Gomez Peres Dasmarinas

[Endorsed:  “Manila.  To the king, our sovereign.  From Governor Gomez Perez Dasmarinas, June 20, 1591.”

“July 16, 1592.  Make an abstract of the different points.”  “Relation abstracted as ordered.”  “Provided within; let the petition be acted on at once.”  “Everything has been examined and provisions made.”

“Let examination be made of the provisions made in clauses 9 to 21, that came recently with the duplicate of this letter.  The other clauses are answered, and despatches sent.”]

The Fortification of Manila

Sire: 

As there are no funds here belonging to your Majesty, and as this city is very poor and has no established source of income to meet the expense involved in carrying on the erection of the wall around it—­which is absolutely necessary for its protection and safety because it is quite exposed without it—­therefore an effort must be made to find some source of revenue in order that so important an undertaking may not be given over.  I have accordingly in your Majesty’s name granted the merchants’ peso [peso merchante] on Chinese goods for two years.  The amount of this is thus far unknown, because it has not hitherto been laid.  The most profitable source of income is the monopoly of playing-cards which has been established for the benefit of your Majesty’s exchequer.  I apply the proceeds of this to the wall for the present until your Majesty commands otherwise.  This amounts in one year to two thousand five hundred, or three thousand pesos.  I considered that the whole amount was very small, while it was absolutely necessary to fortify this place, which is entirely open and exposed to every sort of danger.  Hence, seeing that there was a great quantity of Chinese stuffs here this year, and that there were present a number of merchants from Peru and Mexico who ought to do something for the good of the city—­if for no other reason than the damage they do it by raising the price of merchandise with the large amount of money they bring—­I decided for this once to levy upon all, upon citizens and inhabitants of this city and these islands as upon all others who were therein, an assessment and contribution of two per cent, upon the cargo and appraisement of everyone, as appears from the decree to this effect, a copy of which I send your Majesty.  All, citizens and others, were satisfied and were ready to pay the contribution which fell to the share of each, for they plainly saw how just it was to ask it.  But, the very moment the bishop and his friars knew of the matter, they called a formal meeting of their theological council and in it considered whether I had authority to levy the assessment, whether I had received orders from your Majesty to that effect or not, and whether I had incurred the censures of the bull concerning the Lord’s supper [De cena Domini], inasmuch as this was