T his i s a .

b oo k of f a ct s —
f ac t s wh i ch no on e d ar e !

d i s put e, fo r Un cl e S am i s t h e aut h o r . T h e t es t imony

r eco r d e d in t h es e pages was t aken un d er o at h by of -

fic i al s o f th e U n it e d St at es go ve r n m e n t ; it wa s s ub
mit t e d t o t h e P r e s i d e n t of t h e Un it e d St at es ; it was t r an s
mit t e d b y him t o Co n gr es s an d by Con gr e s s or d er ed ,

pr in t ed . I t i s a r e velati o n o f r as c ali t y d e p r avi ty an d ,

d uplicit y— t h at a co un t s fo r it s g o in g"quickly out o f

p ri n t ; for t h o s e wh om it r e ve al s h ave m u ch t o c o n 1
-

ce al an d t h e co n t e n t s o f t h i s b o ok ar e a m o s t t e r r ific
,
.

i .

ar r a ig n m e n t o f R o m an i s m .

T h i s bo ok i s re p r int e d t o i n s t r u c t t h e Am e r ic an

pe o pl e in t h e mo r al Con d it i on of t h e F i li pi n o p e o pl e
aft e r c e n t u r i e s o f c o n t r o l an d t e a ch n g b y t h e R o m an
i
Cat h o li c ch u r ch Eve n as a t re e i s t o b e v alu ed an d
.

le s t ee m e d a c co r d in
g t o it s fr ui t s s o i s an yth i n g an d ,

e ve r yt hin g p ro pe r ly t es t e d an d wor t h y o f h on or o r d is
h o n o r acco r d in g t o w h at it p r o d uce s Ce n t uri e s o f
'

Ro mi s h t each in g an d abs o lut e c ont r ol pr o d uced t h e con

d i t i o n h e r ei n re v eal e d A n d t h e s ame po we r wh i ch d e
.

gr ad e d t h e F ili pin o p eo ple h as t h e efir o n t e r y t o in vad e

t h e U n i t ed at es wi t h t h e d ec l ar e d i n t e n t i o n f m akin g
fit o

Am er i ca Ca t h o li c, an d wi t h t h e pe r s i st en t as s e r t i o n t h at
Pr o t e s t an t Am e r ica i s a f ailur e .

B e fo r e we acc e p t t h e R om i s h
y o f a b e t t er s o ph 1 s t r

Amer i c a t o b e m ad e by p r i e s t s acco r d in g t o th e s pe ci
ficat i o n s o f Ro m e—v b e fo r e we ad m it t h e i r h os t i le d e c
“ ”
l ar at i o n s again s t th e G o d les s p ub li c s ch o o l —
b efor e
we ow th e
s wall b ait o f t h e Vat i can fis h er m an , l et us
s ee what: R ome h as d une
“

mt h e Ph i l ip p i n e Is l an d s l et
 u s s ee wh at h er pa ro ch i al s ch ool s h ave p ro d uc e d an d,

wh at h e r p e c ul i ar d ogm as an d d o min at i o n h ave d o n e

_

wh e re t h ey h ave b e e n appl i e d .

T h e p roo f o f t h e pu d d i n g i s i n t h e e at i n g t h ereo f
\

an d h ere y o u h av e t a s t h e Cat h o l i c
ju s

c oo k s d e li vere d i t at t h e cl o s e o f t h e Sp an i sh Am er
‘

i c an wa r . Wh e n yo u r e ad t h i s i f y o u wish Am er ic a
,

d eg r ad e d t o t h e l eve l o f t h e Ph ili pp i n es you will kn o w

,

e x a c t ly h o w t o b r in g it ab o ut b ut i f y o u w i s h t o a vo i d
,

s u c h a c o n d i t i o n i n t h is c o u n t r y , y ou c an s e e t h e n a
c ess it y o f re j e c t i n g R om an i s m an d t h e g re at e r n eces
‘

s it y o f k ee p i n g p ap i s t s Out o f offic e o ut o f t h e s ch o ol s
, ,

an d o u t o f p o w er .

Wit h c on fid en c e in t h e ab ilit y o f t h e Am e r i c an
’

p eo pl e t o l e a rn t h e l e ss o n t h is b ook t e ach es an d a fir m
,

f ai t h i n t h e i r p at r i o t i s m an d d e s i re t o ave rt t h e g reat
e s t c al amit
y t h at ever t h r e at e ne d t h e n at i o n , t hi s e d i
.

t i o n o f t h i s mo s t i mpo r t an t d o c umen t i s s ubm it t e d

wi t h o ut a s i n gle wor d o f t h e o r igi n al t e x t ch an ge d k b u t
'

wit h a wi d e m a r gin an d wit h m ar gin al n o t e s t h at we

“

t r u s t may b e h e lp ful t o t h e re ad er .
Tfie Sen a t e Doc um en t an d ROM /1 72 137 72
S ENAT E .

LANDS H ELD FOR ECCLESIASTICAL OR RELIGIOU S

USES IN THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS ET C , .

MESSAG E
ROM F TH E

r esi ent o nite tates

T R A NS MIT T I NG

IN RE SPONSE TO RESOLUTION OF T H E SENATE OF

J ANUARY 26 1 9 0 1 A RE PORT FROM THE S ECRETARY
, ,

OF WAR WITH ACCOMP ANYING PAPERS RELATIVE

. ,

TO T HE LANDS HELD IN MOR T M AIN OR OTH ER

'

'

WISE FOR ECCLESIA STICAL OR RELIGIOUS USES

I N THE PHI LIPPINE ISLANDS ; AL S O TRANS MITT ING
CERTIF IED COPIE S OF THE ACTS OF THE PH ILIP
P INE COMMIS SION NUMBERS 56 TO 68 INCLUSIVE
, ,
.

F E B RUA RY 25 , 1 9 0 1 Re ad referred t o the Committee on

.
—
. the
Philippines and ordered to be print ed
, .

To t he S enat e
In response to th e resoluti on o f th e Senate o f January 26 .

1 90 1 as follows
.

R es o l ved That the Pre sident so f ar as in his judg ment

, ,

may be n o t inconsistent with the public interest be requeste d ,

to communicate to the Senat e all information in his power o r

in that of an y o f the Executive Departments in regard to the
lands held in mortmain or oth erwise for ecclesias tical o r relig
ious uses in the Philippine Islands including the character o f .
-

the title to such lands th e extent and value o f the same an d

. ,

t h e parts of th e islan ds w here they e xist ; and further whether ,

he has in behalf o f th e Government e n tered into any obligat ion

other th an wh at is set forth in the la t e tr eaty with Spain i n
r egard t o th eir disposition or the mai ntenance of an y alleged
titl es theret o or h as announced or decl are d any policy t o be
,

pursu e d in dealing with such titles Also to co mmunicat e t o .

t h e Senate an y map o f the territory of th e Phili ppine Islands

o r an y par t t hereof in which these doma ins are laid down .

I tr ansmit herewith a report o f the Secret ar y o f War dat e d

February 1 9 1 9 0 1 with accompanying papers
, , .

I also transmit certified copies o r the acts of the Philippine

Commission numbers 5 6 to 6 8 inclusive
, , .

Wu n a u MCKINLEY .

Ex a c m w u Man si o n
'
.

F ebr uar y 25 . 1 9 0 1 .
Tne Sen a t e Doc um en t an d R om a n ifi n
W AR D E P ART MEN T ,

Was h i n gt o n , F e br ua r y 19 ,
1 90 '

Th e Pan s mnn r
'

I have t h e honor to report upon the subject matter of th e

following resolution of the Senate date d Janu ary 2 6 1 9 0 1 for
, , ,

warded to me by indorsement dated Executive Mansion Jan

, ,

uar y 28 1 90 1,

R es o l r e d That the Pre s ident so far as in his judg ment

, ,

may be not inconsistent with the public interest be re quested ,

to communicate to the Senate all information in h i s po wer or

in that of any of t h e Executive Departments in regard to the
lands held in mortmain or otherwise for ecclesiastical or relig
ious uses in the Philippin e Islands in c lud i n gjh e character of
,

the ti tle to such lands the extent an d value of the same and
, ,

the p arts of the islands where they exist ; and further w hether
’

he has in behalf of the Government entered into any obligation ,

other than what is set forth in the late treat y wit h Spain in
reg ard to their disposition or the maintenance of any alleged
ti tles or has announced or declared an y policy to be pursued in
,

dealing wit h such titl es Also to communicate to the S e nate

.

any map of the territory of the Phili ppine Islands or any part
thereof in which these domains are laid down .

l . The p olicy of the Executive to b e pursued in dealin g

wi th titles held in mortmain or otherwise for ecclesiastical o r
religious uses in the Philippine Islands was declared in your
inst ructions to the Philippine Commissioners transmitted to ,

t hem th rough me on the 7 th o f April 1 9 00 as follows , ,

It will be the duty o f the commission t o make a thorough

investigation into t h e t it le s to the l arge tracts of land held or
'

claimed by individuals or by religious orders ; into the jus t ice

o f the claims and complaints made against such landhold ers by
the people of the island o r an y part of the people and to s e ek
, ,

by wise an d peace able meas ures a j u s t settlement o f t h e contro

versies an d redre ss of wron g s which have caused strife and
bloodshe d in the past In t h e perform ance of this duty the
.

commission is enjoined to see that no injustice is d one ; to have

regard for substantial rights and equity disregar ding ts o hui .

c ali t i e s so far as substantial right p ermi t s and to observe the ,

following rules
That the provision of the treaty of Paris pled ging the
Unite d State s to the protection of all rights o f property in
the islands and as well the principle of our own Go vernment
, ,

which p rohibits the taking of private property without due

process of law sh all n o t be violate d ; that the welfare of the
,

people of the islands which sho uld be a paramount considera

.

tion shall be attained consistently with this rule of propert y

,

right ; that if it becomes necessary for the public inte rest of the
people o f the i s l an d s t o dispose of claims to proper t y which the “

commission finds to be not lawful ly ac quired and held d isposi ,

ti on shall be made thereof by due legal procedure in wh ich ,

there shal l be full opportunity for fair and im p artial hearing

and judgment ; that if the same public interests require the
extinguishment of p r o p e r t v rights lawfully a c quired and held ,

due comp ensation shall be made out of the public treasury

therefor ; th at no form of r eligion and no minister of religion
shall be forced upon any community or upon any citi zen of the
islands ; that upon the other hand no minist er of re ligion shall
be inte rfered with or moleste d in following his calling and that ,

the separation between s t ate and church shall be real entire , ,

an d absolute .

No one has in behalf of the Gover nment of t he United

2
Tne Sen a t e D oc umen t . an d Rom a n ia n
S tates entered into any obligation other than that set forth in ,

the late treaty with Spain in regard to the d isposition or main ,

t en an ce of any alleged titles t o such lands nor has any other ,

policy to be pursued in dealing with such titles b e en d eclare d or

announce d .

i 2
‘
In obedience t o the above cited instructions the Philip
.
,

p in e Commissi on has en te red upon an investigation of the title s

referred to in the resolution and in it s report d ated November , .

80 1 900 transmitted by you to Congress on the 2 5 th of Jan

, ,

uary 1 90 1 it has state d the results of its investigation up to

, ,

that time as t o the character of the title of such l ands the

e xte nt and value o f the same and the parts of the islands
,

where they exist The subdivision of the report entitled The

.

”
Friars beginning o n page 2 3 of the printed document relates
, ,

e specially to this subject The subdivisions entitled Public .

“

Lands ” an d Land Titles and Registration also contain mat

“

t e r relevant to the inquiries contained in the resolution .

3 ; It will appear by reference to page 1 6 of the above cited

.
-

report that the commission has investigated specifically the

,

c onte ste d title to the lands and buildings of the College of S an

Jose at Manila Since the date o f the report th e commission
.
“

has announced its conclusion t hat the claim adverse to the al

l e g e d right o f the religious control of the said college has suf
fi cient basis to require its submission to judicial decision A .

co py of the written decision o f the commission stating the ,

character o f the title and the questions to be determined and a ,

copy o f a rule or order adopted by the commission to confer

jus i sd i c t i o n of the controversy on the supreme court o f the
.

is lands and regulate the pr ocedure therein are transmitted here ,

The par ts
4 the commission s report above referred t o
of
’

were t o a considerable extent base d upon testimony taken by

.

the commission and reduced to wr iting A copy of such te sti .

mony is transmitted herewith .

5 The following reports which already have bee n trans

.
,

mi tt e d t o Congres s also contain matter relevant to the inquir y

,

o f the resolution

( a) The re port of the former Philippi n e Commission Sen

ate Document No 1 3 3 Fifty six th Con g ress first session part
,

-
.
, , ,

1 p ag e s 1 30 to 1 41 inclusive the chapter entitled

, The Secular ,

College and Religious Orders Part 2 of the same document .

contains the evidence on that subject taken by that commis

sion .

( b ) The report o f Maj Gen El well S Otis as military gov . . .

e r no r of the Philippines for t h e period ending May 5 1 9 00 con , ,

t ain e d in part 4 volume 1 of the report of the War Department

, ,

for 1 900 published as House Document No 2

, . .

( c) The report o f Maj Gen Arthur Mac Ar t h ur for the . .

period ending Oct 1 1 9 00 cont ained in part 1 0 volume 1 of

.
, , , ,

the War Department for 1 9 00 published as House Document ,

No 2 . .

The domains referred to in the resolution are not laid

6 .

down in any o f t h e maps o f the territory of the Ph ilippine

Islands or any part thereof in the possession o r wi thi n t he ,

knowledge of the War Department

,

3
Tfie Sen a t e Docum en t d Rema n zr fn
'

an

I beg t o t ake this occasion to tran s mit cer tified copies o f

t h e ac ts o f the Philippine Commi s sion numbered 5 6 to 68 in clu ,

Give. These together with th e acts which you transmitte d t o

,

t h e Senate with your message of January 25 1 9 0 1 complete t h e , ,

r ecord of acts of the commission from its organization to an d

In cluding the second day of January .

Very respectfully
E LI H U Roor
,

S ec
’
y f
o War .

Um r '
nn Sr '
a r ns
'
P mm r mn Co nr m s s r o rz ,

S nc n n r m r s Or mc n ,
'
'

MAN IL A D ec 29 1 9 00
I here by ce rti fy tha t t h e annexed is a cor r ec t copy o f an
. .
. ,

pas sed by the Unite d State s Philippine Commission on th e

1 2 th d ay of December 1 9 00 taken fro m the or iginal on file in
, ,

t h is o fil ce
.

[em u ] A W F m e uss o x Se c y ’
. .
, .

TESTIM ONY TAKEN BY PHILIPPINE comma .

SION RELATING TO RELIGIOUS ORDERS.

IN DEX IN RE F RIARS .

Dominican s— Santiago Paya

Franciscans— Rev Juan Villegas
.

. .

Augustinians — The Very Re v Jose Lobo . .

Re c o l le t o s — Very Rev Francisco Araya . .

Capuchino Padre Alphon s o Maria de Moret t in

-

Benedictine — Padre Juan Sabater .

Paull s t
J Miguel Saderra Mata
e s ui t s — .

The archbishop of Manila .

The b ishop o f Jaro .

The bishop o f Vigan

Don Felipe Calderon
.

Jose Rod e r igue s In fante

.

No z ar io Con stanti no o f Bigaa

M ax imo Viola o f San Miguel de Mayumo
.

, .

Dr T H Pardo d e Tavera
. . . .

Pedro Surano Lah taw .

Ambrosi a Fl ore s .

Phelps Whitm arsh .

Ce fer in o Jovan al cal de of B acolor , .

Gen B P Hughes
. . . .

Co l W i ll i am H Be ck
. . .

Floren tino Torres att o r ney general ,

-
.

Jose R o s .

Fran cis co Go nzale s .

Lead ing res idents of the t own of Ar lngayz

Jose Templo
Jorge Gardia d e l Fierr o
.

Col Charles W Ho od
Bri g G e n Jas F Smith
. . .

. - . . . .

P R Mercado
Jose 0 Mijares
. . .

. .

Francisco Alvarez .

Raymundo Melliza Angulo .

Fe lipe G Calderon . .

Wm H Taft
Hermenegildo J Tor r e s
. . .

. .

C W Mi nor
. . .
 T/z e S en a t e D oc umen t ’
Rom a n zs n z
'

an a

July
DO M I N I C AN S —
I NT E R V I E W O F S A NT I
AG O PAYA
Q Will you please state your full name the order to whi ch
, ,

you belong an d th e position you hold in that order

, .

A Santiago Paya provincial of the Domin icans

.
, .

Q How long have yo u been in the Philippines ?

.

A I arrived in 1 871 but eight y ears since then I have spent

.
,

in Spain .

Q You have spent more than h alf y our life here ?

.

A Yes
Q I would like to go a little into the history of the Domin
. .

i c an s if you will be good enough

, How long has that order .

b een i n the Philippines ?

A The first men arrived in 1 5 87 Some year s prior to that
. .
,

in 1 58 1 the first bishop o f Manila and a companion who were

, ,

Dominicans arrived in Manila , .

Q And the order has been continuously here since that

.

time ?
A Yes s ir T h e order was founded in the beginning of
.
, .

th e tenth century The order w a s confir med in 1 26 1 by Pope

.

H o l or iue s The purposes of the order are i n co r p o r at e d in bull s

’

and other documents issued by papal authority and they are ,

printed in a set of nine volumes w h ich they term the H ular i o ,

of the order It is a compilation of all docu ments relat ing t o

.

the order .

Q Is not the chief function of the order to do missionar y

.

work and enlarge the usefulness o f the c h urch ?

A The saving o f souls through preaching and teaching etc
. .

, .

Q And in carrying the limits of the church o r its influence

.

beyond where it was at the time o f organization ?

A In carrying missions to the farther most ends of t h e
.

earth
Q In other words they undert ake to carry the church into
.

.
,

new countries rather than to remain where the secular priests

were conducting the ordinary exercises o f the church ?
A Prea ching in countri es not only alre ad y Catholic b ut
.
,

also to the unfaith ful The D ominicans have missionaries in .

Tonkin China Formosa and other places in the Orient

, , , .

Q Have any o f your priests suffered in China ?

.

A There ar e D o minicans in Fooc h o w an d Soochow an d

.
,

none have been molested that I am a ware of .

Q I have been told the Jesuits h ave los t several priests ?

.

A Yes sir ; they are farther north

.
, .

Q Has the order laymen as well as priests ?

.

A They have o f course regular ordained priests and they

.
, , ,

also have lay priests who take the same oath but they ar e n ot
,
“

ordained .

Q But they canno t administe r all t h e sacraments ?

.

A No , s ir .

Q There are no Filipino members of t h e order ?

.

A No s ir
.
, .

Q Are there any lay me mbers who are Filipinos ?

.

A No There is what is called a third order compose d of

. .
,

5
 ’
T/z e Sen a t e Documen t Roma n zr m
’

an a

privat e individ uals m arried who take no vows but they n e ver
, , ,

could become ordained They have certain religious usage s o r

.

practices but they are n ot bound by any vows o r ties

,
.

Q They are onl y aux iliary members ?

'

A They are en t irely independent because they are not sub

‘

. ,

je c t to the rules superior and do not take an y vows .

Q Were you a parish priest in these islands before you h e

came the head of t h e order ?
A No ; I was a teacher in the university
. .

Q A n d now y o u are also the head of the University of

Santo Tomas ?
A I was the president of the uni versi t y un t il I was made
provincial o f this order but even now I have a superintend
.

ence over me .

Q What is his name

.

A P ai mun d o V a l ac q ue s the head of the university

. , .

Q How many pri e sts were there in your order in 1 88 6 ,

when the revolution be gan ?

A Two hundred and four fat hers and 29 lay brothers
. .

Q Can you give me a list of the towns an d villages i h t h e

.
-

Philippines in which the priests of your order acte d as pari s h

priests ?
A Every year we publishe d a register giving the pl aces
. ,

an d t h e number of souls etc i n the islands where our order

, . ,

was engaged in saving souls .

Q Does that include the whole order or onl y in these

.

islands ?
A It includes the order in the Orient
. .

Q What civil or political functions did the priests of your

.

order exe rcise under the Spanish Crown in the parishes to

which they were assigned ?
‘

A They exercised no civil or p olitical duties at all The

. .
“

only thing the parish priest did was to act as inspector of

schools w h ich wa s not by law exactly but the Span ish law
. ,

recognized that because they devoted themselves to the public

"

service .

Q Was not there a provision i n the Spanish law of t h e

.

government of the municipalities that the parish priests with ,

o ut respect to the order t o which they belonged should Serve ,

on civil committees of the municipalities ?

A In 1 8 9 3 by a charter act they reorganiz e d the laws r e
.
, ,

lating to mu n icip alities ; and accord ing to the terms of that law
o f reorganization the provin cials here were members of th at

council of administration and in the provinces the provincial

,

there als o became a member o f that council in the municipality .

The parish p r ie s t b e came a member of t h e local board corre

s p o n d i n g to the council o f administration but the parish priest
,

paid very little attention to tha t as it wa s a new element to ,

h i m ; by reason of things which ensue d they had no chance but

;
prior to that time they exercised no civil duties at all
Q Is it not a fact that the priest and I am now referr ing
.

.
,

t your order although it applies to all orders of the islands

,
,

probably was the most intelligent man the man most ac

, ,

q uai n t e d with general afiair s in the town and whether every ,

6
Toe Sen a t e D oc um en t d Roma n zr m
’

an

public thing that was done was first submitted to h im I me n . a

in the small countr y towns .

A Naturally the parish priests were all men of great i n flu

.

ence moral influence by reason o f their ho ly o fli ce and they

, , ,

were not only the parish high priests but they were even s ome ,

time s judges because ofte ntimes t h e F ilipino would prefer to

,

submit their quest ions i n litigation t o the parish pr iests than t o

their o wn j udges ; and co nsequen tly the Spanish Government,
recognizing t his moral hold — this moral in fluence t hat the
p riest had over th e people took ad vantage o f it so as to get .

t h e people t o pay their taxes and comply with la w, but they

“

never e xerci s ed any politica l o r civil charges ; but the Govern ;

ment itself took ad vantage of these facts to get them to keep
the men within the law .

Q I s it n o t a fac t th at there were a great many parishes in

.

t hese islands in which there were no Spanish soldiers at all ?

A The greater part I n the immense majority ther e were
. .

neither soldiers nor civili ans and only the parish priests and , ,

this in to wn s up t o 20 000 .

Q Did not the Spanish Government then come to rely o n

.
, ,

the priests as th e best means they had t o en force law and ,

ord er ?
A Yes sir It was the prin cipal element that they relied
.
, .

o n but t hrough the mora l element o f the priest

, .

Q I s it not d ifli cult in ex e rcising power o f that sort to

.

make a distinction between the moral influence and the actua l

influence exercised by reason of that posi tion ?
A Of course the priest was b acked up by the Government
.

n aturally an d the peopl e recogn i zed that

, .

Q I have understood th at it is o n e o f the principles o f

“

your order and of the Catholic Church generally that the civil
authority where it does not att empt to in terfere with the rights
,

o f the church is t o be supporte d by the members of the order

,

an d th e membe rs of the church ?

A Al l lawfully constituted authority has the support of the
.

church .

Q And of course this is an order of the church and is

.
, , ,

o n e o f th e aims of the church to carry that principle wh e rever

they go ?
A Yes sir ; t o such an extent that even i n China where
. , ,

the authorities are pagans the priests ad vise their fl o cks t o ,

obey the laws o f the lan d That law is not so much a principle
.

o f the church as it is a divine or natural princ iple We always .

have to res pect the authority which is lawfully constituted .

Q I remember in th e case o f France though the monar

. ,

ch i al party was favorable to the Papal power nevertheless the ,

Pope advi sed the Cat holics of F r ance to submit t o the Republic
an d support t hat power .

A Yes sir
.
,
.

Q And therefore th e memb e rs of y our order in ad minis

teri ng the o fli ce s t hey h ad t o admi nis ter and i n exer cisi ng th e
.
, ,

influence their position gave them both ci vil and religious , ,

were loyal to Spain d uring the t wo revolutions ?

A Defending the fatherland as a duty towards one s o wn
.
’

c on scien ce there was not a sin le exception

g
.
,
 ’
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t Roma n zr m
'

ana

Q D id it not t herefor e come to

. ,
pas s th at t o t h ose who ,

were engaged in the revolution and especially in that larg e p ar t ,

o f the co untry wh er e th e Spanish s oldiers did n o t go th at t he ,

parish priests represe nte d to the people the Cro wn of Spain an d

loyalty to th at Crown .

A The p ri es t was ofte nt imes the only Spani ard in t h e

.

town but he only exercised moral s uasi on The civil aut hority
,
.

was re prese nte d by what was known as th e go b er n ad o r c il lo .

Q We are dealing with facts with substance and did n ot

. , ,

the priest represent t h e real author ity in favor o f law an d or d er

and perseverance of the rights of Spain ; e specially after the
go b er n ad or c ill o had turned hi s coat an d gon e ov er to th e r e vo
luti on is t s ?
A As a fact the g o b er n ad o r c illo did not do anyt hing Wi th
.

out consul t ing the par ish priest .

Q Until he became a r evolut ionist ?

.

A That h as only be en lately

. .

Q I am spe aking now o f 1 89 6 and 1 898

. .

A In 9 6 and 9 8 in many of th e to wns t h e people r e mai ned

.
’ ’
,

at lea st appar en tl y favorable to Spain and were in co mmun i ca

t ion with their parish priest .

The generality of people in th e provi nces are un educate d

and very simple folk and more since re but th e Indian is a litt le
, ,

false rat her deceitful and h as a littl e head

, , .

Q How were the priests of your order supporte d during

.

th e time they ac te d as pari sh priests ?

A They h ad a stipend fro m the Span ish gover n ment
. .

Q Can you stat e generally what that amounted to for each

'

pr iest ?
A It depended upon the class of t h e parish Some r e
. .

calved $5 0 0 others 8 600 , others $7 0 0 an d o t hers 8 80 0

, There , .

were some a ver y few like that of Manila and Bi n d o n d o wh o

, , ,

received $ 1 2 00 per annum .

Q I do not know how far that amount woul d go in 1 89 6

.
,

b ut I know it would not go very far now with present prices .

A Aside from that he r eceive d anot her revenue in th e

. ,

for m of fees which were paid for certain offices performed by

h m whi ch fe es were fixed by the bishop wi t h the approval of
i ,

t h e government [ pre s ents a wr itten s t ate ment o n the subject]

Q Let me look over that sta tement if I may I suppo s e
.

.
, .

t her e was a fee for ma r riage ?

A For marriages $3 62 One eighth of that was for t h e
.
, .
-

church and the other for th e pari sh priest and his support For .

burials for children for adults

, For c hristenin g
, , ,

1 2 ; cents includin g th e cost of th e c andle

, These were th e o r .

d in ar y pri ce s but when a perso n wanted pomp and show there

, ,

was a s pecial price Even these fees were someti mes not
.

ch arged in the c as e of poor people either in whole or in part

Q You have read from a list I suppose that was a list
, .

.
.

formul ate d by a bis hop in a particular dioces e but it represe nts ,

t h e general charges throughout the islan d ?

A The list is over 1 0 0 years old The re is very littl e differ
. .

ence in all th e dioceses Spaniar ds p aid the mos t the mestiz o

.
,

paid a little higher tha n the Indian and the Indian p aid th e ,

le ast .
T/z e Sen a t e D ocum en t Roman zs m
'

ana

Q Wer e t here any voluntary contributi ons by the member s

.

o f th e c on gre gati on e ac h Sunday ? Did t hey t ake up a co lle c

t io n ?
A It was n ot th e custom
. .

Q W h o built t h e churches in which the pari sh priests oul

. o

c iat e d and the conven t os in which they l ived ?

A The parishioners always built the churches All t h e
. .

t owns here were formed little by little and when they had suni ,

cient popula tion t hey would erect a church The parish priest .

h ad t o ac t as the head car p enter th e head mason and h ad t o , ,

d i rect t h e brick wo rk an d at times h ad t o go out and sh o w them

,

h o w t o cut th e lumber down The convento s wer e also built in

.

th at way .

Q They call it c onvento he re In the United Stat es a co n

. .

v ent means a place wh ere the nun s li ve — t h e sisters .

.A Here and in the provinces they call t h e parish house the

"

c onvent .

.
Q Was the title to th e churches and conventos put in the
Cro wn o f Spain ?
A In so me ca se s th e churches and parsonages were erect
.

e d with funds furn ished by th e ord er i t s elf in case of mi ssio n ,

churches .

Q Do yo u k now how many there wer e erect e d by you r o r

.

der ?
A In that st ate ment you have it spec ifies mis sion churches
.

an d mission parsonages They were built with the funds of

.

the order The other parsonages an d chur ches were erected by

.

general church funds and oftentimes the parish priest woul d

,

make a c ontribution The congregation would assist mostly b y

.
'

manual labor an d the governmen t at times would cause men

,

wh o had t o d o govern ment work o n public buildi n gs t o assist in

the work t her eby contr ibuti n g it s share as patro n of th e churc h
,

i ns tea d of pay ing money .

