Ten years later another extensive raid occurred; but in 1774 Andrés de Ariza, being appointed governor, dealt vigorously and skilfully with the hostile tribes. He discovered numerous secret passes and well cut roads from their quarters to various portions of the province; he deciphered a system of alarm signals, and found a number of caves where the light boats of the natives were constructed. By his efforts the Indians were kept at bay or brought under control.
But outbreaks among the natives and the raids of corsairs were not the only misfortunes to which the Isthmus was exposed. During the eighteenth century the city of Panamá was thrice devastated by fire. On the 1st and 2d of February 1737 a conflagration occurred which destroyed two thirds of the buildings; March 30, 1756, a second fire destroyed one half of the city; and on the 26th of April 1771 fifty-five houses were burned.[XXXI‑17]
POLITICAL MATTERS.
While the people of Tierra Firme thus suffered many disasters at this period of their history, and as we shall see later were frequently subject to attack from the armaments of hostile powers, they appear to have been remarkably free from the internal dissensions which prevailed at an earlier date. The unseemly strife between the church and the audiencia had now entirely ceased, and little worthy of note is mentioned by the chroniclers. During the latter portion of the seventeenth century, and for the first few years of the eighteenth, records as to the succession of governors in Panamá are meagre. In 1708 the marqués de Villa Rocha was in power; but incurring the displeasure of the audiencia, he was deposed in June of that year, and confined in the castle of Portobello. His successor, Fernando de Haro Monterroso, the senior oidor, who had been mainly instrumental in effecting the downfall of the marquis, held the reins of government for about six months when he was prosecuted for alleged outrages of so grave a character that he was sent in custody to Spain for trial.[XXXI‑18] From Alcedo we learn that Juan Bautista de Orueta y Irusta, alcalde del crímen of the audiencia of Lima, succeeded to the gubernatorial office, and ruled until 1710, when a governor of the king's appointment arrived, and Orueta returned to Lima.
In June 1711 Villa Rocha, having been released and seeing an opportunity of seizing the reins of power, hastened to the capital and proclaimed himself governor. His career was short, for within twenty-four hours José Hurtado de Amedzaga, mariscal del campo of the royal forces, compelled him to abdicate, and he himself took possession of the governor's chair, occupying it until 1716, by which time he had rendered himself so obnoxious to the people that he was removed by the king's order. The government was then placed in the hands of the bishop of the diocese, and the authority of the audiencia was suspended. Following Haya we find that Doctor Fray José de Llamas y Rivas, bishop of Panamá, administered the government from the deposition of Villa Rocha to January 1719. Authorities differ as to the order of succession of the different governors. I have selected Haya as probably the most accurate. This writer informs us that Governor Alderete began his administration of Panamá on the 25th of April 1725, and that he was deposed and sent to Spain in 1730.
The successor of Alderete was Juan José de Andia, marqués de Villa Hermosa, who was promoted from the governorship of Cartagena to the presidency of Panamá. In 1735, after five years' service, he was given a generalship in the royal army of Spain, and returned there with honors.
Dionisio de Alcedo y Herrera was appointed a few years later with authority over all the fortified cities which had been the objective point of the English in the war which they had declared in 1739.
On the day before Christmas 1749 the governorship of Panamá was conferred on Jaime Muñoz de Guzman; but on the same day one appointed by the crown arrived in the person of Manuel de Montiano, who held the office until the 11th of November 1755. Montiano was promoted to this position from the governorship of Florida, and was a mariscal de campo.
While engaged in geodetic surveys at the Isthmus about this time, Ulloa had an opportunity of witnessing the manner in which justice was bought and sold. Matters had come to such a pass that the members of the audiencia chose the most dexterous of their number and empowered him to negotiate with rival parties as to what amount of bonus they were respectively disposed to pay in consideration of a favorable verdict.
Panamá, in 1758 had for its governor Antonio Guill, an officer of unusual merit, and one whose executive ability was highly prized by the crown. He was promoted to the captain-generalship of Chile in 1761. In the following year José Raon succeeded, and was promoted to the presidency of Manila two years later. In 1764 José Vasco y Orosco became governor. He died in 1767, and was succeeded in January 1769 by Vicente Olaziregui, others acting provisionally during the interval. Temporary appointments were made till 1779, when Ramon de Carbajal took charge, returning to Spain in 1786.