencia de Filipinas; cartas y expedientes de personas eclesiasticas
de Filipinas; años 1609 á 1644; est. 68, caj. 1, leg. 43."
7. _Petition for aid to seminary_.--"Simancas--Secular; Audiencia de
Filipinas; cartas y espedientes de personas seculares vistos en el
Consejo; años de 1628 á 16[34?]; est. 67, caj. 6, leg. 40."
8. _Royal decrees_, 1626.--(a) The first of these is in "Audiencia
de Filipinas; registro de oficio, reales ordenes dirigidas á las
autoridades del distrito de la Audiencia; años 1597 á 1634; est. 105,
caj. 2, leg. 1." (b) The other two are taken from the Archivo Historico
Nacional, as noted below.
9. _Importance of Philippines_.--The same title as No. 7, but "años
de 1565 á 1594; est. 67, caj. 6, leg. 34." (Evidently misplaced.)
10. _Decrees regarding religious_.--(a) The same as No. 8 (a). (b)
Also in the Sevilla archives; but we have followed Pastells's text
in his edition of Colin (t. iii, pp. 760, 761). (c) The same as No. 1.
11. _Inadvisability of occupying Formosa_.--Simancas--Secular;
Audiencia de Filipinas; cartas y espedientes del presidente y oidores
de dicha Audiencia vistos en el Consejo; años 1607 á 1626; est. 67,
caj. 6, leg. 20."
12. _Report of appointments_.--The same as No. 3.
13. _Letters from Tavora_, 1628.--The same as No. 3.
14. _Reasons for suppressing silk trade_.--The same as No. 7.
The following documents are obtained from the "Cedulario Indico"
of the Archivo Historico Nacional, Madrid:
8 (see No. 8, _ante_).--(b) "Tomo 39, fol. 185," and "Tomo 32,
fol. 16," respectively.
15. _Letter from king to Tavora_.--"Tomo 40, fol. 56 verso, no. 69."
16. _Decrees regarding Chinese_, 1627.--"Tomo 39, fol. 87, and fol. 186
verso," respectively.
17. _Decrees regarding Chinese_, 1628-29.--"Tomo 39, fol. 188 verso,
fol. 189 verso, and 190 verso," respectively.
The following document is obtained from MSS. in the collection
"Papeles de las Jesuitas," in the Real Academia de la Historia, Madrid:
18. _Relations of 1628-29_--"Tomo 169, no. 3," and "Tomo 84,
no. 13."
The following document is taken from a MS. in the British Museum:
19. _Military affairs of the islands_.--In a collection of papers
entitled "Tratados Historicos, 1594-1639;" pressmark,
"(693. h. 17) / 65."
The following document is taken from Pastells's edition of Colin's
_Labor evangélica_:
20. _Royal decree aiding Jesuits_, 1625.--In vol. iii, pp. 754, 755,
(See also No. 10, _ante_.)
The following documents are taken from the Ventura del Arco MSS. (Ayer
library):
21. _Relation of 1626_.--In vol i, pp. 523-545.
22. _Relation of 1627-28._--In vol. i, pp. 551-615.
The following document is taken from _Recopilación de leyes de las
Indias_.
23. _Laws regarding the Sangleys_.--In lib. vi, tit. xviii.
The following document is found in a pamphlet entitled _Toros y cañas_
(Barcelona, 1903), in which is printed a hitherto unpublished original
MS. in possession of the Compañia General de Tabacos de Filipinas.
24. _Royal festivities at Manila_--pp. 9-25.
NOTES
[1] Our transcript reads "reals," but both in this and in other
instances in the present document, this is evidently an error of
transcription for "ducados." It would be very easy for the error to
arise from the extremely bad handwriting of many Spanish documents,
in which the Spanish abbreviations for the two above terms might
bear a close similarity. "Ducados" is used later in the document,
when speaking of similar instances.
[2] These expeditions against the Mediterranean Moors were undertaken
because of their continual depredations on Spanish commerce and near
Spanish coasts. In 1602 Spain and Persia united against Turkey, and in
1603 the marquis of Santa Cruz, with the Neapolitan galleys, attacked,
and plundered Crete and other Turkish islands. Many operations were
conducted against the Moorish states of north Africa, but no effective
check was applied to their piratical expeditions. See Hume's _Spain_,
p. 210.
