The Mindanao People are much troubled with a sort of Leprosie, the same as we observed at Guam. This Distemper runs with a dry Scurf all over their Bodies, and causeth great itching in those that have it, making them frequently scratch and scrub themselves, which raiseth the outer skin in small whitish flakes, like the scales of little Fish, when they are raised on end with a knife. This makes their skin extraordinary rough, and in some you shall see broad white spots in several parts of their Body. I judge such have had it, but are cured; for their skins were smooth, and I did not perceive them to scrub themselves: yet I have learnt from their own mouths that these spots were from this Distemper. Whether they use any means to cure themselves, or whether it goes away of it self, I know not: but I did not perceive that they made any great matter of it, for they did never refrain any Company for it; none of our People caught it of them, for we were afraid of it, and kept off. They are sometimes troubled with the Small Pox, but their ordinary Distempers are Fevers, Agues, Fluxes, with great pains, and gripings in their Guts. The Country affords a great many Drugs and Medicinal Herbs, whose Virtues are not unknown to some of them that pretend to cure the Sick.
The Mindanao Men have many Wives: but what Ceremonies are used when they Marry I know not. There is commonly a great Feast made by the Bridegroom to entertain his Friends, and the most part of the Night is spent in Mirth.
The Sultan is absolute in his Power over all his Subjects. He is but a poor Prince; for as I mentioned before, they have but little Trade, and therefore cannot be rich. If the Sultan understands that any Man has Money, if it be but 20 Dollars, which is a great matter among them, he will send to borrow so much Money, pretending urgent occasions for it; and they dare not deny him. Sometimes he will send to sell one thing or another that he hath to dispose of, to such whom he knows to have Money, and they must buy it, and give him his price; and if afterwards he hath occasion for the same thing, he must have it if he sends for it. He is but a little Man, between 50 or 60 Years old, and by relation very good natured, but over-ruled by those about him.[5] He has a Queen, and keeps about 29 Women, or Wives more, in whose company he spends most of his time. He has one Daughter by his Sultaness or Queen, and a great many Sons and Daughters by the rest. These walk about the Streets, and would be always begging things of us; but it is reported that the young Princess is kept in a Room, and never stirs out, and that she did never see any Man but her Father and Raja Laut her Uncle, being then about Fourteen Years Old.
When the Sultan visits his Friends, he is carried in a small Couch on four Mens shoulders, with eight or ten armed Men to guard him; but he never goes far this way; for the Country is very Woody, and they have but little Paths, which render it the less commodious. When he takes his pleasure by Water, he carries some of his Wives along with him. The Proes that are built for this purpose, are large enough to entertain 50 or 60 Persons or more. The Hull is neatly built, with a round Head and Stern, and over the Hull there is a small slight House built with Bamboes; the sides are made up with split Bamboes, about four Foot high, with little Windows in them of the same, to open and shut at their pleasure. The roof is almost flat, neatly thatched with Palmeto Leaves. This House is divided into two or three small Partitions or Chambers, one particularly for himself. This is neatly Matted underneath, and round the sides; and there is a Carpet and Pillows for him to sleep on. The second Room is for his Women, much like the former. The third is for the Servants, who tend them with Tobacco and Betel-Nut; for they are always chewing or smoking. The fore and after-parts of the Vessel are for the Marriners to sit and Row. Besides this, they have Outlayers, such as those I described at Guam; only the Boats and Outlayers here are larger. These Boats are more round, like the Half-Moon almost; and the Bamboes or Outlayers that reach from the Boat are also crooked. Besides, the Boat is not flat on one side here, as at Guam; but hath a Belly and Outlayers on each side: and whereas at Guam there is a little Boat fasten’d to the Outlayers, that lies in the Water; the Beams or Bamboes here are fasten’d traverse-wise to the Outlayers on each side, and touch not the Water like Boats, but 1, 3 or 4 Foot above the Water, and serve for the Barge Men to sit and Row and paddle on; the inside of the Vessel, except only just afore and abaft, being taken up with the apartments for the Passengers. There run a-cross the Outlayers two tire of Beams for the Padlers to sit on, on each side the Vessel. The lower tire of these Beams is not above a Foot from the Water: so that upon any the least reeling of the Vessel, the Beams are dipt in the Water, and the Men that sit are wet up to their Waste: their Feet seldom escaping the Water. And thus as all our Vessels are Rowed from within, these are Paddled from without.
The Sultan hath a Brother called Raja Laut, a brave Man. He is the second Man in the Kingdom. All Strangers that come hither to Trade must make their Address to him, for all Sea Affairs belong to him. He Licenceth Strangers to Import or Export any Commodity, and ’tis by his Permission that the Natives themselves are suffered to Trade: Nay the very Fishermen must [t]ake a Permit from him: So that there is no Man can come into the River or go out but by his leave. He is two or three Years younger than the Sultan, and a little Man like him. He has eight Women, by some of whom he hath Issue. He hath only one Son, about twelve or fourteen Years old, who was Circumcised while we were there. His Eldest Son died a little before we came hither, for whom he was still in great heaviness. If he had lived a little longer he should have Married the young Princess, but whether this second Son must have her I know not, for I did never hear any Discourse about it. Raja Laut is a very sharp Man; he speaks and writes Spanish, which he learned in his Youth. He has by often conversing with Strangers, got a great sight into the Customs of other Nations, and by Spanish Books has some knowledge of Europe. He is General of the Mindanayans, and is accounted an expert Soldier and a very stout Man; and the Women in their Dances, Sing many Songs in his praise.
