[1] The various approbations at the beginning of the book are not here translated, as not being sufficiently important to justify such use of our space. The first of these is furnished by Governor Hurtado de Corcuera, and is dated at Manila, March 21, 1639—in which he states that Fray Gonçalez has added matter which brings down Aduarte’s history to 1637, thus covering a period of fifty years from the foundation of that Dominican province. The request for permission to print the book is made by Fray Carlos Clemente Gant, prior-provincial of that order; and it is granted (for six years) by the governor, after favorable report on the book has been made by Fray Theofilo Mascaros, an Augustinian—this report, by the way, being dated at the Augustinian convent of Sancta Ana de Agonoy, August 29, 1638. Archbishop Guerrero also approves this publication (July 7, 1638); and, four days earlier, the Franciscan, Fray Juan Piña de San Antonio, at Sampaloc, does the same.
Book I
Chapter I
How the establishment of the Dominican order in the Philipinas Islands was undertaken
[Though the Dominican order did not accompany the discovery of these islands, it was not late in entering them; for it found many entire provinces still in the night of heathenism, because the preachers, though good ones, had been few, and because the inhabitants differed so in their language and were spread over so vast an extent of territory. The reports which were sent back of the intelligence of the people, the fertility of the soil, and the amount of the population moved some religious to come to these regions, in grief that so many souls should be lost for lack of some one to rescue them from their errors. The question of establishing the Dominican order was discussed among the grave and holy fathers of the Province of Mexico; and to them it seemed unbecoming to our profession that no religious of our order should be engaged in this new conversion. The first man to put these pious desires into effect was that noble man of God, Fray Domingo Betanços, who refused the bishopric of Guatimala, preferring to be a preacher of the gospel in these islands. By his efforts he persuaded the viceroy, Don Antonio de Mendoça, to give command that he should have a vessel and sailors to take him to Philippinas, for which he had permission of his bishop. But the time determined upon by our Lord for this had not yet come, and accordingly it was not carried out. However, he did not give up his desire; and began again in 1580 to discuss the journey. In order that the expedition might be better supported, he talked over with some fathers the plan of sending some one to España and Roma to obtain the necessary documents. Fray Juan Chrisóstomo was chosen as leader of the expedition, and was sent to España and Roma to obtain the usual licenses for the foundation of a new province of this order in Philippinas, Japon, and China. Fray Juan set out in 1581 with letters from various ecclesiastics, among them the first bishop of the Philippinas, Don Fray Domingo de Salazar, a religious of the same order, who happened to be in Nueva España at the time, on the way to his new bishopric. The bishop was greatly pleased with this determination, as he hoped to find through it reparation for his own unfortunate voyage, in which he had brought religious from España for the same purpose, but had lost so many from death or sickness that he had remaining only father Fray Christoval de Salvatierra. The mission of Fray Juan Chrisostomo was successful.[1] He obtained from the general of the order, the Most Reverend Fray Pablo Constable de Ferrara, a charter giving him authority to establish a congregation of thirty brethren of the order for the Philippinas Islands and the kingdom of China, and directing him to follow the usages of the province of Santiago of Mexico. The privileges of the province of Mexico were granted to the new province. The date of this charter is the fourteenth of July, 1582. The general also gave him a circular letter to the members of the order, confirming his powers.]