[3] Spain has never recovered from the expulsion of the thrifty
Moriscos, who were the descendants of the old Moors. The edict of
expulsion against the Valencian Moriscos was issued on September 22,
1609, by the viceroy Caracena. Its political excuse was negotiations
between the Moriscos and English to effect a rising against Felipe
III. "With the exception of six of the 'oldest and most Christian'
Moriscos in each village of a hundred souls, who were to remain and
teach their successors their modes of cultivation, every man and
woman of them were to be shipped within three days for Barbary on
pain of death, carrying with them only such portable property as
they themselves could bear." In six months one hundred and fifty
thousand Moriscos were driven from Spain. In the winter of 1609-10
the Moriscos were also expelled from Aragon, Murcia, Andalucia,
and Cataluña, and other places. See Hume's _Spain_, pp. 210-213.
[4] Referring to the claim of Isabella, eldest daughter of Felipe II,
to the province of Bretagne (or Brittany), in France, as an inheritance
in right of her mother, since the Salic law was inoperative in that
province.
[5] Francisco Crespo, S.J., was born at Ubeda, and entered the Jesuit
order in 1598, at the age of fifteen. He preached for ten years
and resided for some years at the court of Spain, in the capacity of
procurator of the missions of the Indias. He died at Madrid, September
25, 1665. He was the author of two relations and the memorial mentioned
in the decree. See Sommervogel's _Bibliothèque Comp. de Jésus_.
[6] This was Rodrigo Pacheco y Osorio, marqués de Cerralvo,
the successor of Gelves (_Vol_. XX, p. 127). He reached Mexico in
October, 1624, vindicated his predecessor in the public estimation,
and quieted the disturbances in the country. He fortified Vera Cruz
and Acapulco, to protect them against the Dutch, whose ships cruised
in both oceans. Cerralvo was an energetic and able ruler, who did
much for the welfare of his people. He held the viceroyalty until
September, 1635, when he returned to Spain, and was given a place in
the Council of the Indias.
[7] These festivities celebrated the accession to the throne of
Felipe IV. Although they occurred in 1623, this account is placed
here because written August 1, 1625.
[8] A reference to the celebrated university of Salamanca, and used
synonymously with learning or skill.
[9] _El Gran Capitan_: an epithet applied to Gonsalvo de Cordova,
commander-in-chief of the Spanish forces under Ferdinand of Castile,
in recognition of his services in 1495-96 against the French armies in
Calabria, Italy--defeating them there and elsewhere, and compelling
them to withdraw from Italy. A treaty of peace between France
and Spain was the result; it was signed at Marcoussis in August,
1498. The Neapolitan kingdom was divided between France and Spain
in November, 1500; but quarrels soon arose between them, and their
armies fought for its possession. Under the leadership of Cordova,
Naples was conquered for Spain (1502-04). Cordova was born in 1453,
and died in December, 1515.
[10] Evidently an allusion to the procession made at Manila, on
certain occasions, in which the banner of the city was carried before
the cabildo--to which allusions have been already made in various
documents of this series.
[11] A kind of lance or spear, used by bull-fighters.
[12] The game of cañas was an equestrian sport engaged in by the
nobility on the occasion of any special celebration. They formed
various figures, which engaged in various contests. One side charged
against the other, hurling their spears, from which their opponents
guarded themselves with their shields.
[13] In olden times, empirical healers or physicians cured with this
stone the pain or sickness called colic--_hijada_, as it was then
written, now _ijada_.--_Rev. Eduardo Navarro_, O.S.A.
_Piedra de mal de hijada_: from the description, apparently made of
some brilliant crystalline substance.
[14] In the Jesuit relation of 1619-20 (see _Vol_. XIX, p. 61),
mention is made of a bull-fight in terms that would indicate that they
had already become established in the islands. This fight of 1619
is evidently the one to which W. E. Retana refers in his _Fiestas
de toros en Filipinas_ (Madrid, 1896). Huerta (_Estado_, p. 17),
incorrectly states that the first bull-fight in the islands was on
February 4, 1630. But Chirino mentions these spectacles (_Vol_. XII
of this series, p. 182) as customary in both Manila and Cebú at least
as early as 1602, which was the year in which he left the islands.
