The king of Joló, on the contrary, had for many years maintained peace and friendly relations with the Spaniards, much to the resentment of his chiefs and captains, who derived much more profit from hostile raids than from trade and peace; therefore by means of their confidential agents they spread the report that the king of Joló was talking of sending an armed fleet of twenty joangas to plunder these islands. The principal author of this was a Joloan named Linao, who was on intimate terms with the Spaniards, and a Guimbano named Palía. But the king of Joló was very far from thinking of such changes, and it would have been better for us if we had not so readily believed it. At this information Don Fernando de Bobadilla despatched his armada against Joló, under General Don Pedro de Viruega; but when he reached that island he found that the story that they had spread abroad against the king was false, and Don Pedro, having talked with him, went back to Zamboanga well satisfied of his peaceable attitude. But it was not long before the former rumors against the king of Joló were again current; the author of them was Linao, who desired a rupture [with the Spaniards], so that he with other pirates might go out on raids against these islands—in which enterprise he was more interested than in the peace of his king. This plan he carried out in company with two others, Libot and Sacahati, who went cruising with several vessels and did much damage in the islands of Pintados and Masbate, until they reached the Limbones;[13] from that place they chased the corregidor of Mariveles, and captured the provincial of our discalced Augustinian religious and those who were accompanying him, on his return from visiting the Christian villages of Bolinao—although these persons escaped by jumping ashore. But there was one who could not do this, father Fray Antonio de las Misas (also a discalced Augustinian), who was coming from Cuyo and Calamianes to visit those convents. This religious might with good reason be regarded as a martyr; for with his blood only were the hands of the renegade Linao stained, as he spared the lives of all the rest in his greed for ransom. Although the pirates knew that the ransom of this religious promised them more profit [than that of an ordinary captive], their hatred to the faith prevailed over their greed, which in these barbarians is great. This opinion is confirmed by the cruelty with which they treated an image of Our Lady of the People, which this religious was wearing, on which they used their crises with furious rage. This religious was an old man, and greatly esteemed for his virtue; and in the order he had held positions of honor—prior of the convent at Manila, vicar-provincial of Cebú, and other posts in Caraga. He had a brother, a lay member of the Society of Jesus in these islands, who also suffered the same kind of death at the hands of the barbarous pirates called Camucones—a nation as cruel as cowardly, two qualities which always go together.
Great was the injury which these pirates inflicted on the islands, and although the alcalde-mayor of Balayan went out against them with some armed vessels they could not be found, either by him or by some other vessels which went from Manila for this purpose with a considerable force of men, on account of the adroitness with which the Moros concealed themselves, avoiding an encounter—to such an extent that the belief was current in Manila that these were not outside enemies, but insurgent Indians of the country, until a Spaniard who had been seized by the enemy at the shoals of Mindoro made his escape from them, and his account undeceived the people of Manila. The governor despatched an armed fleet in command of Admiral Pedro Durán de Monforte, a soldier of long experience, but this remedy came too late; for the pirates, satiated with burning villages, plundering, and taking captives, had returned to their own country. Accordingly the armada, having vainly scouted along Lubán, Mindoro, and Panay, returned to Manila, having accomplished nothing save the expenses which were caused for the royal exchequer, which is the paymaster for these and other cases of negligence.
The distrust which was felt regarding the maintenance of the peace by the king of Joló perhaps occasioned anger that he had not prevented these injuries; but he, knowing that if he did not make amends it would be a cause for justifiable hostilities, sent an embassy to the governor (who was Don Diego Sarria Lazcano), exonerating himself and promising to chastise Linao, Libot, and Sacahati; this he did, and many captives were restored, which was no slight [amends]. King Corralat raised his false alarms, as he was wont to do when that suited him, and also made some trifling raids through the agency of the people of Sibuguey, and threatened the Zebuans at Dapitán. But all became quiet when the office of governor of those coasts was assumed (June 16, 1659) by Don Agustín de Cepeda, a great soldier—who died in decrepit old age as master-of-camp of these Filipinas. Corralat knew, much to his sorrow, the valor of this able officer, and therefore did not dare to anger him, content that the Spaniards should leave him in peace. Don Agustín, as a prudent man, determined to try measures to secure peace; and, conferences having been held, those measures were carried out, with very advantageous arrangements for our forces.
The frequent raids of these Moro pirates, both Mindanaos and Joloans, were one of the greatest hardships which these Filipinas Islands suffered through many continuous years; they were the scourge of the natives of the islands of Pintados and Camarines, Tayabas, and Mindoro, as being nearest to the danger and most weak for defense. These people paid with their beloved liberty for our neglect to defend them—not always deserving of blame, on account of the mutations of the times. Few Spaniards have been the prey of these vile thieves, except some who were very incautious; but amends have been made for these by many religious and some secular priests, ministers in the Indian villages, who have suffered rigorous captivities and cruel deaths. No small amount of expenditure has fallen on the royal exchequer; for those pirates have caused innumerable expenses in armed fleets, most of them useless because the news of the loss did not reach us until the pirates were returning unhurt to their own lands. At times it has given even the governors and captains-general of these islands plenty to do in defending them from these pilfering thieves, as we saw in the first part of this history, in the case of Don Sebastián Hurtado de Corcuera and others. All the life of Cachil Corralat—which was a very long one, for it exceeded ninety years—and that of his father Bahisan kept our vigilance continually on the alert, and caused us to found and maintain the fortified posts of Zamboanga, Sabanilla, Malanao, and others—which caused so much expense and no profits; for the forts defend only a small space, and the sea has many roads, and thus they did not hinder the Moro fleets from sallying forth whenever they chose. Moreover, Corralat had all the Lutaos for spies, on account of their great reverence for him, and because they were in secret as much Mahometans as himself; for never is a Lutao found who has not been circumcised, or one who eats pork—and it is this which constitutes their Mahometanism, as also having many wives and being enemies of Christians; for in other respects they are atheists, and do not know what the Koran is or what it contains. And, as I have heard from military men who have experience in these wars, the only restraint upon these Joloan and Mindanao enemies is in armed fleets, which go to search for them in their homes and inflict on them all the damage they can, without going inland; for the Spaniards will not find any one there on whom to avenge themselves, since the inhabitants are safe in their thick forests and on impregnable heights.