The Sultan of Mindanao sometimes makes War with his Neighbors the Mountaneers or Alfoores. Their Weapons are Swords, Lances and some Hand-Cressets. The Cresset[6] is a small thing like a Baggonet, which they always wear in War or Peace, at Work or Play, from the greatest of them to the poorest, or the meanest Persons. They do never meet each other so as to have a pitcht Battle, but they build small Works or Forts of Timber, wherein they plant little Guns, and lie in sight of each other 2 or 3 Months, skirmishing every Day in small Parties, and sometimes surprizing a Brestwork; and whatever side is like to be worsted, if they have no probability to escape by flight, they sell their lives as dear as they can; for there is seldom any quarter given, but the Conqueror cuts and hacks his Enemies to pieces.
The Religion of these People is Mahometanism, Friday is their Sabbath; but I did never see any difference that they make between this Day and any other Day, only the Sultan himself goes then to the Mosque twice. Raja Laut never goes to the Mosque, but Prays at certain Hours, Eight or Ten times in a Day; where-ever he is, he is very punctual to his Canonical Hours, and if he be aboard will go ashore, on purpose to Pray. For no Business nor Company hinders him from this Duty. Whether he is at home or abroad, in a House or in the Field, he leaves all his Company, and goes about 100 Yards off, and there kneels down to his Devotion. He first kisses the Ground, then prays aloud, and divers times in his Prayers he kisses the Ground, and does the same when he leaves off. His Servants, and his Wives and Children talk and sing, or play how they please all the time, but himself is very serious. The meaner sort of People have little Devotion: I did never see any of them at their Prayers, or go into a Mosque.
In the Sultan’s Mosque there is a great Drum with but one Head called a Gong; which is instead of a Clock. This Gong is beaten at 12 a Clock, at 3, 6, and 9; a Man being appointed for that Service. He has a Stick as big as a Man’s Arm, with a great knob at the end, bigger than a Man’s Fist, made with Cotton, bound fast with small Cords: with this he strikes the Gong as hard as he can, about 20 strokes; beginning to strike leisurely the first 5 or 6 strokes; then he strikes faster, and at last strikes as fast as he can; and then he strikes again slower and slower so many strokes: thus he rises and falls three times, and then leaves off till three Hours after. This is done Night and Day.
They circumcise the Males at 11 or 12 Years of Age, or older; and many are circumcised at once. This Ceremony is performed with a great deal of Solemnity. There had been no Circumcision for some Years before our being here; and then there was one for Raja Laut’s Son. They chuse to have a general Circumcision when the Sultan, or General, or some other great Person hath a Son fit to be Circumcised; for with him a great many more are Circumcised. There is notice given about 8 or 10 Days before for all Men to appear in Arms, and great preparation is made against the solemn Day. In the Morning before the Boys are Circumcised, Presents are sent to the Father of the Child, that keeps the Feast; which, as I said before, is either the Sultan, or some great Person: and about 10 or 11 a Clock the Mahometan Priest does his Office. He takes hold of the fore-skin with two Sticks, and with a pair of Scissors snips it off. After this most of the Men, both in City and Country being in Arms before the House, begin to act as if they were ingaged with an Enemy, having such Arms as I described. Only one acts at a time, the rest make a great Ring of 2 or 300 Yards round about him. He that is to exercise comes into the Ring with a great shriek or two, and a horrid look; then he fetches two or three large stately strides, and falls to work. He holds his broad Sword in one Hand, and his Lance in the other, and traverses his Ground, leaping from one side of the Ring to the other; and in a menacing posture and look, bids defiance to the Enemy, whom his Fancy frames to him; for there is nothing but Air to oppose him. Then he stamps and shakes his Head, and grinning with his Teeth, makes many ruful Faces. Then he throws his Lance, and nimbly snatches out his Cresset, with which he hacks and hews the Air like a Mad-man, often shrieking. At last, being almost tired with motion, he flies to the middle of the Ring, where he seems to have his Enemy at his Mercy, and with two or three blows cuts on the Ground as if he was cutting off his Enemy’s Head. By this time he is all of a Sweat, and withdraws triumphantly out of the Ring, and presently another enters with the like shrieks and gesture. Thus they continue combating their imaginary Enemy all the rest of the Day: towards the conclusion of which the richest Men act, and at last the General, and then the Sultan concludes this Ceremony: He and the General with some other great Men, are in Armor, but the rest have none. After this the Sultan returns home, accompanied with abundance of People who wait on him there till they are dismist. But at the time when we were there, there was an after-game to be played; for the General’s Son being then Circumcised, the Sultan intended to give him a second visit in the Night, so they all waited to attend him thither. The General also provided to meet him in the best manner, and therefore desired Captain Swan with his Men to attend him. Accordingly Captain Swan ordered us to get our Guns, and wait at the General’s House till further Orders. So about 40 of us waited