[15] A letter from the king to Governor Tavora, dated November 21,
1625, refers to the latter the question of further attempts to work
the Igorrote gold-mines. Reference is made therein to the report of
Alonso Martin Quirante on these mines; and the cost or his expedition
thither is stated as forty thousand pesos.
[16] Ley xxix, lib. viii, tit. xxi, of _Recopilación de leyes_,
relating to the sale of offices in the Philippines, is as follows:
"We order that all offices be sold in the Filipinas Islands, which
are regulated and ordained in accordance with the laws of this titulo,
as in the other parts of the Indias, observing the laws in regard to
sales, and the condition of securing a confirmation--provided that,
if any persons shall hold any of those offices comprehended in those
islands, as a concession which shall have been made to them for life
by us, or by the governors of those islands in our name, these must
be sold, and shall be sold, as if they were rendered vacant by the
death [of the incumbents]. They cannot resign them, for it is our will
that they shall not enjoy that privilege, as they could have done had
they bought those offices." [Felipe III, Madrid, November 29, 1616;
December 19, 1618.]
[17] The same instruction is given after nearly all the following
statistics, namely "idem," _i.e._, that they be entered in the
book. Consequently, we omit all following instances.
[18] This Dutch fort was on the southwestern coast of the island of
Formosa. See Valentyn's descriptive and historical account (with map)
of Tayouan (or Formosa), in his _Oud en Nieuw Oost-Indien_, at end
of part iv. Boulger says (_China_, p. 132): The Dutch "had acquired
their place in Formosa by the retirement of the Japanese from Taiwan
in 1624, when the Dutch, driven away by the Portuguese from Macao,
sought a fresh site for their proposed settlement in the Pescadore
group, and eventually established themselves at Fort Zealand."
[19] Interesting accounts of Formosa and its inhabitants are given
by George Candidius (a Dutch Protestant minister who began a mission
among the natives in 1626), in Churchill's collection of _Voyages_
(London, 1704), i, pp. 526-533; and J.B. Steere, who traveled through
the western part of the island, in _Journal_ of American Geographical
Society, 1874, pp. 303-334. The latter states that the chief city of
Formosa, Taiwanfu, is built on the site of the old Dutch colony near
Fort Zelandia; and furnishes several vocabularies of native languages.
[20] La Concepción describes the Spanish expedition to Formosa
(_Historia de Philipinas_, v, pp. 114-122) and the labors of Dominican
missionaries there; he says that the Spanish fort was erected on
an islet which they named San Salvador, near which was an excellent
harbor called Santissima Trinidad. Apparently these localities were
on the northeastern coast of the island.
[21] This officer was a relative of Governor Juan de Silva. A full
account of this unfortunate expedition and his death in Siam is given
in the "Relation of 1626," _post_.
[22] This order of nuns, commonly known as "Poor Clares," is the
second order of St. Francis. It was founded by St. Clare, who was
born at Assisi, the birthplace of St. Francis, and she was received
by him into the monastic life in 1212; she died in 1253. The order
soon spread into France and Spain; and a written rule was given
to these nuns by St. Francis in 1224, which was approved by the
pope in 1246. Some modifications of this rule--which was exceedingly
austere--crept into various convents; and a rule, approved by Urban IV,
was drawn up in 1264, similar to that of St. Francis, but somewhat
mitigated. It was adopted by most of the convents in the order,
this branch being known as Urbanists; the minority, who followed the
stricter rule, were called Clarisses. The government and direction of
the order were at first divided between a cardinal protector and the
superiors of the Franciscans; but, early in the sixteenth century,
Julius II placed the Poor Clares entirely under the jurisdiction of
the general and provincials of the Friars Minors. (Addis and Arnold's
_Catholic Dictionary_.)
