During this period the islands were passing through very great dangers; for the Dutch from Maluco were vaunting themselves more than was proper, and every day brought news that the Mindanaos were assembling to destroy the islands--fears that made the people timorous and too anxious. Finally their fears came to a head with the arrival in great force of the Dutch off the coast of the town of Arevalo, whose purpose was to prevent the aid which was to be sent from that port to the forts of Ternate. The enemy had ten galleons, of varying capacity; and it was even told as truth that they were bringing lime and the other supplies for settling in Ilong-ilong. But later, when the matter was better considered, it must have been seen that their residence there would not be productive of any profit, but rather of a very great expense. Besides, it would be very difficult to send them aid; while our troops could easily oust them, as the island is ours. The commandant of the town of Arevalo, also its alcalde-mayor and overseer-general, without mincing words, was no more a man than is a hen. Even in bravery, a hen is more than he; since the hen, upon seeing the approach of the kite, is aroused, and becomes a lioness in order to guard her chicks. But this person, by name Antonio de Jarez de Montero, did no more than to run away, although he had troops to meet the enemy face to face. He had assembled more than two thousand Indians from those encomiendas; he had more than two hundred Spaniards. And so when the Indians saw, the night before, the signal which had been made from the island of Imalus, [32] they fled, and not one was to be seen next day; and all of the Spaniards who could, went also. In the morning, Monday, on such and such a day of October, the enemy appeared, and came straight to the port of Ilong-ilong, as if they had frequented it for many years. Thereupon, the alcalde-mayor fled inland, without taking thought for anything. Thus the field--where had four Spaniards remained, they would have performed great deeds--was left to the enemy. I was living at that time in Otong, where father Fray Juan de Lecea [33] was prior, a most exemplary religious. Father Fray Silvestre de Torres, [34] who had come from Japon, was likewise a conventual of that place. We did the same as the others. We stored aboard a caracoa the most valuable things of the convent, and buried the rest. We ordered the Indians to remain with the caracoa among those creeks, of which there are many. They did so, and hence all the things aboard the caracoa and those buried were found afterward. The enemy, not meeting any opposition, landed, came to the town of Arevalo, and set fire to it all. They burned our convent, which was quite fine and built of wood They burned that of Salog also, an excellent convent, which even yet has not been rebuilt. The enemy suffered greatly on the road, for that season in the islands is the rainy season. We went