The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898, Volume 42, 1670-1700 / 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

Chapter XIII

During all the three years’ term of the provincial Fray Diego de Jesús this province enjoyed great tranquillity, and made great progress in strict observance, and in care and watchfulness in the mission villages in our charge. All regarded the provincial as a mirror, and seeing him they corrected their own negligence, on account of the great virtues that shone in him. His poverty and disregard of earthly things was of heroic degree. Of many of his surpassing virtues I can be a witness, for I had much to do with him during this triennium, on account of having duties near his person. It cost much urging to make him lay aside a habit, very old and worn, which he had used many years; and to induce him to change a hat which was so old that it appeared unsuitable and ludicrous. On many occasions he had no water even in his cell; and when he needed it, for visitors or for himself, he asked for it from others.[53] So close was his attendance in the choir that it seemed as if he had no other occupation. He never handled money during his term as provincial, to which I can testify, since I was his depositary and almoner (for he possessed the virtue of charity in a very high degree). He was frequent in prayer, and so severely did he mortify the flesh that after death there were found on him the marks of the cilices[54] of copper, even to the soles of his feet; a little before he died, these had been taken from him by father Fray José de Orense, of the Order of St. Francis, a religious of great ardor, to whom Fray Diego had communicated his own. Although I have not reached the time at which his holy death occurred, I am not willing to pass over in silence what happened on that occasion to this noble religious Fray José de Orense. The death of our father Fray Diego de Jesús was hastened by his infirmities, and by his age, which was seventy-four years. They rang the bell for giving him the holy sacraments, and at the same time father Fray José de Orense came in at the convent door. They told him that his dear friend was in danger of death, and he replied with a serene face that he already knew this, and had come to the convent on that account; for the two had agreed that, whoever should die first, the other would assist him at death. The wonderful thing is, that the brethren had not informed Fray José of it, nor had there been time for that. He remained with our father Fray Diego until the latter expired in his arms. Our father had completed his term as provincial, to the great regret of all, and then retired to a cell, which, during the thirteen years while he lived, he did not leave except for the choir-services; nor did he go outside [the convent] except with the body of religious. In no chapter-meeting which followed would he vote, although he was past provincial; and in order to carry this out better he endeavored to secure that his brother, Fray Buenaventura de Béjar, should obtain the function of voting. If in the year 1686 he presided in the chapter-meeting, it was by commission of our very reverend father general, and because some persons had magnified it as a charge on his conscience that it was important for him to accept that post; and therefore he did so, although with evident reluctance. They desired to elect him provincial for six years before [his death], but they never were able to attain this.

The chapter-session was held in the convent at Manila on May 8, 1683; and it was presided over by father Fray Juan Ponce, the first definitor for the past triennium, as we had not a special appointment for that duty from our very reverend father, the general of the whole order. The election for provincial fell on our father Fray José Duque, for the second time, with the unanimous consent of all the voting fathers and the general satisfaction of the whole province—who knew from long experience his great talent for governing, and his great devoutness and prudence; on account of these qualifications he was afterward commissary of the Holy Office. As definitors were elected our father Fray Juan de Jérez, the father reader Fray Juan Bautista Bover, and fathers Fray Alonso de Escos and Fray Francisco de Zamora. The visitors for the past triennium were present, the father reader Fray Miguel Rubio and father Fray Juan Guedeja; and the new visitors appointed for this triennium were fathers Fray José de la Cruz and Fray Alonso de Arnillas. The mandates and statutes of this chapter-session, although not many, were exceedingly useful for the proper government of the province.

Strong recommendations were made that they should send to the mission of China religious who might aid fathers Fray Álvaro de Benavente and Fray Juan de Rivera; and for this holy employ, after a few months, the father reader Fray Miguel Rubio offered himself, and, renouncing the office of prior of the convent of Cebú and the responsibility of vicar-provincial for that island, he embarked for China; and afterward he was followed by fathers Fray José Gil and Fray Francisco Patiño, who rendered excellent service for several years in those missions—although finally they withdrew on account of impaired health, and returned to these islands.

