And because of my information that the chief who calls himself lord of Xolo is a Bornean, and owns houses in this city of Borney; that he fought against us in the naval battle, and that he fled to Xolo, where he is now; and since I am told that he took two galleys and three small vessels, artillery, and ammunition—you shall exercise the utmost despatch to obtain the said galleys, vessels, artillery, and ammunition. If he acquiesce, you shall give him a passport. You shall see whether he has any children; and, if so, you shall take one, and tell him that he must come to see me in Borney in February.
And, as I have said, this must be done if possible gently, in order that no people may be killed. You shall tell them that it will be to their advantage to be vassals of his Majesty, and our allies. If they do not act respectfully, and it shall be necessary to punish them in another manner, you shall do so. And inasmuch as the Joloans, as is well known, are open pirates, whose only ambition is to steal, and to assault men in order to sell them elsewhere—especially as they go annually for plunder among all the Pintados Islands, which are under his Majesty's dominion—you shall try to ascertain the Pintados slaves among them, in order to return such to their homes, especially those who are Christians. And, as I have said, you shall deprive them of such vessels as seem to be used for raids, leaving them their fishing-vessels, so that if the said lord of Jolo so desire, he can come to confer reasonably with me. Thus you shall ascertain who has vessels, and who can inflict injuries; and you shall command them expressly to settle down in their land, to cultivate, sow, and harvest, develop the pearl industry, and cease to be pirates. You shall order them to raise fowls and cattle. You shall try to ascertain their number, and bring it to me in writing, in order that I may see it, together with the distance from these islands to the Jolo Islands, information regarding the food, water, and healthfulness of that land, and other things that may occur to you. And you shall tell the people, in my name, that they shall tame for me a couple of elephants; and that I shall send for those animals and pay for them.
After having finished affairs in Xolo, if time permits you shall, God willing, go to the island of Mindanao. There you shall try, by the most convenient methods and with friendliness, to reduce the chief of the river of Bindinao, and the other chiefs of that island, and of those near by, to the obedience of his Majesty—giving him to understand what they will gain in becoming his Majesty's vassals and our allies, and in having trade with us.
And, in order that the tribute may not prevent them from making peace with us, you shall not ask them for any tribute; but you shall take what they give freely, and nothing more, and in such form as they are willing to give. Thus you shall suit their convenience in everything pertaining to them, and cause them to understand the great expenses of his Majesty in this land. You shall also tell them that the gain therefrom affects them chiefly, since we come to teach them our civilization, and most of all the service of God, our Lord, who created and redeemed them, and of whom they are ignorant; and how to live in accord with natural law, as is their obligation. For this purpose you shall tell them that you are going to their land for two principal reasons.
The first is that they should cease to be pirates, who rob and harry the weak, and enslave wherever and whomsoever they can—selling their captives outside of their own island, and separating them from their wives and children; and that they must cease to commit other like cruelties and thefts, and must become good and virtuous men, who shall grow to merit the second and principal reason for going to their lands. You shall give them to understand that they are ignorant of God, our Lord, who created and redeemed them, so that when they know him they may serve him and become good. It is quite evident that they will gain very much in these things, and therefore it is right that they aid us and give us something. This shall be at their own will, as above said.
Item: You shall order them not to admit any more preachers of the doctrine of Mahoma, since it is evil and false, and that of the Christians alone is good. And because we have been in these regions so short a time, the lord of Bindanao has been deceived by the preachers of Borney, and the people have become Moros. You shall tell him that our object is that he be converted to Christianity; and that he must allow us freely to preach the law of the Christians, and the natives must be allowed to go to hear the preaching and to be converted, without receiving any harm from the chiefs.
And you shall try to ascertain who are the preachers of the sect of Mahoma, and shall seize and bring them before me. And you shall burn or destroy the house where that accursed doctrine has been preached, and you shall order that it be not rebuilt.
Item: You shall order that the Indians shall not go outside of their island to trade; and you shall seize those vessels used for plundering excursions, leaving them those which, in your judgment, are used for trade and fishing. You shall take also what artillery and ammunition they have.
You shall ascertain the harvest, seasons, and products of the land; the gold mines, and the places where they wash gold; the number of inhabitants, and their settlements; and their customs. You must especially secure information regarding cinnamon, in order to ascertain if it is found along the river, or if one must go to Cabite for it, and why it is not as good as that which the Portuguese take to Castilla. You shall ascertain how they cut and strip it from the tree, and if it be of importance that it dry on the tree, or in what other manner it should be treated; for I have been told that that obtained from these districts in the past has not been good, and has not a good sale in España.
And, since it might happen that the people will not make peace, and may offer fight, and show disrespect, then you shall punish them as you deem best, taking special care not to trust them for it is evident that before all else they will, if possible, commit some treachery. You must not await such an occasion, for we know already their treachery against his Majesty's fleet commanded by Villalobos, certain of whose men they killed under assurances of safety; and they seized a boat. In that treachery all the inhabitants of the islands were participants; for four or five thousand of the said natives attacked one small boat, which contained four or five Spaniards. Likewise many people took part in the killing of the said Villalobos's master-of-camp, and other soldiers, in that same year. You shall remind them of these things, and warn them; for, from now on, we shall destroy them and their generation.