Opening the text

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

The governor had very little confidence in the promises of the Moros
or in their treaties, because they had always broken them with the
same facility with which they had made them; and he prepared a strong
squadron [to go] against them, in order to compel them by force to
observe the treaties which he did not expect they would keep of
their own accord. Nor did his suspicions prove to be groundless,
for in that year (which was 1754) occurred the worst inroad which
those islanders had made into Philipinas. In all districts they made
raids with blood and fire, killing religious, Indians, and Spaniards,
burning and plundering villages; and taking captive thousands of
Christians, not only in the islands near Joló, but throughout our
territories, even in the provinces nearest to the capital Manila. [96]
The fleet which the governor had made ready went out against them,
but, before they could do anything, his successor came, at the end of
his four years' term of office; for this reason, he left the islands
in the most deplorable condition that had ever been known, the cause
of these evils being either his own misconduct or the unfitness of
those to whom he gave appointments, or perhaps his misfortune. What is
certain is, that he experienced a very grievous residencia, and many
charges against him resulted; and in the following year he embarked
in the galleon "Santisima Trinidad" for Acapulco, and died on the way,
without reaching España.





CHAPTER XXXII


Don Pedro Manuel de Arandia, [97] a native of Ceuta and of Vizcayan
ancestry, took possession of his government in July, 1754. As soon
as he arrived in Manila, he undertook to organize the troops, and to
place the military force on a regular footing and in conformity with
the ordinances which are observed in España. From the royal troops that
were in the islands he formed the "king's regiment" of two battalions;
he reorganized the body of artillerists, placing it in the condition
in which we now see it; and he assigned to both the soldiers and the
officers pay with which they could decently support themselves and meet
their obligations, without being harassed to seek in some other way
what was necessary for life. He was very diligent to put in order the
arsenal at Cavite, and whatever depended upon the royal officials--in
which he did not fail to suffer annoyances, and to incur the dislike of
many persons who did not enjoy so much reform and so great zeal. [98]
At the beginning of his government, in the month of December, occurred
the terrible eruption of the volcano of Taal, which lies in the middle
of Lake Bombon, in the province of Batangas. So heavy was the shower
of ashes that it destroyed four villages which were on the shore of
the lake, and it was necessary to remove them a legua inland. There
were many and severe earthquake shocks, and a noise as of squadrons
engaged in battle; and the atmosphere was darkened with the quantities

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

Opening the text

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

The governor had very little confidence in the promises of the Moros
or in their treaties, because they had always broken them with the
same facility with which they had made them; and he prepared a strong
squadron [to go] against them, in order to compel them by force to
observe the treaties which he did not expect they would keep of
their own accord. Nor did his suspicions prove to be groundless,
for in that year (which was 1754) occurred the worst inroad which
those islanders had made into Philipinas. In all districts they made
raids with blood and fire, killing religious, Indians, and Spaniards,
burning and plundering villages; and taking captive thousands of
Christians, not only in the islands near Joló, but throughout our
territories, even in the provinces nearest to the capital Manila. [96]
The fleet which the governor had made ready went out against them,
but, before they could do anything, his successor came, at the end of
his four years' term of office; for this reason, he left the islands
in the most deplorable condition that had ever been known, the cause
of these evils being either his own misconduct or the unfitness of
those to whom he gave appointments, or perhaps his misfortune. What is
certain is, that he experienced a very grievous residencia, and many
charges against him resulted; and in the following year he embarked
in the galleon "Santisima Trinidad" for Acapulco, and died on the way,
without reaching España.





CHAPTER XXXII


Don Pedro Manuel de Arandia, [97] a native of Ceuta and of Vizcayan
ancestry, took possession of his government in July, 1754. As soon
as he arrived in Manila, he undertook to organize the troops, and to
place the military force on a regular footing and in conformity with
the ordinances which are observed in España. From the royal troops that
were in the islands he formed the "king's regiment" of two battalions;
he reorganized the body of artillerists, placing it in the condition
in which we now see it; and he assigned to both the soldiers and the
officers pay with which they could decently support themselves and meet
their obligations, without being harassed to seek in some other way
what was necessary for life. He was very diligent to put in order the
arsenal at Cavite, and whatever depended upon the royal officials--in
which he did not fail to suffer annoyances, and to incur the dislike of
many persons who did not enjoy so much reform and so great zeal. [98]
At the beginning of his government, in the month of December, occurred
the terrible eruption of the volcano of Taal, which lies in the middle
of Lake Bombon, in the province of Batangas. So heavy was the shower
of ashes that it destroyed four villages which were on the shore of
the lake, and it was necessary to remove them a legua inland. There
were many and severe earthquake shocks, and a noise as of squadrons
engaged in battle; and the atmosphere was darkened with the quantities

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

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