When the father reader Fray Miguel Rubio arrived at Cantón, it was but a short time after the entrance into China, by way of Hermosa Island, of the bishop of Heliopolis, Don Francisco Palú, on a journey from Roma; he resided in the city of Moyang, from which place he sent to the regulars who were ministers notifications of the decrees of the holy Congregation of the Propaganda upon the subjection of the regulars to the apostolic vicars. This occasioned great disquiet, and hindered the preaching of the gospel; and from it originated bitter controversies, which began in that time, and are not ended up to the present; may it please God to bring them to an end in future days. Nevertheless, at the visit to Roma of father Fray Alvaro de Benavente some relief was given by the decree which he obtained from the holy Congregation of the Propaganda, which suspended the subjection, and left only the visitation of the vicars-apostolic and some other and lesser duties of obedience, in other matters leaving the regulars subject to their own regular superiors—which is the same as to leave them subject to two masters. But this is impossible, by the saying of Christ our Lord, according to chap. xvii of St. Luke: Nemo potest duobus Dominis servire[55]—which is what was attempted in Filipinas by the archbishop Don Diego Camacho y Avila.[56] Bishop Palú, who styled himself vicar apostolic for the entire empire of China, sent to Cantón a notification of the bull of his Holiness Clement X and the subjection of the regulars, to a French priest named Filibert Leblanc—who is still living, a very old man, and is vicar apostolic of a province. His coming occasioned much grief to the fathers of St. Francis, and to father Fray Miguel Rubio, who made such answer as at that time seemed expedient. The bishop of Heliopolis lived but a short time in China, dying in the city of Moyang.

This year the governor despatched to Nueva España two galleons, with a considerable interval between, thus providing a remedy against the returns to port which had been experienced in preceding years; for it was very possible that, in case one ship were driven back, the other could make its voyage—which had been known to occur many times, since they could not keep together in that dangerous navigation, and might follow very different courses; and one will suffer from a storm, and the tempest not reach the region where the other vessel is sailing. Accordingly, he sent the galleon “Santa Rosa” as flagship, in charge of General Antonio Nieto; and as almiranta the galleon “San Telmo,” under his follower Admiral Don Francisco Fabra, a very sagacious and active man. These two galleons made a prosperous voyage and reached the port of Acapulco, where General Antonio Nieto remained as castellan of the castle there (until his Majesty should give him a proprietary appointment), because he who held this office was dead, and the viceroy of Nueva España, Marqués de Laguna and Conde de Paredes de Nava,[57] appointed ad interim General Antonio Nieto. [This resulted] to the great improvement of that fort, for he strengthened and repaired it, and provided it with military supplies, in which it was very deficient—most of this at his own cost, because he had a generous disposition.

Governor Don Juan de Vargas also placed on the stocks, at the port of Cavite, a galleon to which he gave the name “Santo Niño Jesús de Cebú,” one of the largest ships ever built in these islands; its builder was Juan Sánchez, a man well skilled in the art of such construction, on account of having practiced it many years in Yucatán. So much diligence was used in constructing the ship that it made a voyage to Acapulco in the year 1684, as we shall relate in its place.

In this year of 1683 there came to Don Juan de Vargas an envoy extraordinary from the king of Siám, and from his barcalón (or prime minister in all the kingdom), who was a Greek and very Catholic, named Constantius Falcón. The envoy was a religious of the order of our father St. Augustine, a native of Lisboa, named Fray Estebán Sousa; [he was formerly] a lecturer on theology in the convent of Évora, and had been rector at Goa and visitor for Macán, and was a religious of great learning and greater virtue. It seems that one of the things solicited by the barcalón Constantius Falcón was, to retire to Manila with his family and all his wealth, which was great, on account of his being the royal favorite and having great influence with the king of Siám—who, although a barbarian and very superstitious, as are all that people, had a very amiable disposition and much esteem for Europeans. Sargento-mayor Don Francisco de Moya, with whom Constantius was on very intimate terms, dissuaded him from this purpose; and certainly the arguments which he brought forward were reasonable, based on the extreme and incredible power of the governors of Manila, which is very unfriendly to the possessor of much wealth, as has been confirmed by experience. I could set down here many instances of this which have occurred in my own time; but I omit this, as being a matter that is both delicate and offensive.