[23] Geronima de la Asunción, daughter of Pedro Garcia Yanez, was
born in Toledo in 1555, and entered the Order of St. Clare in August,
1570. With seven nuns of her order, she embarked from Cadiz on July
5, 1620, and arrived at Manila August 5, 1621, where she founded the
convent of La Concepción. Within two months, she received twenty girls
into the novitiate, notwithstanding the rigorous and austere rules of
this order. The provincial of the Franciscans strove to modify this
strictness, for the sake of the nuns' health in so trying a climate,
but Mother Gerónima refused to yield, and finally triumphed, in the
appeal made to the head of the order--although after this victory
she permitted some relaxations of the rule. Opposition arose to the
seclusion of so many young women of Manila in the monastic life; and
even the diocesan authorities endeavored to restrain their zeal--even
excommunicating Mother Gerónima for a time--but with little result. She
died on October 22, 1630. See La Concepción's account of her and the
entrance of this order, in _Hist. de Philipinas_, v, pp. 1-17.
[24] This man undertook, as a work of charity, to rear and educate
orphaned or poor Spanish boys, for which purpose he collected aims;
and later he secured from the crown the aid for which these letters
ask. Having spent his life in this work, Guerrero at his death (being
then a Dominican friar) placed this school in charge of the Dominicans,
who accepted it--on June 18, 1640, organizing it as the college of
San Juan de Letran; it became a department of their university of
Santo Tomás.
[25] Evidently referring to the city of Cebu, of which Christoval
de Lugo was then alcalde-mayor; this officer conducted an expedition
against the Joloans in 1627, in which the Spaniards inflicted heavy
losses on these pirates.
[26] Apparently meaning that he came with Governor Fajardo in 1618;
for the present narrative must have been written as early as 1624.
[27] That is, "the spirit of the Lord came rushing."
[28] The only Jeronimo Rodrigues, and who was probably the one in
our text, mentioned by Sommervogel was the Portuguese born at Villa
de Monforte. He went to the Indias in 1566, and became visitor of the
provinces of China and Japan. He died while rector of Macan. He left
several letters and treatises, some of which have been printed. See
Sommervogel's _Bibliothèque_.
[29] The old capital of Siam was Ayuthia (also written, in early
documents, Yuthia and Odia). It was founded in the year 1350, and
was built on an island in the river Meinam--the proper name of which,
according to M.L. Cort's _Siam_ (New York, 1886), p. 20, is Chow Payah,
the name Meinam (meaning "mother of waters") being applied to many
rivers--seventy-eight miles from the sea. Ayuthia was captured and
ruined by the Burmese in 1766, and later the capital was removed to
Bangkok (founded in 1769), which lies on the same river, twenty-four
miles from the sea. Crawfurd, writing in the middle of the nineteenth
century, gives the estimated population of Ayuthia at 40,000, and
that of Bangkok at 404,000--the latter probably much too large. See
his _Dict. Indian Islands_, article, "Siam."
[30] Pedro de Morejon was born in 1562, at Medina del Campo. He
entered his novitiate in 1577, and set out for the Indias in 1586,
and spent more than fifty years in the missions of the Indias and
Japan. His associates were Jacques Chisaï and Juan de Goto, who were
martyred. In 1620 he was sent to Rome as procurator of Japan, became
rector of the college of Meaco in 1633, and died shortly after. San
Antonio (_Chronicas_, iii, pp. 534, 535) gives a letter written by
him to the Franciscan religious martyred in Japan in 1596 while on
the road to execution; and he was the author of several relations
concerning Christianity in Japan. See Sommervogel's _Bibliothèque_.
[31] Antonio Francisco Cardim was born at Viana d'Alentejo, near Evora,
in 1596, and entered his novitiate February 24, 1611. He went to the
Indias in 1618, where he visited Japan, China, the kingdom of Siam,
Cochinchina, and Tonquin. He died at Macao, April 30, 1659. He left
a number of writings concerning his order and their work in the
Orient. See Sommervogel's _Bibliothèque_.
[32] The name Manados (now Menado) was applied to a province
(now called Minahasa) in the northernmost peninsula of Celebes;
see Colin's description of it in his _Labor evangélica_ (ed. 1663),
pp. 109, 110. Jesuit missions were early established there (Colin,
_ut supra_, p. 820), from the island of Siao.
