What He Begs for the Monasteries of His Order

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Sire: 

Fray Francisco de Ortega, visitor-general of his order of St. Augustine, and prior of the convent of the city of Manila, in the name of that province, and by the authority which he has for that purpose, humbly begs and beseeches the following from your Majesty.

1.  That your Majesty be pleased to bestow, as a grant and as alms for the building of the monastery of that city, a fixed sum for a certain period, as you did in past years for the building of the church of the said monastery.  In that case were assigned for the period of ten years one thousand ducados annually.  This grant is asked in consideration of the fact that it has been burned twice, and has been in part rebuilt from the alms that the religious have acquired with great difficulty.  Another ground is the many services performed by his order in that country for your Majesty from the beginning, when it was settled, with innumerable hardships which they endured when engaged in implanting the faith, and in the service and relief of the royal conscience of your Majesty—­there being then no other ministers there except them alone, as is quite well and commonly known, and as will appear by the evidence which he adduces thereof.  Finally, a third ground for the grant is the fact that the monastery of Manila is very poor, so that it cannot continue the work undertaken, and therefore the religious are much inconvenienced by the narrowness of their quarters.  This is a house where great strictness and austerity are observed; and in the bestowal upon them of this grant and alms by your Majesty God our Lord will be served abundantly, and his [Ortega’s] order will receive benefit and favor thereby.  Questions 20 to 24 and the opinion. [In the margin:  “Let the father declare the nature and extent of the favor which he desires, and let the decree referred to be brought.”  “A copy of the decree mentioned is brought.”]

2. Item:  That in consideration of the fact that when your Majesty’s first governor in those islands, Miguel Lopez de Legaspi, assigned one hundred pesos (of eight reals to the peso) and fifty fanegas of rice annually for the support of each religious, goods were very cheap, while now they are worth twice as much, and the religious cannot be supported with this alms, he begs and beseeches your Majesty to have the goodness to order that the alms for the food and clothing of each religious be annually one hundred pesos de minas, or at least Castilian ducados, and the usual amount of rice.  This is a very moderate request, since the religious possess no income or chaplaincies, and it will bring but little additional expense upon your Majesty’s royal exchequer, as the monasteries sustained by your royal crown are but few; and if your Majesty gives commands to this effect, they will be much advantaged and favored. [In the margin:  “Let the governor give information of conditions in this matter, and what he deems best for the future.  Let him make a report of everything in minute detail.”]