[8] Felix Renouard de St. Croix (cited by Jagor) says, in his Voyage commercial et politique mix Indes orientales, aux Iles Philippines, à la Chine (Paris, 1810; ii, p. 157), that the curas in his day were served by young girls. A Franciscan of the lake of Bay had twenty of them at his disposal, two of whom were always at his side.
[9] Jagor cites, in a footnote at this point, a portion of Le Gentil’s description of the power of the friars in the Philippines, which is to be found in vol. ii, p. 183, of that author; and ante, in our extract from Le Gentil, pp. 210–219.
[10] Leg. ult., ¡, 266, §§ 87, 89.
[11] Probably Memorias históricas y estadísticas de Filipinas y particularmente de la grande isla de Luzón (imprint from Diario de Manila, 1850), by Rafael Diaz Arenas.
[12] See Recopilación de leyes de Indias, lib. ii, tit. xvi, ley liv (dated: Valladolid, April 29, 1549, Cárlos I and the queen of Bohemia; Valladolid, April 16 and May 2, 1550, Maximiliano and the queen; Valladolid, May 9, 1569, Felipe II), and tit. vi, ley xxvi (dated: Madrid, July 20, 1618, Felipe III; ordinance 139 of 1636, Felipe IV), which forbid alcaldes and other officials to trade, to use the money of the communal funds of the natives, or to compel the latter to serve them. Lib. v, tit. ii, treats in great part of the office of the alcalde, and ley xlvii (dated: Madrid, July 10, 1530, Cárlos I; Valladolid, September 4, 1551, Carlos I and the queen of Bohemia; Pinto, April 4, 1563, Felipe II; Lisboa, August 31, 1619, Felipe III), declares that the alcaldes and others are included in the prohibition to trade. (Cited by Jagor.)
[13] By royal decree of July 17, 1754. (Cited by Jagor.)
[14] Renouard de St. Croix, ii, p. 124. (Cited by Jagor.)
[15] This note is as follows: “The obras pias are pious legacies, in which it was generally determined that two-thirds were to be loaned at interest for maritime commercial enterprises, until the premiums—which for the risk to Acapulco reached 50 per cent, to China, 25 per cent, and to the Indias, 35 per cent—had increased the original capital to a certain amount. Then the interest of that amount was to be applied to the good of the soul of the founder, or to pious or charitable ends (Arenas, Historia, p. 397). One-third was usually retained as a reserve, to cover chance losses. These reserve funds were long ago claimed by the government as compulsory loans, ‘but they are still regarded as existing.’
“When the trade with Acapulco came to an end, the capitals could no longer be employed in accordance with the request of the founder, and they were loaned at interest in other ways. By a royal decree, dated November 3, 1854 (Leg. ult. ii, p. 205), an administrative council is appointed to take charge of the money of the obras pias. The total capital of five foundations (or rather only four, since one of them no longer has any capital) amounts to a trifle less than one million dollars [i.e., pesos]. From that amount the profit obtained from the loans is distributed according to the amount of the original capital—which is, however, no longer in existence in cash, because the government has disposed of it.”
[16] Ut supra, ii, p. 336. (Cited by Jagor.)