[33] There is apparently some defect in the text at this place, as
if the royal comment or decision on Tavora's request had been omitted.
[34] This officer had been appointed to the post of warden, without
any salary, by Fernando de Silva (see the latter's report of July 30,
1626); but Tavora soon replaced him by another.
[35] This law, dated Ventosilla, April 15, is as follows:
"Notwithstanding the claims of the alcaldes-in-ordinary of Manila,
as to trying jointly the suits and causes of the Parián, on the
ground that it is within the five leguas of their jurisdiction,
it is our will that the governor of the Parián alone try in the
first instance it suits and causes, with appeals to the Audiencia;
while in respect to the government of the Parián, ley iv, título xv,
libro ii, shall be observed."
This latter law, dated November 4, 1606, is as follows: "Inasmuch
as the auditors of the royal Audiencia of Manila, under pretext of a
decree from us dated December eighteen, one thousand six hundred and
three, meddle in affairs touching the Parián or the Sangley Chinese,
and in giving orders and licenses so that they may reside in the
Filipinas Islands; and inasmuch as the cognizance and ruling in these
matters should concern our governor and captain-general, in whom
the defense of that land is vested: therefore we order that matters
concerning the Parián of the Sangleys be alone in the charge and care
of our governors and captains-general, and that our royal Audiencia
abstain from discussing or taking cognizance of anything touching
this matter, unless it be that the governor and captain-general commit
something that concerns him to them. And in order that the advisable
good relations should be held among all of them, and the Parián be
governed with more unanimity and satisfaction, the governors and
captains-general shall be very careful always to communicate to the
royal Audiencia what shall be deemed advisable for them [to know]."
Law v of the book and titulo, from which the above laws of the
regular text are taken, and which was promulgated by Cárlos II and
the queen mother, provides that "in the government of the Parián, and
the jurisdiction, communication, and all the other things contained
in ley lv, título xy, libro ii, what was enacted shall be observed."
[36] See this law, _ante_, note 34.
[37] This same law, with slightly different wording, is found in
libro viii, título xxix, ley xi, under the same date as the first
one above. The only material difference is in the additional words at
the end: "concealment of any quantity; and very exact account shall
be taken of everything, and the balances struck."
[38] This is but one clause in the royal decree of November 19, 1627
(which see, _post_); and it would seem that the date here given,
June 14, must be an error for that just cited. This and the following
matter from the _Recopilación_ show clearly the slipshod manner in
which that work was compiled.
[39] See this decree in full, pp. 164-166, _post_; it contains
important matter which is here omitted.
[40] Referring to William Adams, an Englishman who landed in Japan in
April, 1600, and soon became a favorite with the ruler Iyéyasu. He
was in the employ of the East India Company from November, 1613,
to December, 1616; and at other times rendered various services to
Iyéyasu, traded on his own account, or acted as interpreter to the
English and the Dutch in Japan. He remained in that country until
his death, May 16, 1620. See Cocks's _Diary_ (Hakluyt Society's
publications), i, pp. iii-xxxiv.
[41] i.e., the Chinese, not understanding scientific navigation,
are not able to direct their course across the sea to points on the
Philippine coast where they could be safe and escape the Dutch who
were lying in wait for them; but they cross from island to island,
by devious routes, making their way as their partial knowledge of
sailing enables them, and thus cannot avoid die enemy.
[42] La Concepción states (_Hist. de Philipinas_, v, p. 131) that
Tavora desired, through martial ardor, to undertake some important
expedition (for which he had made all possible preparations during
the winter and spring); and that in a council of war three such were
proposed--"to dislodge the Dutch from the port of Taiban [i.e., Taiwan,
in Formosa]; to Maluco, from [the fort of] Malayo, to punish their
insolent acts; or to obtain satisfaction from Siam for the death of
Don Fernando de Silva"--of which the first was chosen. But, through
various delays, Tavora's voyage was begun too late, and defeated by
the stormy weather that ensued.
