The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898 — Volume 23 of 55 / 1629-30 / 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.

by Unknown

Chapter XI

Of what was passing in the Filipinas

It appears that matters at Sugbú were now running more smoothly, for that chief, the husband of the Indian princess (whom the governor ordered to be treated with consideration), collected as much as he could carry, and came into the governor’s presence, to give it to him in exchange for his wife. The governor, who saw the way opened for a great stroke, told him that his wife was not a captive, nor did the Spaniards come with any intention whatever of capturing the people, but rather to give liberty to those who were captives. There was his wife, and he could ascertain from her what treatment had been shown her, and he could take her away at once, together with what he had brought to ransom her. As soon as that barbarian heard this, he wept for joy, and threw himself at the governor’s feet, which he tried to kiss. He said that the Castilians were in truth good men, and that the reports that the Indians had had hitherto were malicious. The people that acted thus could only have good bowels and a guileless heart—this is their peculiar mode of expression. His wife was given to him, whereat he was very happy. They talked so well to the Chief Tupas, that he came in the morning with a great following of his slaves, friends, and relatives, the most gallant that could come in his train. All, in sincerity and without pretense, offered themselves again to the service of the Castilas [i.e., Castilians], as they called and continue to call the Spaniards. Three of the fathers remained in the island, namely, father Fray Martin de Rada, father Fray Diego de Herrera, and father Fray Pedro de Gamboa. These began, with great assiduity, to study the language, to endeavor to teach the Indians, and to instruct them in the holy mysteries of our faith. The Indians listened closely and attentively to them. He who accomplished most was father Fray Martín de Rada, who, being a man of great imagination, in a short time laid up great riches, and made considerable gain among the natives. And, in fact, when I was in the island of Sugbú in the year 1612, as a conventual in the convent of the natives, called San Nicolás, I saw a lexicon there, compiled by father Fray Martín de Rada, which contained a great number of words. This must have been of no little aid to those who came afterward. The fathers did not dare baptize the Indians immediately; for, on the one hand, they feared their fickleness, since they knew with what ease those who had received baptism in the time of General Magallanes, had apostatized. Besides, the fathers did not know what orders would be given them, or whether they would be commanded to retire. Thus they were very considerate and circumspect in everything, but did not neglect, for all that, to labor in the field, in order that they might afterward gather abundance of fruit.

The religious endeavored to have the children of the most prominent people come to the convent, or to that house wherein they were living, in order that they might give them instruction, and teach them to read and write. Since they were the newest plants, necessarily they would receive the teaching better, and the new customs would be impressed more easily upon them than on those already hardened and petrified in their old customs. The Indians assented readily to this, for already with their subjection, they felt some indescribable superiority in the Spaniards which obliged them to regard the latter with fear and respect. Much more so did they regard the fathers, upon seeing the reverence with which the captains treated them, who always kissed their hands on seeing them. This custom has remained even until the present in the islands. However, they do not kiss the hand, but the habit or girdle. I suppose that the fathers’ modesty would not permit the captains to kiss the hand, and they substituted therefor the habit or girdle. Upon the Indians seeing this, they have followed the same custom. Consequently, as a rule, when an Indian comes to talk to a father, he kisses the latter’s hand. With this instruction that the fathers continued to give the youth, the Indians were becoming more harmonized, and began to lose their previous horror of the Spaniards, and on the other hand, to love them. Most of them begged the fathers to please make them Christians.

A miracle which happened at that time aided in this. A fire catching in some of the soldiers’ quarters on a holiday (namely, All-Saints’ day of 1566), many houses were burned, among them that in which the fathers were living. Meanwhile another and larger house was being built. The religious had erected a bamboo cross at the door of the said house. The bamboos are very thick in those islands and so plentiful that they are used for masts and yards for the caracoas; and they make the best, for they are very strong, of slight weight, and can be raised and lowered easily. Then the fire breaking out so furiously had burned more than thirty houses within an incredibly short time, and among these was ours. The flame enveloped the cross on all sides, but did not burn it, or even smoke it. When the religious saw the present marvel, they had the bells rung as a sign of rejoicing. Upon the Spaniards and Indians coming to see what was the matter, they looked at it not without great wonder, for wonder was caused by the fire’s so great respect for that cross. From that time the natives began to have a deeper idea of the mysteries preached to them by the religious, since they saw the proof of them with their own eyes.

Another miracle almost similar happened in Nueva España, when that great pirate Franco Draque [i.e., Francis Drake] was coasting those shores. He was English by nation, but had been reared many years in España;[22] so that the proverb which says, “Rear a crow, and it will tear your eye out,” might be fulfilled. When this man was passing through the Strait of Magallanes, and coasting the southern shores, then much neglected, many were the depredations that he committed. He set fire to whatever he found, and burned it in his fury. When he arrived at the coast of Colima [in Peru], there was a shipyard in one of those ports, where a frigate was being built for the pearl-fishery. It was already completed below its cabin. Draque ordered it fired, and such was its material that it was quickly converted into ashes. Hut a cross which had been raised above the cabin was uninjured by the fire, as a thing against which flames have no power. Running through the land and along the coasts, the citizens of the town of Colima came to the cabin, and among its ashes saw the cross, clean and shining. This gave them no little consolation, and they regarded that occurrence as a miracle, namely, that the fire that had destroyed so great a structure, had reserved only the cross. The citizens did not keep it, but cut it into splinters, and divided it among themselves. Although one cannot but praise their zeal in this, yet it would have been better had they adorned a church with it, so that the memory of the miracle would last longer.