It would have been very prudent on the part of Constantius to have retired from Siám; for within a few years the king died, and his successor was not so kind and well-intentioned. This king inflicted on Constantius a most cruel death, and appropriated his enormous wealth, which, according to report, was counted by millions. It is true that Constantius was very guilty, for he had formed an alliance with the French, and was planning to surrender to them the kingdom of Siám; and for this purpose he had corresponded with the king of France, who sent many Frenchmen for this enterprise—which ended very badly, and cost most of them their lives; and the missionary bishops suffered very great privations. The intention of Constantius was a good one; it was, to establish the Catholic faith in Siám, for which he had built some churches. For the adornment of these, he sent [orders] through the said Don Francisco de Moya for many chalices, monstrances, and vessels of silver covered with gold, to be wrought in Nueva España; on account of his death, these were sold in Manila, and now they are in many churches of these islands. Only his wife escaped—a Japanese woman, a very good Christian—and a son of his, who went to Francia, where the most Christian king conferred honors on him, and gave him an income and the title of count.

Father Fray Estebán de Sousa, having concluded the business which he had to transact in Manila, returned to Siám; and the king of that country sent him as his ambassador to the king of Portugal, accompanied by two Siamese nobles [mandarines] who carried a rich present. With them he went to Goa, where the viceroy of India sent him on his way to Lisboa with the best ship that he had. But when they arrived at the Cape of Good Hope the ship was dashed to pieces, at the place which is called “the false cape,” and most of its people perished, including one of the Siamese nobles. Father Fray Estebán and another religious of Ours—a Portuguese named Fray José de Gracia, who had spent several years in Filipinas—with a very few others, saved their lives. They traveled by land more than forty leguas, through those desert shores of Africa, where they encountered only lions of fearful size; they saved themselves from the lions at night by surrounding themselves with fires, on account of the antipathy which those fierce beasts have for fire. They ate some herbs of the field, and, weakened by hunger and fatigue, they fell dead along the way; more than forty Portuguese perished, among them two religious of the Society of Jesus, for they were old men and unable to travel so far, or to suffer such privations. After many days, having endured incredible sufferings, they reached a city which the Dutch have at the Cape of Good Hope, called Santa Elena; they were received there with much kindness, and the Dutch treated them very well, and relieved their many necessities.

Father Fray Estebán returned to Goa, and by order of his provincial went back to Siám, where in the Bandel[58] of the Portuguese he made a hermitage; and there, allowing his beard to grow, he devoted himself wholly to prayer and mortification, being an example for all the Europeans in that kingdom. He had his grave always open, in which he often placed himself, and there meditated on the end of the glories of this world. In the year 1698 he returned to Manila, in order to procure a bell for his hermitage and some other articles for its adornment, and to collect some alms. In the following year he went back to Siám, to continue that mode of life, [which he did] until the year 1709, when they found him dead in his hermitage, on his knees; they buried him in the grave which he had always kept open. The spirit of this religious was approved in Manila by men consummate in virtue—especially by fathers Fray Francisco de la Concepción and Fray José Orense, Franciscans, who were very spiritual men, and well qualified to decide on souls truly mystical. He practiced great mortification in his food, for he never ate flesh or fish, but only fruits (and those without any additional relish), roasted sweet potatoes and bananas, and a little boiled rice.

In a vessel from the Coromandel coast came Juan Antúnez de Portugal, a knight of the Order of Christ, and a son of the celebrated Portuguese jurist Domingo de Antúnez de Portugal (of the same order), who wrote the very learned book, De regalibus. He came with an appointment from his king as governor of the islands of Timor and Solor, and, having fallen dangerously ill at Malaca, he feared, as a good Catholic, to die among those Calvinistic heretics; and therefore embarked in a coasting vessel which was coming to Manila with merchandise. He was received by Governor Don Juan de Vargas with the hospitality which his person and noble rank merited, and medical treatment was provided for him with great care. As soon as he became well and was ready to continue his voyage to Timor, the governor sent him, well provided, in a very good vessel belonging to some Portuguese traders, and gave him some Spaniards to accompany him.