[43] The following note is a part of the original document:
"_Note_. While writing this relation, these forty Spaniards arrived
in a ship, less four sailors who wished to remain in the kingdom of
Camboja, whither went all those who remained in the lanchas after the
galleons left them. That king of Camboja protected them; and, although
he suspected that they were spies, they were welcomed cordially and
sent to Manila, where they arrived July first."
[44] This cruise by the Spanish galleons is of much the same piratical
character which the Spaniards themselves ascribed to the Dutch and
English adventurers of that time; nor did they hesitate to attack
peaceful trading ships, even those of nations against whom they had
no grievance.
[45] In 1627 the emperor Tienki (a grandson of Wanleh) died, and
was succeeded by his younger brother, Tsongching, who was the last
of the actual Ming rulers. In the latter part of his reign he was
almost constantly at war with the Manchus, who were ruled by Taitsong,
fourth son of Noorhachu. In 1640 a revolt occurred in China, headed
by Li Tseching, who four years later captured Peking. Tsongching,
seeing that his cause was lost, committed suicide. Taitsong, who had
died in 1643, was succeeded by his son Chuntche; the latter, after
the fall of the rebel Li Tseching, became the first emperor of the
Manchu dynasty in China, and established his capital in Peking.
[46] This noted relic was dug up in the Chinese city of Singanfu, in
1625. It is a stone slab, containing various inscriptions in Chinese
and Syriac; it was erected in the year 781, and is a monument of the
early existence of the Nestorian church in China. See Yule's account
of it in his _Cathay_, i, pp. xci-xcvi, clxxxi-clxxxiii.
[47] Evidently referring to the Manchu chief Noorhachu, who from 1591
had harassed the northern frontiers of China; he died at Mukden in
September, 1626.
[48] Nicholas Longobardi was born in 1566 at Caltagarone, Sicily,
and admitted into the Society in 1580 (Sotwell says that he entered
his novitiate in 1582, at the age of seventeen). He became a teacher
in humanities and rhetoric. In 1596 he went to China, and settled in
the province of Kiang-si, where he was appointed general superior of
the mission from 1610 to 1622. He died at Peking, December 11, 1655,
according to Sotwell. Father de Machault says that he died September 1,
1654, according to a letter written May 7, 1655, by Father Francois
Clement; but the inscription on his tomb gives the first date. He
had written a number of treatises, some of them apparently in the
Chinese language. See Sommervogel's _Bibliothèque_.
[49] The Dominican provincial at this time was Bartolomé Martinez,
who made his profession in 1602, and arrived in the Philippines
in 1611. In the following year he made an unsuccessful attempt to
found a mission at Macao; but on his return to Manila was assigned
to the Chinese village of Binondo, where he became proficient in
their language, and afterward was vicar of the Parián at Manila. In
1618 he was shipwrecked on the coast of Formosa, which he considered
to be a gateway to the Chinese empire. In 1626 he founded a mission
there, and when his provincialate was ended he returned to Formosa,
where he died by accidental drowning, August 1, 1629. See sketch of
his life in _Reseña biog. Sant. Rosario_, i, pp. 335-337.
[50] Cf. the account by Paul Clain (Manila, June 10, 1697) of a
similar occurrence, natives of the Caroline Islands being blown by
storms to the coast of Samar. See _Lettres édifiantes_, i (Paris,
1717), pp. 112-136.
[51] "In 1610, the Dutch had built [in Java] a fort, which they named
Batavia. This was besieged by the Sunda princes of Bantam and Jacatra
in 1619, and it was on their defeat in that year that it was resolved
to build a town on the ruins of the native one of Jacatra, and this
took the name of the fort. Batavia has been the capital of all the
Dutch possessions in India since its foundation in 1619." (Crawfurd's
_Dict. Indian Islands_, p. 44.)
[52] A native town in the northern part of Gilolo (or Almahéra)
Island; it was captured by Juan de Silva.
[53] Probably referring to the plant called "China grass" (_Boehmeria
nivea_), a shrub indigenous in India, and probably in China and other
countries of eastern Asia; also introduced by cultivation into Europe
and America. The Chinese name for it is _tchou-ma_. The well known
"ramie" is but a variety (_tenacissima_) of _Boehmeria nivea_. The
fiber of China grass is considered as a textile substance of the
first rank. For description of this plant and its culture and use,
see C.R. Dodge's _Useful Fiber Plants of the World_ (U.S. Department
of Agriculture, Washington, 1897), pp. 85-91.
