This island has a circumference of about one hundred leguas, and is long and narrow. A large chain of mountains cuts it almost in the middle. That and the difference of the two general monsoons, the brisas and the vendavals, cause there an inequality and a wonderful variety of weather and climate, so that when it is winter in the north, it is summer in the south, and vice versa during the other half of the year. Consequently, when the sowing is being done in one half of the island, the harvest is being gathered in the other half. Hence they have two harvests per year, both of them plentiful; for ordinarily the seed yields a hundredfold. Leyte is surrounded by many other small islands, both inhabited and desert. The sea and the rivers (which abound, and are of considerable volume) are full of fish; while the land has cattle, tame and wild swine, and many deer and fowls, with fruits, vegetables, and roots of all kinds. The climate is more refreshing than that of Manila. The people are of a brownish color, and plain and simple, but of sufficient understanding. Their instruction and ministry is under charge of two residences or rectoral houses, namely, Carigara and Dagami. Residence of Carigara This residence has ten villages with their churches, and about two thousand tributarios. The names of the principal villages are Carigara, Leyte, Xaro, Alangalang, Ogmuc, Bayban, Cabalian, Sogor, Poro, and Panahon, which are adjacent islets. The products of the earth in which the natives pay their tribute are wax, rice, and textiles of abaca, which are here called medrinaques and pinayusas. Six religious are occupied in the instruction of those villages and districts, besides those who have charge of the instruction in the shipyards for the galleons--which are generally built in this island and district on his Majesty's account, and because of the great ease in procuring lumber there, and the convenient ports. Two priests died gloriously in this residence, one at the hands of Moro pirates, [34] and the other at the hands of the natives themselves in the district of Cabalian [35]--who, being the natives farthest from the chief village, are less obedient and pacified than the others. Residence of Dagami It has about two thousand tributarios divided among ten villages, each of which has its church. Those villages are Dagami, Malaguicay, Guiguan, Balanguiguan, Palo, Basey, Dulac, Tambuco, and Abuyo. Six religious are occupied in the instruction. They pay their tribute in the same things as those of Carigara, except the inhabitants of the village of Guiguan, whose products consist of palm-oil. Opposite the village of Leyte in this island is another small island called Panamao, which has no people, but wild boars and other kinds of game, besides excellent woods for shipbuilding. Some few years ago a mineral abounding in sulphur was discovered. [36] The island of Samar or Ibabao