The islands of Timor and Solor are the last of which we have knowledge toward the south beyond the island of Jacatra, where the Dutch have founded the city of Nueva Batavia, the capital of all the colonies and factories that they possess in Eastern India from the Cape of Good Hope, which are numerous and rich. The islands of Timor and Solor abound with gold, and in them alone grows the sandalwood, a very fragrant and esteemed wood, and a great article of trade for China—although the transportation of it is very unbecoming for Christians, because it is the incense and timiama which the Chinese use most in the sacrifices to their idols; and therefore the Portuguese have found by experience that wealth gained by this wretched traffic never is profitable. These islands are under the Portuguese dominion and are relics of its ancient colonies, although they are but little subject to it on account of being more than twelve hundred leguas from Goa. At that time the rule over them had been usurped by a Dutch mestizo (although he feigned to be a Catholic), named Antonio de Ornay, a very sagacious man and an able politician, who governed them more as a king than as a vassal (as he said he was) of the king of Portugal—whom he recognized so far as it seemed good to him, and made contributions to his revenues with part of the great and almost incredible riches which it was said he possessed, especially in gold; but most of his wealth was hidden and buried in the ground. The king of Portugal and the viceroy of India, knowing that they could do no more, allowed him to remain in that power, and sent him [the insignia of] the Order of Christ, and other titles of honor. It seems that the cabinet at Lisboa were displeased at the limited power that the Portuguese crown possessed in Timor, and decided to send Juan Antúnez to replace Antonio de Ornay, but armed and escorted only by the royal warrant, which is more than enough for Portuguese loyalty. Juan Antúnez arrived at the principal port of Timor, and found it in hostile array and garrisoned by soldiers of all nations, sent by Antonio de Ornay, who already had information (by way of Batavia) of his new successor; these soldiers had orders from him not to allow Juan Antúnez or any other person to land from the vessel, and not to accept from him any despatch or letter. The new governor spent many days there, waiting to see if he could at least write a letter to Antonio de Ornay; but seeing that he had no remedy except to return to Manila, he did so, with much difficulty and lack of provisions. From Manila he set out for India, where he was afterward governor of Mozambique and other places in Africa. Antonio de Ornay remained absolute master of Timor and Solor, until he died suddenly, of old age; and without the assistance of a priest, because the influence [aires] of the neighboring Batavia had so weakened his scruples. At his death was present a citizen of Macán, Antonio de Vasconcelos, of the same Order of Christ, who told us in these islands that all the wealth of Antonio de Ornay, a great quantity of gold, had been lost; for, as he had buried all his treasures and died suddenly, they remained for the court of Pluto, the imaginary god of riches and also of hell.

About the end of the year, Auditor Doctor Don Cristóbal Herrera Grimaldos died, aged more than seventy years. The cause of his death—which came rapidly, in an illness of a few weeks—was that a running sore that he had in his right arm became cancerous. It is said that it was this arm that he stretched out to seize the archbishop when he ordered [the soldiers] to carry out the prelate in the chair on which he was sitting; such is the story, but it is not confirmed.... What is certainly known is, that he made no effort to secure absolution from the excommunication. He publicly received the holy viaticum, which was administered to him by the dean, Don Miguel Ortiz de Covarrubias; and they buried him in the church of the Society of Jesus at Manila. Afterward the archbishop, having returned from his exile (as we shall soon relate), by sentence and demand from his attorney-general ordered that the auditor’s body be disinterred; but this proved ineffectual, because it was alleged that the body had been buried in a general sepulchre, in which were the bones of others of the faithful, and those of the auditor could not be recognized. At this, the ecclesiastical officials desisted from their attempt; but there was no other declaration to the contrary.