[54] This was the revolt of the Moors in Granada in the reign of
Felipe II, which occurred in 1568-71, under the leadership of Aben
Humeya. It was due to an edict restricting the liberties of the Moors,
and depriving them of the exercise of most of their distinctive
customs. It was quelled under the leadership of the famous Don Juan,
and the Moon were expelled from their homes to other parts of Spain.
[55] This document, like so many existing in Spanish archives,
was printed, evidently for the greater convenience of the members
of the Council. The signature is in writing, as also the above two
endorsements, which are in different hands.
[56] Fabricio Serzale was born at Naples, April 2, 1568. He was
admitted into the Society, December 10, 1586, became a teacher of
grammar, and went to the Philippines in June, 1600. He was superior
of Carigara; and his death occurred at Manila June 30, 1644. See
Sommervogel's _Bibliothèque_.
[57] This paragraph is written in the margin of the original document
that we follow. The church here mentioned was that of the Dominicans.
[58] Father Fernando de Estrada, a native of Ecija, died at Manila in
the year 1646, at the age of forty-five. He was a missionary in Naujan
of Mindoro, in Ternate, and among the Bisayans and Tagáls. (Murillo
Velarde's _Hist. de Philipinas_, fol. 194.)
[59] This was Juan de Bueras, born in 1588; he arrived at Manila in
1622, and for four years was rector of the college there. He was
provincial from 1626 until 1636; and in 1644 he went to Mexico as
visitor of that province. See sketch of his life in Murillo Velarde's
_Hist, de Philipinas_, fol. 71, verso.
[60] Juan Lopez was born at Moratalla, in the diocese of Murcia,
December 27, 1584. Admitted into the Society October 11, 1600,
he went six years later to the Philippines, where he was rector of
Carigara, Manila, and Cavite, associate of the provincial, commissary
of the Inquisition, and missionary among the Indians; he also went
to Rome as procurator of his province. He died at Manila, September
3, 1659. A probable error in name makes Francisco Lopez rector of
Cavite in 1637, for Juan was rector of the residence there at that
time. See Sommervogel's _Bibliothèque_; and Murillo Velarde's _Hist. de
Philipinas_, fol. 269, verso.
[61] Geronimo Perez de Nueros was born at Zaragoza, in 1595. He
entered the Society in 1616 and became a teacher of philosophy, and
also taught theology for nine years. He went to the Philippines,
whence he went later to Mexico. He died at Puebla, September 27,
1675. He wrote a number of relations, one on the life and martyrdom of
Father Marcelo Francisco Mastrilo; while a piece of his composition
was acted in the church of the college of Manila, July 5, 1637. See
Sommervogel's _Bibliothèque_.
[62] In the margin occurs the following at this point: "It is called
_nonog_ in the language of Manila." Blanco _(Flora,_ p. 106), after
enumerating a number of native names given to this tree, says that it
is called _nono_ at Otaiti in the South Sea. The chief uses of the
_nino_ (_Morinda ligulata, Morinda de cintillas_--Blanco; _Morinda
citrifolia_--Linn.; _Morinda tinctoria_--Roxb.) are the making of
red ink and dye, while the leaves, were used in making plasters for
the relief of pain. The tree attains a height of ten or twelve feet,
and has wide-spreading branches, and the leaves are eight or more
inches in length. See Blanco _ut supra_, pp. 105-109; and Delgado's
_Historia_, p. 449.