.
Q D o you know how the title was se cur ed t o t h e land on
whi ch t h e churche s were ere ct e d ? Did not they ord inarily build
o n t h e open square o f th e town ?
.A L and here at first was of course fre e to everybody .

Oftentimes the parish priest would buy the land and i n other ,

cases the land belonged to the town .

.
Q How have the deeds been re g is tered ?
.A Only a few years ago in the provi n ce s did t hey be gin t o
h a ve any deeds No reco rds at all were kept until a few years
.

Q How h av e t hey be en m ade si nce t h e pract ice of mak in g

.

dee ds ?
A Of all those recorded in there as mission churches and
parsonages I do not know of a single in st ance where they have
.

been recorded They were erecte d and t hey have been used
. ,

for th e proper purposes an d the parish priest has been livin g

,

in th e parsonages— nobody has disputed the t itle and noth ing

h a s ever arisen un der it .

Q Of cour se as a lawyer I want to know wher e the title

. , ,

is. Wher e ver th e t itl e there is no doubt th at th e church and

,

con vent ar e t o be devot e d to the purpose s for w h ich t hey wer e

b uilt — the Catholi c r elig ion— but the duty of th e gover nment of
9
 d Roma n zs m
’

T/ze Sen a t e D ocumen t an

.
the Un i t ed S t ate s wi t h respect to pro p e rty to which it may
,

nave acquired title by t r ah s f e r w ill b e varie d as it finds out ,

.

where that title is If it has t itle in i t s e l f it will be the dut y of

.

the governmen t to transfer that title to someo n e for the church

or t he people of the church .

A A s up to a very f e w years ago there were hardly any

.

Spaniards in the provinces this matter was done without any ,

titles at all There were no S pani ard s no lawye rs no notaries

. , , ,

and no records in the provinces .

Q In the United State s it has been the habit o f the Cat h o

lic church to carry the title o f l an d whic h belongs to the church '

in the name of the bishop of the diocese .

A Yes sir ; as he is the r epresentative So far as the

prope rty belonging to the corporation the orde r I have a deed
.
.
,

, ,

and it is recorded .

Q I have he ard that the title of the cathedral and of the

arch b ishop s residence is in the Crown of Sp ain
’
.

A It belongs to the chu r ch of Manila

. The fact is the gov .
,

e r n me n t contribute d su ms of money toward the building of both

by t h e obligation th at i t had assumed with the holy see an d as .

t he patron of the ch urch ; but it never occurred to the Spanish

gover n ment to claim an y part of the land as t h e y recognized ,

that it bel o nged to the Catholic church 1 .

Q There is no d o ubt that that is where it belongs It is .

only a question where the legal title rests .

A I think it is in the name of the archbishop

Q I have heard from Colonel Crowder that the title was i n
. .

the Crown of Spain but you can re st a s sured that the govern
,

ment of the United S t ates w ill not take advantage of this to de

prive the Catholic church of any proper ty to which it may b e
entitled .

A Heretofore everything was left to the good faith o f t h e

.

people because no one ever doubted that they did not belong t o
,

the church .

Q As to the properties which the order own ed in th e

island s : F irst w hat agricultural land s did your order own ?
,

A The president is already apprised of the fact that the

.

lands in Cavite Laguna Bulacan and Bataan n o longer belong

, , ,

to us
Q I had not th at in mind and I would be glad to have you
.

state to me again .

A These lands belonged to us previously

.
.

Q Can you tell me how many hacie ndas you had in Cavite
province ?
A T wo ; a lit tl e sugar c ane was cultivated b u
.
t mostly all ,

r ice
. The names o f those two were Naic an d Santa Cruz Ri .

n an, S anta R o s a and Calamba i n Laguna Lomboy Parti

, .
, ,
Orion in Bataan .

Q H o w many acres were there i n the hacienda of Naic ?

.

A The whole of them were a b out

.
hectares .

Q Can you g i ve me appr ox imate fl g ur e s as to each ?

A (Presents to the president a tabular statement contain
.

i n g this information ) O n all of them generally rice is c ui t i v at

.

ed ; in L aguna some sugar and on some considerable timber ,

Q ( President examinin g stat ement ) Does this list r epr e

.

. .

Io
 T/z e Sen a t e D ocum en t d Roma n zs m
’

an

n
se t all of the agricultural lands which the order owned in t h e
islands ex cept Orion ?
A Yes sir ; except a little sanctuary at San Juan del
.
,

Monte I t has been stated around that we recently acq uired

.

t hese . Some of them have been ours for over two centuries .

Colonel Crowder has by dire c tion of Ge n eral Otis lo oked up

, ,

th e titles and h e has seen them all

, .

Q Have you t it le d e e d s t o all of these ?

.

A Yes sir This statement shows the pages fr om which

.
, .

th ey were taken all properly d r a wn up and recor ded

, .

Q How did you farm t hese properties befor e you sold them
.

t o t h e cor p o rations ?
A On each hac ienda we had o n e or t w
. o lay bro t hers who
wer e the administrat ors .

Q Did th e parish priests ha ve anything to do with them ?

.

A Not hing whatever

. .

Q Were t hey re nted o n share s?

A All far med out ; we did not cultivate anything
. .

Q Were th ey farmed on share s o r on a mont hl y rental ?

.

A They were far med o ut this way : It was left to th e will

‘

o f t h e t enants t o eit her pay in money o r in rice as b e pleased ,

th at is rice lands, For lands cultivate d with sugar cane they

.

al ways paid in money .

Q Did you have any tobacco lands ?

A No . .

Q Any c o fle e ?
.

A A lit tle
. .

Q You did not own any cattle ?

‘

A In Santa Cruz we had a lot of catt le b ut the insurgents

.
,

carried them 0 6 .

Q What did you do with the cattle ? Did they graze on

.

y our o wn land ?
A In Calamba an d Santa Cruz the r e was a great deal of
.

uncul t ivate d graz ing lan d .

Q And you own ed th e he rds ?

.

A Yes sir.
, .

Q And th e lay brothers saw t o the graz ing of the m and

.

th en sold th em in th e markets ?
A Yes s ir
. , .

Q As t o your tenants ; did you permit one family t o r e

.

main for s ever al g ener ations on t h e same piece of land ?

A Yes air ; way back t o great grandpare nt s At time s
.
, .
-
.

th ese ten an ts wo md sublet t o others t h e right t o cultivate the

gr ound an d at a g o od price t oo , .

Q D id t h e tenant s put in any improvements ?

,

A No ; in every i nstance the corporation has made all the

.

improvements such as drainage canals d ams and irr igation

, , ,

works .

Q Th ose were all put in by the corporation the te nants

. ,

d i d not put them in at all ?

A No . .

Q How about rice lands ? Does it grow better each year ?

.

A Yes sir ; it h ardly needs any fertili zin g at all afte r a

. ,

f e w crops .

Q Would not sometimes one family which occupied ri ce

.

11
 Tfie Sen a t e D e en men t d Rema n zfi n
'

an

lands transfer its rights to another family that i s sell out h is

, , ,

right of tenancy to another ?

A That was prohibite d but they often did that sometimes
. , ,

with the consent o f the administrator and sometimes without .

Q Was the tenancy regarded with s uch privilege that the

.

person going in paid to the person going o ut any sum of money ?

A The tenants themselves considered that a great priv
.

ilege and charged sometimes as much as the propert y was worth .

Q So that they had among the te nants without re spect to

.
,

the original order what we call the te nant s right ?

,
’

A Strictly speaking the ten ant had no right whatever

.
, .

Contracts were made for three years and aft e r that they were ,

te nan ts at will
Q But what I want to get at is the feel ing and impression
.

among the tenan ts themselves ? They I suppose , came t o think ,

that they might retain the lands as long as they chose in their
family and that that privilege of retention was a valuable priv
,

ilege and so regarded among them and they sold tha t privilege
, ,

from one to another .

A There is no doubt that these tenants held the privilege

.
‘

which they had at a very high value and t hey would get a num ,

ber of acres One man would go to the administrator and say

I will rent twenty acre s and then he would sell that privilege
.
,

of his which was only f o r three years at a hig h figure and so

, , ,

long as he paid his annual rental he would not b e disturbed

‘

But there have been several cases in Calamba w h ere the only
“

persons they could look to for payment of the rent the tenant , ,

was ejected for non payment They understood that they had
-
.

no legal right to i t after the three years .

Q They also knew that the custom o f the order had been
to give them this privilege continuously and they relied o n that ,
‘

themselves .

A Yes ; that is true

. So much was that the fact that .
,

sometimes a father who had five hectares and five son s would
will those five hectares one to each son , .

Q No w as to the sale of all this property To whom did

.
.

you sell this propert y ?

A Mr Andrews with an obligation on his part t o form an
. .
,

association and then to sell as many shares of the stock as he

,

could ; and the order agreed to take as part payment the shares
re maining in t h e company ,

Q Yo u were p aid in shares so that you own a majority of

.
,

the shares of the corporation now ?

A Yes . .

Q Is there an y agricultural property owned b y the order

.

not in cluded here and which is in the name o f someone else ?

,

A We did not own anyth ing except what is in there as ide

.

from this little sanctuary a t S an Juan del Monte

Q As to improved property the order o wns in Manila or
.
‘

o ther cities for renta l purposes ?

A In Binondo we own a few houses We did o wn a few

. .

here but they were destroyed by fir e and in the port of Cavite ,

We also o wned a few houses under rent .

Q Are they business houses or residences ?

.

A Residences
. .

12
 ’
T/z e Sen a t e Documen t Roma n zs tn
'

an a

th e provincial here Before this time I was a provincial and

.

v isited all of Luzon .

Q .
Were cases of immorality among members o f the order
-

bro ught to the attention of the ord er an d disciplined ?

A There has been a great deal o f t alk about immorality
.

among the parish priests Of course undoubt edly th ere may .

, ,

have been some cases wher e a prie s t has failed to carry out his
vows but those cases were al ways brought to t h e atte ntion o f
,

the provincial and investigated and if in case the charges were ,

found well grounded th ey were chastised either by separation

fr o m
,

t h e ir office o r removal somewhere The greater part o f

'
'

the cases have been exaggerations of s ome fault or made out of

the whole cloth because it seems that the peopl e trump up
,

charges ag ainst the priests so as to mak e th em unpopular in _

th e p rovi nces As a proof of the fact that the se charges were

.

not made by people who were imbued with g r e at r e lig io us fer

vor or love o f exe mplary living in near ly every case charges ,

were brought by men against exemplary prie sts who were ai

,
.

ways i n the coterie of immoral priests so to speak , .

Q In the investigation so far as I have been able to make

.
,

it I have reached the conclusion that the ch arge s of immorality

,

are not the real bases of the hostility to the priests if that hos ,

t ili t y e xists among the people a n d my conclusion as to that is

,

based on the fact as I understand i t t h at the present persons

, ,
'

who are exerci sing the offices of parish prie s ts that again st ,
]

those persons c h ar g e s o f immorality might much more gener

l

ally be brought than against the former parish priests .

A Yes sir The Filipinos themselves say the same thing

. , . .

Q I have talked with Filipino p r i e s t s an d with Filipinos ;

.

and I fin d it pretty g enerally conceded that the Filipino priests

in the islands are not well educate d and that the standard of ,

morality a mong them is not hig h .

A They neither have the characte r nor the capacity nor

.

the idea of morals that exists in a European No w you can .

,

notice in the clergymen who are acting as parish priests they ,

d o just what the local presidente wants them t o do .

Q They are active politicians ?

.

A Yes sir
.
,

Q Is not the danger to the church here in the fact t hat the
.

orde r of intelle ct and education of the native priests is to say

the leas t so mo d e r at e t h at the people will rever t to idolatry and
,
'

fetichism un d e r t h e administration of ignorant Filipino p riests ?

A Yes sir ; that is what is happening in the re mote prov
.
,

i n ce s even where there are Christians

, .

Q What preparation was made to fit these prie sts in the

.

matter of education before goin g to work in these distant par

ishes ?
A Aft er ente ring t h e order they studied for ei ght or nine
.

years in the colle ge in Spain prior to coming out here .

Q What preparation was made in the matter of language s ?

.

A When a new man w as sent out to do parish work he

. .

was sent with an older priest wh o had alre ad y learned the lan
gua ge of the people to learn the customs lan guage and habits
, , .

Q How long did it take a bright man such as you have i n

.
,

your order to learn the langu age of the l ocality ?

,

14
Tae Sen a t e Doc um en t ’
Roma n zs m
'

an a

A So as to treat with the natives on the outside about six

'

.
,

months ; to perfect one s self t o p r each in it some time ’

Q B ut in six months they learned enough t o confess the

.
,

pari shioners ?
A Yes sir One of the proofs of the morality of the cler
.
, .

gyme n and of the orders lies in the character of the Filipinos

t hem s elves Ever ybody will admit t hat the Filipin os as a
.
.

whole are moral and religious and they have had no teacher
.
_ ,

o t her than the members o f the order to teach them— not only in
re ligious but secul ar matte rs ; and if they were an i mmoral set ,

how co uld t hey have brought these pe ople to this state ?

Q It has been quite gratifying t o me t o underst and that
’

th er e is a very general cha stit y among the women i n these

islands but I have unders to od that while it is true that there is
,

no general want o f cha stity among t h e women there is among ,

th e people a feeling that a man and a woman may associate t o

geth er for a definite time if the woman re main faithful to th e ,

man and r egard that as a k ind of marriage wit hout the san c
,

tion o f the sacrament ; and that th e same feeling in h o w man y ,

cases I do not know has seemed to j ustify that kind of relat io n

existing betwee n a priest and a woman I just throw out th at
,

as a suggestion and ask for your opinion on it

, .

A I d o not claim that there have not been priests who have
.

not but the large majority o f them have preached n o t only by

, ,

words but by action morality and religion I think that t h e

, . .

living together in concubin age of a priest and a woman is very ,

v ery rare That there may have been some weak priests who
.

have fallen once— th ey might b e less rare .

Q An army office r related this to me as happenin g in Hoc o s

.

Norte : He says that he n o w lives in the house of a woman who

is entir ely respectable who would nev er be described as n u
, ,

chaste wh o had two daughters and who st at ed wi thout hesita

, ,

tion and n o t as a badge of shame t hat those daughters were the ,

daughte r s of a pad re who formerly lived t here but who now ,

h ad been obliged t o g o away Now while o f course th at rela. ,

ti on is deplorable n evertheless it illustrate s a very different

.

state o f society from that where there is promiscuous illicit ,

i nter course and i llustrates that in the mind o f the nati ves there
,

is a very great difference between gen eral unchastity and loyalty

t o o n e person That is what I have gathered from persons with
.

whom I have t alk ed ; that is what is in my mind from the evi

dence I have al r e ady gathered .

A I do n o t deny that there have not been such cases but I

. ,

do deny that there h as b e en th at promiscuous and general im

morality o n t h e part of the priests with which th ey have been
charged .

Q Whil e there is a very great difference between the Unit

ed States and the Ph ilippine I slands I suppose that human na ,

ture is n o t altogether d iii er e n t here from what it is at home and ,

therefore those who d o not take religion very seriously are very ,

glad t o sei z e individual instances o f falling away by the priests ,

and are quite disposed from these few individual instances to

make ge neral charges again st the whole class .

A My only answer is the same as before that there may ,

15
 ’
Roma n zs m
’

T/ze Sen a t e Documen t ana

have been a few is o lat e d c as e s of immorality but nothing upon

'

wh ich general charges could be based . .

Q Was it possible under the Spanish reg ime for the par
.

ish priest to notify the captain gener al of the presence in the -

community of a dangerous character and to have him deported ?

A The initial steps were never taken by the parish priests
.
.

The government would in some instances ask for a report on

some of the people in the town and that the parish priest very ,

often did not reply to h im because the g o b e r n ad o r c i llo would

say to the man upon whom suspicion has fallen that the parish
priest was trying to ge t rid o f him was sometimes true When .

the parish priest was asked about the town they would send in
such a report t o the gover nor general but never without being -
,

requeste d .

Q A n d the governor general would then deport him ?

.
-

A More ofte n it was a case for the parish priest to inter

.

cede t o prevent deportation t han to car r y i t o ut The priest .

often realized the fact that charges against o n e o f th eir parish

l oners were based o n the intr igue of the guardia civil and o fii
cers of the municipality and they interceded in his behalf ofte n
,

e r than to have him transporte d The parish priest was the .

father o f the locality and although ve ry pleasant relations usu

,

ally existed between the Spanish civil authoritie s and the

Spanish priests there were cases wh en the priests had to t ake
,

issue i n behalf of some parishioners .

Q How many priests of your order were assaulted by the

.

revolutionists during 1 8 9 6 1 89 8 ? -

A The only one we lost was the parish priest of Hermosa

‘

.
,

in R at aan wh o was assassinated This is the only one

. . .

Q Were an y of them im prisoned ?

.

A Every body became a prisoner

.
.

Q D id not Aguinald o keep a lot o f priests in prison for

.

a long time wh o were subse quently released by the American s ?

A None of ours One hundred and fifteen Dominicans
.
.

were held prisoners for a year and a half i n the provinces from .

July 1 8 9 8 till December last wh e n t h ey were released

, , ,
'

Q H o w were they released ?

.

A Because the American troops advanced and they let

.

them g o .

Q They were held by the insurgents ?

.

A Yes sir
.
, .

Q Were any of them maltreated during that time ?

.

A Yes sir
.
, .

Q Were they whipped ?

.

A Some of them were whipped and othe r s they filled full

.

of water with a funnel in their mon t h s Some o f them had .

their ankles bound together and tied in a position for days .

Bil la and Leyba the t wo most crue l men wh o have been i n the
,

valley o f the Cagayan are both aids of Aguinaldo

, .

Q Is the Bishop of Vigan a Dominican ?

A Yes sir ; and this man Billa is the man who broke two
.
,
'

s t ic k s o n the arm of the bishop Nine have d ied during t heir .

imprisonment mostly from bad treatment

.

Q Do you thi nk that the priests of your order could return

.

t o their parishes and assume their sacerdotal functions ?

16
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A S o far as the mas s o f the people in the northern part o f

.

the islands is concerned N ueva E c ija Pangasinan t here would

, , ,

be no trouble whatever The only thing to look o ut for would

.

be t h e arrival of some Katipunan and his working up the people .

In Batanes e ight have gone back and they were well received ,

and there are no American soldiers there .

Q Have any ret urned in the Island of Luzon ?

.

A These sa me priests who went to Bata n es were a few

.

days in Aparri and the people came down and a s ked them when
,

they were g oing to return that they wanted them to re turn , .

Q Are any of the members of your order in Dagupan ?

.

A No sir
.
, .

Q But you have churches there ?

.

A Yes sir ; all the province of Pan g asinan was ad min i s

.
,

t er e d by Dominicans .

Q T o what do you attribute the fee ling against the mem

'

bers o f your order generally if it exists ? ,

A As a matter of fact among the mass of people this h a

.
,

trea does not exis t It does exist among the Katipunan s and
.

here and there among the better class but the whole reason o f ,
,

t h e h at r e d o f t h i s class against the priests lies in the f act that

'

th ey were the bulwarks of Spain s sovereignty i n the islands

'
’
.

and these people recognizing their l oyalty t o their govern ment

say that in order t o bre ak down the sovereignty of Spain it was
necessary to cast odium upon the religious orders and h ave
them p ossibly e xpelled from the country .

Q Do you think any feeling exists against them because of

.

the i mmorality o f its members ?

A No Indian has ever made a complaint of immorality on
.

t h e part of a priest except in the case o f reven ge When the

‘

provincial makes a visit they do n ot say a word As soon as .

they have any little trouble with the parish priest then they will
present a lot o f testimony and report charge s agains t the parish
priests .

Q Is it not true that a good many of these tenants would

.

be willin g t o have the land which they occupy for nothing and ,

d o they not have the natur al feeling which exists sometimes

between t enants and landlords ?
A That feeling not only exists against the religious cor
.

pot ations b ut against eve r y owner o f property We h ave p e t i

,
.
i

tions from several of the pueblos in which the inhabitants ask

us n o t t o co n vey their property away because they do not want ,

t o have anything to do with any othe r l an d proprietors but us .

All they had to pay in the way o f rental was about o n e sixth or -

o n e fifth of the value Hence in the towns where our h ac ie n

. ,

l as w e re located you would fin d better houses better people

‘
,
,

an d more wealth .

Q.
I suppose it is true here as elsewhere that i t 1 s easy to
, ,

c ul t i v ate among the debtors un popularity for the creditors

.

A Oh yes ; everywhere
. ,
.

Q How are the members of your order at present sup

.

port d ?
; W e have the savings o f several years and also t he ren
'

t al o f house s and a few other sources of income

.
,

17
Tao Sen a t e Documen t ’
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an a

Q . Did the insurgent govern ment at Malolos pass a law con

fis c at i n g your property ?
A Law strictly speaking no They did put an additional
.
, , .

art icle on t o their constit ution by the terms o f which th ey ap

p r o p r i at e d all our property but we paid no atten t ion to that
,

because we recognized here only two sovereigns— formerly the

Spaniards and n o w the Americans .

Q Have not agents of that s o called government actually

.
-

coll ected rents for the property owned by the corporation ?

A Yes sir ; they have taken charg e of the haciendas and
.
,

have made the tenant s pay rent .

Q And r at her higher rent than you were accustomed t o

.

collect ?
A Yes s ir ; the money they have m ade out of those lands
.
,

has been a great element in carrying o n the war for them To .

take the haciendas a way from them now will be a har d stroke
against the revolution .

Q If the insurgents h ad been successful do you think you

.
,

could have remained in the islands ?

A W e never even thought here th at the revolutionists ever
'

would be succe ssful and so t ook n o steps

, .

Q But the controlling spirits in the revolution were very

.

hostile toward you ? 1

A Yes sir ; and if th ey had secured their independence we

.
,

would have had t o l eave not because o f the common p e o ple b ut

, ,

bec ause of these leaders The mass o f the people l ike us but
.
,

they do not know how to move how to do anything at all —

.

Q Suppose the Unite d State s government were to estab

.

lish a protectorate here by which we should defend the islands

,

ag ainst outside influence but let the pe ople take care of their
inte rnal affairs ; how much pr otecti on t o prope rty would e xist
,

here ?
A We would have t o leave The pe ople l ike us but do not
.
.
,

defend us on acco unt of their inaction

, .

Q Le avin g out the question o f the orders how much p r o

.
,
t e c ti o n t o general property would there be in these islands under
such a government ?
A If they had their independence it would be chaos I n
.
.

four days they woul d be fighting eac h other— the different ele
ments The first thing would be that the half caste s with a
.
-

little Spanish blood would w an t t o get the power i n their o w n

hands but would b e overcome by the natives The true back
, .

bone o f the insurrection is the state of terror which th e o fii c e r s

now in the field have forced on the people who have bee n e u
l isted by te rror t o take up arms a gai nst the Americans and
; ,
al though I do not desire to give any advice t o the American
government I think that t h e only way to settle t h e question is
,

to bring a greater terror to bear upon them than now imposed

by the insurgent government .

Q Is not one trouble among the people a doubt as t o the

.

policy the Americans are going t o pursue to g ain control o f

these i slan d s ?
A Partly that ; but in a greater way the lies that are told
.

in the pro vince s Out there the idea prevails that Aguinaldo s
. ’

f orces are going t o succeed They te ll of batt les in which o ne

.

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h un d r d A JJc I i c afl S are killed and the people believe that Here

e , .

in M ani la t h e h alf e duca t ed people of the capital believe that

-

the gov e r nment will gi v e th e m their independen ce I f l ast .

,

Decemb e r when the Ame ric an troops m ad e the advance toward

,

the north they had gone farther an d more energetically the

, ,

th ing would have been solved b y this time becau se the people ,

in the to wns who were downtrodden and te rrorized by t h e i h

'

surgent o fficers want somebody to come and lift this burden

,

from o ff them ; but the Americans w ent a little ways north and ,

then went o ff t o the coast t owns .

Q How man y members of your order have left the islands

.

since 1 89 8 ?
A Sixty seven ; forty fiv e to Spai n and twenty t w o to
.
- - -

Chin a .

Q None have gone t o South America ?

.

A No . .

Q I put a question suggested by a remark made by the

"

archbishop that in 1 89 8 somebody went t o Rome and professed

t o represent the American Government and proposed to buy all ,
‘

the property belongin g to the religious orders here and that ,

Cardinal Rampolla telegraphed to the islands to have an i n ve n

tory made o f the property which it was thus proposed to buy .

Can you give me a copy of that inventory ?

A When the last commi s sion was here they asked for it
.

and it was given them the same which was sent to Rampoll a , ,

b ut I wi ll send y o u a copy o f it .

Q What d o you consider the value g enerally speaking o f

.
, ,

the agricult ural lands of the Dominican Order ?

A I t is very d ifficult to arrive at They must have in
. .

creased o r d i mi n i s h e d i n value z
.

Q What did you consider the value in 1 89 6 before the rev

.
,

o lut io n ?
A I t is hard to give any estimate ; you might say before
. ,

four and fiv e mil lions in agricultural lands alone .

Q You have sold alre ady to a corporation but of course

. ,

y o u control that corporation because you hold a maj ority of the

stock ; therefore you could for this corporation sell this prop
et ty to the Government .

A All we have now o f course is shares o f stock

. , , .

Q Ye s ; but that m ajority sto ck gives y o u the right t o con

.

trol the corporation ; would you be willing to sell that t o the

G overnment ?
A We have the obligation which we have complied with to
.

s ell t o A ndrews ; the sale was made to Andrews and he afte r ,

ward s got up the company .

Q But with the unde rstanding that he was to get up t he

.

company ?
A That was o n e of the clauses in the contract that he
.
—

would form an as sociati on and that we would take a part of the

stock .

Q Of cours e you kno w that th e Government could take

.

t h e property if it choos e s ; that is for school purposes ; that ,

i s as they say in the Spanish l a w

,
expropriate as we say i n , ,

America condemn it paying its value But it i s a gr eat

, ,
.

deal bette r if we conclude that we need i t to settle the matte r

19
 d Roma n zs tn
'

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out of t h e c ou r t s for court proceed ings mv w w x p n s s and

'

e e e ,

i t leaves a better feeling to settle the matter by contract and I

,

would like to know if you are in a situation t o arrive at an

agreement if we wan t the property ?
.
A B e sides the u n derstan ding we have with Andrews we
would have to consult the Holy See .

.
Q The Holy See has the good sense to trust to the d is cr e
tion o f the able head of the ord er who is here I t has been .

suggested a Senator of the United States sugge sted it to me

— that one of t h e means of avoiding the trouble which se emed

to exist here was to purchase the property of the relig ious or

ders and that if that evidence o f their ownership was removed
,

and the lands made Government property by the payme nt o f

money a large part o f the feeling against the orders would be
remove d I only ask it with a view t o bringing before the
,

commission the exact state of the case so that we may judge of

that suggestion .

.A The real r e as on why we conveyed our property to an

oth er par ty was to have n othing further to do with the ad min
i s tr at io n of t hese agricultural lands and to remove that com
plaint which was made against us that the friars owned all the
lands an d were making all the money .

.
Q I have no doubt that that was the purpose but I do ,

doubt if it will remove the entire d ifll c ul t y if it became known ‘

that the friars owned the majority of the stock I think it will .

be more effe ctually removed if the Government owned the prop

e r t y and sold it out in small parcels .

A The public see that we no longer have an y oste nsible

.

own ership do not admini ster it and have no interference in its

, ,

manag ement Besides that whenever money was paid for t h e

.
,

hacienda we would invest somewhere .

Q Yes but don t you think you could get more returns
’
,
.

than from these haciendas ?

A We could not invest it here
. .

Q Suppose you withdraw from parish work altogether I

. .

suppose you could fin d a lot of missionary work to do in these

islands and elsewhere ?
A Yes sir ; we would have plenty of mission work
.
, .

Q ; Archbishop Chapelle has told me t hat many of the order

were anxious to leave and that they re main e d largely at his
,

suggest ion .

A Yes s ir ; he has advised them to remain here

.
, .

Q There are two funds in the city the obras pias and ah
.
, ,

other obras pias called the miter fund ; Has your order an ln
t e r e s t in these funds ? Do you draw an income in those funds
which you administer in charitable work ?
A We receive the donation or ai ms which are paid by p ar
.

ties for the se obras pias such as for saying mass , .

Q Now that money is paid in and forms a fu n d which is

.
,

investe d by the head of the order ?

A These ob ra s pias are composed in this way : Spaniards
.

who have died and left i n their will instructions for so many
masses to be said and the money That money is partly placed .

in bank and they get interest on it The money is paid out to .

20
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R E P OR T OF I N T E RV I E W H A D B Y TH E
P R E SI DENT O F T H E C O MMI SS I O N
W I T H R EV J U A N V I LLEGA S , HEA D .

O F T H E FR A NC I S CAN C OR P OR A T I O N
I N TH E PH I L I PP I N E I S LAN DS .

The President I suppose you un derstand that th e ques

—

tions whi ch I sent to the archbishop and which were doubtless ,

shown to you are questions which you are entirely at liberty to

,

answer or not I prepared them wi th a view to cov ering the

.

subject matter which has been d i s c us s e d p ub li c ly and to give

-

you as representing the Franciscan Order a n opportunity to

, ,

state your views concerning that matter .

