The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898: Volume 48, 1751-1765: Explorations by early navigators, descriptions of the islands and their peoples, their history and records of the Catholic missions, as related in contemporaneous books and manuscripts, showing the political, economic, commercial and religious conditions of those islands from their earliest relations with European nations to the close of the nineteenth century
History
The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898: Volume 48, 1751-1765: Explorations by early navigators, descriptions of the islands and their peoples, their history and records of the Catholic missions, as related in contemporaneous books and manuscripts, showing the political, economic, commercial and religious conditions of those islands from their earliest relations with European nations to the close of the nineteenth century
Demarcation line of Alexander VI; Missions -- Philippines; Philippines -- Discovery and exploration; Philippines -- History -- Sources
It is a fact, however, that they do not use the said poisoned arrows
against any save animals, considering it an inexpiable crime to shoot
rational beings with them; but for hunting those animals--"the great
game," as they call them--they use these arrows continually, and
with them kill innumerable beasts. When one of these falls to the
ground, they immediately cut off its head; and, having thoroughly
washed the flesh, they eat it without any misgivings. I baptized
the man who chiefly made this poison, who was already past the age
of ninety years, who never was willing to leave me until he died;
and on various occasions he explained to me the method of making the
said poison, naming to me the separate ingredients, although I never
was acquainted with them. These same people have other plants, the
use of which I tried, in my religious instructions, to banish among
them--not only because some persons make use of them for evil purposes,
but also because they lead one to suspect some diabolical aid, for
those people accomplish with them things which are truly amazing. But
since information of this may be of great assistance in explaining some
things which, written by the ancients, give the moderns material for
many and various curious inquiries, I will briefly describe what those
barbarians are accustomed to do with the said plants. They use, then,
I was told, certain herbs that are amatory, or adapted for philters,
if thus they should be called (which I do not dispute), in order to
captivate the love of those whom they desire to win. For instance,
do they desire to marry some woman who does not love them? Then,
obtaining their herbs (which they know very well), they carry these
with them, endeavoring at the same time to carry them in the mouth
when they talk with the woman; and the attraction is usually such
that in a short time they succeed in gaining the affection of women
who before were very averse to loving them. They do the same when they
enter the presence of some person whom they have offended and whom they
fear. They take the said herbs in their mouths, and, armed with this
antidote, they are not afraid to be seen by him and to talk with him;
and such are the results that they experience that, even when that
person is greatly offended, he feels for that time so changed that,
far from showing his anger, he receives them with great kindness, and
with indications of special affection. They are also wont to use the
aforesaid herbs in order to succeed in committing their lewd acts with
women; and the women do the same in order to make themselves beloved
by the men, very often, but not always, succeeding in this. [Mozo
relates an instance of this: a convert of his own, a most virtuous,
modest, and exemplary widow, at first refused to marry another man, an
infidel; but with the odor of these plants he overcame her opposition
and carried her away with him. "Never since then have I been able to
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