[63] Pastells publishes in his edition of Colin's _Labor evangélica_
(iii, p. 755) the following letter from the Manila Audiencia:
"Sire:
The fathers of the Society of Jesus of this city have been suffering
signal discomfort and need, because of the falling of their church,
and because the house in which they live is threatened with the same
ruin, as it is dilapidated in many places; and, as it is propped up
in many places, the religious are living in great danger. This city
has grieved much over this loss, as the Society is so frequented by
all its inhabitants and is of so great benefit as it is in all the
world. Although they have commenced to build their new church, and
a dwelling-house, they will not be able to finish these very soon,
because of lack of funds; and their present need demands a more speedy
relief. Consequently, this Audiencia is obliged to represent the case
to your Majesty, so that, with your accustomed liberality, you may be
pleased to give an alms to the fathers for these works. Since they were
commenced with what your Majesty was pleased to give them five years
ago, it will be right that they be finished with another equivalent
sum. The fathers deserve this aid, as they were the first to engage
in the matters of the royal service in the building of galleons with
the Indians of their districts; while, in the fleets which are offered
to them, they embark personally. And, in this respect, they are very
attentive in all other things that concern year Majesty's service and
the public welfare. With the protection which they promise themselves
from the piety of your Majesty, they will continue successfully
in this care. May our Lord preserve your Majesty many years, as is
necessary to Christendom. Manila, July twenty-nine, one thousand six
hundred and thirty.
_Don Juan Nino de Tavora_
Licentiate _Geronimo de Legaspi_
Licentiate _Don Mathias Flores_
Licentiate _Marcos Zapata de Galvez_"
[64] La Concepción relates this occurrence _(Hist. de Philipinas,_
v, pp. 139-145), and its effect on the archbishop, Serrano; he was
so horrified and grieved that he fell into a profound melancholy,
which ended his life on June 14, 1629. The disposal of the stolen
articles was finally made known in the confessional by one of the
accomplices in the theft.
[65] The Portuguese commander Albuquerque had in 1508 seized the
more important ports on the eastern coast of 'Omân, which were
then tributary to the ruler of Hormûz--a petty principality on the
southern coast of Persia, afterward removed (about 1300 A.D.) to
the island now called Hormûz (or Ormuz). The Portuguese exacted
tribute from these towns, and from the ruler of Hormûz; and later
coöperated with him in enforcing his authority over his tributaries,
and defending him from foreign foes. They were expelled from 'Omân by
its imam, Nâsir-bin-Murshid (who reigned from 1624 to 1649)--except
from Máskat and el-Mátrah, which was accomplished by his successor,
Sultân-bin-Seif, by 1652. See George P. Badger's _Imâms and Seyyids of
'Omân_ (Hakluyt Society's publications, London, 1871), pp. xxii, 4,
46, 66-69, 74, 78-90.
[66] i.e., "We have passed through fire and water, and thou hast
brought us out into a refreshment." (Psalm lxv, v. 12, Douay Bible;
lxvi in Protestant versions.)
[67] Many of these exiles went to Formosa and other neighboring
islands.
[68] Thus in original (_la mucha Plata qe_ tomaron a los dichos
Religiosos, q_e_ dicen serian dos mil sacos de hazienda); but one
would hardly expert that so large an amount of silver could have been
borrowed, as the context would indicate, from the merchants of Manila
(apparently for an investment in Japanese goods, from the proceeds of
which the friars in charge of it might aid their persecuted brethren
in Japan) for conveyance by two friars on so dangerous and uncertain
a voyage--doubly so, since the Japanese authorities had strictly
forbidden all trade between their ports and Manila.
[69] i.e., on the bar at the mouth of the river of Siam (the Chow
Payah, commonly called Meinam). For account of the capture of the
Japanese vessel, see "Relation of 1627-28," _ante_.
In a letter of August 4, 1630, the governor says, regarding the
question that arose on account of the capture of the Japanese junk:
"For the preservation of the commerce of the Japanese with Macan,
which is interrupted by the capture of one of their junks by our
galleons in the port of Sian in May of 628, the investigations
which I have written during the last two years have been made by my
efforts. The Japanese have become somewhat more softened, because
they have understood that it was not the intention of this government
to damage them. What I wrote last year to the king of Japon was of
considerable aid in that understanding, and that king made it known
in Japon. The city of Macan lately begged me to write new letters
to Japon, and I have done it very willingly, with the advice of the
Audiencia and other experienced persons. Our Lord grant that it will
have a good result." See Pastells's _Colin_, i, p. 242. The original
of this letter rests in the Sevilla archives; its pressmark, "est. 67,
caj. 6, leg. 8."
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