Father Villegas — I th ank you for this meeting and for the
.

o p p or t uhi t y given to us to reply .

The President — When was your order founded ?

.

Father Villegas I t was founded by the Pope viva voce i n

.
.
—
, ,

1 2 1 0 an d by papal bull in 1 2 2 3
, .

The Presiden t — When was your order established i n the

Philippines ?
Father Villegas — June 2 4 1 577 .
, .

The President — I suppose that its functions and powers

.

under the papal authority are to be found in a number of papal

bulls .

Father Villegas Yes s ir .

,
“

The President — Generally the o b ject of t h e order i s of a

.

missionary character ?
Fathe r Ville gas Yes sir ; and to civilize the individual
.
, .

The President — And they are charged with the duty of

e nlarging the usefulness of the church i n f or e i n parts
g . .

Father Villegas — Yes ; and to preser v e a n d keep in the

.

faith those who have been converted We have missions all .

over the world .

The President — Have you lay members as well as priests ?

.

Father Villegas Yes s ir ; but o n ly a few relatively ;

.
—
, ,

they are mostly used for service in the houses of the members
of the ord er .

The President — How many priests did you have in the o r

der in the Philippine Islands in 1 89 6 ?
( The reverend father stated that a pamphlet or book had , ,

been prepared giving this an d much other data concerning the

,

Franciscan order but n o t having been home since morning he

,
,

did not have i t with him A messenger was sent for the pam .

phlet ; pending his return the co nversation pr o cee d ed as fol

-

lows 9

The Presid ent What political o r civil functions d id the

—

priests exercise und er the Spanish Crown i n the parishes to

which they were assigned ?
Father Villegas None ; th at i s excep t in so far as duties
.
—
,

were intr us te d to them or r e quire d of them b y the govern

, ,

ment for the reason that the parish priest was the party i n
,

whom they h ad t h e most con fide nce

'

The President — I understan d that It is that actual e u

.
.

22
T oe Sen a t e Doc um en t ’
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whic h they e xercis e d under the government t h at I would

t h o r it y
like to have expl ain e d .

Father Vill e gas T h e following may be mentioned as

.
—

among the prin cipal duties o r powers exercised by the paris h

priest : He was inspector o f pri mary sch ools ; president of the
health board and board o f charities ; president of the board o f
urban taxation ( this was est ab lishe d lately ) ; i n spector of taxa
t ion ; pre viously he was the actual president but lately honor ,

ar y president o f the board o f public work s

, .

He certified to the correctness o f the cedulas— seeing that

they conformed t o the entries in the parish books They did .

not have civil regis tration here and so they had to depend upon ,

the books o f the parish priest Thes e books were sent in for .

the purpo s e o f this cedul a taxation but were not received by ,

th e authori ties unless vise e d b y the priest - .

He was president of the board of statistics because he was ,

the only person who had any education He was asked to do .

this work so that better results could be obtained It was .

against the will of t h e paris h priest to do this but he could only ,

d o as he w as told If they refused they were told that they

.
,

were unpatriotic and not Spaniards If they had de clined they .

,

would have be e n removed from their charge He was president .

o f the census taki n g o f the town .

Under the Spanish l aw eve ry man had to be furnished with

a certifica t e o f character If a man was i mprisoned and he w as
.

from another town they w o uld s e n d to that other town for his
,
.

ante ce dents and the court would e x amine whether they were
,

good o r bad They would n o t be received however unless the

. , ,

parish priest had his vi s é o n them The priest als o certified as .

t o t h e civil status of p e rsons .

Every year they d r e w lots for those who were to serve in

the army every fif t h man drawn being taken The p arish pr iest
,
.

would certify as to that man s condition ’

.

The Presiden t — That develops a new fact that I have not

known before They raised the ar my here then by i mpress
. , ,

ment ; it was not optional ?

Father Villegas A11 by ballot Every y ear they would g o
.
— .

t o what they call the sacramental books an d get the names of

all those wh o were twenty years of age This li s t being certi .

fie d to by the parish priest the nam e s were placed in an ur n and

,

then drawn out Every fifth man was taken

.
.

The Presiden t — Was the service disliked by those selected ,

?
o r did they regard it as an opportunity
— The y disliked it Many of t hem would
Father Villegas .
.

take to the woods and the civil guard would have to go afte r
,

them an d br ing them back They would be put in j ail and .

guarded until they could be taken to the capital city There .

were many cases o f desertion .

— They never serve d anyw here except in the

The Presiden t

1 8 1M d s i
j
Villegas
F tz i h e r
' Only in the islands ? .
—

— Were they in the habit o f having the reg i

The President .

ments enlisted in o n e part of t h e islands serve i n another part ?

— A1 1 the men were brought to Mani la and
.

Father Villegas .

the regiments formed were ver y much mixed .

z3
 ’
Roma n zr m
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T/te Sen a t e Documen t ana

(i td ev eloped that Rever e nd Viiieg as spoke with authority

in th is matter as he had b e en curat e for twenty y ears in the
,

northern p arts and had been t wenty five years i n the country
,
'
,

and always in the provinces ) .

President — Were you always in one part of the islands ?

The .

Father Ville gas — Yes ; I was where Tag alog was spoken .

Those who spoke Tagalog had to r e s i i e where Tagalog was s p o

ken They sent the priests t o the d ifier en t parts as young men
.

t o i e ar n the language and having lear n ed a particular language

,
,

he w as left to labor among tho se Wh o spoke it all his life ,

.

The P r esid e n t How lon g did it take a young priest to

-

earn e n ough l ag alo g to co n f e ss a parishion er ?

’‘

Father Villegas — In four o r fiv e month s th ey co uld f r e

.

quently und ersta nd each other perfectly ; in from eig ht months

to a year they could preach in the native tongue They learned
'

rapidly as they had n o Opportunity t o speak o r hear any other

,

langu age .

[ Proceeding with the enumeration of duties of th e priest

By law he h ad t o be present when there wer e elect ions for
municipal o filce s Very ofte n the p arish priest did not want to
.

but the people would come to hi m and say : Come for

g o
,
,

there will be disturbances and you will settle many d ifii c ui ,

ties .
"

He was censor of the municipal budgets before t hey were

sen t to the provincial gove rnor .

A gre at many of the duties I am now enumer ating were

’

given to t h e priests by the muni cipal law o f Maura .

He was also counselor for the municipal counsel when that

body met They would notify him th at they were going to
.

hold a meeting and i nvite him to be p r esent .

The pri ests were supervisors of the election of the police

force This also had to be submitted to the provincial gov
.

er n or .

He was examiner of the sch olars atte nding the first and
second grades in the public schools .

He was censor of the plays comedies and dram as in the ,

language of the count r y decidin g whethe r they were ag ainst ,

the public peace or the public mo r al s These pl ay s were p r e .

sent ed at the various fiestas of the people .

He was president of the prison b oard an d inspe ctor ( in ,

tur n ) o f t h e foo d provi ded for the prisoners .

H e was a member of the pr o vincial boar d Besides the '

.

par ish pr ie st there were two curat e s who served o n th i s board .

Before t h e provincial board came all m atters relating to pub lic

works and other cogna te matte rs All e s timat e s for public . .

buildin gs in the mu n icipal ities w e re s ub mit t ed t o t h is b o ard .

He was al s o a member of the b oard for p art itioning c rown

lands After the land was surveyed an d divided and a p e rson
.
,

wan ted t o s e ll his land he woul d present his ce rti ficate and t h e
,

boar d woul d pas s upon t h e q uestion whether o r not he wa s t h e

owner Thi s would be v i s e e d by the b o ar d 1 r purpo s e s f
.
“
‘
r

taxatio n When a pr i vat e i n divid u al w ante d to b uy g o ver n me n t

’

land h e would apply to t h e prop e r o ffice r p ay his money a n d

, , ,

the bo ard would dete rmine whether the transfer was accordin g
t o l aw.
24
 T/z e Sen a t e D oc um en t ’
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In some cases the paris a prie s ts in t h e c ap itals o f the

provinces would act as auditors In some of these places there .

would be only the administrator and then t h e curate would ,

come in and act as auditor .

B esides the above there were other s mall things which de

volved upon t h e priest It migh t be sa id that there were times ,

however when nothing of moment was done in the towns

, .

The President — Was this before the Maura law ?

.

Father Villegas — Yes ; ver y often they interfered in these

.

matters for the bene fit o f the town itself Of c ourse the only .

thing intrusted to them was the spirit ual welfare of the people .

b ut they had t o do this o t her work be cause asked to do so by

the government .

The President — They wer e the best e ducated men i n the

town and me n of force ; indeed the only class who knew how ,

t o conduct matters .

Father Villegas — The paris h priest did not learn business

. .

while studying the ology but after he ente red upon his charge
,

i t was force d upon him .

The President — I am to ld that onc e t th e rules of the Cat h ,

olic chur ch is that the ex isting civil authority is to be supporte d ,

and that it is a rule o f your order as we ll .

Father Vil legas — Yes ; it is a rule of our church laid down

.

by the p e pe and by Jesus Christ

,

The President — Were al l the members o f your orde r loyal

.

to Spain while it was sovereign of the islands ?

Father Villegas — Yes sir .
, .

The President — Were there any but Spaniards mem bers of

.

the order in these islands ?

Father Villegas — They were all Spani ards but one a mes
.
,

t i z o who was born in the islands but was raised and educate d
,

in Spain .

The Presiden t — The fact is is i t not that the members of , ,

t h e Franciscan o r der were relied upon by the Spanish g overn

ment to ma intain its au thori ty in the parishes where t h e mem
bers o fii c iat e d and t hat ther e were many parishes where there
,

were no soldiers the priests bei ng the only ones who represent
,

ed the sovereignty o f Spain ?

Fath er Villegas — Yes ; for two hundred and sixty years
.

t h ere were n o Spanish soldiers here at all .

The P r esident — Did it not result by reason o f this t hat ,

when th e revolution came on those in favor of th e revolution

we re hostile t o the members of your order because they d id rep
re sent the Spanish government ?
Father Villegas — That is not the ca se so far as th e Francis
.

can s are concerned for when the insurrectio n broke o ut the

, , ,

natives got them out of the way so there would be no trouble .

Even the money they had in their houses was sent to them to
Manila by t h e insurgents .

The President — Were any of the order i mprisoned ?

Father Villegas — In the first insurrection nothing happened
.

to them I n the second ( 1 89 8 ) some were imprisoned

.
.

The President — How many were imprisoned and f or how

io n g
F at h e r Villegas .
— S eventy -
eight were imprisoned ; some
25
 Tne Sen a t e Documen t d Roma n zr m
'

an

thr ee month some fifteen an d some have just come in to dav

s
,
-
.

All are now r eleased ;

The Pr esiden t — Will you kindly refer to your state ment

(brought by t h e messenger) and tell me the number of mem ,

ber s of your order who were here in 1 8 96 ?

Father Villegas In 1 89 7 there were 2 4 0 members
.
— .

The President — Doe s that i nclude lay membe rs ?

F ather Villegas — Yes sir . , .

The President — How many lay members were there as com

.

pared with the priests ?

Fathe r Villegas — There were but eleven lay members
. .

The President —How were the priests of your or der sup

.

po rted during the time they acted as parish priests ?

F ather Vil lega s — Tho s e in Manila connecte d with th e S e
.

clety of St Fr ances were supported by what was left of the

.

"
aims given t o t h e p ar i s h priests in t h e provinces .

The President — Did the government pay any salaries to

the pri ests ?
Father Villegas — In the provinces they were paid salaries
.

— whatever the governor

would apportion th em If there was .

anything left over from this it was sent to Manila to support

t h e community o f St Frances . .

The Presiden t — What did those salaries amount t o ?

Father Villegas From five hundred t o twelve hundred
.
—

dol lar s accordin g to the size of the town

, .

The President — Then I suppose there were certain fees

.

charged for the administration of the sacrament ?

Father Villegas There was no ch arge f o r the sacrament
.
—
,

b ut where it was administered in co nn ection with marri age

there was a fee for the trouble o f performing th e m arriage cer
emony T h ese fees were for the church for the choir for the
.
, ,

sexton etc , .

The President — Did not the priest use any of this for him
.

self ?
Fath e r Ville gas — Yes sir ; he had a certain proportion
.
, .

The Pr e s id e n tt Were the fees to be charged fixed by the

-

bishop?
Father Vill e gas — By the bishop and approved by the cap
.
,

tai n general
-
.

The Presiden t — Who built t h e churches in which the mem

bers of yo ur order offi ciated ?
Father Villegas — T hey were bu ilt with the revenues of the
.

parish by donations from the people and t h e priest The gov

, .

er n b r al s o apportioned certain funds for church build ing

, , .

The President An d ther e were volun t ary donations by the

-

parishioners ?
Father Ville gas Yes by the paris hioners and by the
.
—
,

pr i ests t hemse lves Som e of the parish priests have them s elves
.

remained without a cent because they spe n t all their salary in

b uild ing the church .

The President — Were the churches buil t on a public square

— usually o n the plaza in the mi dle of the
d to w n ?
Fathe r Villegas l h e governor would d e signate the spot
’ ‘
-
.

where the church was to be built .

The President — An d t h at was o n governm e nt property ?

26
Tne Sen a t e Docum en t d Roma n zs fn
'

an

Father Villegas — If it was anything but government prop

.

arty it was paid for out of the funds o f the church .

The President When y o u purchased land i n this way in

—

whom was the title placed ?

Father Villegas I t was placed in the name of the parish
.
—

priest ; b ut as parish priest an d not in his individual right , .

T h e President — Will you kindly state what agricultural .

lands o r haciendas your order own s in the islands ?

Father Villegas W e d o not o wn any .
— .

The President Have y o u never o wned haciendas ?

—

Father Villegas No sir ; we are not allowed to own them

.
—
, .

It is for this reason that all the members of the order who live
in Manila are supported by what is left over fro m what is given
the parish priests .

The Presiden t You did not own any property before 1 8 9 5 ?

—

Father Villegas Only the h ouses in which we live We

.
— .

do not o wn any suburban property at all We have here in Ma .

nila near Sam Paloc a convent o r parsonage a half convent at

, , ,

Santa Ana and two in fir mar i e s one at Santa Cruz and one at
, ,

Nue va Caceras .

T h e President — Do you o w n any property in the city o f

.
'

Manila o r in any other parts of the islands used for rental

, ,

purposes ?
Father Villegas W e do not We are not allowed to hold
.
— .

The Presid e nt You own no property . therefore except

—
,

houses which are used by y o u to live in and chur ches used for
devotional purposes ?
F ath er Villegas — That is all . .

The President Is there far ming land in connection with

—

them ?
F ather Villegas — Noth ing but kitchen gardens I n t h e
. .

prov in ce o f Al b ay a we had a college for secondary instruction ,

but that has been burned .

The President When a priest was assign ed to work in a

.
—

c ertain parish was there any rotation ?

,
D id he go to another
to wn after he had served i n one for a number of years ?
Father Villegas There was no r o tation .
— Some of the .

priest s re mained in the same place until they died Some have .

lived in the same town for thirty or forty years ; elsewhere as ,

long as the people wanted them .

The President Was there a supervision exercised over

t he priests engage d in parish work ?
Fathe r Villegas — A supervision was exercised over them
.
.

The provincial visited every one o f them once a year .

The President Were cases o f immorality ever broug ht to

.
—

the attention o f the order and disciplined ?

Father Villeg as That was the very purpose of these yearly
.
—

visits o n the part o f the provincial Besides this he had r e p . ,

r e s e n t at iv e s in the province who kept a close supervision over

these people If found delinquent they would be punished
.
,

and even expelled f rom t h e order .

T h e President Were th e re any cases of immorality ; and

.
—

if so how many speaking generally ?

, ,

27
Tue Sen a t e Documen t
’
Roma n zs m
'

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Father Villegas There have been case s b ut they were

. ,

rare I cannot tell how many

. .

The President I do not ask the question to condemn y o u

'

— .
.

A priest living in this wild country far removed from his home
, ,

and people is liable to fall They are human

, . .

Father Villegas That is understood .

The President — It has been said that one of the grounds

for the reported hostility to the religious orders ge n erally has
been the fact that there was immorality among the priests .

What have you to say to that ?

Father Villegas They who accuse should prove I do
. .

not believe that is the real cause for the hostility

I do not believe it either
.

The Presid ent .

, .

Father Villegas — I have been a parish priest for a long

time and I can truly s ay that as a matter of fact the Ind ians
.

, , ,

have no complaint to make on this ground It is only when .

they get angry that they mak e these accusations One of the .

proofs o f this is the gene ral chas t ity o f the Filipino women .

They are what they have seen and what they have been taught .

The President I h ave been very much grati fied to hear

.
—

that the women of the Philippine s generally ar e ch aste in their

way I believe it is owing greatly to the teachings of the
.

church But the Filipino women seem to have a little di fferent

.

ide a of chastity from that which prevails in ot her countries .

F o r instance they do not always insist on the existence of the

,

sacrame n t of marriage befo re living with a man .

Father Villeg as I do not believe there has been much of

.
-

tha t When they do go to live with men in that way they know
.

it is agai n st the te achings of the church .

The President Has the example set by t h e F ilip ino priests

.

in this re s pe c t been particularly good ? Is not the Filipino

priesthood a distin ctly inferior set intellectually both in matter ,

of le arning and in matter of morality ?

Father Ville gas You are to j udge of that The com
.
—
.

manders of the garrisons i n the differen t towns can inform you .

If the d ay should ever come when the regular clergy should t e

turn to their parishes the n the commanders of the American
,

forces can see and appreciate the difference between the present
pries t s and the for mer ones The towns alread y remember .
.

T h e President — I t has been suggested to me and it is a

,

very strong arg ument that the charges of immorality brought

,

against the friars is not t h e real cause of hostility again st t hem .

becau s e an argument much stronger than that could be brought -

against th e F ilipino priests yet they do not seem to share that

,

hostility If the people are so sensitive upon that subject they

.

,
have mu ch stron ger reason for it now .

Father Villegas — The whole thing is a question o f color

.
.

The A mericans as well as Spaniards are getting it because of

our color an d features .

T h e Pr e sident Was it possible un der the Spanish regime

.
-

to secure the deportation of any member of his parish by r e pr e

sentin g to the governor that the party was a dangerous member
of socie ty
Fathe r V ille gas No sir .
, .

h e President Was this neve r done ?

‘

28
 T/ze Sen a t e Documen t and R om a n zr m
'

The Pres ident W he re d id the o t h e r s b ?

. u

Father Villeg as t h e y a l l retur n ed to Spain and from

. ,

th ere they were sent t o S o uth America to Cuba and two were , ,

sent to China These latte r were up t h e river beyond Shanghai

. ,

an d are now out o fif .

The Presiden t Is your ord e r largely represented in China ?

—

Father Villegas There are q uite a number . .

The Presiden t — Did the insurgent government at Malolos

pass any law against your order or against your property ,

F at h cr V illegas — The only thing i t did was t o concede lib

‘

e r t y t 0 the priests who were imprisoned but the law was not
'

carrie d i n to e ffect at once .

The President — Did not the parliament at Malolos pass a

.

law c on fis c at i n g the property of the religio us order s ? Did this

.

apply to your order or properties ?

Fat her Villegas Not having any property it did not aff e ct
.
—
.

us The question of funds and property has never troubled us

.

There is one other q uestion I want to as k

. .

The President . .

Has your or d e r any interest in the O b ra s Pia s ?

Father Villegas N0 i n terest . .

The President — None of t h e revenues are distributed to

.

you ?
Father Villegas — All that we have is such as is given to
.

u s i n the way of aims as is give n to the poor , .

The President Have you a representative on the board

—

of the Obras Pias ?

Father Villegas The third ord er which is not com po sed
.
—
,

of anoin ted priests has a representative o n the board but they

, ,

d o not belong to our or d er

‘

The Presi d ent Is the third order a F r an c i s c an o r d e r ?

.

F ather Villegas — While related to the Franciscans they

.
,

d o not belong to t h e or d er .

The President Does this third orde r own any property ?

.
—

Fathe r Villegas Yes sir .

, .

The President Do the y o wn haciendas ?

.
—

Father Villegas They own property as private indi

.

v id ual s .

The President But they have a representative o n the

.

board of the Obras Pias ?

Father Villegas Yes sir .
, .

The President — Out of the income received by the Ob as

. r

Plas they receive a par t of the money ?

Father Villegas — Yes ; they receive something from the
.

Obras Pias .

The President Does the third order g i ve you any thing ?

.
-

Father Villegas i b ey give us a small do n ation They

‘

.
—
' ‘

also g ive to maidens who have n o dowry to get married who ,

belong to the ord er and to young men to go to school etc,

For in stance I am a private individual an d d ie in my will I

, .

leave to be distributed at the rate of $2 a year to the poor .

The money is placed in the bank an d o ut of the procee ds $2 is ,

paid every ye ar The money is ap portioned out and we get a

.

cer tain p o rtion T h e c o r p or t i o n itself is entirely foreign to it

.
.

The President I am very much obliged to you for coming

.
-

30
Tue Sen a t e Docum en t d Roma n zr m
'

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to see me and for the i nterest in g f acts which you have c o mmu
,

nine ted I am sorry t o have t aken s o much o f your time

.
.

Father Villegas — I t h as been a pleasure t o us to meet y o u

.

and to te ll you what we knew We are entirely at your serv ice .

,

and will be glad at any time t o furnish you whate ver infor ma
tion is within our power .

TH E OR DE R O F A U G U S T I NI ANS— TH E
V E R Y R E V E R END JO S E L O B O .

Q I . am very much obliged to you and the father for

com ing .

A There is no reason for it w h atever ; we are glad to give

.

y o u any information we have .

Q How old is your order ?

.

A We are the first ones that ca me here with the conqueror

.
,

Le gaspi .

Q Not in the
.

A From the four th century named afte r the great Au

.
,
~

gustin .

Q When did the order come to the Philippines ?

.

A In 1 56 5
. that is to the island o f Cebu — we came t o ,

Manila in 1 5 7 1 the foundation o f the city

, .

Q A r e its powers and functions contained in one lustra

.

ment or in a number o f papal bulls ?

,

A After the approval o f the order by the Pope there was

.
,

a constitution made for the order and that constitution we have ,

n o w but it is a very large book and is written in Latin

, .

Q And it has been amended from time to time ?

.

A Corrections are made in the constitution

.

Q Now I presume the constitution authorized you t o do

.

.
,

missionary work and enlarge the usefulness o f the church ?

Yes s ir : we are organiz e d for missionary work Manila
, .

is t h e principal point and from here we have organized various

,

departments ( Gives the president a book o f the order in the

.

Orient ) .

Q Has the order lay members as well as priests ?

.

A Yes sir ; quite a few about 2 1 ; that is there were 2 1

.
,
—
,

at o n e time Now there are about 8 or 1 0

. .

Q H o w many prie sts had the order in the islands in 1 8 9 6 ?

.

A Thr ee hundred and eighte en priests includ ing lay mem

. ,

bers those stud ying t o become priests provincial priests an d

, , ,

t hose in Manila
Q I shall also fin d in this book which you have kindl y
.

g iven me a list o f the cities and to wn s in which the Augustin

ians had parish priests .

A Yes sir In i locos Norte and Sur Union Pampanga

. , . , , ,

Bulacan Nueva Ecij a Tarlac 9 in Manila 7 or 8 in Batangas

, , . , ,

o n e half the island of Cebu Iloilo A n t in g ua Capiz and the dis

-
, , ,

trie t o f Conception .

Q What civil or political functions did the priests o f your

.

order exercise under the Spanish Crown i n the parishes over

which they presided ? I d o not mean what was written in t h e
law but the actual functions vvh ic h they discharged ?
,
al
 Tue Sen a t e Documen t ana
’
Ro mm ma
'

A The provi n c ial whoe ver h e might be; was the adviser
.
, ,

o f the a d ministra t ion Wheneve r h e desired to leave the town

.

he asked p e rmission of the c ap tai n general or governor o f the -

province The priests interve n ed or to ok part in the election

"

of local presidentes ; in the levy of soldiers ; they also f o r med

schedules that indicated the names o f all the individu als who
were subject to taxation ; they took part in the inspect ion o f
schools ; in public works They exercised these functions by
.

orde r of the g o v er n o r o f the archipelago o r by order of the

Government of Spain .
a;

Q One of the rules of the chu r ch as I have heard it ex

.

pounde d and doubtless of your orde r is that the existing con

, ,

stituted authority shall always be respected ?

A The law of t h e gospel is that everyone shall pay due
.

respect to the organized government and to all laws that are i n

existence .

Q And the members of your order were loyal to Spain dur

.

ing the revolution ?

A Yes sir ; every o n e of them
.
, .

Q I omitted to ask whether you have any natives in your

.

order ?
A No ; all Spaniards We had in the past century a few
.
.

natives in the order but they did not prove very efficient and
,
,
we let the m go .

Q Was it not a fact that in a greater part of these islands

.

there were no Spanish soldiers and no Spanish police t o main

tain the sovereignty of Spain ?
A There were very few Spanish soldiers here the priests
.

in each province being a sort of a colonel and at the ti me I ,

came there were or 8 0 0 0 native militia .

Q So that in a great majority of towns where the parish

.

priests of your order officiated those prie s ts were really the ,

only represen t atives of Spanish sovereignty ?

A The priest was the only Spaniard in a great many of the
.

towns. I myself have exercised priestly functions in four or

fiv e cities where I h ave bee n the only man with a white face
.

Q Did not this fact arouse against the members o f your

.

ord er the enmity of those engaged in the revolutions of 1 89 6

and 1 8 9 8 a
A Yes sir ; th at is a fact Rizal Blo o me n ti l Gregorio
.
, .
, ,
del Pil ar (now dead ) began a movement against the friars
,
knowing very well that i f they remo ved t h e pedestal o r f o un d a
tion of s overeignty of Spain in th e s e i slands
that at that mo
ment the whole structure would topple over and in their secr et ,
ord er they began a movement against the friars
creatin g a bad
fe eling against them
,
.

Q H o w were the priests of your order acting as parish

.

priests supp orted ?

,

A As there was u n ity between the church and the state

.

the state gave to the parish priests certain ’ ,

compensation and
beyond this the church h ad fixe d tari ffs for instance fr m ,

o
-

singing ; the people i n some case s making them p r esents and ,

between these sources of reven ue they mai n tained ,

themselves
Q In your order how large a salary was paid to the priest
.
.

s
by the Government ?
32
Tue Sen a t e Docum en t ’
Roma n zs m
'

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A They were organized into three classes ; the first r e

.

c e i ve d per ann um the second $80 0 an d the third $6 0 0

, , , . ,

and then y o u must deduct fro m that 1 0 per ce nt ,money that

was returned to the Government .

Q That is the Government paid out a salary and then took

.
,

part of it back ?
A This 1 0 per cent tax was imposed on all salaries n o t
.
,

only t h e priests b ut the military department to fight any revo ,

Iut io n . It was a temporary afiair .

Q Yo u r e c e i ve d fee s for christening for burials and for

'

.
, ,

mar riages ? How were the amounts fixe d ?

A The priest himself charg ed nothing for the rite of bap
.

t i s m except that he received the tribute of o n e e i gh t h o f a dol

,

lar and this money went to the fund s of the church It did
,
-

not become the personal property o f the priest F or marriages .

he received but out of this he had to turn into the funds

of the church the eighth portion of two d o llar s b e i n g the s um ,
\

o f 3 5 cents ; and the other 2 5 cents he also had to turn in there ,

fore he had remaining the sum o f For the burial of a

child the fee was 7 5 cents ; f o r the burial of an adult ,

T hese were the tariffs that were imposed as a rule but if the ,

person to be married o r if the relatives o f the person to be

,

buried desired greater services more music more ringi ng of , ,

bells then we levied a special fee

,
.

Q Who built the churches and the conventos in which the

.

priests o f your order o fii c i at e d as parish priests ?

A These edifices were constructed from the funds of the
.

church
Q That is funds o f the particular parish ?
. ,

A Each p arish had its o wn particular fu n ds and from

. ,

these funds they were constructed In times gone by tribute s .

were levied called d ie s mo s and from these fun d s edifices

”
,

were constructed It happens that in all countries acquired b y

.

Spain in Mexico in South America thi s d i e s mo s tax has

, , ,

been imposed for the purpose b f erecting edifices ; but Pope

suppressed the levy of this tax and recently a tax cal led san ,

toru m has been levied I cannot be certain that the Pope sup
.

pre ssed this but I know that he gave the kings authority to
,

impose the santorum These funds we r e placed at the dis

.
"

posal o f the parish priests The bishop exerc ised general au .

t h o r i t y but there were certain funds each parish had

.

Q Now the Santor um or what was before that the

”
. ,

d i e s mo s was a contribution levied on the people of the p ar

,

ish to build the churches Was that a volun tar y cont ribution . ,

o r was it a regular tax

?
A All Catholic residents of the parish were requi red to
.

p ay it .

And they were all Catholics ?

Q .

