I the King
By order of the king our sovereign: Don Gabriel de Ocaña y Alarcon”
This is the letter or decree written to the father provincial. In the one which follows, although it contains so many things worth considering, the clause rendering this province equal to the most observant one of the order is the most noteworthy; so that those who merit the possession of a mother who employs herself in the service of God, and who is so well accredited with her prince, may console themselves. In order that we may get through with this matter once for all (which is not very savory), we shall insert here the other decree of his Majesty written in regard to the same matter to the royal Audiencia of Manila. The king our sovereign well shows in it the care that we owe to him, for he expresses in that decree not only his royal providence, but the anger that such innovations caused him. It is as follows:
“The King. To the president and auditors of my royal Audiencia of Manila of the Filipinas Islands: In one section of a letter written to me by you on June 12, 1636, you say that father Fray Diego Collado of the Order of St. Dominic went to those islands in the former year of 35, bearing letters from his general allowing him to take over some of the houses owned by that order and found a new and distinct province, the sole business of which is to send ministers for the conversion of Japon. All of that carried with it great inconvenience, both because of the injury that that order would receive by a division of the province (which will bring about laxity in it, although that province has hitherto been one of those in which the rules of their order have been observed with the greatest strictness and punctuality), and in sending ministers to Japon the said order has displayed so much solicitude that rather has it been necessary to restrain it because of the umbrage received thereby by that kingdom. That annoyance has been the occasion for cutting off the trade with those islands; and it was in great danger of being shut to the Portuguese of Macan, whom the Japanese have threatened severely if it be found that religious have gone to that kingdom from those islands, or from any other part. Consequently, it was certain that father Fray Diego Collado gave an inaccurate report to his general, and it was not advisable to carry out the terms of his letters—of which you gave me an account, so that I might have the evil corrected. The matter having been examined in my royal Council of the Indias, by a letter of this date I have ordered and charged you, my president—inasmuch as you did wrong in giving aid to that father because the brief which he held had not been passed upon by the said my Council—to cause this and all briefs which he had, that had not been passed upon by the Council, to be suspended, and not to allow them to be carried into effect. In regard to the division of the provinces, they shall return to their former condition. In order that my commands may have the due effect, I order you and my Audiencia to assist in the fulfilment of the aforesaid decree, so that it may be executed without any omission. When that is done, you shall advise me of it at the first opportunity. Given in Madrid, February 21, 1638.
I the King
By order of the king our sovereign: Don Gabriel Ocaña y Alarcon”
One can see in this not only his Majesty’s favor toward us, directed to the ends of the providence of God (who holds the hearts of kings in His hands), but also the evil (which the Audiencia here regretted) of the separation which was made, and the official report which was made to the credit of this holy providence. And since at last they see us near at hand, and the good reputation that our Lord has given us here in His infinite goodness, those gentlemen are grieved at seeing us suffer—since at that time we were in so great danger of the destruction of this holy province; for giving it such a division amounted to the same thing. But God returned to His cause later; and as His divine mercies have been so abundantly revealed, greater troubles can well be reckoned as well past.
[The following six chapters are comprised mainly of accounts of the Chinese missions, and the lives of certain Dominicans.]
[1] The title-page of Baltasar de Santa Cruz’s history reads as follows: