The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898 - Volume 41 of 55, 1691-1700 / 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

Extracts from Jesuit letters, 1691–94

[From a letter by Father Juan de Zarzuela,[1] June 19, 1691.]

The governor Don Fausto Cruzat y Gongora is a royal official in these islands, who makes every endeavor to collect the revenue of his Majesty. He has a hasty disposition, and no one dares oppose him; consequently there are few who wish him well, and there is no one who desires the office of alcalde, on account of the burdens that he imposes on them (never customary here), of completing every year the royal revenue and its accounts, and filling out the quota of what they must collect, even though they do not actually collect it. The result is, that the alcaldes contribute from their own stores what they had not collected; for, no matter what efforts they make, they cannot during the year finish the collections, on account of the extreme poverty of the Indians. The governor has for counselors or intimates only Andaya and Antonio, for whom he does many things and confers many offices. It is not known how much it costs them. His Lordship brought over a great amount of silver from the viceroy, which is necessarily sent as an investment; and there will be many who complain of this, because [the goods procured by] it will occupy the greater part of the ship. For this reason no one wished to accept command of the ship, for it will be nothing more than to go in the governor’s employ; and finally it was given to Don José Mato Rayo. It is a new ship which is sailing; it was built by Andaya as contractor, and superintendent of the whole—whom the governor obeyed, as one who was necessary to him, because there was no ship that could be sent. That is, the “Santo Niño” was in such a condition that it could not be repaired; and, as the time was short (it was then only nine months), it was necessary to multiply the exactions [sacas]. Thus Silang, which has two hundred and twenty-seven and a half tributes registered, had one hundred and twenty men at one time outside of their village; others had seventy, eighty, or more out—without being able to take care of their grain-fields. Afterward, because there was not enough rice for the king, through lack of foresight in the royal officials, they levied another assessment of rice on the natives [in Cavite] as also in La Laguna, the king paying but one-half of what the Indians could sell it for later, and leaving them under the necessity of buying the grain at double price. The worst thing is, that now the rice has become so scarce that it is worth nine and ten reals, at which price it is sold in the [royal] magazines; and the tribute which is given by the very Indians on whom this purchase was levied is sold at the magazines, without being placed therein, to the rice-mills. This gentleman very willingly accepts what people give him for the offices. At the beginning, it was understood that he would not receive gifts; but with five children, a wife, and a sister-in-law, and heavily indebted, the office costing him so much, and he coming so great a distance, how can he avoid looking out for money? He is not opposed to the Society [of Jesus], but we are under no obligation to him. Our order has no kindly feeling toward thieves, and it is thought most probable, as nearly as can be guessed, that he will not speak [of us] very favorably to his Majesty. He says that he will despatch the balandra[2] this year; but I do not know how this will be, because they have not begun to get it ready.

[From a letter by Father Magino Sola, June 19, 1691.]

On the twenty-fifth of July, Señor Fausto Cruzat y Gongora took possession of the government. When Don Juan de Vargas was ready to embark this year, the city brought a new suit against him, and seized the little that he possessed.

[From a letter by Father Juan de Montemayor, dated July 4, 1694.]

He says therein that information had been received in Manila that the Dominicans would not be promoted to bishoprics in the Filipinas Islands, a statement that had been well received. The bishop of Troya had attempted to regain the government of the archbishopric, founding his claim on a royal decree in which he was charged to surrender it to the person who had been presented by his Majesty (from which he inferred that the king approved his government), but slighting the imperative order [ruego y encargo] that he should set out for España. He demanded that the governor send him the official correspondence from España for the governor of the archbishopric; but the governor replied that he would send him that which should go to the name of his illustrious Lordship.

[Letter by Father Pedro de Silva Alencastre, July 20, 1694.]

[He says] that for three years past no letters from the islands reached Mejico, because in July of the year 1692 the patache which was going to the Marianas, with more than twenty thousand pesos, was burned while in the very port. In the same year the ship “Santo Cristo” sailed for Acapulco, and had to come back to this port from the thirtieth degree of latitude. Then she sailed in July of 93, from the port of Naga; and up to the present time nothing is known about her fate. In 1694 a galleon was built that was 72 cubits long [de 72 codos de quilla], an audacious attempt. It set sail on the eve of St. Peter’s day; and on the following Saturday, while off the shore of Maragondon, it went to pieces. It was laden with more than twelve thousand packages; for all the citizens had invested whatever they possessed, in order to lade this ship, and even the wrought silver and the jewels of the women had been sold in order to invest their value in stuffs. The letter was sent by the patache which the governor was despatching as an express, so that they might know in Mejico and España that the islands were not destroyed.

[Letter by Father Gaspar Marco,[3] July 27, 1694.]

The bishop of Troya was going on, thinking that the government of the archbishopric belonged to him, and did not ordain the clerics who presented dismissory letters from the cabildo of Manila—assuming that the king regarded him as ecclesiastical governor—and that, in spite of the permit for absence which commanded him to return to España. The cabildo had brought suit against Doctor Nicolas Caraballo, sentencing him to exile in Nueva España. He embarked in the year 1692; but, the galleon having come back to the port of Naga in the province of Camarines, the bishop of that diocese not only received and entertained Caraballo, but absolved him and qualified him to hold any office or benefice. The cabildo of Manila, who had sent a person to conduct Caraballo to that city, endured this slight and said nothing, when they knew of the conduct of the bishop of Camarines, in order not to arouse another dispute. The bishop appointed Caraballo governor of the bishopric of Cebu, on account of the death of its prelate, in 1692. He began his rule by visiting and punishing the curas, until he removed the cura of Aclan, named Salazar, and seized his goods, without allowing him any appeal to the metropolitan. Salazar escaped to Manila, and informed the cabildo of this; and they commissioned the cantor, Don Esteban de Olmedo, to arrest Caraballo. The bishop of Camarines had information of all this, and went in person to protect him. He arrived twenty-four hours after Olmedo, and arrested the latter; he passed sentence on him, with the counsel and opinion of Caraballo himself, and carried Olmedo to Camarines with a pair of fetters, where he remained until the date [of the letter], without the cabildo having taken any steps for his liberation.

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[1] Juan de Zarzuela was born in Argete on February 11, 1640. When sixteen years old, he entered the Jesuit novitiate, and ten years later went to the Philippines. He was rector at Iloilo, and vice-rector at Cavite; rector and vice-rector at San José during seven years, and procurator of the province during five; and filled other posts. He died in Manila, May 27, 1706. (Murillo Velarde, fol 394 b.)

[2] A light sailing vessel, with one mast; a sloop. Cf. Dutch bylander, a coasting vessel.

[3] Gaspar Marco was born in Biar, Valencia, January 25, 1660, and became a Jesuit novice in 1682. Seven years later, he came to Manila, and was for fifteen years procurator of the college there. After filling other offices, he was sent as procurator of the province to Madrid and Rome. He was taken ill in Spain, and died on September 8, 1716. (Murillo Velarde, fol. 406.)