A Ye s sir ; it was a special fee imposed on all Catholics

. ,

O f fi p r ish
g lt
.

i o w coming to the twe lfth question what agricultural

,
,

pr operties did the Augustinian order o wn 1 n the 1 s l an d s ?

A At the present time it owns t wo small h ac 1 e n d as one in
.
,

An gs t and the other in G au d al up e But thi s o n e i n G aud al up e .

33
 ’
T/z e Sen a t e D ocumen t ana Roma n ir m
is a very small afiai r and can hardly be called a hacienda The
,
.

one i n Angat is al s o very small .

Q How much property h ad you before the revolution o f 1 89 6 ?

.

A In 1 89 3 we sold the gr e ater portion of our proper ty

.
.

Q To whom we re they sold ?

.

A To a Spanish corporation
. I think there was an Eng .

lishman in the corporation .

Q And you took as part payment stock in the new corpora

.

tion ?
A Yes sir ; we have more than half the stock
. ,
.

Q Now if you w ill go back befor e 1 89 3 I would like t o

. , ,

know what agricultural lands you owned ?

A A great many and very good ones Here in Man ila we
. .

had three or four good ones Taking all the acreage we had .
,

cultivated and uncultivated probably hectares through ,

o ut the archipelago .

Q Can you distribute that acreage ?

.

A The large one was in Cag ay e n

. hectares call ed , ,

S t Augustin Colony This hacien d a is in the province o f

”
'

“
. .

Isabela but it is ge n erally called Cag ay en Tobacco alone was

, .

raised but coffee and sugar could be r aised Only a small por
, .

tion was cultivated .

In Cavite : San Francisco d e Malabon hectares c ul , ,

t iv at e d in rice and sugar .

In Manila : Malinta hectares ; Man d alo a , hec , r

tares an d Monte Lupa

, hectares cultivate d chiefly rice
, , .

In Cebu : Talisay hectares sugar and rice ; a great

, ,

deal of sugar We had a plant and machinery There were

. .

two parcels of land but they were under one name ; simply o n e
,

administration of the entire property .

In Bulacan : Two small haciendas under rice cultivation .

Angat 600 hectares ; Quingua 9 8 7 ; and Guin to 9 00 hectares

, , , .

Those I have mentioned do not belong t o us now except ,

th e ones at Angat and G aud alup e of which I first spoke

‘

, .

Q A r e there any others you have sold except those men

.

t i o n e d here ?
A Yes sir ; o n e called Pasay 4 80 hectar es was sold year s
.
, , ,

ag o t o Warner Barnes Co , .

Q And you have no inte rest in that ?

.

A No sir ; it was an absolute sale This includes all th e

.
, .

pr operty we n o w own or have owned .

Q How were these properties farmed when you owned

.

t hem ; how did you get income from them ?

A We cultivated the lan d s and on properties that we
.
re ,

dry we built ditches and canals and irrigate d all the property , .

For instance at Malab o n we spent $400 0 i n the buil d ing o f

,
'

d itches and d ams .

Q Now did you rent that property after improving it o r

.

,
did y o u farm it y ourselves ?
A We rente d out the e s tates to different tenants but gen
.

, .

o rally these rentals d i d 1 c t amount to more than

o ne half what -

ordinary in di viduals paid f o r o t h e r properties

.
'

Q Did the same tenan t continue t o use th ese p arcels an d

.

did it go down in the family from one generation to another ?

34
 T/z e Sen a t e D oc um en t
’
Roma n zs m
'

an a

.A Yes si r ; the prope rty went from fat her t o so n and

, ,

they ret ained posse ssion for many years and there were gre at ,

efforts made t o secure thes e properties .

.
Q And suppose a famil y that had such a privile ge des ire d
t o se l l it were they able t o d o so ?
,

.A They c ould n o t without the permission o f the ad min is

trato r , be cause we would expose ourselves to the possibili t y o f
s ome o n e comin g in wh o would damage the proper t y .

.
Q You retaine d th e c ont ro l to say who should be tenants ,

but was n o t th e privil ege o f being a tenant on certai n piece s of

'

land r eg ar d e d as valuable so that that privilege was sold by one

,

t o another provided the consent f o r the tran sfer was obtain ed

,

from th e administ rator ?

.A They alway s retained possession of these propertie s
afte r once securing them because they receive d more bene fits
,

from t hi s proper t y t han from occupyi ng ot h er p r op er t y .

Q I f ear you have not made my questi on clear t o th e fath

..

er.
( Re peats question ) .

A Of t hat I can give you no particular in format ion bec ause

.

I have n o t bee n o n the hacienda s but I will say th at without

,

the cons en t of th e admi nistra tor he could not sell but if he se ,

cur e d th e conse nt o f th e administr ato r he certainly could .

.
Q Who collec ted the rents ? Was it the p ari sh priests in
t h e immedia te neighborhood o r did you have persons espe,

c ially delegated for that particular p urpose ?

A In An g s t there is a nati ve of the town t hat collects th e
.

rent s ; in San Francisco de Malabon it was a lay member ; in

Mali nta a lay member ; in Mandaic s a lay member ; in Qui ng ua
and Guinto the same parish priest received and cellect ed t h e
rents becau se they were smal l place s and the natives were very
g oo d in payin g their rents .

Q How long had the or der held these various estates befor e
.

th ey so ld th em ?
A Th e oldest reco rd s ar e t hose t hat were made in the s ix
.

t ee n t h cen tury We have some of the eighte enth In th e year

.
.

1 8 7 7 the corporation ac qui red posses sion of th e hacie nda at S an

F ranci sco de Malabon by purcha se from the Count of Ave lac h e
an d various ot her own ers and another porti on of thi s same os
,

ta te was acquired fr om Mons Cazal by ex change o f prop er t y

. .

Q . Those were pu r chas e s and not benefits ?

A Yes sir ; we have bou ght all of our property Ver y
. ,
.

few pieces of property have ever been given to the corporati on .

Q Now this es at Have o u held that for a

'

in Cag aye n
'

. t e y .

long time ?
A I wish to ex ce pt the estate in Cag ay en for this propert y
. ,

was ce ded t o us by the government o f Spain on the 2 5th o f

Apri l 1 8 80 as will appear from royal order o f th at day We
, ,
.

spe nt an immense s um of money on this est ate an d have h ad ,

but slight r e t urns for it We have cleared up th e lands; an d it

.

h as be en placed in a state o f cultivation .

1 8 8 0 ; San Fr an cis co de Mal

QN . o w Ca a
g y e n was ceded in
abo n in 1 877 Now how about th ese estates in Manila ?
.

A These four in Mani la are very old ; Mali nta in 1 745 an d

.
,

a p or ti on in 1 838 .

35
T/ze Sen a t e D ocumen t d Roma n zstn
'

an

Q Were these purchases ?

.

A Yes sir ; all purchases

.
,
.

Q . Man d al o a ?
A One half of the property was acquired by an exchange
.

o f property from the Dominican fathers We exchanged an

h acienda with them for this property i n the year 1 6 9 2 ; another
portion of it was acquired by pur chase in 1 65 4 and still another ,

portion was acquired by purchase i n 1 6 75 and another s mall ,

piece was secure d in 1 69 9 .

o Monte Lupa ?
y Purchased in the year 1 6 6 5 by the corporation .

p Cebu ?
> Purchased in the year 1 7 3 4 .

o Q uin gua ?
> Purchased at public auction in 1 83 4 .

o A ngat ?
> The date d o e s not appear in the record but it appears ,

that part of it was secured by purchas e and part by exchange .

I believe it w as in the century past but I am not sure , .

Q Guinto ?
.

A Pos s ession acquired i n 1 7 5 4 by purchase

. .

Q How much is the estate at Guadalupe ?

.

A I t contains 85 hectares part acquired by purchase and

.
,

part through pious donations .

Q What property whether improved or not did you own

.
, ,

in the ci ty of Manila for rental pur poses ?

A We own the convent o f the sixteenth centur y
. It is .

the most s o lid structure in the Philippines the chur ch and con —

vent Th e one with the bridge across the s t reet The build
. .

ings o n both s ides are ours We have thirty members o f the

.

order l i ving in this h ouse and j ust as soon as I am able to de

crease the n umber unde r my care I want to sell th is house I
,

, .

am v ery an xious to sell it The first house is ours but j ust ad

.
,

joinin g is the house o f the Jesuits The bridge communi .

cates
Q I unde rstand you to say that you own no improved prop
.

e r t y of a n y sort in Manila for rental p urposes ?

A No . .

Q D o you own any vacant lots in the city ?

.

A The lot i n S an Mar c i l i n o only

.
I t contains square .

meters bought by the corporation in 1 8 8 3 It was bought for

, .

the purpose of erecting an orphanage asylu m .

Q Do you own an y improved property in other cities in

the islands ?
A In Cebu we o wn so me lots but the rents are very small
.
, .

We h ave a magni ficent structure in Iloilo that cost

but at the beginning of the present trouble it was taken pos
sessi on of an d now it is u s ed as a barracks
, .

Q W a s t h at c o ntem plated for a h a b itation for monks ?

.

A It w a s built for the purpose o f teaching to be a sort o f

.

college an d when i t was finished the war with America came

.

o n a n d this structure b e ing o ut of to wn was not

,
burned and it ,
1 8 now occupi ed by A merican troops They are no more .
.

Q A s to the custom of the order in retaining t h e same

.

36
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t K oma n zr m
'

and

mean s they would not reveal their whereabout s As a r ule .

th ey received many gifts and things to e at from th e Indian s ,

and afterward s they were well treated At th e beginning th ey .

were badly tre ated

Q I th ink y o u have answere d the question as t o the caus e
.

o f hosti li t y against the p r iests but I may ask again wheth e r

.

yo u att ribute it to the political position that the priests n e ce s sa

r ily occ upied in the p arishes represe nting the Span ish crown .

A The Government o f Spain in t h e Philippines can be

.

compared to a round table having but o n e leg and that leg in ,

the center of the table the friar here being the leg and th e
,

sole support of the main body o f the table The heads of the .

K atipunan organiz ation realiz ing that to tumble the whole

, ,

structure it was necessary first to destroy the fo undation b e ,

gan this disturbance by criminating the friars telling lies about ,

them and for this reason the hostility arose toward t h e friars ;
,

but th e Katipunan heads were the only ones that really h ad any
hostil it y toward the friars as is proven by the fact t hat the
people in the pari sh are an xious for their re turn
,

Q How man y members of your order are now in the

“

islands and where are they l iving ?

,

A One hundre d and forty and they live in thes e two

house s we have talked of In Hon g k o n g we have six o r seven
. ,

studyin g English and in Ma cao we h ave twenty six or twen ty

.

-
,

seven Origin ally we were three hundred and eighte en as I

.
,

have stated .

Q Considering those killed and those remainin g in the

.

islands how man y have left here have gone back to Spain to
, , ,

South America or elsewhere ? ,

A Since the year 1 89 8 there have left to Spain ninety

.
,

eight to Macao twenty six to the Chinese missions in the

,
-

pr ovince of H anan thre e t o the Republic of Colomb ia ten t o

, ,

Braz il eight Peru five Hongkong s ix

, , The to t al of those who .

have left the islands is one hundred and fif ty six There may -
.

be an er ror or so but this is approx imate ly correct

,

Q They are at present supporte d I suppose in Mani la

.

.
, ,
here by the funds of the order ?
A Yes sir
.
, .

Q Did th e i nsurgent government at Malolos pass a law

.

c o nfis c at i n
g th e p r operty of your order ?
A Yes indeed ; they passed man y laws c o n fis c at in g every
.
. .

thing we had .

Q Did they attempt to collect rents from those haciendas

.

that are held by the corporations to whom you transferred your

property ?
A I cannot state as to that but I suppose that they did
.
, .

Q At least that was the case with respect to the Domin i

.

can e sta t es ; so I e m i nforme d by Mr An d rews to whom th ey .

,
were sold ?
A Yes sir ; I suppose t hat is true but wit h refer en ce t o
.
,

o ur own property I can not st ate positi vely

,

Q Can you te ll me the value o f your agricultural property

.

— th e hect ares — before i t was sold— just a gener al esti

mate ?
88
 ’
T/z e Sen a t e Doc um en t Roma n zs m
’

an a

A The haciendas possessed by the Augustinian fathers

.

were the best in the Philippines I cannot tell you exactly

.

some million s — possibly t e n o r twelve millions If sold at a .

time when we had peace and property were good they would .

be worth a g reat deal more .

Q Can you give me the income from those haciendas ?

.

A The total rental we secured in the year 1 89 1 amount ed

.
f

to O f course these properties were never rented at

the figure we could have obtained as we charged con siderably ,

le ss than others .

Q Do yo u think that the corporations that own the prop

.

e r t y n o w would be willing t o sell to the Government ?

A Yes sir ; they do not desire to administer the property

.
, .

They are willing to sell in my opinion to t h e one offering the

most .

Q Does your ord e r insist on doing parish work or would

.
,

you be willing t o do missionary work alone ?

A Whatever the pope or apostolic delegate says
Q I have un derstood I think from the apostolic delegate
. .

. , ,

that the members of the order would prefer to go elsewhere ,

but that he had detained them ?

A Whate ver is commanded whatever is ordered
.
, .

Q Now about the obras pi as

. How large a share of the .

obras pias did your order obtai n ? D oes it vary o r is it fix ed ?

A I am the president o f the board myself and we only
. ,

handle a very small amount and we as an order secure , , ,

nothing from this fund .

Q But I suppose when there ar e sacraments to be per

.

formed by reaso n o f requirements in wills of deceased masses

t o be said t hat they assign that work to the different orders
—

and a certain amount is paid to the orde r for performing that

service ?
A Well suppose that a person dies and leaves so
'

.
,

that masses s h o ul d b e said This money goes to the province .

where the sacraments are performed For instance i n a cer . ,

tain province so much money is left then so many masses are ,

said.

Q Have y o u a l arge amount of money lent out here o n

.

hemp and such things ?

A No
Q The mite r I believe is administ ered by the archbishop ?
. .

. , ,

A Yes sir
. , .

Q And he assigns the work to be done under the provi s

.

ions o f that fund ?

A We have charge of the pios fund and works that are
.

erected edifice s constructed by the miter fund we have

charge o f those works That is the board of which I am presi
, ,

dent
The President — Expression of thank s
.

. .

The Provincia1 — We are always glad t o give you any in f or

.

mation that we have and you may rest assured that the in f o r
,

mation we give you— those that wear the cassock will be the
,
—

truth and yo u will fin d out at the termination of your exami na

,
r

ti on that what information we have given you has bee n more

r eli ab le t han what y o u have procured from the me z t i z o s .

39
 ’
Tue Sen a t e Documen t Roma n zr m
'

an a

U U 2 A G ST , 1 9 00 .

RE COLET OS P RO V I N C I AL V E R Y — R EV .

F R A NC I S C O A R AYA .

When was your order first organized ?

The order was founded in the year 1 60 2 .

When did it first come to the Philippines ?

In 1 60 6 four ye ars after i t s foundation and it has been
, ,

here continuously since then .

I presume that its functions and powers i n the church are

defined by a charte r o r constitution by the Pope ?
In the year 1 60 2 the constitution under which the organ iza
tion was founded was approved by Pope Clementine the E ighth .

And that constitution with amendments established it as a

r eligious order within the Catholic Church for the purpose of
en larging the work and doin g missionary work ?
Yes sir ; under the constitution approved by the Pope the
,

order is a religious one having in view the civilization of peo

,

ple who require or need it and the Christianizing of all i ndi

v id ual s .

And your work l ies c h ie fiy along missionary lines ?

Yes s ir , .

Have you bran ches o f your Order in oth er parts of t h e

w orld besides the Phi lippines ?
We have a colle ge in Spain to educate the young men ena ,

bling them to join our order We have also a co lle ge in the .

United States and they are sent here as a general rule We

, .

have the head of our order in Rome but o f course above him is ,

the Pope We are doing mission ary work in Panama Re public

.
,

o f Colombia Brazil and in some other South American coun

. ,

t r ies
.

Has the ord er lay members as well as priests ?

We have about nine lay members here .

How many priests had the order in the islands in 1 8 9 6 ,

before the revolution began ?
In 1 89 5 we had 8 44 and of this number 2 6 were lay
,
”

members .

And t his book to which reference has been mad e I p r e

, ,

sume contains a statement of the towns and villages in which

,

your members officiate d as parish priests ?

Yes sir ; and I present it to you with pleasure
, .

What civil and political functions did the pri ests o f your
order exercise in their parishes under the Government o f Sp ain ?
The priests of their o wn will exercised no poli tical func
ti ons but at the request of the authorities they exercised many
,

functions For instance they might obtain the number i n a

.
,

settlement who should pay taxes ; they also might formul a te a

census ; they also might send a report to the governor as to th e
number of legal actions that had taken place in the co urts o f
first instance there .

Did t hey ever exercis e judicial functions at all ?

No sir ; they exercised no judicial functions but when t h e
,
,

40
 Th e Se n a t e D oc umen t ’
Roma n zr m
’

an a :

authorities wanted to k now about any criminal acts they would

send t o the little governor and then g o to the priest f o r con
“
‘

fir mat i on .

Did they have any duty in connection with enlisting men

for the army ?
No s ir ; those who formed the army here would appear to
,

d o so by chance They had cards and drew lots to see who

.

wo uld form the army and the priest supervised that drawing, .

What p art did they have in the admi nistration o f the

schools ?
They were local inspectors that visited the schools and
found out after careful investigation as t o whether or not the
te achers were performing their duties properly and whether o r
not the chil dren were attending
Were they called m as advisors in matters of public work s ?
,
'

Speakin g o f government works there have been few per ,

formed in the islands Outside public roads there have been .

none and in that reports were asked of the par ish priests as to
,

whether the work was performed according to speci fications .

In how many towns i n which your order o fil ciat e d as parish ‘

priests were there soldiers o r other people representin g the

Crown o f Spain beside the priest ? ,

Soldiers they had none recently they had a sort o f civil

guard .

That guar dia civil was a b ad thing ?

Yes sir ; they abused their privilege The instit ution is a
, .

good one but they abused their authority

, .

Was it not a fact that for a great many years in these i s l

ands the parish priests repres ented Spain the government in , ,

all that there was o f law an d order in the parishes ?

6 Absolutely Up to the year 1 8 7 9 1 8 8 0 when they sent this
.
—
,

gu ardia civil seven or eight men i n each town— they had no

'

o n e t o represent the Spanish government outside the priest .

At the capital o f the d iii er e n t provin ces t hey had a few soldiers ,

but outside that none .

So tha t any hostility to the crown o f S pain among the

people was against the priest as representing the government
o f Spai n ?
Absolutely There has been no resentment and no ill feel
.

i n g o r hostility against the priests whatever up t o the time o f

the revolution and that feeling has germinated right here i n
,

Man ila and has been spread through sources here in Manila .

But the revolutionists those active in getting it up and , ,

those wh o sympathized with them in their attacks o n Spain did ,

cultivate a h ostility against the priests because they represente d

t h e power o f S pain .

There was really no feeling in the provi nces against the

priests and as I have said before this feelin g was spread by
, ,

the heads o f the revolution by those wh o had political aspir a ,

tions and something to gain by a revolution A great many o f

,
.

them came from Manila They formed o r were a part o f the .

Spanish government — that is clerks sei ne o f them in the , ,

courts— and they went to the small towns and knowing a little ,

more than the simple coun try people they spread rumors ,

41
 Docum en t
’
Roma n zr m
'

Th e Sen a t e an a

against the priests and the priests made efforts to prote ct the
,

people and this brought up hostile feel ing .

How were the priests of your order supported when they

act e d as parish priests ?
They were supported by the stipend paid by the govern ment
and also by the tariffs and by the charges imposed upon burials ,

marriages and baptisms .

This stipend varied as I have understood from $500 t o

,

, ,

$1 20 0 according to the size o f the parish ?

,

Yes sir ; and 1 0 per cent is deducted .

As to the charges who fix ed the amount o f those charges ?

.
,

The bishop determin ed the rates or charges and those rate s ,

had to be approved by the governor general here -

.

The tariff for marriage was one eighth o f which was -

for the church fund ; burial f or adults o ut o f which the

priest re ceived and the rest was paid o ut to others taking

part in the ceremony For christe n ing 1 2 5 cents leaving the
priest nothing because the candle cost six cents and the paper
. ,\

o n which he had to record the fact that the child had been bap

t iz e d cost five cents These were fixed rates but there were
. ,

other charges dependin g entirely on the a mount of work i h

volved and the extent of ceremony .

Who built the churches in which your priests officiate d ?

The government was charged to erect edifices for public
worship ; but the government being s o poor was negligent and . ,

it compelled us to build the churches out o f church funds .

There was a church erected in Manila that was built from the
proceeds of an hacienda and the churches o n the outside were
,

built by funds belonging to the church and by the aid o f day

laborers who gave their labor Some of these funds were taken .

from the auctorum fund ”

.

The church in the parish was built eit her by contributions

o r by the labor of the paris hioners of that parish Isn t t hat ’
.

true generally ?
The parishioners generally gave the funds to build the
chur ches because the government was poor and gave nothing
, .

Somet imes o f course where the parish was poor then the
, , ,

bishop d onated c ertain funds .

When you speak of the churches you include the conventos

also ?
Yes sir ; that is the house for the priest The people
, , .
,

realizing and appreciating the fact that the church was a bene
fit t o them and would improve the moral condition of the people ,

donate d their services free o f char ge For instance in a church

where I o fii c i at e d th e people went six miles to bring the lum
.
,

ber out of which to construct it .

What agricultural lands or haciendas does your order o wn

in the islands ?
We had one in Mindoro called San Jose hectares , .

This hacienda is about to be sold We also have on this h acie n .

da a herd of cattle The insurgents have taken a great many

.

just how many we do not know .

Is this only a grazing es tate or did you prod uce ric e o r ,

tobacco ?
42
 T/ze Sen a t e D ocum en t ’
Rom a n zr m
'

an a

A sma ll part w as under rice cultivation At present time .

none is cultivated .

Are y ou to sell it to a corporation ?

A representative of the order has made an agreement t o
s el l to an American i n Madrid Mr Christy , . .

I s that Mr Christy t o form a corporation

.

He is the repre sentative o f a corporation

And in that new corporation I suppose the order is t o oh
.

tai n some shares of the stock ?

Th e sale ha s not yet been concluded of course but an , ,

absolute sale is co ntemplated .

H o w many and what h aciendas did the order own before

1 89 6
The hacienda in I umu a was sold to a c orporati on in 1 8 9 4 in ,

th e provi nce of Cav ite hectares It was sold t o a Spanish

, .

co rporation organized t o develop agriculture in t h e Phili ppines

Now in that co rporation I suppose th at the order owned a
.

majority of the sto ck ?

This Spanish corporation in turn sold this hac ienda t o an
English c o r por ation called British Manila Corporation Com
pany Limited
, .

W as not a Mr Mc G r e g o r the representative of this com

.

p any
Yes s ir ; Mr Mc G r e g or is the repre s enta tive of the En g
.

lis h company and he has come here t o see the estate and I b e
,

, ,

lieve some documents have been sent to the Washington G o v

cra ment and in turn forwarded here to General Otis ; but of
that I d o not know .

Now in tha t English corporation t h e order owns how much

,

sto ck
Yes s ir ; it owns sto ck
,
.

In other words this establishment of a corporation was

,

for the purpose of interesti ng other people in the property and

at the same ti me of ena bling the orde r t o obtain a reg ula r in
co me and be relieved from th e burden of collecting the rents
and ma nagi ng the property
The sale has been made absolute .

Ye s but of course if you o w n a majority of the stock you

,

obtain co ntr ol of the c orporation

The sale to the English corporation was absolute .

Yes but does n o t the order have some s to ck in that corpo

,

rati on
I can not say de finitely what proport ion of stock we own ,

but we own a certai n proportio n .

was tha t pro pert y improved

A large proportion o f it was unde r cultivation with i m
p r o v e me n t s many
,
ditches man y dams A large house
, tha t we .

had has bee n burned but at the present time there are sh acks
,

in whi ch American s are living .

Is that the house in which the priests were killed

Yes sir
, .

When did yo u acquire possession of this estat e ?

In 1 68 6 .

43
 ’
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t Roma n zs m
'

an a
'

Had this proper t y been owned by the Je s uits before this ?

No ; the Je suits had noth ing to do with it whatever The .

property belonged to Dona Maria She had inherited the as .

tate herself .

A n d she gave it to the order ?

The property was mortgaged for $9 00 0 and that indebte d ,

ness was assumed an d besides the sum o f , was paid A

, .

gentleman by the name o f De Camos represented the corpor a

tion and paid the sum of the church assuming that .

Did you own any other property which you have sold in
th e same way ?
A piece of property —the name bein g San Ni c h o las was —

donated to the church at one time but under a decree of the ,

general gove rnment a public auction was held and the order ,

bought it in ful l for in the year 1 8 1 2 .

Have you spent money in improving that property ?

In dams and canals that have been built for carr ying wate r
we have spent more than a million dollars There are 45 dams . .

The hou was a magnificent one There were also three we re .

houses . e had also constructed underground ditches The .

gr eater portion in rice c ultivation ; a little sugar .

Had you any other hacienda except that of Imus which you
have sold ?
The hacienda of Monte Lupa possession acquired in the ,

year 1 69 5 for This is a small hacien d a probably 6 00

or 8 0 0 hectares ; I do not think it will reach 1 00 0 but a g reater
,

porti o n was not cultivated This was sold i n 1 8 9 7 . .

Was i t sold to the same Spanish company ?

No ; it was sold to a Spaniard in Manila .

Where did you get the estate of San Jose ?

The re are two parcels that constituted this hacienda one ,

was obtained by royal order 6 1 9 of May 1 5 1 80 7 and the other , , ,

portion consistin g of 1 66 4 he ctare s was acquired by purchase

, ,

o n the 1 5 t h of July 1 8 9 4 the sum paid being

, , The
hacienda de T al ajal a in the district of Mo rong in the lake r e
,
,
,

gion The property originally be longed to a French subject

.

,
an d was heavily en c umbered with debts and he not being able
, ,

to meet his obligations the chief creditor the chartered bank

, , ,

became possess ed of it on A ug 1 2 1 8 9 6 The order also being .

, .

a creditor purchased from the bank in 1 89 7 the hacienda for

,

the sum of This was sold March 1 6 1 90 0 to Don , ,

Juan Ma Poizat an agreement of sale having been made some

.
,

time before for but we lost in the transaction because ,

we had spent man y thousands in developing the property .

How many acres were there ?

The records do not sh ow the number of acres that it con
t ain e d but I believe it had somewhere i n the n eighborhood
, of
40 00 or 5 0 0 0 I can say there were three thousand under culti
.

vation .

Were there any others ?

No others .

Is it true that this order did not receive any o f the property
o f the Jesuits which was con fiscated W
, hen they were expelled
from the islands ?
44
T/ze Sen a t e Doc umen t Roma n zr m
’

an a

But I can say to you truthfully that the cases have been
very rare and this has been due to the cond itions existing
,
‘

where a parish priest lives due t o the fact that they were iso
,

ated I can attribute it to that fact

. .

I want t o give you an opportunity to ans wer the charges

made generally as t o the fact whether a great many members of
the order have been immoral and wha t you know about it , .

Take for instance in Romblon in Mindoro in Paragua

, , , ,

these islands are widely separate d and without communication ,

without social intercourse whatever and naturally enough the ,

priests there were dissatisfied and disgusted and cases have ,

been where they have lived an immoral lif e These cases .

,

though have been very e xceptional and rare and the moment
'

, ,

that the superior became cognizant o f the fact, they were

brought here to Manila; and after an investigation if found ,
"

guilty were chastised and reprimanded The moment that

,
.

communication or intercourse in these islands became more f r e

quent that moment the cases became fewer and now they are ,

very rare indeed But that is n o t the basis o f the calumnies

.

that are hurled against these priests because he was appr eciat ,

ed more by the people who lived in the neighb orhood if he lived

in this manner No complaint has ever been made of a priest
.

w h o lived an immoral life Instead o f that the people have

.

sympathized with h im to a greater extent than before for the ,

reason that if the curate o r priest lived a dissolute life they in ,

tur n secured more liberty and they could d o as they liked

, , .

The K atipunans found no objection to his method of liv

i n g because they could then do what they l iked without inte r
,

ference from the priest and for this reason there is more s ym
,

pathy existing between the people and curat e if he leads an im

moral life than otherwise The basis o r bottom o f all this talk
.

an d lies and c alumny is the fact that in all these little town s a
head or chieftain o f the organization known as the Katipunan
Society is to be found and b e generally goes to the curate
,

an d makes effort to secure favors and when the curate denies ,

him the favor— generally to borrow money for they are nearly ,

always broke from that moment commences all t h e talk and

—

disturb ance Cases have been recorded wh ere this h ead or

.

chieftain has formulated a petition and had this petition sign ed ,

by a great many of the residents of the town and forwarded to

the vicar making charges therein of immoralit y o n the part of
.

the curate and when the v i car demanded the presence of the
,

curate in Manila the people changed their minds an d requeste d

,

him to stay That is the manner of the Indian — to day he is o f

. -

o n e mind to morrow of another

,
-
I make this point for the .

reason that I do not want you to pay too much importance to

W hat the Indian tells you . 6
Are you generall y fami liar with the character o f the nati ve
priests who have moved in and taken the places o f the friars ?
They are very bad men very b ad In most cases the least , .

number of wives one is satisfie d with is three and they are at ,

the head o f the revol ution in these towns where they are .