After so many years of misfortunes the divine mercy took pity on these poor natives, on whom the cruelty and greed of the Moros had so long fattened, selecting as an agent the very Corralat who had been the cause of the past havoc. With old age and experience he came to see the injury which was resulting to his people (and most of all to the kings of Mindanao) from having enemies so valiant as the Spaniards had proved to be; and therefore while he lived he maintained peace with Manila, with friendly relations and the benefit of commerce on both sides. And when his death arrived, which was at the end of the year 1671, he left his nephew and heir, Balatamay, strictly charged to keep the peace, with heavy curses and imprecations, according to their custom; and his people obeyed him so well that for a long time no raid was heard of; nor was there any by the Camucones, who are subject to Borney. The king of Joló, Paguián, has preserved the same peace and friendship; for all the Moro tribes of these regions reverenced Corralat as if he were Mahoma himself. For he was a Moro of great courage, intelligence, and sagacity, besides being exceedingly zealous for his accursed sect, and a great sorcerer—for all of which he probably has met condign punishment. (Diaz, Conquistas, pp. 564–567.)
The governor [i.e., Manuel de León, in 1674] commanded Juan Canosa Raguses, a skilful builder of lateen-rigged vessels, to construct two galleys; these sailed very straight and light, and did good service in frightening away the Camucones, pilfering and troublesome pirates, who in most years infested the Pintados Islands with pillaging and seizure of captives. These are a barbarous, cruel, and cowardly people, and they cannot have one of these traits without the others. They inhabit a chain of small islands, which extend from Paragua to Borney; some of them are Mahometans and others heathens. They have done much harm to the islands of Bisayas, which they ravaged quite at their ease—so much so that in the year 1672 they carried away the alcalde-mayor, Don José de San Miguel, as we have mentioned elsewhere. They have a great advantage in the extreme swiftness of their vessels, which enables them to find their defense in flight. Their confidence and boldness went so far that they ventured to infest the coasts of Manila. The provincial, Fray José Duque, while going to visit the convents in the islands of Pintados, came very near being captured with his companion, Fray Alvaro de Benavente; for they were attacked by a squadron of these pirates near the island of Marinduque, where they would have been a prey to Moro cruelty, if they had not been favored by the divine kindness. [This acted] through the agency of Captain Francisco Ponce, a veteran soldier, who killed the captain and another of the pirates; and also of a sudden wind, which gave wings to the champan for placing itself in safety. With the building of these galleys the Camucones were inspired with such terror that for many years they did not venture to sally out for their usual raids, so much in safety as before. The first time, Sargento-mayor Pedro Lozano went out to scour the seas through which the Camucones might come to make their raids. In the following year, Captain Don José de Novoa went out—a brave Galician, the encomendero of Gapang—and as commander of the second galley Captain Simón de Torres, an able soldier from Maluco; and they scoured the coasts of Mindanao, committing some acts of hostility, their sole object therein being to cause more terror than harm. And thus it was, that with the fear which those piratical tribes had conceived of the galleys neither Joloans, Mindanaos, nor Camucones dared, so long as these lasted, to commit their former ravages. The same thing occurs whenever there are galleys, even though they do not go out to sea and are shut up in the port of Cavite. It is therefore very expedient to keep vessels of this sort, in order to be free from the invasions of those pirates. In view of this, Governor Don Domingo de Zabálburu built two other galleys, which was the cause of the Joloans, Mindanaos, and Camucones remaining, throughout his term of office, within their own boundaries, although they had been in previous years, as we have seen, a continual plague to these islands. (Diaz, Conquistas, p. 711.)[14]
[1] Spanish, romper el nombre; “to cease using the countersign of recognition, when daybreak comes, for which purpose the drums, cornets, trumpets, or other musical instruments give the signal with the call named diana” (Dominguez); cf. French reveille.
[2] In Sulu roadstead; anchorage is north of the town. In channel between Sulu roadstead and Marongas is a pearl-oyster bed, which employs many boats. This is an important industry, pearls and pearl-shells being the chief articles in the export trade of the island. (U. S. Philippine Gazetteer.)
[3] Colin (who was at that time in Joló) says of this (Labor evangélica, ed. 1663, p. 49): “There was found near the island of Joló a piece [of amber] which weighed more than eight arrobas, of the best kind that exists, which is the gray [el gris].” Retana and Pastells regard Combés’s ambar as meaning amber, the vegetable fossil; but it is possible that all these writers mean rather ambergris, which is supposed to be a morbid secretion of the sperm whale, and has been used as a perfume.