Philippine progress prior to 1898 : $b a source book of Philippine history to supply a fairer view of Filipino participation and supplement the defective Spanish accountsCraig, Austin
History
Philippine progress prior to 1898 : $b a source book of Philippine history to supply a fairer view of Filipino participation and supplement the defective Spanish accounts
Craig, Austin
Philippines
The Spaniards who lived to return home again, gave a very extravagant
account of the inhabitants which has since appeared to have little
truth in it. They afterwards sailed into the 50th degree of South
latitude, where they pretended to meet with a monstrous race of
giants, which have never been heard of since; and, among other
improbable stories, tell us that their way of letting blood there
was by chopping a great gash in their arms and legs with a hatchet,
instead of using a lancet; and the way of vomiting their patients
was by thrusting an arrow a foot and a half long down their throats.
So little credit is to be given to some discoverers, especially where
they happen to be people of no judgment, and who have little regard
for truth, as it happened in this case where the commander, Magellan,
and most of the officers died in the voyage, and very few besides
the common sailors returned to give an account of the expedition.
Magellan was killed in a skirmish with the natives; having a little
before his death received intelligence that the Molucca islands,
which he came out in search of, were not far distant; and his ships,
afterwards pursuing the voyage, arrived at Tidore, one of the Moluccas,
on the 8th day of November, 1521. In these islands they were kindly
received by the respective Princes and suffered to build a fort and
erect a factory at Tidore; they also left one of their ships which
was leaky there to be refitted, which the Portuguese afterwards took
as a prize and ruined their factory.
These islands were probably first peopled from the continent of China,
being formerly under the Emperor of China's government; who deserted
them, it seems, on account of their being too remote from the rest of
his dominion; but their religious rights, as well as several other
customs they retained when the Spanish came thither, show that the
people were of Chinese extraction.
The Mindanayans are said to be an ingenious, witty people and active
enough when they have a mind to it; but for the most part very lazy
and thievish, and will not work unless compelled to it by hunger; but
our author attributes their want of industry chiefly to the tyranny
of the government, which will not suffer them to enjoy the wealth
they acquire, and therefore they never endeavor to lay up anything.
BISAYANS IN FORMOSA
(Dr. Terrien de Lacouperie, Formosa Notes; Hertford, 1887, p. 39.)
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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