Would not that seem to refute the charge that the cause o f
the hostility against the friar is immorality— that is that im ,
46
T/ze Sen a t e D ocum en t ’
Roma n zr m
'

an a
'

morality does not seem to arouse the hostility o f the native

against his o wn native priests ?
That is not the basis of their hostility That is clearly c v .

ident when as I have indicated t o you before they appreciate

. ,

a man who 1 s immoral when he l ives 1 n these vile conditions

.
‘

Was it po ssible under the Spanish government for a parish

priest to secure t h e deportation o f any man in h is parish by '

recommending to the governor general that he was a bad man -

and ought t o be remo ved ?

No sir ; but the curate being an instrument o f the gover
, ,

nor filed reports with the governor as to t he conduct an d life

,

o f those who live d in his parish The governor general being .

,

the head of the Spanish government in the island s sen t to the ,

curates f o r report s to various persons and the curates in turn ,

filed reports with him .

And the governor general in turn acted on these reports ?

-

The reports had to be made and were compulsory fr om the

fact that the governor general r e quested o f t h e vicar a report
-
,

and he in turn the bishop and the bishop the curate an d wh e th , ,

’

er Or not he wanted to make the report it was practically c o m

p uls o r y .

Do you think the priests of your order could go back to the

parishes where they were before and assume their s acerdot al '

functions without fear of personal violence a ssuming that the

American army will in a reaso n ably short t i me end the in s ur
, “
,

rection ?
Yes sir ; th at would be a very easy matter ind eed for the
, , ,

reas on that the people living in these to wns are anxious f or the
return o f t h e priests from the fact that the native priests who
, ,

are there now are very much despised and hate d by the people
, .

How do you know this ?

The bishop o f Jaro who is now here with us has letters
, ,

that are simply horrible indicating the actions o f these n ative

,
.

’
priests and showing the desir e o f t h e pe ople to h ave the Span
,
'

ish priests return t o them The native pries ts now o f course . .

, ,

having no head do as they like It is a good deal like an army

, .

without a head .

How many priests of your order were assaulted during the

revolution o f 1 8 9 6 and 1 89 8
_
.

T wenty fiv e of o ur pr iests were assassinated There are .

three causes that may explain this l arge number The first b e
ing that in Cavite the revolution began and the priests w
.

ho
were in the interior had no time to m
,

ake t heir escape Those .

who lived close t o the sea made their escape and the very priest ,

wh o had charg e of the parish in which Aguinald o lived was de

'

l i v e r e d o f the insurrectos by A guinaldo himself he furnishing ,

the means of escape a boat being placed at the disposal o f this

, .

priest by Aguinald o h imself ; and Bonifacio who was the insti ,

gator of these crimes was in t urn killed by Aguinaldo for hav

,

i ng killed these priests Fourteen killed in the province of

’

Cavi te in Bataan 2 Z ambales 7 Tarlac 1 ; Cebu 1

, , , , ,

How many were imprisoned ?

The great number o f d eaths among the p r iests can be ex
plained away al so by another rea s on The fact that the priests .

47
Tfie Sen a t e Documen t an d Rom a n is tn
Wh en th ey saw that there was no remedy joined the army and , ,

necessarily ran t h e same risks as the soldiers There were 9 1 .

prisoners .

That is joined the army of Spain ?

,

Yes sir ; the precise number has never been determ ined
,
.

Were any of the prisoners maltreated ?

Out of 40 that were imprisoned in Negros three of them
were maltreated and assaulted The rest of them were made .

to work in the prison ; those that had been in prison in Negros

were give n their liberty at the expiration of three months ; the
rest of the priests who h ave been in prison have received their
libe rty whenever the various towns in which they have been i m
'

p r is o ne d h ave b e en taken by the A me ricans .

Did you have any priests to join the insurgents ?

Than k God n ot a one , .

The Augustinians had three renegade priests Do you .

know whether they ar e the only ones in the islands ?

We have o n e who is in a town that is now in the hands of
the insurgents but he takes no sides whatever and performs
”

, ,

his regular duties .

Is the bishop of Jaro a member of your order ?

Yes sir ; the b i s h o p o f Vigan a D o ml n i c an ; the ar c h b i s h
‘

op a Dominican ; bishop of Cebu a Fr anciscan ; bishop of the

Camarines an A ugu s tin ian ; the ad min i s ir at o r of the Camari nes
is an Augustinian ; an d the bishop is sick in Spain .

How many members of your order have left the islands

since the revolution began ?
In the year 1 89 6 we had 3 48 members 2 6 of which were lay ,

men S ince 1 89 8 1 73 have left for Spain 2 1 to A merica and s

.
,

to Macao .

Then there were 2 5 kil led ?

Yes sir ; there are 9 4 here at the present time and the
, ,

d ifie r e n c e between this number and 3 43 have died .

Did the insurgent g overnment pas s a law c o n fis cat in g your

property ?
I cannot answer that question positively but it was gener
ally s t ated I believe and published in the newspapers that laws
,
’
, , ,

e fie c t i n g not only our prope rty r i ht but the property right of

g
all the religious corporations, were passed . 1

Have not agen ts of the insurgent government been collect

ing rents from the tenants of your former e states ?
We have heard that and we know positively that with ref
,

erence to the propert y at Imus some of the heads o f the revo ,

l o tion have been charging not only what we charged but a ,

gre at de al more This I cannot say as positively true but we

.
,

have heard it
Q

Is it true that your order is desirous of leaving the islands ,

but that y o u have deferred your departure at the suggestion o f
A rchbishop Chap elle ?

We have been anxious to leave but the Pope at Rome has ,

given his order an d there is no recourse except to obey .

Yo u would be entirely will ing to do missionary work instea

d
of p arish work I presume ? ,

The f unctions are the same and it would make no d ifie r en ce ,

4s
 Roma nzs m
’
T/z e Sen a t e Documen t
'

ana

t o us . Of course the missionaries have wor k of lesser impor

t an ce to per for m than those in charge of parishes but it would ,

make no difference t o us .

I suppose you have a representative on the board that s é

min i ste rs the funds under the Obr ias pias
We have what is called a voca somebody to represent
the order He in conjunction with the others d isposes of this
.
, ,

fund ; but t hey are limited to certain kind s of work— charitable

in sti tut ions and religious edific es and things of that kind .

What relation is t here between the Re c o le c t o s an d the Au

gus tin i an s ? Were the Re co l e c t o s or iginall y a branch of the
Augustinians ?
Yes sir ; they are called the bare foote d Augustinians
,
-
.

What is the meaning of the word Re c o le c t o s

It is taken from the verb to recover ”
to regain ”
to , ,

bring in , t o do miss ionary work

"
.

Then the Re c o ie c t o s sprung out o f the Augustinians ?

The R e c o le c t o s are a branch o f the Augustinians and they .

sprung from them from the f act an d for the reason that the
Augustinians led a gay life I am not saying that they were
‘

b ad men but their spirit s were very high and for that reason
,
-
,

th e Re c o l e c t os sprung from them— not because they were bad

men and we good men but becau se their spirits were high and
,

fiery . Our original ancestors or fathers were Au g ustinians .

We follow the same rules that they follow but they have their ,

own head and we have our o wn but they i n turn are subj ect to
,

the orders of the Pope at Ro me .

In the papers you have there (pointing) have you the trac
ing of your titles ? If you have no o bject ion I would be glad ,

t o keep that as a memorandum It has been freely charged

.
,

apparently by men who have very little knowledge o n the sub

je c t that you have no title t o the land which you h ave hereto
,

fore enjoyed the usufruct of I want t o report o n that issue

. ,

and it will assist me to have the data contained in that paper .

With pleasure We appreciate your kindness i n this respect

. ,

i ndicating to us your desire to do us justi ce .

Expressions of than ks .

Adjourned
U US 4 1 9 0 0 A G T , .

OAPUGHINO P DRE -
A ALPHO NSO MARI A DE
MORERTIN .

How old is your order ?

Since the fifteenth century Properly s peaking the ord er.

dates from the thir te e nth century We are the same as the .

F ranciscans The 29 th of N ovember 1 2 0 9 the for mation of

. , ,

the body was approved .

Are you organiz ed for missionary work l ike the other o r

ders ?
Yes sir , .

Has the order lay members as well as priests ?

Yes sir They ar e the sa me as t h e fathers with the single
,
.

exception that they are not ordained In every other particular .

they ar e the same living the sa me and wearing the same habi t
,
.

49
 ’
Tue Sen a t e Documen t Rom a n zym
'

ana

How many lay members and p riests were there in the islands
before the revolution of 1 8 9 6 ?
Very few because our field of labor was not in the Philip
.
'
pines but in the Carolines ; but we had a house here for t h e
,
.

purpose of assisting in any missionary labors .

Can you give me a general idea of th e number ?

Ten up to 1 8 9 6
,
.

How many ar e there now ?

Six .

Did they do any parish work ?

No ; we only arrived here in 1 88 6 .

There has been no hostile feel ing again st your ord er at all ,

has there ?
It has not r e ached my ears .

You own no pr opert y I presume except the hous e in which

, ,

you live ?
The house where we live only I have a quasi property .

t itle to a small piece of land just beyon d Malate which was .

given t o me by word of mouth by some friends but n o legal ,

documents were drawn up an d conse quently it has not be e n ,

recorded and the property still remains in the hands of the d o n “

ors ; but when I desire it the title will be conveyed to me It .

is only a little garden with a very small house and at the out .

break o f the trouble With the F ilipinos they destroyed the little
house .

I have not he ard any charges of any immor ality brought

against any member of your order and therefore I will not ,

not touch on that subject .

Yes sir ; many thanks

I might ask you if you can tell me the reason why there is
.
.

a difference of feeling against your order as against the larger

orders which have been here for a long time
There may be man y r e as o n s but I will endeavor to reply
.

'

as to my opinion The first reason would be that the few take

.

up a very little s pace whereas the many would cover a great

deal more , But I do not believe there really exist s the hatred
,

and hostility that the Filipino would make believe exists again st
the relig ious orders as a whole .

D o n t you think that such as does exis t arises largely from

’
,

the politi cal power which the old orders exercised by reason of
the fact that their members were parish priests and re presented
throughout the country very largely the government of Spain
, ,

in a civil way ?
I do not b e lie v e s o because the political functions exercised
,

b y them we re v ery slight .

But is n o t it a fact that in most of t h e towns of the islands

where the y officiated there was no representative of th e govern
ment of Spain except the parish priests ?
That might very well have been the case but still there ,

was a civil authority there even though he might have been only
a native The two authorities civil and ecclesiastical were
.
, ,
never combined .

Was i t not a fact that the captain general relied greatly o n -

the pad res and kept putting o n ad d itional duties of various

,

kind s o f a Ci vi l character upon the pad res ?

50
 IV Sena t e
'
’
Roma n zs m
'

D ocumen t
'

ze an a

On the contrary he was always reducing them The padres

, .

took part in what might be termed mixed matters such as ,

school matters He was inspector of schools and he was one

.
,

o f the members of the board of e lection He was an inspector .

to preserve order more than any thing else It must be remem .

bered also that he performed these duties because the govern

, ,

ment ordered h im t o and not becau se he interfered seeking t h e

.
, ,

authority .

It might be termed un o fil c i al action ; for instance about ‘

,

1 89 7 after the other revolution broke out I received a private

, ,
'

and secret letter as superintendent o f the order from the gov '

cruor general which letter was also sent to all parish priests
-
,

throughout the archipel ago in which it is said that whenever ,

the parish priests believed that it woul d be pro pe r t o re move ‘

some local officer of the gove rnment they should apprise the
governor general of the fact with the r ea sons therefor but on
-
,

the other hand the same kind of a letter was sent to the gov
e r n o r of t h e d ifier e n t pueblos telling him if there was any reason
‘

for having the parish priests removed they should also inform
him of the fact .

Expression o f thanks .

Ad j ourned .

U U 4 1 900 A G ST , .

BE NE DI CT I N OS —
P A DR E J U AN S A B A T E R
How lon g has y c ur order b e e n here
From 1 8 9 5 .

How many were there in t h e order in these islands

Eight padres and six lay brothers A fterwards up to 1 7 .

priests came and 1 1 lay members .

Are they here now

Now 8 pr iests and 6 lay brothers .

Do you o wn an y property here

Only t h e house in which we live and the chapel .

I have always had more or less o f an intere st in the Bene

,

die tine order because when I fir s t wen t on the bench in a S t ate

court at Ci n cinnati I had to consider the question of the owner
,

ship o f the trade m ark for the Benedictine liqueur The person
'

that was forging the trade mark claimed that the person who -

asserte d the right to it had no right to it in that he said that

the liqueur was mad e f r o m a receipt ma d e by the Benedictine
l

order But they proved that the liq ueur was made not by the
.

Benedictine priests now b ut according to a receipt which the ,

Benedictine order had followed in mak ing their liqueurs some

eighty years before
At the time of the French Revolution when the Bene ,

d i c t in o s had t o leave their place they sold their receipt and , ,

that is the o n e now being followed For that reason yo u still .

fin d on the trade mark the arms of t h e abbey which of course

-
,

could n o t be coun t erfeited .

I suppor t ed that
Very often they endeavor to counterfeit it I know that
.

the French manufacture rs o f that liqueur sen d agents all around

Europe to fin d out if it is being counterfeited .

51
 ’
Roma n zs m
'

T/ze S en a t e Documen t an a

I wis h your order was g tting some of the money being e

made out of it .

The fact is o ur order does not care for it at all We have

,
.

another rece ipt which we d o not care to e x ploit In Spain we

,
.

have been told that the other receipt would be a gold mine but ,

we only manufacture a l ittle for our own use and do not put it ,

on the market It is as goo d as the best g r ade of Benedictine ;

.

but if we manufactured it and put it on the market the people

will s ay we are not following religious vocations but are mer ,

chants .

But you might have a royalty on the tr ad e mark without

sellin g the liq ueur We have a saying i n America that would
.

apply to this e s pe cially where the fathers would us e the money

,
”
to the be s t purposes that Money does not sme
-
ll ,
.

For ins t ance take the place of the monks that manufacture
,

the Gran d Chartreuse They live very modestly and do not .

need an y mon ey an d they pay out of the proce eds of that

,

liqueur 0 0 0 francs a year to the Holy Father and all the ,

roads and o ther i mprovements around the place where they live
are paid for b y them and all t h e money is given to godly work
,

and public improvements A n d also what the French g o vern .

men t re ce ives by w ay of taxation That is why the y have not .

bee n fired out of the country Once the prefect of that distr ict .

went to Chartreuse and the fathers had heard that they were
,

going to be expelled and they found the prior of th e monastery

,

studying very i n ten tly the map of England and the prefect ,

asked What are you doin g ?

, He said We are st udying a ,

place to move to ; and he s aid No you must not g o ” . , .

He d id not want to kill the goose that lay the golden egg
Ex pression of thanks .

Adjourned .

AU G U S r 4 , 1 90 0 .

ST . V I NCE N T E O F PA U L I S T .

I think y have very members in the islands

ou

Very f e w 3 8 in the entire archipelag o

, .

How old is y o ur order

From 1 62 5
How lo n g h ave you been in t h e Phili ppi nes
Since 1 8 62 .

Your fun ct ion s are of a mis s i o n ar y n at ur e

'

Mis s i o n ary a n d semin ary wor k .

Have y o u a s chool here

We have o n e theol o gical seminary elsewhere an d other ,

semi n ari es .

Where ar e they located

In N uev a Caceres Ce bu an d Jaro , , .

The se are seminaries of secon d ar y education

Ye s sir. .

The y take young boys and carry the m clear thro ug h as t a

g radu ate
Ye s sir ; in the thir d I me ntioned that is the cours e
, .

H ave any o f the members of your order acte d a

p ri ests
 d Roma n zs m
'

T/z e Sen a t e Documen t an

For working purposes six mon t hs would be sufficient , b ut

n ot for p reaching .

B ut i n o ne year you could preach ?

Ye s , s 1r
I have never heard it said
.

that any o f your members were

e ver c harged w i t h immorality in the island s Is that true ? .

Never .

How i s your order support ed ?

By exercise of the ministry by the seminari es themselves .

The st ud ents pay tuition .

In wh at par t s of the islands are you located now ?

Nue va Cacer e s Cebu J aro and Manila , , ,
.

A r e there as many of the order in the islands now as there

were i n 1 8 9 6 ?
Ele ven have left for Spain Ten left last year and 1 this .

yea r an d now we h ave 3 8 We had 49

,
. .

Ex pression o f thanks .

A d j ourned .

JESllITS MI(1 UEL S ADERRA MATA, .

—
so m
PERIO R or THE enu s WHO IS ILL
'
m .

Q When d id your order come to the Philippines ?

.

A They came here at t wo d ifie r e n t periods ; 1 5 8 1 first and

.
,

r e mained to 1 7 6 7 and in 1 859 we returned again

, .

.Q H o w man y priests did you have in the islands in 1 8 9 6

b efore the revolutio n began ? [ Presents the president with a .

b ook co n taining t his information 1 6 7 i n cluding the lay broth ,

e r s ; in M an il a 2 4 pr i ests 1 3 scholastics and 2 5 laymen and in , , ,

Mindanao 6 2 priests a n d 43 laymen T h c s e scholastics are not .

students themse l ves but ar e teacher s ] ,

Q How many were lay members ?

.

A S ixty eigh t
.
-
.

Q What are t h e d uties of the lay broth e rs ?

.

A A mong the Je suits a priest is always a lay brother who

.

manages the household .

Q o r course it i s included in that book but I would like

.
,

to know generally in what towns and villages the me mbers of

your order acted as parish priests ?
A Only i n Mindanao and the adjacent islands but they are
. .
,

not prope r ly speaking p arish priests ; they are missionaries

, , .

Q Was there imposed upon your order whe n they came

.

back to the isl ands a condi t ion that they sh ould act only as mis
s io n a r ie s and should own no property ?

A T h at condition was imp osed upon themselves by them

.

selves .

Q Was there a condition imposed by the government as to

.

the ownership of property ?

A They say that there is a condition that we should not
.

clai m anything in the way of proper ty .

Q Did the priests of y our order that acted as missionaries

.

r eceive a stipend from the gover n ment ?

A Yes sir
.
, .

54
Tue Sen a t e Documen t ’
Roma n zs m
’

ana

Q Did th at vary fr o m $5 0 0 t o
.

A I b e lieve from $50 0 to $800 w h i ch was the highest

.
,
.

Q Who built the mis s ionary churche s in which the mem

.

bers b f your order o fii ci at e d ?

A The missionaries themselves generally
. .

Q W h o built the missionary churches in which the mem

'
.

bers o f your or der officiated ?

A The missionaries themselves generally
. .

Q You mean o ut of funds that they collected m the church?

A It was done both by church funds and by the work
.

which is p e rformed by those deputized by the government to

do it in i t s position as vice patron We also ourselves per
-
.

formed wd r k because we placed brothe rs who acted as archi

t e c t s and as master carpenters and mast e r masons and from ,

funds o f th e missionaries themselv e s and alms .

Q I s not it a fact that t h e Je s u it order re quires a longer

.

and more thorough education th an an y of the othe r orders o f

the ch urch ?
A As t o its being better I do not know but as to more
.
,

time being employed in the education yes , .

Q I t is at least nine years ?

.

A It is sixteen years
. .

Q Before they o fii ciat e as priests ?

.

= A Before ordination si xte en y ears

. .

Q Does your order own an y agricultur al property in th e

.

is lands ?
A Her e is an inven tory of the [ handing ] None of them
. .

are w hat y o u would call agricultural lands They are mostly in .

cities and necessary adjuncts to buildings .

Q Do y o u o wn any property in Benguet ?

.

A Yes sir
.
, .

Q I s that down in this list ?

.

A No ; as we have not g o t it it is n ot down there The

. , .

Ben guet property would be like the sanatorium in We

o wn n o property which produce s an y thing All our property is .

f o r t h e purp oses o f the order and not for the collection of i s

come We had a place in Min d anao so that when students left
.

the coll ege they were furni s hed w ith a small piece o f land .

Q I s it not true that practically no charges o f immorality

.

have be e n brought against the members o f your order in these

elan d s ?
A It is t rue that none have been made I re c all that the
.
.

secre t ary t o Augustine t he governor general said to me t hat

,
-

again s t me there was no anon ymous letter .

Q H ave you any reason to doubt that if the members o f

.

your ord e r returned to their p arishes they would be received

without violence by the people to whom they should be assigned ?
A We have eleven i n Mindanao now and they are working ,

unmolest e d an d where they have n o Jesuit priests we are r e

.

ce iv i n g letters continuously asking t o have them sent there We .

have lett ers from General Bat es and General Kobbe stating t h at
the people there have been asking for them The governors of .

the tow ns there have sent letters statin g that they wanted them
t o be there .

55
 Roma n zsm
'

T/ze Sen a t e Documen t an a

Q . H o w many of y our order remain in the islands now ?

A Ninety three
.
-
.

Q Where have the others gone ?

.

A They re turn e d into Spain but from there they have

. ,

been ordered to diffe rent place s .

Q Why did they go away ?

.

A Because there was nothin g for them to do here Th e

. .

head of this mis sion is in Spain and when there is nothing to ,

do here the y ar e recalled by the head of the mission in Spain .

Q You mean nothing t o d o on account o f the state of war ?

.

A Ye s s ir ; because cond itions were so upset 5 3 of

.
, .

the remainin g 9 3 are in the municipal at h e n mum 4 o f them are ,

provisionally ad ministerin g parishes in the province o f Cavite ,

1 0 in the nor mal s c hool an d ob s ervatory 2 in the Ermita parish , ,

2 ab s ent in the Unite d States and the remaining 1 1 ar e i n the ,

missions of Mindanao The paris h here i n Ermita was imposed

.

on us by t h e arc hbishop We did not have this par ish before

. .

Q I want to ask you one question more and then I am

.
,

done What makes the d ifier e n c e in the feelin g of the people

.
,

or the re puted fe e lin g of t h e people between your order and ,

the four larger orders here ?

A I h ave given t hat before in this way : In the firs t place
.
,

we have no haciendas ; and another reason is t hat nothing h a s

been said ag ainst o ur habits up to the present time ; and fur
ther the fact of our te aching
, .

Q I s n o t another reason that they did not min gle in pol

.

i ti c s and were not used by the governor general for political

purposes ?
A I will an swe r that question by stating what an Indian
.

sai d to me yeste rday You pe ople always went into these ques
tions w he n it was for the bene fit of the people at large and not
for the individua
[ The government evidently omits a page here for the ex ,

amination goes from the Jesuits to the Pauli sts ] .

Father Doyle — That is a hard question for I myself can ,

not at the time understan d this popular feeling o f the people .

Q Whe re a popular feelin g is made up of a good many

.

elements and judgin g from what the priests say the S panish
,
,

governme nt used those peo ple as the representatives of their

power and when they w anted anyth in g done they left it to the
, -

priests and conse quently when the feeling against Spain grew
,

bitte r the feeling ag ain st the friars grew bitter Of course

, .

that is only one element and t hen how far the fe eling actually
,

exists is another que sti on .

Father Doyle In man y towns there were no garrisons and

.
—

no whi t e man but the p r iest The governme nt was sometimes .

almost obliged to do that The d iffe rence may be that we are .

not parish workers but missio n aries O ur principal work was .

missionary work .

Q I think if they h ad had two friars to every parish as you

had things might have been different ?
,

A As to the political functions e xercised by our order the

.

Spanish government it i s true did c o n f c r some trusts and de

, ,

mand some functions of a civil ord er from the parish priests

56
Tb e S ex /a t e D ecumem ‘
an d Rama mir m
an d missionaries such as the inspection o f s c hools an d par tici
,

pe tion in certain provincial o r local boards o f charity proceeds ,

o f cor poration etc We come wi t hin this latter p a r t more than

, .

the oth er and in the new towns and in n e w Christian se t tle

,

ments repre sented the mace of au t hority fro m the government

,

o f Spain to those selected by the governme n t o f Spai n to have

it. That wa s all the missionaries ever had to d o .

Expression o f than ks .

A dj ourned .

A R C H BI S H O P O F MAN I LA .

Your grace how long have you b e en in t h e Philippines ?

,

T wenty s ix years with an inte rval of eighteen month s

-

when I made a trip to Europe .

Have you ever had a parish in the isl an ds ?

No ; formerly I was professor i n Manila .

H o w long have you been archbishop ?

Since 1 889 .

Were you a bishop before that time ?

No .

As I understand it the archbishop is ( 1 ) the bishop of the

,

see o f Manila and (2 ) the metropolitan of the other bish oprics

.

in the archipelago ?
He has a certain intervention rather l i mited in fact in all , ,

o f the other bishopr ics .

I presume that the see o f Manila is the largest i n the archi

pelago in point of population and probably also in point of the ,

number o f parishes ?
Yes in both
,
.

Does it include more than the province of Manila ?

M any other provinces : Bulacan Pampanga part of Tarlac , , ,

all o f Zambales Cavite Laguna Batangas and Bataan and the

, , , ,

island o f Mindoro . The other part o f the province of Tarl ac

was a part of the see o f Nueva Segovia .

It is the custom I think and always has been for the

, , ,

ch urch to give to the bishoprics and the archbishoprics the

name of the largest city ?
They ar e named af te r the civil capital .

Do you speak Tagalog ?

Very little The Tagalog language cannot be known with
.

any degree o f perfection unless you live in the provinces Not .

going out o f Manila o n e does not learn it readily

, .

It has n o literature ?
A very imperfect literature ; some romanc es — idyls that
they sing in the towns .

Have you observed the character of the Tagalogs and the

other races in t h e islan ds ?
Naturally ; because one livin g in the Phi lippines would n o
tice the d iii e r e n c e s which exist between the different races .

I have asked this because I fin d that thr ough the priests ,

and the bishops o f the church especially I can get more accu ,

rate information as to the character of the inhabitants than

th rough almost anyone else .

57
Tne Sen a t e Documen t an d Roma n ir nz
Naturally ; as they come in closer contact with the people
t h e y will appreciate the differences They ar e what mi ght be .

termed more essentiall y differen ce s in trait and charact e r than

“
zoological ” d ifler e n c e s The sa me d iffe rence s that exist b e
.

tween t h e whit e and the blac k races are not observe d among
these people .

They are a br ight race in learning— at leas t as children ?

Yes sir ; they lend themselves to education
,
.

They learn languages with very litt le d imc uit y

They never learn a language profoundly or philosophically ;
but for social purposes and co n versation the y are very apt
very quick t o learn To show my meaning in this particular
.

th at they ar e quick to learn mere con versat io na l matter and no

deeper subject— there is a case of a young native who was
brought up in o n e of the scho ols here , and who was absolutely
protecte d and surrounded by all safeguards to preven t h i m from
speaking his own language This child needed thr ee years to .

become cogniz ant of what was meant b y any written signs

which nee ded th ought t o appre ciate what t h e eye was read ing ;
and that te rm of three years may b e put down as th e average
t ime necessary for a native to grasp kn owingly a foreign lan

guage ; but the power to speak it superfici all y they can acquire
very rapidly It is true nevertheless that were t hey ed ucated
.
, ,

outside their own country where their surround in gs would be ,

entirely different from those at home they would le arn more ,

rapidly for despite all the efforts t o keep them fro m co ntact
,

With thos e who speak their own lang uage whenever they get ,

together they will always speak in their own tongue .

I suppose wh en they t alk th ey mix in a good deal of Sp anish ?

Yes sir
, .

So that the Tagalog is full of Spanish expressions ?

Yes sir ; very naturally for all these languages here are
,

very poor especiall y in terms expr essing abstract ideas— whi c h

,

t hey could not e x press at all in their own language except by

p araph rasing so that they were forced t o take t o Spanish —such

,
” ”
as G o d , religion the word republican ” that would nee d
, ,

a great many words t o express it in their own language Re v .

”
o lut i o n
, insurrecto ” also are Spanish They stick to the
, .

latter wor d with a gr eat deal o f force .

A r e they rather a light hearte d race easil y affected by -

pleasure dancing music and such things ?

, , ,

They are They d i iier greatly from the Euro pean race in
.

that innate feelin g which moves Europeans They ar e more .

impelled by extraneous in fluences than by innate influence or

impulse .

They are easily moved then ? ,

I have never seen of course all tri bes but I have se en

, , ,

nearly all of the Malayan race and I do not know of any race
existing which i s more respons ive t o its s urroundings There
,

be ing no proper ind ividuality if they live in good surroundin gs ,

they will be g ood and if they live in bad surroundings they

,

win be bad .

They have very li ttle te n ac i t y or moral stamina ?

‘

T here is an absolute want of char acter They cannot grasp .

68
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Tae Sen a t e D ocum en t Roma n zr m
'

an a

n id e a and by t heir o wn mental e fio r t determine whether i t i s

n r o p e r o r improper .

