The Royal Audience of Mexico had despatched the ship San Geronimo from Acapulco to relieve those at Zebu, and to advertise them of the arrival of the Capitana at that port. They sent as captain of the ship Pedro Sanchez Pericon; as second in command, Juan Ortez de Mosquera, and as pilot the mulatto Lope Martin, who was sent for the express purpose of being punished by Legaspi, for having separated, intentionally, from the squadron in the patache San Lucas. Pericon and Mosquera had been, before the commencement of the voyage, inimical to each other, and in its progress their mutual antipathy was augmented. The pilot, Martin, dreading the idea of being confronted with Legaspi, entered into a plot with Mosquera, and they gained over to their party most of the crew, among whom was Philip de Ocampo, a brave man, but of the worst character. Thinking their strength sufficient, they commenced their operations by being insolent to the commander, and one night they killed a horse which he had brought in the galleon. The friends of Pericon conjured him to be on his guard, as they concluded that those who had begun by killing the horse, would end in murdering him, if he was not sufficiently vigilant. But Pericon's confidence was too great, and he slighted the advice of his friends. The conspirators by this forbearance increasing every day in boldness, at last resolved to put in practice their diabolical design of murdering the commander, and getting possession of the vessel; accordingly one night, after having placed guards on those of the crew whom they could not confide in, Mosquera entered the captain's bedroom, accompanied by two seamen, one of the name of Bartolome de Lara, and the other Morales, and ordered them to stab Captain Pericon and his son, a young man about twenty-five years of age, who had a sub-command in the ship. They effected their purpose, and threw the bodies overboard; and placing some chests on the deck for the accommodation of the people, Mosquera thus harangued them: “Gentlemen, let us recommend to Heaven the souls of Captain Pericon and his son; they came by their death for reasons which, when we arrive at Zebu, shall be given to General Legaspi; every thing shall remain unaltered, and I, as a good subject of his Majesty, will conduct the ship to that island.”
Many days had not elapsed before Mosquera and the pilot quarrelled; it was a difficult task for the latter to reconcile himself to his situation, and put on the mask of friendship to the former. He whispered to Mosquera in confidence, that the people were much irritated at the murders which had been committed, and among other things, he proposed to tranquillize them, by putting in irons some person who had been concerned in the affair, and afterwards to discharge him, under the authority of a notarial process, drawn up for that purpose, declaring his innocence. This appearing a plausible measure enough, Mosquera, with this view, foolishly convened the ship's company, and the pilot seized upon him, and put him in confinement. The day following he ordered breakfast, of which Mosquera partook in his irons, and when finished, he requested the pilot would set him at liberty, as there had been time sufficient allowed for the ceremony. The views of the mulatto, however, were very different; he ordered him to be hung at the yard-arm, without giving him time to confess, observing, that Divine Providence had ordered he should die without partaking the sacrament, as had been the case with the two whom he had murdered. The mulatto now remaining captain of the ship, Philip de Ocampo, who was his favourite, made a speech to his companions, telling them, “That Captain Lope Martin did not intend going to Zebu; that those who were desirous of accompanying him, should go to a part of the world where all might acquire great riches, but that those who were of a different opinion, should be set on shore on an island in the immediate neighbourhood of Zebu, from whence they might easily reach Legaspi.” All were silent, and nothing was done till they arrived at the islands of Barbudos; when Lope Martin landing on one which was desolate, gave out that it was necessary to careen the ship there, but his real intention was to leave most of his companions on this island, exposed to famine.
He was not, however, able sufficiently to conceal his intentions. The Friar Capellan, a venerable priest, suspected him, and consulted with Juan de Vivero on some means of averting this blow. Rodrigo de Angle, the mate of the ship, a man of approved courage, determined to appeal to his Majesty, if it cost him his life, broke the matter to others, and eventually drew to his party Bartholome de Lara, by promising to make him captain of the ship, although he had no such intention. Rodrigo finding he had gained most of the crew on board to his side, weighed anchor, and hallooed to those on shore, that all the true and faithful vassals of his Majesty might embark immediately, and that the ship belonged to the King. By this means all were received on board but Lope Martin and Philip de Ocampo, and about twenty-five others, among whom were some loyalists, who were unable to reach the ship in time.
Bartholome de Lara, disappointed in his expectations of being made captain of the ship, began to form a party, and was joined more from necessity than otherwise by Hernando de Morales, his accomplice in the murder of Pericon and his son; but the new captain contrived means to try and hang them, after which the crew remained free from further molestation, and they arrived at Zebu. The General Legaspi, to deter others, hanged the notary Juan de Zaldivar, for being accessory to the aforesaid murder. He rewarded Rodrigo del Angle, Garnica, and Juan Enriquez, with all the loyalists, and granted a pardon, in the name of the King, to all those who had acted any subordinate part in this transaction.
