At the shipyard of these islands your Majesty’s chief shipbuilder and superintendent of work was Master Miguel de Palacio.  He died and his place was filled by Master Marco, a good builder of all kinds of ships.  He died also; and although I understand there is another now in charge of the galleon which is being built in the Pintados, he is old and cannot all alone attend to the work, to the repairing of the ships of the line, and the building of others.  There is great need of another good officer.  I beseech your Majesty to order that, if possible, men be sent for this from the kingdoms of Nueva Espana. [Marginal note:  “Idem."]

In the relation written by the Audiencia are other matters, of which I give no account here, since they are there mentioned; your Majesty will please order that these be examined.  May God preserve the Catholic person of your Majesty.  At Manila, July 13 of the year 1589.

The doctor Santiago de Vera

[Endorsed:  “Provision is made for the within; let the governor be informed.”]

Conspiracy Against the Spaniards

Testimony in certain investigations made by Doctor Santiago de Vera, president of the Philipinas

In the city of Manila, on the twentieth of May in the year one thousand five hundred and eighty-nine.  Doctor Santiago de Vera, of the Council of the king, our lord, and his governor and captain-general in these Philipinas Islands, stated that inasmuch as it is proper and necessary to inform the king our sovereign of the compact and conspiracy which the Indian chiefs and natives of these islands and the vicinity of Manila had plotted against the service of God, our Lord, and against his Majesty, and of the inquiry and investigations made thus far in order to ascertain and verify the facts, and the status of the case:  he therefore would order, and he did order, Estevan de Marquina, notary-public of Manila—­before whom most of the trial has been conducted, of which an account has already been given three times to the royal Audiencia—­to draw up an attested record of the said trial in a summary and relation, or such documents as shall be necessary, in order to send them to the royal Council of the Indias this present year.  He also ordered him to inform his Majesty of what is occurring, and of what has been done about the matter.  This was what Doctor Santiago de Vera declared, ordered, and signed.

By order of his Lordship: 

Thomas Perez

In fulfilment of the command and decree of Doctor Santiago de Vera, governor and captain-general of these islands, and president of the royal Audiencia, I, Estevan de Marquina, notary-public for the king our sovereign, of the number [authorized] in the city of Manila, testify that a trial and criminal process has been conducted and is still pending before the said governor and captain-general.  The parties