till Eight a Clock in the Evening. When the General with Captain Swan, and about 1000 Men, went to meet the Sultan, with abundance of Torches that made it as light as Day. The manner of the march was thus: First of all there was a Pageant, and upon it two dancing Women gorgeously apparelled, with Coronets on their Heads, full of glittering Spangles, and Pendants of the same, hanging down over their Breast and Shoulders. These are Women bred up purposely for dancing: Their Feet and Legs are but little imployed, except sometimes to turn round very gently; but their Hands, Arms, Head and Body are in continual motion, especially their Arms, which they turn and twist so strangely, that you would think them to be made without Bones. Besides the two dancing Women, there were two old Women in the Pageant, holding each a lighted Torch in their Hands, close by the two dancing Women, by which light the glittering Spangles appeared very gloriously. This Pageant was carried by six lusty Men: Then came six or seven Torches, lighting the General and Captain Swan, who marched side by side next, and we that attended Captain Swan followed close after, marching in order six and six abreast, with each Man his Gun on his Shoulder, and Torches on each side. After us came twelve of the General’s Men with old Spanish Match-locks, marching four in a row. After them about forty Lances, and behind them as many with great Swords, marching all in order. After them came abundance only with Cressets by their sides, who marched up close without any order. When we came near the Sultan’s House, the Sultan and his Men met us, and we wheel’d off to let them pass. The Sultan had three Pageants [that] went before him: In the first Pageant were four of his Sons, who were about 10 or 11 Years old. They had gotten abundance of small Stones, which they roguishly threw about on the People’s Heads. In the next were four young Maidens, nieces to the Sultan, being his Sisters Daughters; and in the 3d, there were three of the Sultan’s Children, not above six Years old. The Sultan himself followed next, being carried in his Couch, which was not like your Indian Palankins, but open, and very little and ordinary. A multitude of People came after, without any order: but as soon as he was past by, the General, and Captain Swan, and all our Men, closed in just behind the Sultan, and so all marched together to the General’s House. We came thither between 10 and 11 a Clock, where the biggest part of the Company were immediately dismist; but the Sultan and his Children, and his Nieces, and some other Persons of Quality, entred the General’s House. They were met at the Head of the Stairs by the General’s Women, who with a great deal of Respect conducted them into the House. Captain Swan, and we that were with him followed after. It was not long before the General caused his dancing Women to enter the Room, and divert the Company with that pastime. I had forgot to tell you that they have none but vocal Musick here, by what I could learn, except only a row of a kind of Bells without Clappers, 16 in number, and their weight increasing gradually from about three to ten pound weight. These were set in a row on a Table in the General’s House, where for seven or eight Days together before the Circumcision day, they were struck each with a little Stick, for the biggest part of the Day making a great noise, and they ceased that Morning. So these dancing Women sung themselves, and danced to their own Musick. After this the General’s Women, and the Sultan’s Sons, and his Nieces danced. Two of the Sultan’s Nieces were about 18 or 19 Years Old, the other two were three or four Years Younger. These Young Ladies were very richly drest, with loose garments of Silk, and small Coronets on their Heads. They were much fairer than any Women that I did ever see there, and very well featured; and their Noses, tho’ but small, yet higher than the other Womens, and very well proportioned. When the Ladies had very well diverted themselves and the Company with dancing, the General caused us to fire some Sky-rockets, that were made by his and Captain Swan’s Order, purposely for this Nights Solemnity; and after that the Sultan and his retinue went away with a few Attendants, and we all broke up, and thus ended this Days Solemnity: but the Boys being sore with their Amputation, went straddling for a fortnight after.
They are not, as I said before, very curious or strict in observing any Days, or Times of particular Devotions, except it be Ramdam [i.e., Ramadan] time, as we call it. The Ramdam time was then in August, as I take it, for it was shortly after our arrival here. In this time they Fast all Day and about seven a Clock in the Evening, they spend near an Hour in Prayer. Towards the latter end of their Prayer, they loudly invoke their Prophet, for about a quarter of an Hour, both old and young bawling out very strangely, as if they intended to fright him out of his sleepiness or neglect of them. After their Prayer is ended, they spend some time in Feasting before they take their repose. Thus they do every Day for a whole Month at least; for sometimes ’tis two or three Days longer before the Ramdam ends: For it begins at the New Moon, and lasts till they see the next New Moon, which sometimes in thick hazy Weather is not till three or four Days after the Change, as it happen’d while I was at Achin, where they continued the Ramdam till the New Moon’s appearance. The next Day after they have seen the New Moon, the Guns are all discharged about Noon, and then the time ends.