The city of Manila
32. This city was conquered and founded by its first governor on May 19, the day of St. Potenciana the virgin, in the year 1571. It was built on a site naturally strong on the shore of the sea, and at the mouth of a great river—which flows four leguas from the lake of Bay, and here loses itself [in the sea]—on a strip of land formed between the sea and the river. Thus half of the city, that on the north and west, is surrounded by water; and the other half, toward the east and south, by land and a ditch. It is entirely surrounded, almost in a circular form, by a rampart wall of stone; this is high and strong and so thick that in some parts it is more than three varas wide, and one can walk on top of it everywhere. It extends three-quarters of a legua, and is adorned and furnished with battlements and merlons in modern style; with towers, cavaliers, and Hankers at intervals; and with two castles and some bulwarks. It is furnished with excellent artillery, and a force of six hundred (sometimes more) Spanish soldiers—with their master-of-camp, sargento-mayor, captains, wardens, and other military officers. There are five gates and several posterns.
33. The streets of the city are beautifully laid out, and level, like those of Mexico and Puebla. The main plaza is large, rectangular, and well proportioned. Its eastern side is occupied by the cathedral; the southern, by the government building, which is a splendid palace—large, handsome, and very spacious; it was built by a merchant, the favorite[3] of a governor, for his own use. The northern side of the plaza (opposite the palace) contains the cabildo’s house, the jail, and other buildings that belong to private persons (which also occupy the western side).
34. The houses in the city, before the earthquakes of the years 45 and 58, numbered six hundred (many of which must be by this time rebuilt), most of them of hewn stone with handsome iron balconies and rows of windows, and built in costly style. In them resided various gentlemen and nobles, and two hundred citizens who were merchants (who themselves form a commonwealth); there were also soldiers, royal officials, prebends, and other citizens. Much of its material grandeur and beauty was destroyed by the earthquakes above mentioned, but it lost not the essential greatness which it has and always has had as a court and an illustrious commonwealth. In the villages of Bagunbaya and others of its suburbs there are probably six hundred houses more—not counting those of the Parian, which number many more than those of the city and suburbs together. Along the river are a great many country houses for recreation—some very costly, and all very convenient and pleasant, with gardens, orchards, and baths.
35. It is the capital of all these islands, with its governor, who is the captain-general, and president of the royal chancilleria, which is composed of four auditors and one fiscal who have cognizance of cases both civil and criminal; then there are the other employes of the royal Audiencia, and the royal officials with their tribunal. The jurisdiction [of this audiencia] is the most extensive in the Spanish monarchy; for it extends to all territories that are discovered and pacified in that great archipelago (the largest in the world)—extending more than four hundred leguas in a straight line, and more than a thousand in circumference—and to all yet to be discovered and pacified, an immense region. The city has twelve perpetual regidors, who on the first of January in every year elect two alcaldes-in-ordinary; these have jurisdiction throughout the district of the municipality, which has a radius of five leguas.
36. On the eastern side of the city, but outside of it and in front of its walls, at the distance of a musket-shot is a silk-market which they call Parian. Usually 15,000 Chinese live there; they are Sangleys, natives of Great China, and all merchants or artisans. They possess, allotted among themselves by streets and squares, shops containing all the kinds of merchandise and all the trades that are necessary in a community. The place is very orderly and well arranged, and a great convenience to the citizens. It is [an indication of] their greatness that although they are so few, they have so many workmen and servants assigned to their service. The Sangleys live in wooden houses; they have a governor of their own nation, and a Spanish alcalde-mayor and the other officers of justice, with a notary; also a jail. They have a parish church, where the sacraments, the divine word, and burial are administered to the 4,000 Christians among these Sangleys; the rest of them are heathen.
37. Accordingly the commerce of this city is extensive, rich, and unusually profitable; for it is carried on by all these Chinese and their ships, with those of all the islands above mentioned and of Tunquin, Cochinchina, Camboja, and Sian—four separate kingdoms, which lie opposite these islands on the continent of Great China—and of the gulfs and the numberless kingdoms of Eastern India, Persia, Bengala, and Ceilan, when there are no wars; and of the empire and kingdoms of Xapon. The diversity of the peoples, therefore, who are seen in Manila and its environs is the greatest in the world; for these include men from all kingdoms and nations—España, Francia, Ingalaterra, Italia, Flandes, Alemania, Dinamarca, Sueçia, Polonia, Moscobia; people from all the Indias, both eastern and western; and Turks, Greeks, Moros, Persians, Tartars, Chinese, Japanese, Africans, and Asiatics. And hardly is there in the four quarters of the world a kingdom, province, or nation which has not representatives here, on account of the voyages that are made hither from all directions—east, west, north, and south.
38–58. [These sections are devoted to brief biographical notices of the governors of the islands—information already presented in our VOL. XVII. Letona says (no. 58) of Diego Fajardo’s government:] In the year 51, the governor withdrew his favor from his petted favorite, whom, after confiscating his goods (which were many), he imprisoned in the castle of Santiago—in the same quarters where (at his own instance, as people say) the five years’ captivity of Governor Corcuera was accomplished. Then Faxardo opened his eyes, so that he could recognize the serious troubles which result from the favorite’s having great power in the government. “For,” Fajardo said, “he did not regard the vassals of the king with the affection that he ought; nor did he attend to their welfare, but to his own advantage and profit.” Imitating him, the subordinate officials, he said, “committed acts of violence in the provinces that they governed, harassing them with various oppressions, and failing to administer justice to the poor—levying on them repartimientos of many products that were not necessary, and at exorbitant prices; and, although the commodity might be had in another district for half the price, the natives must not buy it there, but only from the agent of the magistrate, who would not allow any one else to traffic or trade in all the province. From these practices,” said this gentleman, “arise irreparable injuries to the poor vassals, and to his Majesty’s alcabalas [i.e., excise taxes]. Nor have those vassals any redress, since the door is closed to them by the favor shown to the minion.” For this same reason, he gave no office of justice to a relative or servant of his own, judging that no aggrieved person would dare to utter a complaint on account of his fear lest the governor would take ill a suit against his relative or servant. These and other very just opinions were expressed by this governor during the last year of his rule.
59. [Of Manrique de Lara, Letona says:] “He governed for ten years, a longer term than that of any predecessor of his. Many of these he surpassed not only in the period of service, but in his care and efficiency—personally assisting in the despatch of the armed fleets (although this had to be done at a distance of twenty leguas from Manila), and attending to the shipbuilding and the timber-cutting; crossing seas, rivers, and mountains, and overcoming great dangers and hardships, in order to serve the commonwealth and his Majesty, and that the royal revenues might be spent with due faithfulness, and without oppressing his Majesty’s poor vassals. He opened up the commerce of the kingdoms of Tunquin and Cochinchina, and extended that of Great China; and he brought to terms the king of Tidore. He repressed the invasions of the Mindanaos, Xoloans, and Camucones through the instrumentality of Andres de Zuloeta, a valiant captain—who was sargento-mayor of Manila, admiral, and commander of the fleet that carries supplies to Ternate. In the year of 61 there were disturbances in Pampanga, the finest province in this government, and inhabited by a people who are valiant and very skilful in the use of arms. This governor with courage and tact went to Pampanga, and pacified the province without shedding blood, thus acquiring a great reputation. He subdued also the provinces of Pangasinan and Ilocos, which had rebelled, he punished some with death, and others with slavery, bestowing on the rest a general pardon. This campaign increased the reputation of the Catholic arms throughout that archipelago, a renown that is still maintained.”