8. Even though the religious of his province had represented to those natives that they would return to their ancient administration, one could not argue from that that any injury to the propagation of the faith, or to the credit of so holy an order [i.e., the Dominican] would follow, as the memorial declared--in formal prejudice to his own order [i.e., the Recollect] (in regard to which that order was protesting, in order to demand whatever was proper for its side). The proposed hopes of the restoration, however, would hinder the flight of the natives, which, it was known, proceeded from other reasons, through a great part of the villages of Zambales having been depopulated. That they had been living in idolatry from their first conversion, besides being an implicatory proposition, did not appear from the sentence of a competent tribunal, nor was it credible of all. And it was no new thing, that after some years, a few superstitions should be discovered [among the Indians], as was usually the case, and happened at every step; for it was not an easy thing to reduce mountain infidels to a civilized life, in which task the ministers must acquire thorough knowledge of their customs. Consequently, it had been impossible to eradicate their barbarous ferocity in committing murders, as they had done to a religious of the Order of St. Dominic. And because his province had shirked no labor for the service of God and the king, in the welfare of souls, especially in the administration of the Zambals during the space of sixty years, it desired to reap the fruit [of the harvest] that had been commenced; wherefore in furtherance of its claim he prayed his Lordship to order and command that the pleadings which had been presented be referred to the royal Audiencia, to the end that whatever should be ruled therein be considered as law. The decree enacted (with the opinion of the assessor) was, that the cognizance of the entire matter be referred to the royal Audiencia, so that the parties to the suit might there plead their claims in equity, and in fulfilment of the decree of the supreme Council of the Indias. The Recollect procurator general having been notified, appeared before the royal Audiencia with his claim together with the rest of the papers annexed, which, having been presented, were considered as referred to that tribunal for official action therein. Notice of that decision having been given to father Fray Juan Peguero, he said that he heard it, and pleaded that the papers be given him for his reply as was done. But I shall not give his answer here, because of the irregularity of his pleadings, his rashness of speech, his boldness of opinion, and his disrespect for the royal power, since his Majesty does not allow causes to be conducted in rude fashion, especially when they do not bear on the case in point, while personal defects of ecclesiastics were not under consideration in the present case, nor in the cause which was being prosecuted,