The Colonel, at this time, had gone to ratify a treaty of peace with some of the towns, and falling in with a small Portuguese galleon of superior force, which bore down upon his patache, he was compelled to escape as well as he could. About the same time, two Portuguese vessels having appeared off Zebu, Legaspi ordered them to be acknowledged as friends, and invited into the harbour, but they excused themselves, and prosecuted their route. These proved afterwards to be ships belonging to the squadron of Pereyra, which was coming against the Spaniards, but being dispersed by storms, they could not pursue their first intentions. The General fortified his camp, and entertaining no fears of the Portuguese, he despatched Martin de Goite on an amicable treaty with some adjacent towns, and to receive the tribute of those who had already submitted. He likewise sent the Colonel to Mindanao, for the purchase of cinnamon, to be shipped to New Spain. This expedition was unfortunate in the death of this great man, who was a severe loss to the Spaniards. He caught a fever, and being in great danger, he told Morones, his second in command, and to whom he entrusted the ship before he died, that he suspected an intention of mutiny among the crew; the object of which was, to go off with the patache, because they had not been allowed to purchase cinnamon for themselves, and which being the only valuable object for which the voyage was undertaken, belonged to the King, as being the first purchase made of that article. Legaspi paid him the usual funeral honours in Zebu, and punished those who were found to be concerned in this mutiny. He likewise named as his successor Martin de Goite. The General sent Morones to Caraga, and Pedro de Herrera to Leyte, for tar, for careening the ships. The Indians of this island are excellent porters and labourers, and our soldiers had such confidence in them, that leaving their arms, and relying on their friendship, they received the tar in an unguarded manner. This, however, in the end, cost them dear, as on a sudden they found themselves surrounded in an ambuscade, by eight or ten Indians to one Spaniard; and Matheo Sanchez Gaditano not being able to extricate them, the Indians murdered all but one Spaniard, who escaped to relate the news of this tragedy. Whilst this was passing up the country, others came down to plunder the ship, who finding our people in unsuspecting security, possessed themselves of their arms, and destroyed every thing they could not take away.
On the 10th of June, 1567, there arrived at Zebu two Portuguese caracoas, with letters from Captain Pereyra to Miguel Lopez de Legaspi, in which he observed, that he supposed they were the Spaniards who had taken refuge in Zebu, in consequence of bad weather, and were unable to return to New Spain, as had happened to those of the other Spanish squadrons which had navigated those seas; and on this supposition he invited them to the Moluccas, where he promised to receive them with every degree of friendship, and furnish them with proper necessaries to prosecute their voyage.
Such were the contents of his letter on the occasion, but some invalid Spaniards who came with the messenger, affirmed that Pereyra had been despatched by the Viceroy of India to drive the Spaniards out of Zebu, and not being able last year to effect it, in consequence of the storms they had encountered, they had remained in Tidore with the intention of completing it this year. Our General, aware of the snare which Pereyra was laying for him, answered this specious letter with corresponding dissimulation, and that he had given notice to his court of the capture of these islands, and was in daily expectation of hearing from his sovereign. Surrounded by these interruptions and difficulties, the General sent to Acapulco the patache San Lucas, Captain Juan de la Isla, requesting such assistance as might prevent the threatened suspension of their intercourse with New Spain, and which appeared highly probable. The Augustine friars sent, on this occasion, Friar Pedro de Gamboa to solicit some additional aid for the conversion of these infidels, who had already begun to be baptized, and which, they urged, would securely establish the authority of the Spaniards in the Philippines, but the friar never arrived, having died on the voyage.
On the 20th of August, this year, Philip de Salcedo arrived with two ships, and accompanied by his brother Juan de Salcedo, who had been of great use in the first conquest of these islands. The General was rejoiced at the arrival of such considerable relief, at a period when he had reason to think Pereyra intended to attack Zebu. When Legaspi saw, however, that the Portuguese did not make their appearance as he expected, he despatched his grandson, Philip de Salcedo, to Acapulco, with directions to go by the route of the Ladrone Islands, where he was shipwrecked; but, all the people being saved, he built another vessel, and returned to Zebu in such happy time, that he made up for his disappointment, by the importance of his appearance, at the period of Pereyra's arrival, on the 30th of September 1568, with a squadron of three galleons, two galeots, three fustas, and twenty smaller vessels. Every thing, however, on this occasion, indicated perfect amity; the Generals visited reciprocally, and held meetings, to ascertain whether these islands were in the line of demarcation of Spain, or not, with the view of avoiding hostilities. Pereyra, by an artful line of conduct, protracted these discussions, in order to gain time, if possible, by stratagem, to get possession of the port and of our camp, as he found it could not be effected by force. Disappointed, however, in his views, he returned on Christmas-eve to the Moluccas, having been dismissed with great civility by Legaspi.