The people in the villages where missions were established which had been taken from the province and given to the congregation, were particularly delighted, and held public festivals for many days, when, after having experienced the method in which the congregation carried on its work, they saw the convents and the ministries returned to the religious of the province--whose manner of conducting their affairs was so much better, that it had caused great grief to the Chinese and the Indians to be deprived of such teachers and ministers. Therefore, when the religious returned, those people displayed their delight by costly public rejoicings, carried on for many days. When the evil befell the province--which was on the fourth of May, the first Sunday in the month, and the day of our great saint Catharine of Siena in the year 1636--all the religious of the province went to beg the favor of their patroness, the Virgin of the Rosary; and in all the houses of the order her holy litany was recited every night, in unison, with this purpose. This means was so efficacious that, contrary to every human hope, matters were settled and arranged as if by the hands of this great lady; and without any effort on the part of the province so many things were cleared up, and put together in its favor that finally, by the aid of one who was not expected to give aid, the truth was victorious; and the houses returned to their ancient and legitimate possessors, and the province to its longed-for quiet, September 6, 1637, after having remained in the power of the congregation one year and four months. The religious being grateful for this restitution to the Virgin, from whose generous hands they had received so great a gift, rendered public thanks to her in all the convents. In the convent of Manila a feast of an octave was most solemnly celebrated, this lady being drawn in procession with great majesty, like a triumphant conqueror. As such she remained all those days in the midst of the main chapel, with the richest adornments and the finest of decoration. In this we were aided by those outside of the order to give to this lady our highest thanks, recognizing her supreme grace, which could have been granted by none but her powerful hand. The duty of writing with all care to the most reverend general was not neglected now, as it had not been neglected before; and a full account and report were sent to him showing how experience had manifested that the information in virtue of which the new congregation had been obtained was impossible. After the congregation had been placed in possession, and was under the obligation of going to the aid of Japon and China and other kingdoms, it did not do so; and there was no hope that it would do so, nor even that it would so much as have religious to maintain the houses which it had taken from the province. It was not to be expected that his Majesty would send them from España, and there was no other way or manner in which