Luis Perez Dasmarinas

[Endorsed:  “Manila.  To his Majesty, 1596; Don Luis Dasmarinas, June 30.”  “Keep this letter until the report of the residencia which is to be taken in his case and that of his father shall be received.”]

Letter from Doctor Antonio de Morga to Felipe II

Sire: 

At the close of the past year, ninety-five, I wrote to your Majesty via Malaca, giving a full account of some affairs of this place.  The duplicate of that letter accompanies this, and I refer you to the same.

Every day the peace of this land is becoming more secure.  Xapon is kept quiet by the presence of the Franciscan religious whom we have there.  They have built churches and hospitals; and in March they wrote to us again, telling how they preached publicly and have made a large number of converts.  They are fearful lest the fathers of the Society of Jesus will insist that they leave that country.  Such a change would disturb everything, for the king loves them on account of their poverty and charity.  If they did so, we should return to the former days of uneasiness.

Captain Esteban Rodriguez de Figueroa set forth on the first of last April on the expedition for the pacification of Mindanao, with about fifty sail, large and small, two hundred and fourteen Spaniards, one thousand five hundred armed Indians, and a good store of artillery, ammunition, and supplies.  In a week’s time he came to the mouth of the river of Mindanao.  The king and his people had retired twenty-five leguas up the river to a village named Buhayen, where they fortified themselves.  Governor Esteban Rodriguez followed them with the fleet, and landed the majority of the troops, whereupon an engagement took place there.  The governor went with a few troops to arrange for an agreement, and an armed Indian assailed him.  The captain received so severe a cut on the head with a carmpilan that he became unconscious and died within thirty hours, without having declared a successor to the government.  The camp and fleet were fortified in a convenient place and a city was founded, which was called Murcia.  The cabildo thereof elected as governor Captain Juan de Laxara, a captain of infantry of this camp, who had accompanied Estevan Rodriguez and the troops here assigned to the latter, and whom Estevan Rodriguez had appointed submaster-of-camp.  He is in the said city, fortifying it, and claims to carry on the government thereof without being subject to this or any other, for he is a bold man.  He asks aid, and it will be sent in due time.  In the meanwhile steps are being taken to mollify him so that he will come to reason and not become petulant, on account of the inconveniences which might arise therefrom to the service of your Majesty, and the peace and welfare of this state.  Since there is doubt as to what will happen, it will be even more desirable than when Estevan Rodriguez