They have not the logical faculty developed at all ?

They have just sufficient of the logical faculty to be r a
ti o n al beings
'
.

I have observed in a number of them who have been edu

os ted a desire to rush into abs tract principles as if that was
—
, ,

the atmos phere they loved without much capacity to reason ,

o n the subject ?

The y have not sufficient mental capacity to dige s t any ah

s t ract question .

But they like t o l ive in that atmosphere ?

The idealists A noticeable feature o f the native pe ople
.
,

and also of the mixed races is that they lac k the capacity to ap ,

ply knowledge o r scientific research or thought to objec t s which

sur round them In other words prudence and discretion are
. ,

ab s olutely unknown to them This is in all the r aces and in all .

the paths o f life F or instance a lawyer comes from his law

.
,

school with brilliant attainments profound ac quisition of knowl ,

ed ge but when he is ab out to take a case he cannot apply those

.

principles t o the facts in the case .

They lack practicabilit y ?

Yes sir , .

And their life is a series of fie e t in g impressions with ac

'

tion s founded o n them ?

“
Exactly Another noticeable feature of the race is that
.

very soon after they leave an educated atmosphere they lose all ,

they have learned I take the liberty o f making o n e suggestion

.

wh ich I think should be borne in m i nd by all government o fii

c i al s — their pronene s s to suggestions from others That per . ,

haps is their most remarkable an d all absorbing character If

,
-
.

a man appears whom they consid er a great man among th e

people— some person wh o occupies a to pmost position they —

idol i ze him ; think him something divine They never sto p to .

reason but follow him blindly as i f he was of divine orig in

, , .

Are they variable in the sense that a single misstep will

change it all ?
It is the only way for the idol to suffer a fall What the .

Spaniards did in America and which was considered a most ,

barb arous thing was to burn all the idols of the Indians so
, ,

that th ey coul d no longer follow them and that is what will ,

have to be done here— burn their idols .

Metaphorical ly speaking ?
Oh naturally,
.

They are an artistic race are they not ? ,

They could hardly be called an ar tistic race except in a very

l imite d deg ree They cannot devise anything themselves but
. ,

i n imitation they are very good .

They enj oy music very much do they not ? ,

They have a marvelous faculty for r etaining music and ,

they are very responsive to music but originality i h the crea , .

.

tion of music they have none For i nstance an Indian will .

hear a melody o n the luneta and he will retain 1 t to such an ex .

te nt that he will write it out afterwards— hours afte rwards .

59
 ’
Roma n zr m
'

Tfie Sen a t e Documen t an a

They have s ufii c i e n t knowled ge o f music to read i t ?

Many of them They have a prodig ious memory but a ma
. ,
p

J or it y play by ear This prodigiou s. memory is not i ceable in

other things as well as music .

They need it in their language don t they ? ,

’

I have h ad students— sacerdotal students who could t ake a ,

book and learn it from begi nnin g t o end and repeat it like a ,
.

parrot and not know one word o f what it meant In tha t they
,
.

are marvelous .

Many who make up these orchestras here— they must read

music as well as play by ear ?
There are many conducto rs o f orchestr as that have bee n in
the Spanish re gimental bands and a great many of the men ,

t hemselves can read music but there is a large number who ,

play by ear .

Do they have a fondness for a particular kind o f music or ,

doe s all music please them ?

They love all music but they are par t l c ul ar ly entranced by
,

this lig ht mu s ic .

Do you think their t aste for classical music c ould be i m

pr oved by hearing it ?
Yes sir They will never int e rpret it with the soul and
, .

fee lin g of a person of the white race but they will inte r pret it ,

mechanically all of it without leaving anything out

, , .

I have observed that the painters these day laborers really , ,

have cons iderable faculty with the brush o n the walls .

The pinnacle the master has reached they have re ac hed , ,

but al ways imitative They neve r can go beyond thei r teacher

. .

D o they make go o d copies from the old mast ers ?

I have never seen what might be called a copy o f superior
'

wor th b ut I have s ee n some that might be termed fair I have

, .

some rather good c r ies in my house .

I have understo od that they have considerable faculty in

mech anica l engineering in running engines and such things , .

They have very skillful hands for any work of th at kind .

Are the y pretty good surveyors and railroad engineers— o f

that sort which requires much or ig inality ?
Enteri ng upon avocat ions which require much mat h emat i
cal kno wledge they are not so good The science of mat he
. .

mat ic s is one they cannot grasp .

That requires t o o much of the logical faculty ?

Yes sir That is beyond them In merely elementary
, .
.

arithmetic they are fairly good but when you g e t t o hi gher ,

mathematics where the reasoning faculties are brought into

,

play they cannot c e pe with them

, .

I think their t aste for mu s ic must have been developed by

the Spanish language What your grace is now saying t o me .

sounds like melody .

No ; that is inn ate with them This d evelopme n t of their .

i nnate musical sen s e is largely attributable to the religious e z er

cises A t the b e ginn mg when the missionaries first came her e
.
,

they conducte d their s e r vice s wit h a gre at deal of singing to

attract the natives Most o f the musicians who have shown
.

any aptitude in their art have b een graduates of the Cathedral ,

60
 ’
T/z e Sen a t e Documen t Roma n zr m
'

an a

as between the mselves and to ward animals too they seem , ,

t o b e wi t hout compassion .

The r e i s abs o lutely no sincer ity i n their friendship and ,

th ey hav e no pity .

During the revolution I have observed that they have rarely

violate d the laws of war toward the Americans b u t in terror ,

izing their own people they have been guil y of the most o ut .

rageous brutality ?
Ye s even to the ex te nt of burying them alive cutting o fi
‘

,
,

their arm s their le gs an d cutting out t heir tongues

, ,
.

H o w many parishes are there i n y our diocese ?

There are 2 1 9 prie sts There are three kinds of parishes .

parishe s mission parishes an d active missions ; but some of

, ,

them are very large parishes by reason of the want o f priests

.

Can you tell me generally how these parishes are officiated

. ,

b y what orders and by what classes o f priests I mean b e

'
-
, ,

fore 1 8 9 6 ?
Augustinians 75 ; R e c o le t o s 5 9 ; Franciscans 47 Domi
,
. ,

n i can s 1 4 and secular clergyme n 24

, , ,
.

Were the secula r clergy natives ?

All Outside of the regular orders the rest of clergy were
.

all natives ? Here [handing statement to president ] is a state

me n t which shows the n umber of parish pries t s and mission
arie s in the archip e lag o another giving the number of priests ,

in each di ocese and lastly the number of souls in each diocese

, ,

which I have brought for you .

Was it not a fact ,by reason o f the absence of other Span

i ar d s in most of the parishes that the Spanish governme n t ,

came to re ly on the Spa n ish priest as the strongest support of

go vernment throughout the i slands ?
Ye s ; as the only eleme nt i n whi c h t h e government could _

place any confidence and who had an y i n telligence .

A n d as a cons e que nce the g o vernment was i n the habit of

, ,

imposi n g civi l funct ions either by law or by custom upon most , ,

of the p arish priests ?

We have interrogated a number of gentlemen who preced e d
your grace and I suppose you concur in their evidence that they
,

we re i n spector s of sch ools that t hey took the census and that , ,

they were in a sense police a g e nts upon whom the government

, , ,

called for information c on ce rning the character of the people

in their p ar i she s ?
That is all very true except that these parish priests gave ,

no r e ports as to the private life of the individual because that ,

would be contrary to the ten ets of the church .

I want to ask one que stion if it is not going beyond the ,

bound s — that is if thes e pe ople were si n cer e i n their con

,

fessions ?
I thin k so They were affe cted by their reli gious e mot ions
. .

Those who draw near t o the confessional are all s i n c e r e but al ‘

do not draw near .

I t is a great thi ng to get some things into the character

o f the people that are g enuine and true for upon that you c an ,

gradually build up t o wh at is worth something .

That is very true .

62
 Tae Sen a t e D ocum en t ’
Roma n zr m
'

.
an a

The parish priests also were really the advise r s of e ver y

bo dy i n the village official and otherwise ? ,

That is true .

And being loyal t o Spain and representing the governme nt

o f Spai n in so many capacities was it not natural that those ,

Wh o began th e insurr ection against Spain shoul d have a h oe

tili ty to ward these representatives ?
It is very n atural All the more so since this feeling o f
.

mmit y was not so much that of the great mass of the people as
t h ose who constitute d this revolting element a ainst t h e s o ver
g
ei gh ty of Sp ai n .

I want to ask your grace about the relative proport ion

among the people o f th is act i ve revolting element to which
r eference h as been made .

You would have t o run over the entire archipelag o in your

mind to arrive at that figure In the beginnin g i t was only the .

Tagalogs ; now it has spread and y e t it is only a minute pro ,

portion because this element o f disturbance is only composed

,

of those p e ople wh o call themse lves educat ed and even from ,

tho se people you have to subtract a ce rtain pre portion .

That is what I want to fin d out Of course your grace can .

not say exactly but I would l ike to get your idea o f the pro
, 0

portion o f the s o call ed educated Tagalogs to the mass

-

J ud ging from the data collected by ecclesiastics which i s

.

the on ly data on which any reliance can b e placed up to t h e

present time the Filipino population leaving out of course
, ,

those wh o are in a semi savage state in the for est is about 7-

0 0 0 0 00
. The s o called educated ele ment does not amount to
“
-
“

That excludes o f course those who kn ow only how to

, . ,

read an d w r it e and includes only those who have had a college

,

education— those who have taken a seco n dary course and who
are in the professions The masses who are in the i n s ur r e c
.

t io n a r y ranks you would not have to pay any attention to ; they

“

are either led by fear or by ignorance .

I want t o tell you a conversation I had with a young e d u

c a t e d F ilipino who was going to the United State s t o continue
,

h is studies. I said to him t hat I was glad he was going be , .

cause I w an ted him to go to a country where he should under

s tand what real individual l iberty was ; that there he would

fin d o ut that it was possible for a minor ity to live under the

rule o f the m ajority ; that his idea o r the idea of the Filipino as '

to liberty was the right of the m aj ority to r ule and imprison or

cut the throats of the minority and he responded to me with , ,

co nsiderable i mpa t ienc e that that was the feeling poss ibly , , ,

among the masses but that among the governin g and educated
,

el ement there was a ve r y d ifferent feeling , an d that between t he

e d ucated Filipino and the masses there was an immensity of
s p a ce that we could not appreciate .

W hat can be said is that the masses of the people still re

tain a little bit o f common sen s e ; whereas those who boast of ,

be in g the high and mighty have lost it en tirely It is a pity . .

but i t i s true T h ey are nothing but overgrown children wh o

. ,

by mimickin g civilization be lieve that they have reached the

height o f civiliz ation .

63
 ’
Tne Sen a t e Documen t ana Roma n zlcm
Are not the mass of the people as are mo s t r ural comm un i ,

ties simple a n d have t hat kind o f honesty which co mes wit h

, ,

simplicit y
Within the conditions of their race they have that native
h ones t y and simplicity In ti mes gone by prior to t h e revo
. ,

l a tion of 1 8 9 6 t h e mas s o f the people had a simplicity that was

,

r e ally enchanting O ne could travel around without a guard

.

into the provi n ces and g o through an immense lot o f people ,

and they would always receive him with open arms They were .

very hospitabl e an d the first house you come to you could take
a n d use as your o w n .

Th e y are generally a very hospitable race are they not ? ,

Yes s ir
, .

They get that from the Spaniards ?

By n o m e an s O f cou r se the Christian civilization the
.
‘
,

Spani ards have broug h t them has developed this but i n all the ,

Malay an races you will fin d a certain i nnate ki n dli n ess and

ho spitality .

They cer t ainly have d erived from the Spaniard s the courtesy
o f m ann e rs and politenes s ?
Of co urse they may have learned some of that
,
.

Have t hey not more skill in instrumental music than in

vocal music ? Their voices are hardly trained ?
A great d e al more for I have never k n own in adults of
,

single case where a voice might be called a superior voice ; but

amon g t h e youn g child r e n when the ir voices are what might be ,

called sopr ano the re h aVe been some that would attract at
,

tention anywhere .

Then they m ake fin e choir boys ?

Ye s sir
, Th e y have no c h es ts They are a very pusil
. .

l an i o us race There hav e b e e n c ases where a man died of

.

fright. It could not be other wise for look at what they have ,

to live o n a li ttle bit of rice and a small piece of fis h — and the

—

spirit has to be i n rela t ion with the physical organism .

The y are very te mperate are they not ? ,

Yt S , S ir .

They do not eat m uch and d o not drink much .

On some fe ast d ays th ey may fill themselves without meas

ur e but that is about once a year
, They eat for a whole month
-
. .

The strain of a F ili pino lu n ch I have undergone myself ,

with the great numb e r of courses they have .

Whenever they e at at so mebody s else expense they always ’

eat well an d whe n they give a ban q uet or anything o f that kind
,

it is to an e xaggerated d e gree but after the banquet is over all ,

they eat i n the house is a little bit of fis h and a little bit of rice .

This fact make s the m very subject to being carried o ff by

e pidemic s ?

Yes ; and their method of living in n on h y g ien i c surround .

They are cleanly in their person are they not ? ,

Other wise the s mell o f their bod ies would be unendurable '

Those who are extremely careless about their person al condition

are t h e Chinese All of this goes to prove that the climatic con
.

d i t i on s o f Manila are rem arka b ly good because the hygienic

,

64
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t an a
’
Roma n zr m
’

co n di tio n s ha ve b e e n a n y t hin g b ut g o o d an d w o uld r at her in v it e

e p id e m i cs a n d y e t the y ha v e e s ca e d t h e m
,
p .

I a g r e e w it h y o u i n th at 1 t hi n k it is o n e o f t h e mo s t r e
“

m ar ka ble a r c hip e la g o s in t h e w o r ld .

Ye s s ir : y o u ha v e a d iv e r s ity o f c li m a t e he r e an d w hil e
, ,

y o u d o DO t g e t t h e fr i gi d c li ma t e y o u ha v e all t h e t e m p e r a te
z o n e te m p e r a tur es .

T h e p e r c e n ta g e o f illn e s s i n t h e Ar my is lo w e r t ha n it w o uld
b e in t h e so u the r n p o r tio n o f t h e Un ite d S ta te s ?
Y e s air ; a n d that t o o whe n t h e co n d it io n s i n t h fie ld ar e
, , , e

an y thi n g b u t t h e bes t .

N o w a bo u t t h e s ti p e nd p ai d t h e p a r is h p r ie s ts b y t h e G ov
,
‘

e r n m e n t o f S p ain tha t v a r i ed fr o m $ 5 00 t o
I
—

T h e hig h es t sa lar y p a id w a s w hi c h w a s p a id t o fr o m
te n t o tw e lve p a r i s he s i n t h e e n tir e ar c h ip e lag o T h e o th r s
’

. e

we r e $ 9 00 $ 8 00 $ 600 . , d $ 5 00
, an .

H o w wer e t h e c hurc he s bu ilt i n y o u r s e e ?

The sa me as i n a ll t h e r e s t o f t h e ar c hi p e l a g o . Us ually at

th e ini tia tive of t h e p a r i s h p r i e s ts w h o u s ua lly

u t ili z e d an ,

a m o u n t w hi c h wa s ap p r o p r i a t e d b y t h e go v e r n m e n t o f Sp ain
fo r a c hu r c h bui ldin g fun d w hi c h w a s fiv
-
s ix a d e ig ht h un
,
n , , n

d r e d d o lla r s a cc o r d in g t o t h e c a t e g o r y o f t h e p ar i s h
, In fa c t .
,

i n t h e m ajo r i t y o f c as es b y t h e ai d o f t h e p ar i s h io n e r s the m ,

se l v e s be c au se it w a s a lway s t h e g r e a t e s t am b it io n o f t h e ln
,

ha bit a n ts o f a ba r r i o t o be c o me fir s t a mu n i cip a lity b y the m

s e lv e s a n d n e xt a p a r i s h an d ve r y o fte n fo r t h e p ur p o s e o f g e t
,

t in g a g o v e r n m e n t fo r t he m s e lve s the y w o u ld a d v a n c e fun d s fo r

. .

a c hur c h he lp t o build a c hur c h

—
.

A p ar is h us ually h a d o n e c hur c h i n t h e m ai n p a r t o f t h e t o wn ?
‘

Ea c h t o w n co n tain e d o n e p a r i s h c hur c h T h e civ il u it w as . n

also the e c cle s ia s t ic a l u n it T h e p ar is h an d t h e p ue bl o we r e

,
.

ide n tic al .

A n d t h e p ue blo w a s lik e o ur to w n s hi p in t h e Un i t e d S ta tes .

an d t he p r o v i n c e w as ma d e up o f p u e bl o s ea ch wi th a u m ber , . n

o f ba r r io s ?
.

Yes s ir ; a n d a t time s the s e bar r i o s s ur r o u n d e d t h e p ue blo

, .

No w i n t h e bar r ios c o uld n o t the y ha ve c h ur c he s a s wel l

, ,

a s i n to w n s
?

No On ly 8 Sp e c ie s o f c ha p e ls ju s t fo r t h e p ur p o s e o i
. .
—

ha v in g o n ce y e a r a fun c tio n i n ho n o r o f t h e t itul ar s ai n t o f

a

tha t bar r io a n d als o fo r t h e us e o f th o s e wh o b y r e a s o n o f

,

the ir d is ta n c e fr o m t h e ce n t r al c hur c h c o uld n o t g o the r e t o

p e r f o rm the ir r e lig io u s d e vo tio n s .

I be lie ve t h e o r d in ar y c an o n ic al r ule w a s tha t p ers o n w a s a

n o t o blig e d t o a tte n d c hu r c h b y g o i n g m o r e tha n 4 o r 5 mil e s

?

Tha t w a s n o t a n o blig a t io n I t w as o n ly r e c o mm e n d s . a.

t io n . A b o ut 4 l e ag ue s Th a t w as o n ly r e c o m m e n d a ti o n
. a .

s o tha t e n o ug h c hu r c he s mi g ht b e built t o p r e ve n t a n y b o d y fr o m
‘

g o in g m o r e t ha n 4 le a gue s
I n w ho s e n am
.

e is t h e l a n d o n w hi c h t h e c hur c he s s ta n d ?
I n t h e n ame o f t h e s up e r io r aut ho r i t y o f t h e d i o c e s e w h o ,

w as t h e bi s ho p B ut as a m a tte r o f fa c t t he r e w e r e n o w r i t
. , ,

t e n de e ds be ca us e t h e c hurc h t h e s e mi n ar y an d t h e p ar s o n ag e
, , ,
.

wer e co n s id e re d as p ublic bui ldin g s s o tha t e v e n afte r t h e r e g ,

65 c
 ’
Tne Sen a t e Documen t and Roma n m n
is t r a t io n w a s i n s t it ut e d t h e y w e r e n o t r e c o r d e d a n d this g r o w s ,

o ut o f t h e p r o vi s io n o f t h e S p an i s h l a w w h i c h i s bas e d o n t h e ,

v i s io n o f t h e can o n i ca l l a w , t ha t e v e r y thi n g t h a t 1 8 d e vo t e d
p r o

t o wo r s hip i s o u t s id e o f c o mm e r c e an d t r ad e .

No w t h e ho us e in w hi c h y o u li ve is t h e title t o th a t re gi s
h -

t e r ed ?
I do n ot kn ow of an y re gis tr atio n of it His to r y r e c o un t s .

I
.

hav e bee n ab le t o in v e s t iga t e that in t h e s e v e n te e n t h

'

so far as ,

ce n t ur y t h e p lo t o n w h i c h t h e fo r m e r r es ide n c e s to o d (fo r it h ad
b e e n c ha n g e d i n t im e ) a M e x i c a n s e c ul ar p r i e s t bui lt t h e ho u s e
o ut o f h is o w n fun d s an d i n hi s will le ft i t t o hi s s u c ces s o r
,
.

T h e r e as o n t hi s M e x i c a n bi s h o p h a d t o b uild i t o u t o f his o w n
_

p o c ke t w as tha t th e r e w e r e ot s uffic ie t g o v e r n m e n t fun d s n n ,

as it w as an o bli g a t i o n of the S p an is h g o v er n m en t to
build c hur c h e s p r o vi d e s e min a r ies ,
an d co n v e n to s an d , ,

b ui ld a p al a c e fo r t h e bis ho p a ll of whi c h g r o w s o ut o f a , ,

co m p ac t b e tw t h e P o p e an d t h e g o v e r n m e n t o f S p ain t hat
‘

e en

they s ho ul d e n d o w c hur c he s an d p r i e s ts t o carr y o n r e ligio us

'

te a c hin g s .

N o w t h e c a t he d r al i s h e ld n t h e s a m e w ay ? i

Thi s c a th ed r al h as b e e n d e s tr o y e d fo ur t im es b y fir e an d
e ar t hquakes b u t it w as n o t b u il t b y p u bli c fu n d s o r ig in ally b u t
, ,

b y se ve r al a r c hbi s ho p s T h e g o v e r n m e n t h a s h o w e ve r . i n ve s t , ,

ed a bo ut 3 20 0 i n o n e o r t w o r e c o n s tr u c ti o n s o f i t .

An d t h e la n d o n w hi c h it s tan d s tha t is w ha t o r dinar i ly —

'

ma ke s t h e titl e s t o t h e bu ild in g ?
Tha t w as g o v e r n m e n t la n d All o f the s e is l an d s w e r e calle d .

r o y a l l an d s .

M y que s t io n s ar e d ir e c t e d t o w ar d a s t a i g h t e n i n g o u t o f t h e r
’

t i t le s bec ause w h e r e th e r e i s s e p ar a t io o f c h u r c h an d s ta t e
, n

y o u h a ve g o t t o ha v e s e p a a t e t it le s r .

'

Yes i t h as g o t t o as s um e a n o t h e r fo r m
, s ir ; now .

Wh at m y ques t io n le a d s up t o is t h e p r o p e r fo r m o f a c tio n
"

t o b e ta ke n b y t h e g o ve r n m e n t o f t h e i s la n d s , r e p r e s e n t in g t h e
g o v e r n m e n t o f t h e Un i t e d S t at e s , t o g ive t o t h e c h u r c h and t o
t he Ca t ho li c s of the p a r is h t he le g al -
t i t le to the pr o p er ty us e d
fo r w o r s hip , an d to t h e p ar s o n a g e s a n d se m in a r i es ,
be c a us e we
ar e n o t he r e to r o b the C
a t h o ic c h u r c l h .

T he go ve r n me n t m ay m a k e m is t ak e s '
b ut it w il l ne ve r do
I b ee n s o c e r t ai n o f thi s t h a t I
,
,

an in jus t ice . h a ve ,
d id n ot ,
li ke
o th e r s t a ke an y p r e c a u t i o n t o a s s u e t h e t i t le t o r m y p r o p er t y
I f lt
,
,

fo r e c er t ai n t h e g o v e r n m e n t w o uld p r o te c t m e i n t h e m a tte r
I d
.

un er s t a n d t h a t b y t h e c an o n ic a la w t h e p e r l son i n w ho s e
n a me t he t b e lo n gi n g t o t h e c h u r c h s ho uld s t a n d t he
'

p r op er y is

_ bis ho p th a t
_
-
is , he is t h e p e r s o n r e p r e s e n t in g t h e c hur c h in the
d io c e s e , an d t ha t i t i s t h e d ut y of e a ch bi s h o p t o ma ke a will
se c ur in g t he p r oper t y t o his s uc ce s so r ?
Tha t 1 s co r r e c t .

We ha ve h a d co mm un ic at io n fr o m v ar io us in t h e
p e op le
pr o v i n ce s bui lt t h i s chur ch
wh o we
say ,
, a n d y e t it s t an d s o n
s ta te p r o p e r t y a n d w e s h o ul d lik e t o ha v e
, t h e tit l e c le ar e d u p i n
so m e w ay No w w o uld t h is k in d o f c o n v e y a n ce e x r e s s
p t he
.
,

r ea l t it l e T o t h e a r c h b is h o p o r t h e bi s h o
p o f t h e d i o ce s e
:
, for
t h e us e o f t h e C a t h o li c r e s id e n t s o f t h e a r t ic ular
p ue blo ?
"
p
Yes tha t 1 8 t h e p r o p e w a y t o p r o c e e d
, r .

66
 Tue Sen a t e Doc um en t ana
’
Roma n is m
Of co urse the only questions that are likely to arise will be
( like th e Jan Jose case ) with res pect t o suc h other properti es
I am told to which complete relig ious characte r is not assured ;
,

but with respect t o all property used for worship or mere n ec

essary ad juncts to worship— the seminary the parsonage — there ,

will not be the slightest trouble about our giving to the church
t hat property and giving the church a legal ti tl e I do not mean .

t o intimate that the other property may not be o f the same char
ac te r but o f this ther e c an be no doubt
. .

Yes ; this is very clear and the rest will go on clearing up

, ,

Now what I want your grace to explain t o me is the obras

pias and the obras mitre .

Those funds whose administration is dir ectly and ex clu

s ive ly in the h ands o f the bishop are call ed obras pias of the
”
mitre but th o se generally kn own as obras pias ” are intr ust
.

ed to the administration o f another party or of another entity

‘

under the j uri s diction of the bishop Sometimes it is contr olled .

by a single person an d sometimes by a boa r d ; ordinaril y i t is a

board That is the only d ifference between wha t is known as
.

the mitre ” fund and the obras pias ” fund .

Now what goes to make up the obras pias

In the year 1 85 0 several obras pias ” which were intended ,

for separat e objects and which are ad ministered by different

people were brought to gether and centralized an d put under
, ,

o n e d irection The funds which constitute what is kno wn here

.

as the general obras pias are four : Santo Domingo San ,

F r an c i s co 1 s ab e l and the Re co lle t o s

, , , These four fund s were .

managed by four different people and when the funds were all ,

j oin e d toget her these four formed a board for the management
of t hem all The j oinin g or br ing ing tog ether of these four
.

funds was by order of the Spanish govern ment whose idea was ,

to found this Spanish Filipino Bank and which as a matter of

-

, ,

f ac t was founded by the union of these fou r funds

,
The gov .

e r n men t wa s very anxiou s to establish a bank and they b e ,

th ought themselves that the easiest way ( recog n izing their right
of inte rvention in ecclesiastical matter by p on t i flcal author ity)
was to unite the four funds Under the by la ws these four .

funds are to be managed so as to produce the greatest benefit

for the objects for which they are intended They are usually ,

employed in advancing money upon mortgages to land property

titles The archbishop presides over the annual mee ting o f
.

t his board but they have to render account to him at all times
,
.

The income of the fund is used to pay expenses of the

masses to build charitable institutions and to discharge other ,

pious work s as I understand it ?

,

Yes sir All o f these funds were originated by Spaniards

, . .

There are no natives interested whatever in it Aside from the .

religious and pio us ends to which the i n co me of these funds are “

devoted they also pay yearly portions of the income to the de

scend e nte of the orig inal makers of thos e funds according t o
the will o f the man who founded the fund .

They do not however tur n over any of the i nco me to t h e

, ,

general treasury o f the religious orders except f o r s em oe s r e n

dered in g iving mass an d that sort o f t hing .

67
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t R om a n zr m
’

and

The only amounts which are paid over t o the treasury of

t h e different orders are such as the founders of the fund them
s el ves ordered should be paid over at c ertain times and t hose ,

ar e handed directly over to the d ifier e n t orders for d ifier e n t pur

poses acco rding to the behests of the founders o f the fund
, ,

under the super vis ion of t h e archbis hop There ar e some o f .

these funds des tined eve ry year to the co nven t o f S anta Clara ,

and s ome t o missionar y work in China The regular orde rs .

here are no more beneficiaries t han any other beneficiar y of a

'

will would be .

As I understand it the fund or the obras pias is princi

,

pally occupied i n supporting the larger part o f t h e capita l of

the Fi lipino Ban k Is i t st ill there ?
.

There have been large accreti ons to the or ig ina l fund an d

‘

I d o not know now what proportion of the capital it re pr e se nt s

,

I do n o t
,

b ut i n the beginni ng it was the capi t al of the bank .

remember th e figures ve r y wel l but I have an idea that when

p

the several funds were paid over at first for establishing t h e

bank they amounted to
,

Would your grace be willing to give me a general estimate

as t o the amount the obras pias h as now r e ache d an d it s
annual in co me ?
I cannot te ll you o fiha n d but I can get it for you an d f ur
,

nis h it t o you in writing .

There is a gr e at deal of mis information on the gen er al sub

je c t of e cclesias ti cal ownership of prope r ty here and I want t o ,
clear it up if I can .

I understand that ver y well and fully re cognize myse lf the ,

aptness and proneness of the people in this society to attribute

wrong doings and evil impulses to everybody I have always .

pro ce e ded o n the plan to give out every thin g and will be glad .

to have the opportunity .

”
As to the mit e fund is tha t l ike th e ot her ex cept th at
r , ,

your grace administers it as archbishop and it was provide d in ,

the fund that you should administe r it ?

It is ad ministered by the se cretary of th e archbishop This .

mitre fund or what goes t o make the mitre fund now

,
,
was originally known as a f un d administe red by differ ,

e nt for different purpo s es It was publicly admin is te re d .