While the archbishop was enduring his exile in Lingayén—or, to speak more correctly, his imprisonment, since he had not the liberty that exiled persons enjoy—in Manila the tempest continued against the religious of St. Dominic, who, as being his brethren in the order, had great share in his troubles. The usurping provisor, Dean Don Miguel de Covarrubias, and the cabildo, successful in maintaining the vacant see [sede vacante], arrested and harassed all those who, as it seemed to them, did not agree with their opinion. And as it seemed to them that all the force in this opposition came from the religious of St. Dominic—especially from the provincial, Fray Antonio Calderón; father Fray Cristóbal Pedroche, commissary of the Holy Office and vicar-provincial; father Fray Bartolomé Marrón, rector of the college of Santo Tomás; and the two lecturers in theology, father Fray Juan Ibáñez and Fray Francisco de Vargas—they demanded aid from the governor, Don Juan de Vargas, to banish those religious. The governor issued a royal decree, signed only with his own name, directing the provincial to send the five religious above mentioned to the village of Lalo, the capital of the bishopric of Nueva Segovia, distant a hundred leguas from Manila, on the pretext that some of them were preaching, and others teaching, erroneous doctrines in the community. The said provincial replied to this that if the errors consisted in saying that the cabildo and their provisor had usurped the ecclesiastical jurisdiction, and that the persons who had banished the archbishop and arrested the ecclesiastics deserved the censures [of the church], it was himself who had most influence [in forming that opinion in them], and who with most firmness maintained it; and that as his subordinates were not to blame in the matter, since they obeyed the commands laid on them, he could not fulfil the orders given by the royal decree. The said master-of-camp issued a second decree in the same form as the first, repeating its commands, and ordering that the provincial with the five religious be brought to this capital.

To the end that this order might be executed, he gave commission to Licentiate Don Diego Antonio de Viga, auditor of that Audiencia—who, accompanied by several companies of arquebusiers and other soldiers under the command of the said governor, went to the convent of San Domingo; and, leaving it surrounded with many of the soldiers, with others he entered it to make known the said royal decree. He actually notified the provincial and Fray Cristóbal Pedroche, commissary of the Holy Office and vicar-provincial of Manila; and the soldiers looked through the entire convent in search for the rector, Fray Bartolomé Marron. Not finding him, they went on to the college of Santo Tomás, and, after making the same efforts to find the said rector, but in vain, notified the two professors of the same decree. They made substantially the same reply as the provincial—all of them saying that they could not voluntarily leave their offices and province; but that they were ready to endure any violence for the sake of God and His cause. The news of this was sent to the said master-of-camp Don Juan de Vargas, and he was told how in the convent and the college all the doors and offices had been opened to the soldiers, without resistance; he gave orders that the soldiers should remain round about the convent and college, and should not permit the entrance of any provision of food or water for the religious until the six should be surrendered, and should go alone to the places designated in the said royal decree. This blockade, with this rigor, lasted four days, and on the last day, which was the day next following Corpus [Christi], the same auditor went to the convent; and, having made various protestations and requisitions, ordered the usurping provisor (who was present) to remove those religious. After some questions and replies the provisor commanded the soldiers to carry in chairs, in their arms, to the place of embarkation of the provincial and his vicar-provincial; this was actually done, carrying them until they placed the religious in the vessel which had been made ready for this purpose. This having been accomplished at the convent, they went to the college of Santo Tomás, and the same thing was done to the two professors of theology; and, all being placed together in the same vessel, they were conveyed to the port of Cavite. From that place the two professors were transported in another vessel to the island of Mariveles; and the provincial and vicar-provincial were detained there until the time for the sailing of the ship for Nueva España, in which they were embarked. The said provincial reached the kingdom of España, where he died a few months after his arrival.

At the same time, by order of the said master-of-camp, Doctor Don Diego Calderón went to the convent of the Parián (which is the village of the heathen Chinese), with the same display of arms and soldiers, in quest of the said vicar-provincial, and searched the entire convent—where he could not be found, since he was, as has been stated, in the convent of Manila, in company with the provincial. With the same commission Captain Don Luis de Morales Camacho, alcalde-in-ordinary, went with armed soldiers to a ranch named Biñán, distant eight leguas from Manila, and belonging to the said college, to seize the rector, thinking that they would find him there; and General Antonio Vásquez went, with the same accompaniment of soldiers, to the convent of Abucay, a ministry for the Indians, distant eight leguas from Manila by sea, to look for Fray Raimundo Verart; but, as they could not find those two religious, they could not in their case put into execution the [sentence for their] removal from the islands. Strenuous efforts were made in Manila to look for the father rector, Fray Bartolomé Marron, but they could not find him; for he was safely hidden in the house of a person who was strongly attached to the order; so they desisted from their search for him.