,
and a certain archb ishop ordere d it to be unite d an d mad e into
one fund and put u nder the direct su pe rvis ion of t h e ar chbishop .

What wa s the source of the fund ?

It is a pious legac y given for mass only , .

And that is under the direct contr ol of the secretary for th e

archbishop ?
Yes sir , .

It has now grown to be a large fund ?

The only way in which it has grown is by the enhanced
value of the property fro m which the legacy flows .

But I suppose the contribut ions of those who died and le ft

these legacie s continued and i n creas ed ?
There are al so losse s by t yp oons fir e s and earthquakes . .

Have you any agricultural property in either of these funds ?

”
In the general obras pias not i n the mitre ” Yes b ut
“
. .
,
it is all recorded .

, es
 T/ze Sen a t e Doc um en t d R om a n t y m
'

an

that t h e y s ig n e d i t b ecause s o meone asked t he m t o do so .

Another serious obstruc tion to the a d minis t rat ion o f jus t ic e in _

these case s is th at e ven when actual guilt exists they will in , ,

making the ch arges s urround them with so many lies an d i m

,

mate r i al a ccus ations that to sift o ut the truth is al most an im

,

possi b ilit y and the y really render the charges useless by this
,

false and infamous cal umny .

Do you th ink that the immorality such as ex iste d was the , ,

cause o f any hostility on the part of the parishioners against

the priests ?
Absolutely none at all because they have n o moral se nse , .

The principle in this lies in that they do not ever complain

against a priest n o matter whether he has t h is or that ugly vice
, .

The only ti me they complain is when they have a little r evenge

to reap .

Do they complain ag ainst the native priest s ?

S ometimes ve ry seldom where there is a clas h of in terests
, , .

Otherwise they never accuse them .

On the whole the native priests are much less r igi d in t heir
,

morality than the Spanish priests are they not ? ,

A great deal less As in the physical sense he is weaker so

.
,

also is he in the moral It must also be recognized as a fact

.

that a native priest at the head of the par ish has much less pres
tige than a white priest .

N o w as to the chastity of the Philippine women ; they are

not generall y and promiscuously unchaste are they ? ,

No they are not It is true of all people tha t there is more

, .

chastity in women than in men b ut here it is especially notice ,

able
.

I have observed that they are quite modest accordi ng to

their lights Now while they are not promiscuously unchaste
.
,

I have heard it said that there is a good deal of disregard for

the necessity of the ceremony of marriage before they begin to
live togeth er as man and wife .

But in turn the Indian woman living in concubinage i s al

ways restless She wants to have her marriage solemnized in
.

order t o legitimatize the children .

And she is usually faithful to the man with whom she is

living ?
Generally ye s ; an d generally the man is not The woman
, . .

is better than the man here in every way In i nte lligence in .

,

virtue and in labor ; and a great deal more economical She is

,
.

very much given to tr ad e and trafficking If any rights or priv .

ileg e s are t o be grante d to the natives do not give them to the

,

men but to the women .

Then you think it would be much better to give the women

the right to vote than the men ?
Oh much mor e Why even i n the fields it i s the wome n
, .
,

who do the work The me n go to the co ck fig h t s and ga mble

.

And the men have no hesitancy about living o n the earnings

of the women ?
The woman is the o n e who supports t h e man here ; so
ever y law of j ustic e dem ands t h at even in pol itical life they
should have the privil ege over the men You have to conform .

to nature I must re nder j ust tr ib ute to the Ame rican army here
.

.
 Tue Sen a t e Doc um en t d Roma n zy m
’

an

I have noticed all along the con sid erati o n tbav have had for the
women It is worthy o i? co mment If they had been S pan i ar d s
. .
,

o r Italians or Frenchmen they would have committe d more

, ,

breaches in the li n e o f morality than the American soldier has .

Throughout the provinces the rumor had run that t he Am erican

soldie r was a beast in every way a savage —
.

As to the looting of the churches — how much was done by

th e volunteers ? I have understo od that they have been very
s everely p unished for wh at they did .

The di s lik e o f the native women to the American is due a

great deal to the despoliation o f t h e c hurches for as i n other , ,

countries she is more religious naturally than the man and a

, ,

g reat deal o f t h at w as done W h at has created the greatest

“

o utc ry against the American troops was the tr eatment of t h e

sacred images in the ch urches tearing ofi arms and throwing —

them outside like a puppet .

That has ceased since the volunteers we n t away ?

Yes There were very man y good men among those for
mer v o lun e e r s ; but naturally the bad element controlled
‘
, , .

As to possibil ity of the parish priests obtaining the depor

t at i on of men whom they thought ought to be ba n ished from
the community by application to the governor general will you - —

ki ndly give me your view o n that ?

'

Those are very rare cases There have been a f e w Upon . .

the petition o f a parish priest any d eportation ensuing is a ve ry

rare case As to the d e p o r at t io n of me n by the civil authorities
.

upon their own investigation assisted in a way by the parish ,

priests but not upon his initiative there were several ; but the
, ,

civil authorities generally made the accusation against the man ,

and the governor general would ask the parish priest to re port
upon the facts in the case and b e rendered that report and it
, ,

was understood to be entirely con fidential and it might be for ,

or against the man and after wards when deportati on ensued

, , ,

very often the local civil authority would give it out that the
parish priest made the ac cusation and naturally it brought upon ,

him the dread o f the community That has been done in all .

sections of the island b ut principally amOn g the Tagalogs

,
.

No w I want to talk w ith your grace a little on the school

.

question ?
That is very important .

We are charged with the duty of establishing a public

sch ool sys em here and t h e only w ay we can make it a good
'
.
,

syste m at all is to levy sub s tantial taxes .

I think that the time when that will be a proper proceeding

will be delayed considerabl y It is true that the best use that
.

c an be made o f the proceeds o f tax ation is in education You .

have laid down the principle that the best thing to do at the
begin n in g is to establish a good public school system and I will ,

lay do wn the principle tha t you will have to do it independently

of the Indian To give the administration of the schools to
.

h im i s t o throw the money in the fir e .

Q
.
We expect t o retain s ufii c ie n t control over the system to
prevent that if we can but what we need most is the c o oper
,
-

ati on o f the church .

A It has always been the d s ir e of t h e church t o inst ruct

.

a
 Roma n zr m
'

T/ze Sen a t e Documen t an a

t he c hil d re n in or d er to ma k e a go o d fo un d a tio n fo r lig io us

r e .

tr aini n g a n d y o u ,
w an t t o a wa k e n t he in t e llig e n ce of t h e c hild

s u ffic ie n t t o e n a b le
h im t o g r e w t h e c iv il s id e o f life .

Q Yo u kn o w t h e r e s t r i c t io n s p la Ce d u p o n t h e dis bur s e m e n t
.

o f mo n e yr i n Am e r ica r a i s e d b y t a x a t io n i n t ha t it m us t b e n o n

s e c t ar ia n But t h is is a Ca t h o l ic c o u n tr y an d it w ill b e a be tte r

. ,

co un r t y as it is u. bet t er ive Ca t h o li c c o un t r y , and w e w sh t o g i

as full o p p o r t un i ty as w e c an s u bje c t t o t h e r e s t r ic tio n s I ha ve ,

me n tio n e d fo r t h e i n s tr uc t io n o f t h e s c ho o l c hil d r e n e ithe r b e

, ,

fo r e o r aft e r t h e r e g ular i n s t r u c tio n b y t h e p r ie s t o r te ac he r ,

w ho m t h e c hu r c h w ill Se le c t i n m o r a lit y a n d r e lig io n an d we , ,

wis h t o g iv e t h e sa m e o p p o r t u n i t y t o o t he r c hu r c hes No w .
,

s u c h a s y s t e m h a s w o r k e d i n s o m e p ar t s o f Am e r ica I n a gr ea t .

m an y p ar t s o f A me r ica n o r e l igio us in s t u c t io n is p er m itt e d i n

‘
r

t h e s c ho o ls a t a ll b u t w e a r e i n a d ifie r e n t c o un t r y an d so lo n g
, ,

a s we ke e p w it h in t h e lin e o f n o t o ur s e lv es p a y i n g p e o p le fo r
in s tr uc t io n i a p ar t ic ula r r e lig io w e w an t t o give full o p p o r
n n ,

t un i t y t o t h e o p e r a t io n o f t h e ch ur c h i n m o r a l an d r e li g io n s in
s tr u c ti o n t o t h e c h ild en a n d w e h a v e s a id t o o ur s u p e r i n t e n d e n t
r ,

o f in s tr uc ti o n tha t w h ile i t is n o t p o s s ible o f c o u r s e t o d is , ,

c r imi n a te i n fa v o r o f C a t h o l ic t e a c he r s i n s e l e c tin g tho s e w ho m

w e ho p e t o br in g o u t h e r e w e a r e v e y a n x io u s in an y le g itim a te , r

w ay t o m a k e th a t um b e r a ju s t a n d fa ir p r o p o r tio n n -
.

A Tha t is a v e r y g o o d id e a
. . .

Q W e a r e v e r y an x io u s i n e v e ry way tha t w e c an le gi ti
.
,

m a te ly t o s e c ur e t h e p o w e r ful c o O p e r a tio n o f t h e C a tho li c

,
-

c hur ch i n e d u c a t io n a l a n d o t h e r m e a s u e s r .

A T h e g o v e r n m e n t m a y r e ly u p o n t h a t n a tur a lly
.
fo r if ,

o n ly fo r o ur ow p r id e w e wo uld e n d ea vo r t o c ul t i va te r e lig io u s
n

p r i c ip le s
n .

Q H o w m any p r i e s ts in y o u r s e e w e r e as s aulted or im
.

p r is o n ed d u r in g t h e r e v o lu t io n s o f 1 8 9 6 a n d 1 89 8 ?
A N ea r ly a ll o f t he m o u t s id e o f M an ila
.
.

Q H o w lo n g w e r e t h e y k e p t in p r is o n ?
.

A Alm o s t u p t o t h e t i me t hi s r e s c ue to o k
p lace w he n t h e
.

Am e r i c an s a d a n c e d u p t o t h e n o r t h a n d d o w n t o t h e C am a r in e s
v
.

We r e n y o f t he m kille d ? a

A t t h e b e g in n in g i h Za m ba le s t h e y k ille d thr ee
, .
A ft e r , .

w ar d s t h e le a d s of t h e i n s ur r e c t o r y m o ve m e n t i n t h e fie ld
er

y g a v e the m e v e r y
t e ate d t h e m
r e y w e ll s o m uch s o t h at t he
v r —

thin g t h c y h ad S o m uch s o t h a t t h e S p a n is h o ffic e r s a n d

.

s o ld ie r s to g e t t h e c r um b s o f ho s p it a li ty
c a me
w hic h g o e s to ,

p r o e t h a t t h e p e p le d o n o t h a t e t h e p r ie s t s a s m u c h a s t h e
v o
‘

K t ip u n
a w ul d m a ke o e b e l ie v e
an s o n .

To wh a t d y ou t t r ib u te t h is h o s tilit y a a in s t t h e fr iar s
o a
g
s u ch a s e x is t e d ?

B e c a us e the p a r is h l p r ie s t w as lway s te r r o r
a t he to e vi
d o e r s a n d t h e fe w w h o h a d i d e a s o f i n d e
p en d e n c e a n d c o uld
,

e x p l a i n t h e m d id n o t w a t a n
y E ur o p e a n wit n e s s e s o f w ha t the n
y
p e o p le T h e m is s io n ar y
w e t r y in g t
er d o w it h t h e m a s s o f t h e
o
.
,
b e h e a fr i a o r s e cul a r p ie s t w a s alw a
y s an a ge n t o f o r d e r a n d
r r ,

m o r a lit y nd that i w h a t th e y d is li k e d
, a Th o s e w h o like d t o
s
.

li v e b y fis h in g in t r o u b le d w at e r s d id n o t w a n t a n y mis s io n ar y
a r o un d t hem A n o t h e r r e a s o n fo r t h e ha t r
ed o f the fr i ar s i s
.

tha t all o f t h e s e K a tip un an s w h o w a n t in d e e n d e n ce w a

p nt ,
,

72
 Tbe Sen a t e Documen t d Romnn zsn z
'

an

not h in g b ut n a tiv e p r i e s t s b e c a us e t he y c an m a n ag e t he m a n d
,

m ake the m th e ir in s tr ume n ts a n d t h ey k n o w t ha t t he y c o uld ,

n o t m a n a g e t h e w hi te p r i es t s an d the r e fo r e the y a r e tr y in g t o
,

m ake t h e p eo p l e ha te t h e w hi t e p r ies ts .

I t h a s b e e n c har g e d tha t s o m e o f t h e fe e li n g ag ain s t t h e

fr iar s w a s d ue t o t h e r ep o r te d ac t io n o f t h e fr iar s a g ain s t Riz al .

Will y o u b e g o o d e n o ugh t o t e ll m e— to give me a n a c c o un t o f

'

t h e p r o cee d in g s ag ain s t R iz al fr o m t h e s ta n d p o in t o f t h e S p a ni s h
‘

g o ve r n m e n t an d o f a S p a n ia r d w h o w as her e ?
I will b e ver y gla d to d o s o be c aus e it is o n e o f t h e gr e a te s t ,

c a lumn ie s tha t h as be e n c as t up o n t h e c hur c h T h e c as e o f .

Riz al is o n e in whic h t h e c hur c h h a d n o in t e r fe r e n c e wha te v e r ,

be gin nin g w ith t h e ar c hbis ho p d o w n t o t h e lo w e s t fr iar The y ‘

have all mad e t h e e fio r t to h an g t h a t a c cus at io n up o n t h e fr iar s .

Riz al w as in E uro p e a n d h e c am e o v e r t o t h e Philip p in es an d

or g an iz e d w ha t h e c all e d t h e Phi lip p in e Le ague an d t h e g o v “
,

e r n m e n t s o ught t o s e e i n th a t a n e l e m e n t o f up r i s in g a m o n g t h e

p e o p le a n d the y be tho ug h t th em s e lv e s o f s e n d i n g hi m t o D ap it
, ,

OR t h e c o a s t o f M in d an ao H e the n a s ke d p e r m is s io n o f G e n er al
.

Blan c o t o g o t o C uba a s v o lu n t e e r s ur g e o n a T h a t p e r mis s io n .

w a s g r an te d a n d h e c am e up fr o m t h e is lan d o f D ap it t o Man il a
, ,

but the y d id n o t le t hi m c o m e o n s h o r e b u t he ld h im he r e un t il ,

t h e Sp an is h m ail s t e a m e r ar r i v e d an d the n we n t t o B arce lo n a , .

Wh il e h e w as o n h is w ay t o B ar c elo n a t h e up r is in g o f 1 89 6
"

oc c ur r e d T h e m ilit a r y autho r i tie s b y o r d er o f Gen e ral Bl an c o

. , ,

i n s ti tut e d a n i n quir y be fo r e a mili tar y tr i bun al whi c h w as e n ,

tit e ly militar y a n d it ap p e ar e d th a t Riz al wa s c omp l ica t e d in

,
'

this in s ur r e c to r y m o ve m e n t Whe n the y d is c o v e r e d fr o m t h e .

r e s ul t o f th is in v e s t ig a tio n t ha t h e w as im p lic a t e d in i t t h e ,

c iv il g o ve r n o r t e le g r a p h e d t o ha v e hi m ap p r e he n d e d a t B ar c e
lo n a o n h is ar r i val a n d r e t ur n e d t o M a n il a T h e in quir y w as .

c o n tin u e d at th is t im e n o t o n ly a g a in s t him b ut o the r s w h o

, ,

w e r e al s o alle g e d t o b e im p lic a t e d wi t h him a n d t h e r e s ult o f ,

t h e m ili t a r y tr ibun a l w a s t h e s e n t e n ce o f d e a th I n t h e w ho le .

o f th a t tr i a l th e r e w a s n o w r it t e n or v e r b a l te s t im o n y b y a n y

on e co n n ect ed wi th t h e p r i e s ts I t w as m ilitar y tr ibu n al ,. a

he ar in g a c a se with o ut t h e s lig hte s t in te r ve n t io n o f t h e r e ligio us

o r d e r s ; b ut fo llo w i n g t h e us u a l c us t o m o f a t tr ibu t in g e v e r y
,

thi n g tha t w a s a r d uo us t h a t w a s b a d that w as w r o n g t o t h e

, , ,

r e lig i o us e l e m e n t the y ca s t t h is s l a n d e r up o n t he m wh ic h h as
bes id e s I my s lf t o o k
, ,

no fo u n d a t i o n i n fa c t wh a te v e r ; a n d , , e

p e r s o n al p a i n s
i n b e h a l f o f s o m e o t h e r s w h o w e r e c ha r g e d a bo u t
tha t (b ut n o t w ith h im ) wi t h c o m p lic it y in thi s in s ur r e c t o r y
m o ve m en t a n d I s uc c e e de d i n s av in g the ir liv e s b ut n o t o n e
,
,

e v er s a id a n y t hi n g ab o ut tha t a n d they ar e walki n g a r o un d ,

M a n il a da il y It h a s a lway s b e e n t h e c us t o m t o a t t r ibut e e v e r y
.

killi n g b y judic ial d e c r e e fo r p o lit i c a l o fie n s e s i n t h e is la n d s t o

t h e fr ia r s wi t h o u t a n y g r o u n d wha te ve r ,
.

D o y o u k n o w Ag uin aldo ?
Y e s s ir ,
I n C avi te w he n h e was pre s id e n te h e ho n o re d
. , ,

me a g r e at d e a l wi th m us ic .

W h t ki n d o f a m a n i s h e ?

I c a n n o t s ay wh e the r h e is cul t ur e d o r un
a

H e is p o o r .

H e h a s o nly h a d t hr e e y e ar s c o ur s e i n s e c o n d ar y in
’

c ulture d
'

s t r u c tio n w itho u t a n y b e n e fit t o him s e lf

,
.

73
 R oma n zr m
'

T/ze Sen a t e Doc umen t and

Doe s he speak Spanish ?

I do not know whethe r h e has learned any s ince he h as b ee n
in the field b ut before he c o uld not follow a conversa t i on i n
,

S pan ish .

But hasn t he more force of characte r than the men he h as

’

gathered abo ut him ?

Not at all Circumstance s have favored him No esp ecial
.
.

pe rsonal meri t at all His only claim was d ue to the fact t hat
.

he was the first t o ri se against the Spanish Government and kil l

a few men of t h e g uardia civil in Cavite w h ich with the ir , ,

proneness to ex aggerating eve r y thing they construed into a great ,

v ictory and he was carr ie d on th e fl o od tides of popularit y

,
.

He has no pe rsonal valor whate ver .

A UG US T 7 1 9 00 , .

TH E B I SHOP OF J A RO .

Q How large is your diocese ?

.

A All the island of Panay of Negros the district of

. , ,

R o mblon and Z amboanga and J0 1 0

Q You have a beautiful part of the archipe lago I am told ?
.
,

.
,

A Yes sir
. , .

Q How many parish priests were t here in your dioce se b e

. .

fore the revolu t ion ?

A About two hundred in cluding the missions
.
, .

Q Can you s tate generally how these priests were divide d

.

with relation t o the religious orders ?

'6 A As follows : T wenty six parishes were presided over by
.
-

na ti ve priests Three parishes which were next adjoining the

. ,

see and t wo neighb orin g islands and all of what is known as th e

,

district of E e l e n which is more than one h alf the province o f

,
-

Capiz All the re st of the island of Panay which is composed

.
,

of three provinces Iloilo Capiz and Antique were w i t h the

, , , ,

Augustinian f athers The Re co le t o s were i n the district of

.

R omblon Palawan and the island of Bolava

, T h e Jesuits were
, .

i n Min d i n ao and Jolo

I will s nd yo u to mor 1 ow the number of each order in the
.

e -

districts mentioned The bishopric did not have t o be presided

.

over by the members of any order My prede ce ssor was a .

Be c o le t o but the one prior t o him was not

, Jaro is the most .

recent bishopric .

Q It was created out of the diocese of Cebu ?

A : Yes sir , .

Q What civil or poli tical functions did the priests in your

diocese actually perfor m? I do not mean what the law r e
quired them to perform but what was thrust on them by th e ,

Spanish government an d what did they actually do ? ,

A By reason of the fact that there were hardly any edu

.

c at e d men at all in the provinces the priests were called upon ,

to perform al most every ( fli ce ad ministrative and executive o f , ,

a civil character but he usually occupied the position o f pre

,

siding c uice r of provincial boards For instance when I .

,

ar rived here in 1 8 75 and was desi gnated to g o to the Vi s ayas t o

learn the language in a province of 3 00 0 00 there were only f o ur
,

Spa niards , and conse quently th ey h ad to rely o n t h e pari sh

74
 Tue Sen a t e D ocum en t and Roma n is m
p riests to make a connection between the gov e rnment and th e
peop le .

Q How long did it take you to learn the Visayan language ?

.

A Fourteen months
. .

Q You learned it su fficiently well in that time to preach in

.

A Yes air ; in four mont hs you could learn enough to

.
,

t r ansact business .

Q Is it more difficult than the Tagalog ?

.

A They are all about the sa me

. .

Q What do you think of the characte r isti cs of the Vis ay

.

an s as compared with the Tagalogs ?

A More pac i fi c an d quiet They are more humble and sub

. .

missive One of the proo f s of that is that all of the Ta galogs

.

that go from here i mmed iately impose on the people and get the
best o ut of them It may be that the Tagalogs have a more
,
.

worldly knowledge than the Visayans It must al s o be borne .

in mind th at the Tagalogs in this part of the island s have had

more rubbing up agains t the foreign elemen t When I went .

t here and up to a ver y recent time there were no foreign ers in ,

that sec tion .

Q How are they as to industry ? Do the Visayans like

.

work any bett er than the Tag alogs 7 .

A I believe perhaps a Visayan is l e ss addicted to work

.

even than a T agalog becau s e they have every thing at han d and
,

nothin g calling for work Never t heless i n those places whe re . ,

pr o g r e s s demand s more need s they are working very wel l and

in the twenty t wo years I have lived there the advance in agri
.

culture has been very g reat .

Q And you think they are capable of b e ing trained to wo r k ?

A Yes ai r
. The proof of that is that the g re at sug ar
, .

plantations owned by foreigners are worked by the Visayans .

Q Are they skillful mechanics ? .

A For imitative p urpose s yes Initiative th e y have none

. , . .

Even in agriculture th ey do not evolve anyth ing themse lves .

How i it as com ared with the Tagalo s a s to th i r lack

'

e
Q . s p g
of a ppreciation o f the diffe re nce between m eum and tuu m
A About the same You c an s ee that afte r all the time the
'

.
.

parish priests have s pent i n tryi n g to bring them up in p o per r

ways they immediately assert themselves as the o w ne r s o f

,

ever ything an d want to appropriate everything to them s el ves

,
.

As most o f the population live e ithe r on river bank s or t h e a s

shore where i n half an h our they can get one o r two ii h an d a
,
-

l itt le s al t and with some herbs that grow s pontaneou ly they

s
,
,

do n o t have to wor k and if a native has something the y w ant

\

they j u s t take it The climate it s e l f i s ve ry favo rab l e — they

.

hardly have to wear an y clothes W i th the introd ucti on o f new .

e le ments new civil i zation and the necessity o f bei n g clo t hed
, ,

i n public will bri n g ab out n e w con ditions but now climatic

,
,

co ndition s an d all are to t h e contrary .

Q As .
servants are they pilferer s

A Yes s ir Here for instance the Ilocan o s are c o n s id

.
,
. , ,

ered as g ood servants an d ot hers as b ad serv ants ; h ut s pe ak

,

ing broadly they are all the sa me Those who have bee n n ar .
e

e r to the priests have learned to be a little more honest

.

75
 ’
Rema n zs fn
'

Tne Sen a te D ecumen t ana

Q D o y o u t hi n k t h at t h e I lo c a n o s d o m a k e b e tt e r s e r v a n t s ?
I
.

be t t e r m o r a lly an d they
_

A . Ye s s i r ;. t h in k s o . T h ey ar e ,

wi l l s t ic k to a p l a c e lo n g e r . For in s t an ce , t he r e is an Ilo ca n o
w h o h ad b ee n t w e n ty y e a r s i n t he c o n ve n t , an d so me y ear s ago ,

in c l e an in g up be c am e l am e a n d w a s s e n t t o t h e
t he h o us e , h e
ho s p ita l a n d e c o v e r e d ; b u t h e is t h e o n l y o n e w h o h as n o t l e ft
r

d ur i n g t h e r e vo lut io n I n in d u s tr y i n fid e li t y an d m o r ali ty t h e
. , ,

Ilo c an o s ar e t h e be s t
Q I s up p o s e t h e p r i es ts i n y o u r dio c es e r e c e ive t h e s a m e
.

s tip e n d as t h e p r i e s t s t h r o ug ho u t o t he r p a r t s o f t h e is l an d ?
A . Yes , air ; the sa me .

Q . A nd the build i n g of th e c hur c he s w as m ad e in t h e sa me

way ?
A . Yes , s ir ; th e c hur ch go ve r n m e n t is t h e sa me in all t he

is lan d .

Q . Wit h r e fe r e n ce to t he tit le to the c hur c he s , ar e t he r e

d e ed s ?
lly Th e s e l an ds w e r e jus t do n a t e d
'

A . G en er a s p e a ki n g, no .

to t h e c h ur c h b y t h e g o er n m e n t o r b y p r iva t e pa r ti e s
v an d ,

ev e r y bo d y r e c o g n i ed t ha t fa c t so
z t he r e w a s n o e c e s s it y ,
n .

Q S o t h
. a t t h e e i s n o r i g h t e x c e p t th a t o f p r e s c r ip t i o n ?
r

o c c up a tio n W e ca n br i n g p r o o fs o f t h e
'

A Yes . si r ; an d ,
.

p o ss e s s io n. o f c o ur s e

Oh y e s ; I u n d e r s t a d b ut I a s k t h e que s t io n with r e f
.

Q . , n ,

e r e n c e t o thi s : W e m u s t c le ar up t h e tit le s in thes e is lan ds ; w e

m u s t ha ve t h e p u b li c l an d s s ur v e y e d an d w e m us t s e c u r e t h e
I fa n c y tha t y o u c an c o r r e c t me if I
,

r e gi s tr y o f p r op er t i tl e s .

am wr o n g tha t t h e la n d o n w h i ch m o s t o f t h e c hur c he s s ta n d
, .

s o fa as t h e r e c o r d s s ho w is g o e r n me n t l a n d ?
r , v

A I be lie ve t h a t i s t h e fa c t be c au s e tw e n ty t wo y e ar s a g o
whe n I w e n t t o m y p ar i s h t h e r e w as n o c hur c h o r c o n v e n ts o r
-
. , ,

, .

a n y t hi n g ; th e r e w a s j us t t h e p l an o f a t o w n m a d e b y t h e g o v

er n m e t wi t h t h e d iff e r e n t lo t s la id ou t a n d d es ig n a te d fo r c e r
n ,

tain p ur p o se s a lo t fo r t h e c h ur c h a n d fo r t h e c o ve n t s
— n .

Q O f c o ur s e t h e g o v e r m e n t o f t h e Un i te d S t a te s i s n o t
.
, n

her e t o d e p r ive t h e c hur ch o f it s p r o p e r t y o r t o d e p r i e t h e , v

p e o p le o f t h e r i g ht i n p e r p e t ui t y t o t h e u s e o f t h e c h u r ch an d ,

m y que s t i o n s w e r e p ut wi t h a vi e w o f d e ter m in i n g w ha t s te p s
oug ht t o b e tak e n t o m ake t h e p r o p e r t it le s fo r t h e la n d u p o r i
w hic h t h e c h ur c he s s tan d It h a s o c cur r e d t o m e tha t t h e be s t
.

w ay t o d o tha t w o ul d b e for t h e g o ve r n m e n t t o c o v e y e a c h n

co n ve n t o a n d c hu r c h t o t h e b is ho p o f t h e dio c e s e fo r t h e u se o f

t h e p ar t i c ular p a r i s h in w hi ch t h e chu r c h a n d c o n v e n to s t an d .

W o uld t ha t n o t a c co r d wi t h bo th t h e r i g hts o f t h e p ar is hio n e r s

w h o c o n tr i but e d t o t h e r e ct io n o f t h e c hur c h a n d to t h e r ule s
e

o f t h e c hur c h w it h r e fe e n c e t o t h e ho l d i n g o f p r o p e r ty ?
r

A Ye s s ir ; it s ho uld b e c o n ve y e d t o t h e o ffic e a n d n o t t o
.
,

t h e p er s on .

Q . bis h o p fo r t h e us e o f t h e p ar i s hi o n er s w h o live
To the
in tha t p ar t i c ul ar p ar is h ?
A Tha t i s p r o p e r
. Tha t w o uld s imp lify t h e w o r k F o r . .

in s t an c e t e n o r fif te e n familie s live in
, s e ttl e me n t The y a sk a .

t h e bi s ho p t o s e n d a p r ie s t H e g o e s the r e an d t he r e is n o .
,

c h ur ch an d t he r e i s
, o ho u se a n d the y g ive h im g r o un d fo r
n t he ,

ch ur ch a n d fo r t h e co n v e n to The y s e n d p e o p le t o g e t t h e l o s t .

76
 ’
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t Rom a n zfi n
'

an a

slaves took good care to feed t h e m well and care for the m s o ,

t hat they could do good work

'

Q A n d did they ever try to get a wa y ?

A There are some few cases There h av e bee n cases W h e n
. .

a girl wanted t o get mar ried and they would not let her because ,

she might lose some time from her work and then she has run ,

away with t h e man .

Q Have t hey ever tried t h e m atter in the law ?

.

A The law tolerates i t but they have nev e r ap pealed to

. ,

th e l aw It is just a cu s tom They are p erfectly satis fied b e :

. . ,
l

cause they are well fed and well cared for and an other great .
,

fact is the respe ct of these y oung people for their paren ts ,

which i s the natural Catholic training and has been enhanced ,

by the teachings of the Catholic church .

Q I fancy if this syste m had prev ailed in the Spanish fam

.

ili e s we would have heard much more about it as a cause for

,

the revolution ?
,
A There are t wo reasons why it has not existe d : Because
.
-

th ey did n o t want to work for the S p an i ar d s and the S pan i ards , ,

however bad they may be did not want a unan to work in that ,

way If there has been any case of that kind it has been where
.
,

Spaniards have married F ilipino women and then it was through ,

the women .

Q Does it prevail n o w among the richer Filipino families ?

.

A It is disappearing fast — very little o f it is left now

. .

Q How many people were well to d o in your dio cese

.
- -

A There are a great many wealthy pe ople there . T he i l l

.

and of Panay with its three provinces is n aturally a very rich

country and there are many people who are well to d o as well
,
- -

as on the island of Negros .

O Are they wealthy landowners ?

N Yes sir
I‘
, .

O And that is the way they made their wealth ?

P Yes sir , .

D Do they keep the money at home— do they secrete it ?

P N0 ; they are all spendthrifts The b est part o f the .
. \

island of Negros is almost entirely possesse d by natives— a few

Spaniard s and a f e w other foreigners but lar gely o wned by na ,

ti v e s .Answering the question about their saving their money ,

they do not save it all b ut t h e gre at m ajority with good lands , , ,

are always borrowing money on their crops As a p r o o f of that .

,

I take the case of a Spanish Mestizo family in the island of

Negros The father died and lef t a great deal of money and a
.

fi ne hacie nda and in two or three years they d i d not have any
,

t hing Fortuna t ely ab out the ye ar 1 8 9 6 the grand prize of

.
, .

the l o t t e r y f e ll to o n e of the brothers $ 1 0 0 0 0 0 and in a y ear

. .
,

after he did not have a cent The y go to the banks in one .

town an d another and get all the money they can an d when t h e
, ,

crop is harve sted they owe i t all .

Q What do the y do with their money ?

.

A Above all g ambl ing

.
, .

Q Do the y l ive e x t rav agantly ?

A They spend i t o u j ewelry fin e diamonds they canno -

—
t
. “

resist— al s o dis orderly living What do you think of a little .

child seven years old carrying a coronet on her head that cost ,

18
 ’
Tae Sen a t e Documen t ana Roma n is m
(

$ 9 0 00 ? On ly b y t al kin g in t h is w ay c a n y o u g e t at t h e tr u e .

c ha r a c t e r i s t i cs o f t h e p eo p l e .

Q Y e s an d I t h a n k y o u v e r y m uc h
.
, .

A Tho s e w h o c o m e he r e s p o n t a n eo u s ly a n d u n call e d fo r t o
.

tell y o u a bo u t t h e c o un t r y a r e n o t t o b e belie v e d a s q ui c kly as ,

tho s e w h o a p p e a r whe n c all e d up o n a n d e x p r e s s t r ue id e a s o f ,

t h e c o n d i t io n s F o r i n s ta n ce al l w e c a n wis h fo r i s t h e p e ac e
.
, ,

tr a n qui llity an d t h e g o o d o f t h e co un t r y an d if w e d o n o t t e ll
,
~ -

,.

t h e full t r ut h t o m o r r o w t h e a ut h o r it ie s w o ul d fin d o t h e r wi s e
'
-
.

Q T h e r e ar e n o s e t o f m e n t h a t k n o w t h e co u n tr y be t t e r
.

than t h e p r ie s t s ov e r who m y o u p r e s id e .

A Th a t is t r ue
. .

Q Be c a us e wi th t h e co n fid en t ial a n d t h e cl o s e as s o c ia t io n s
.

b e twe e n t h e p r i e s t s an d t h e p e o p le the y ca le ar n t o kn o w t h em
’

, n
1

b e tt e r t han an y o t h e r .

A In m a n y c as e s a p r ie s t is o u t livi n g a mo n g them w i t h n o
th e s e p e o p le an d t h e r e is m
.

o n e t o t alk t o e x c e p t ut ual i n t e r
'

,
,

c ha n g e o f c o n fid e n ce s .

Q . H o w i s it as to t h e c h as t i t y o f the Vi s ay a n s ?
Asid e fr o m lim at ic l
"

A . c i n flue nc e s an d n a t ur a d is p o si t io n ,

the c has tity a m o n g t h e w o m e n is co n s i d e r a bl e . I r e fe r n ow to

y e s te r d ay an d n ot t o to d -
ay , fo r t h e n w e h ad not
‘
on ly t h e fo r ce

ho r it y hav e
'

of a ut , b ut the a ut h o r ity of fo r ce , an d to d -
ay we
no t hi n g ; r es p o n d wh at i s g oi n g t o d ay
'

so we ca n n o t as to ,
s ou -
.

Co n c u bin a g e is w h a t w e h a d t o s t r ug gl e a g a in s t m o r e t h an an y

thin g e l s e T h e p a r e n t s d id n o t c ar e T h e p r ie s t s
. . w o ul d fin d
t hem li v i n g op en ly in c o n cu bin a g e an d m ak e t h em get m ar r ie d .

Q .
'
Oi co ur s e , th e r e
d e g r e e s i n u n c h a s t i ty ; t h e r e i s a ar e

p r o mi s c u o us li c e n t i o u s n ess w h e r e a w o m a n w ill y i e ld t o t h e a p
'

p r o ac h e s o f a n y m a n , a n d the n t he r e i s a kin d o f un c h as t i t y th a t
“

d is r e g ar d s t h e m a r r i ag e v o w s i n n o t i n s i s t i n g o u a c h ur c h c e r _
z

e mo n y b e fo r e a s so c ia t i n g as m a n an d w ife an d y e t w hi c h r e , ,

g ar d s t h a t r e l a ti o n a s o n e w hi c h p r e v e n t s t h e w o m a n a n d t h e
m a n fr o m v i o l at i n g t h e ir p r o mis e t o e a c h o t h e r ; a n d m y im
p r es s io n be e n t h a t o n ly t h e s e c o n d of t h e t w o kin d s o f chas
h as
un c has t i t y a s y o u m a y c all i t p r e va il s i n t h e s e is la n d s
'

t it y , or , .
, ,

a n d tha t t h e a b s e n ce o f t h e fir s t ki n d i s d ue l a r g e ly t o t h e i n flu

e n c e o f t h e Ca t ho li c c h ur c h fo r e ls e w her e y o u fin d p e o p le o f a ,

s i m il a r r ac e a s t hes e y o u d o fin d g e n e r a l li c e n t i o u s n e s s
,
.

A Y o u ha v e s t at e d t h e c as e e x a c t ly as i t is
,
.
T h e n a t u r alfl
.

te n d en c y o f t h e s e w o m e n t h e c lim at ic co n d it i o n s as s is t in g ,

th em is r at h e r to w ar d li c e n t io us n e s s t h an t o li vi n g wi t h o n e
,

W e ha ve e ve n g o t t h e m t o m ar r y whe n t h e y w e r e liv in g
’

m an
'

in co n c u b i n a g e , an d we we r e b e t t e r in g t h em a ll the t im e . In
l ter ms, be st a ed t t
t ha t he m ar r ie d w o m e n
“

ge n er a it c an ar e

cha s t e Thi s livi n g t o g e t h e r

.
wi th o u t th e ce r e m o n y of t he
ch ur c h is d u e t o s e v er al caus e s —
to o b e c t io n
j on t h e p ar t of t he

p ar en ts , i n s t an ce — p r e v i o usly t h e p r ies t
fo r was t h e fat he r of

p e o p l e a n d t h e a ut ho r i t i e s as s is te d t e p
h r i es t, b u t n ow , w it h
the ,

t he s e p ar a t io n o f c h ur c h an d s t a t e , we will ha y e t o a tt ai n t he

s am e e nd s b y d iffe r e n t m e a n s .

A r e t h e Vi s a y a n m e n o f a j e a lo us na tur e ?
N o t as a r u le .

H e is not li k e t h e I lo c a n o ?
No .
I h a ve h ad t wo ca se s in m y jur is d i c t io n s — on e
of

79
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t ’

an a
’
Roman ia n
a m an w h o h is wi fe fo r un fai t hf ul ness , a n d a no the r o f a
kill e d .

m a n wh o w as o ut fis h in g an d w as s u n s tr u ck , a n d we n t ho me
an d kille d h is wife an d a n o th e r ma n e v ide n t ly wi t h o ut caus e , .

Q Wha t co ur s e w as p ur s ue d wi t h r e fe r e n ce t o the o c c up a n cy
.

o f o n e p ar i s h b y o n e p a r i s h p r i es t o r w e r e t h e y r o t a te d i n o ffice ? ,

A Th er e ha ve b e e n c a s e s w he re p r i e s ts hav e r e main ed in
.

o n e p ar is h all the ir l ive s b u t t h at d e p e n de d o n what w as d o ne ,

by t he c hap te r
h h m e t e v e r y fo ur y e ar s , w ic .

Q A n d t hi s c hap te r w a s m ad e u p o f p r ie s ts o f t h e d i o ce se ?
.

A O f t h e p r es id in g m e m be r s o f t h e r e li gi o us bo d ie s
. They .

wo ul d mo v e the m a t the ir will b ut the r e ha ve be e n c a s e s w her e ,

th ey have r em ai n e d in o n e p a r i s h d ur in g their live s Tho s e .

wh o w e r e o n ly o c c up y i n g t e m p o r ar y p o s t s we r e r e mo v ed at t h e
will o f t h e bi s ho p A c co r d i n g t o c an o n i c al l aw t he r e w e r e
‘

.
,

s o m e wh o co uld n o t b e r e m o v e d e x c e p t fo r c au s e an d t hen the y ,

w o ul d b e r e m o ve d b y t h e c h a p te r I n o the r we r e .

char g es w hi c h w e r e fo r lif e o r d ur in g g o o d be havi o ur T h at .

a p p l ie d t o t h e s e c ular p r ies ts to t h e n a tives a n d t o t h e Sp an ,

iar d s Th e r e is o n e m a n in Ja r o w h o is a n at iv e p r i es t an d
.
.

wh o h as b e e n fo r t y y e a r s in o n e p ue blo .

Q H o w d id y o u d e t e r mi n e t h e s e le c tio n o f n a tiv e p r i es ts
.
,

a n d ho w m an y o r d i n ar ily w e r e the r e i n a p a r i s h w ith t h e S p an

i s h p r i es t s ?
A A
. The r e ar e n ow 66 n a t iv e p r ie s s t s e r vin g p a r ishes in my
jur i s d ic t io n The r e w e r e 7 0 b ut 4.
, ha v e d i e d r e c e n t ly . T he
bis h o p him self wo uld e x a m in e t h e s e n a ti v es i n vie w of the ex

a m in a t io n h e h ad p as s e d in the s em n ar i y , an d the n them a ss i g n

to t he d iff e r en t p a r is he s Or d in a r il y t h e
. c o ur s e w as w i t h thes e
n a t iv e pr ie s t s fo r t h e bis h o p t o e x a mi n e t he m a n d the n ha bili
t at e t he m fo r on e y e ar , an d at t he en d of one y e ar , r e ex amin e
“

the m ,
an d a s s ig n th em to s o me l
p ac e .

Q Wh a t d o y ou t h in k of the n a t iv es in te lle c tu all y ; ar e the y

br i g h t in le a i
r n n g an le d g e ? d m r e t a in i n g kn o w
A I w o uld h ar d l y lik e t o a n s w e r t h a t q ue s t i o n c a te g o r i ca lly
.
“

fo r t he r e ar e s o m e fe w o f t h e s e n a t i e s t h a t s t a n d o ut a m o n g v

t h e ir b r et h r e n T he r e a e s o m e n a t i v e s t h a t a r e v e r y br ig ht
. r

me n I d o n o t w an t t o c as t a n y r e fle c t io n o n the m be c au s e o f
.

t h o s e w h o h av e r e m ar k a b le a p t it u d e .

Q Ar e t h e c h ild e n q ui c k t o l e a r n ?
. r

A Y e s s ir ; t he y ar e q ui c k t o le ar n g e n e r all y s p e a k in g
.
,
, .

The y h a e an e x t r o d in ar y c a p a cit y fo r l e a n i g
v a r
fo r e ig n lan r n a e

g ua g e Sp an is h a t fi s t an d n o w E n g li s h
—
r , .

Q W h a t s up er vi s io h as t h e bis h o p o v e r t h e d io c e s e i n e ach
. n

p ar is h ? D id y o u v is i t e a h p a r is h e a h y e a r ? c c

A W e m a ke v i s it t o e a c h I h av e n o t be e n a ble
p ar is h a
.
.

to b e c a u s e I w as e le va t e d a b o u t t h e t i m e thi s t o bl
u e ar ose
,
r .

B y e as o r of t h e b l k a d e I w as k e p t i n I lo il o
n oc
Vis i t s ar e m a d e .

t h r e e y e a s b e c a u s e i t i s im o s s i b l e
t o v is it t he m
o n ce i v er y n e r
p
A s y o u c a n t r av e l o n l
y a b o ut s ix m o n ths i n t h e
a ll e v e r y y e ar .

y e ar on a c c o un t of the r ai n y it t a ke s
s e as o n , a b o ut thr ee y e ar s
t o go ar o u n d . T h e b i s h o p h as a l ar g e fo l l o wi n g , an d as h e has
t o p e r fo r m ce r e m o n ie s at e ac h t o wn , and vi si t t h e
as h e h as t o
i t t ak e s
t own s so as to a r r iv e wh en t h e p e o p le ar e i n t h e t o wn s ,
a b o ut
in ol d e n
t wo y e ar s T he ar r iv a l of b is h o p in
a a to wn
.

80
Tfie S en a t e lr D ocuM en t
'

Roma mr m
' '

an d

times meant one o r two feast d ays an d in times of harvest ,

it would dis turb the peo pl e U s u ally they travelle d bet ween .
-

Nove mber and May .

Q Within your knowledge have any charges been made t o

.
,

the bishop of immorality amon g the parish priests ?

A So far as I know there have been no accusations made
.

there For a long nu mber of years I was the vicar genera!

,

. -

down there having cha r ge under the bishop o f the diffe rent
'

parishes and I hav e not heard an y case of an accusation of t h at

, ,

kind All the t ime I served as v i c ar g e n e r al the bishop sent

,

o
.
,

me only three paper s making accusations of that character

against the priests and they were all anonymous and I paid no
, ,

attention t o th em Whenever a p arish priest wanted to get

.

some disturbing spirits in a to wn before him and they did not .

care t o come out of ven g eance they would send a paper to the
bishop ac cus mg him of all kinds of immorality There is a .

great inclination in this country toward anonymous communi

cations .

Q Then no priests in the diocese have been disciplined

.

for immorality so far as you know ?

A I kno w of none o f my o wn kn o wled ge but among such
, ,

a large nu mber there must have been some disciplined but I

.
,

have been b i shop only a short ti me and have never ta ken charge
(i f the see You must bear in min d it would be very strange if
.

some priests should n o t fall To send a young man o ut to .

what might be termed a desert the only white man in the neigh ,

b o r h o o d sur rounded by elements of l i c e n t i o us n e s s wi t h no

, , \

bod y but the Almighty to look t o with the climatic conditions ,

urging him t o follow the same pract ices as surround him it is ,

a miracle if he does not fall For instance you take a young .

,

man here in the sem i nary who is reading his breviary all the , ,

time in t h e cloister under discipline all the time seeing nobody

, , ,

and suddenly tran splant h i m to a place where he is monarch of

all he surveys he sees the women half clothed and as he is con
, ,

suited on all questions even o f morality an d immorality, his ,

'

eye s are op ened and if he is not strong he will fall When a

,
.

curate is a hail fellow well met and mixes in with the people , ,

there is never a word s aid b ut let him try to stay apart and lead ,

them to a better life to elevate their t houghts in bringing them

,

closer to religious views and whether he is j ust as pure as any ,

thing c an possibly be they will accuse him of immorality The

,
.

very fact that if he is free and easy with them and he knows if ,

he is so he can do anything if he is prone to fall that is e u , ,

o t her reason t hat would lead h i m astray .

Q In other word s as was suggested by the r e ve r e n d p r o

‘

. ,

v in c ial o f the R e c o lo t o s immorality i nstead o f makin g the , ,

people hostile to him rathe makes him popular with them ? ,

.

A The only time when they o b j e ct to the priest is when he

tries to m
.

ake them perfor m their du ty All those who d o not like .

strict living are of course agains t him when he himself is rigi d .

Q To what d o y o u attrib ute such hostility as exists against

.

the friars in these i slands ?

A Antagonism o r hostility o n the part of the mass of the “

people does n o t exist There is hostility against them on the

.

part o f these few h alf e d uc at e d men wh o have b e e n consp ira

o

81
 T/z e Sen a t e Documen t d Roma ms
'

an

against t h e Spa n ish go vernment to the ex te nt ev n

s p ir at o r s
e

b e in g sent away from the i s l an d s The real reaso n is i . ,

what you may the supporter of the Spanish s o ve ign ty h

,

was the priests and that is the reason that these pe ople a
,

not the mas se s were against them So much is that so t i .

Ge neral Rios who was here in 1 89 8 sai d send your priel

, ,

back into the paris hes for each priest in the parish is w0 1
half a battalion to me and I have nothin g but the priests t o r q
.

”
upon .

Q Do you know
. of any instance where t h e priests were i
i nitiative cause of the deportat ion of a man fro m the paris h
A No sir ; I do not They were always called upon to 1
. . .

port when charges were made by the civil branch This 11! .

t h e case not only with the Spanish p arish p r iests but also w i ,

the Fil ipino priest s Of course the Filipin o priests in t h e

cases were looked at more closely I do n o t know o f a on
.
,

where the initiative ste p was token by the priest but I do k m ,

of hundreds of cases where the priests stepped in to preve

deportation When I answer this question you must bear
mind that I refer to the islands in general for so far as t
.

Visayas are concerned there have been no deportation s win .

ever Everything was more peaceful and quiet

. .

Q What do you think of the moral ity of the native priest

.

A My duty is to de fend them and to chastise them wh

found guilty but I s ay it is bad Being Indians they can t a
.

.
, ,

their habits o fl a n d g e t i n with the other Indians unknow

‘

W hereas a Sp aniard with a white face would be recognized

n o t one of them T h e Spaniard does n o t have the chance i
.

ev il doing as the native priest There are very few it is t r ! .

,

b ut still the re are some native priests down there n o w a

, ,

the y ar e moving heaven and earth to keep me from going b a

to my dio ce s e for they are having a great time in their p at h
,

and they are ar ousing the newspapers to say that everythin g

well and trying in every w ay to prevent my coming I as
, .

o n e o f these men down to look matters up but he is an Indi a ,

and h e himself has now j o ined with them and wr iting me lette :
-

General Hughes know s this man When I go down there I u

let you know a little more As I get t h e prote ction of t
.

American ar ms I am going to let them know what is goi ng 0 1

,

Q DJ) y o u think the priests under you c an return to tl

.
.

parishes ( supp o sin g the insurrecti on is suppresse d ) ? Wo u

they be well received by the people ?
A I think they can all return when the insurrection is at
.

end but wh e n is the insurrection going t o end ? We r e ce i

,

daily letters from the provinces asking us to come back b ,

there are always two three or four of this disturbi ng e le mt, ,

i n these tow n s trying to get the men up agai nst us There is .

security for an y f oreigner in an y part of t h e A rchipelago I .

do n o t care to go back until things are settled The day ti

‘

the American g overnme n t shall e s tablish a g o v er n me nt throng

o ut the Archipelago which shall insure securi y to life
t th e ,

will be no trouble at all for t h e priests to return b e c aus e i ,

people there are ev e n now comparing thei r peaceful order ,

qui et life to what they have been compelled to go through 1

l ast four years T ere is a reason why the insurrectionists
h .

s o
Tfie Sen a t e D ocum en t , an d Rama mkm
a gainst the priests whether he belon gs to an order or not ;
,

that is because he upholds the constituted authority ; they

,

preach that — the m aintenance of law and order and these i n —

s ur r e c t o s know that if they return and keep their power and

advocate the maintenance of law an d order they will win the

people to the support of the American government They do .

n o t want that so they are trying to keep the m away

, My o wn .

pre sent representative in the Visayas as the ecclesiastical gov ,

er n or, is an uncle of Silas ( i ) who was the most cruel of all

the insurgents down there and I feel sure that this gentleman
.

o f the cloth is down there dissem i nating revolutionary ideas .

It w ill be a little premature t o send the priests back to all their

curacies now ; but for instance to the island of Romblon they
, ,
’

could return to morrow There is an American garrison there

-
.

an d the people are quiet and orderly In the three towns on the .

islan d o f Tablas they could go to only o n e I do not think .

they could go to the island of Negros especially the western part , ,

where the government is n o w The ones who are now in the .

gove r nment there are bitterly opposed to the friars Carrying .

o ut the argument why they can not return to western Ne g r o s I -

have lived there for twenty two years and thought nothing was -

g oing to happen there but the very men who were first to go
.

into the insurgent r anks were those we thought beyond r e

proach and the first thing they did w as to go into the churches
, _

and ste al everything ; and the very man who is now presidente
in that town never had a plate to e at out o f o r a cup to d rink ,

out o f He has taken the plate si lver service of the convento

and if I were to retur n I would say he was a thief ; and so they
. ,

want us to be kept away so that we can not recognize our

property and throw in their faces that they are thieves I can
,

prove by records tha t they have stolen at least belong

ing to the different parishes besides all of the plate belonging ,

to the different conventos and churches .

Q O n the subject o f schools we are dire c ted to set up a

. .
,

system of pub lic i nstruction ; and that is o n e of our mos t deli

c at e mis s i o n s because it is a Catholic country and it is likely
'

, ,

t o always remain so un les s as has been suggested to me by

, ,

A rchbishop Chappelle the influence of the native priests may be

,

to ward idolatry and fetichism Now we are very an xious to . ,

establ i sh amicable relations in regard to this school sy stem with

the church and yet we ar e restrained from doing certain things
,

that they would like to have us do by reason of the character of

‘

o ur government and we want if possible to reconcile the

, , ,

d esire s of the church with the public school syste m which we

ar e here to esta blish Now in the United S tates there has been
.
,

a system which has work e d in some places by which al l the ,

different churches were gi ven opportunity at the time the sch ool
was assembled t o have a teacher o r a priest to instruct the
,

schol ars one half hour before they entered upon the regular
-

curriculum o f the school or one half hour after wards and it

,
-

h as been suggeste d that some such system as that might work

harmoniously h ere I would be obliged to you if you would
.

th ink that over and understand the spirit in which we come here
an d see if it is not possible to reconcile the school syst m on
e the
83
 d Roma mm
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T/ze S en a fe Documen t an

one hand t o t h e vie ws o f t h e church on the other hand to t h

restriction s t ha t we are obliged to operate on .

A Under the Spanish system the S panish priest had n

.

s alary whatever He was an inspector of schools He woul

.
.

g o to see if the methods pursued were proper ones but ther ,

was no salary attached .

Q While of course we c an not make invidi ous distinction

.
, ,

with respect to teachers coming o ut here we h ope t o h av ,

certainly a fair proportion of Catholics among them We ax .

not a Cathol ic country that is a m aj ority are not Catholic!

—

Nevertheless we do justice to every sect and we e xp ect h er

,

,
,

that a fair proportion of t h e teachers will be Catholics .

A It is one thing to demand a thing to be done and a1

.

other to say that there is no objection to it s being done The) .

might be no set rule with respect to that at all and let the b i s h c '
,

and the par ish priest continue as they are now f o r there wo ul ,

be no objection on t h e part o f t he parents of the children .

Q I know that these matters are usually arranged with t i

.

bishop ; that they are l argely in his control and I am vel .

anxious to have the bishop understand that we are not here f!

the purpose of proselyting an d what we want to do is to ada] ,

the schools we contemplate introducing as nearly as we can 1

conditions here .

A Muc h woul d be gained by leaving out of the school is

.

any reference to religion whatev e r because if it is stated the] ,

that there must be no relig ious subject treated i n t h e scho o .

that would make it possible for anyone in the town to b r ir

the danger before the people and make some trouble but ,

would b e much better to omit ent irely in t h e school law an

reference to religion That is a question th at wi ll have to ]
.

handled with gloves Here it has been the custo m to tear

.

re ading writing the ca tec hism and the little arithmetic an d

, , , ,

the American authorities say that there will be no r e lig i (

taught in the schools it will be a fatal mistake for they will 8 : ,

the y even wipe out o ur religion the religion of o ur f o r e f ai h ér ,

Q We hope to avoid an y bad mistake of that kind but y <

.
.

must understand that there are r es trictions o n the other S i t

that I have referred t o that there is a large constituency in t i
United States which is not Catholic and has a right to insi ,

that public school teaching paid for out of the public funds 1
non sectarian and we have to pursue a middle and j ust cour s
- —

which I think we can possibly arrive at by making c o n ce s s io

o n both sides and still not o ii e n d either view
‘

A That is the very thing I s ay ; not to req uire by l a w t h

.

doctrine sh all be left out but to keep silent o n it entirely

, .

Q My opinion is th at sensible me n when they get t og e th

.

can accomplish a good deal and I shall be glad when the mat t ,

comes up more acutely to have further conference with you ai

your colleague s on the subject .

A I am at your disposition at a n time

y
.
.

Q H o w mar r y of the prie sts of your d iocese were assault

.

or in prison durin g the revolution ?

A Three in Iloilo and thir t y seven in Negros Most
. -
.

those in Iloilo were able to get out of the way bef or e they w e
caught A S we have s uch g r e a c on fld e uce in the inhabitants
t
.

d
 Tae Sen a t e Documen t d Roma n zr m
'

an

Q That was the c as e wi h Ben g uet t

A Yes ai r The re were th r e e missions in Benguet and as

.

. .

th ey be came infl uenced by the Chris t ian religion t hey we r e

, .

b r ought int o settlements .

Q And you will let me keep this book to which you are r e
.

ferri ng
A Yes sir In l 8 9 6 t h e diocese o f Nueva S egovia h ad
.
, .

Christian s subject t o my e ccle siasti cal control Ther e .

were at that t ime 1 72 3 83 pagans .

Q In Benguet and up in the mountain s

.

A Within all the dist rict wit hi n my jurisd ict ion Two .

t hous and four hundre d and ninet y nine were in B enguet

.

Ver y -
.

few there had b e en reduced t o Chris tian influen c e .

Q The gove r nment of Spain h ad paid a stipend t o its

priests
A Yes sir The bishop s paris h priests , and mis sionaries
. .

Q And th e salaries o f t h e parish priests I have heard

.
. , .

.
, ,

v ar ie d from $5 00 t o $ 1 2 00

A Yes sir ; the m aj ority between $50 0 and 3 800 according

.
,

t o th e clas s of the to wn .

Q What rule if any was followed with respect t o assig n

, ,

ing native priests t o parishes How did you distr ibute them
D id you furnish one or t wo to each parish priest ?
A Aside from the seven who were parish priests the other
.
,

hundred natives were distributed among the other parishes as

coadjuto rs or as sistors t o the Span ish pri ests und er th e bishops ,

who could move them around as they pl e ased .

Q W as there general rotation among the parish priests or

.
,

did a man stay until he was superannuated i n th e plac e t o wh ich

he was first as signed
A There were two classes o f parish pries ts those d esig
.
,

n ate d in a temporary capacit

y t o serve as p arish priests and
those who were perm anent priests The latter co uld not be t e .
'

moved except afte r so me accusation after trial and found

g uilty .

Q How did the nu mber of pe rmanent parish priests com

.

pare with the number of temporary parish priests

A As a matte r of fact there never was any person who
.

occupied a permanent posit ion for every four years there was ,

held a chapter when they electe d a new provincial and other

,

officials of the order and at that time it was de t ermined how

,

the priests should be distributed around Now with the A ngus .

,
tin i an s th ey might be called permanent priest s b ut with respect
,

to the Dominicans th ey occupied temporary charges more than

otherwise .

Q How were the church es and conve n tos built ?

.

A The churches where e ither r azed t o the g round by any

.
.

ty phoon or earthq uake or in the case of new parishe s the ,

churches and the c o nventos were buil t by order of t h e bishop .

A ctin g as the patron the government w as under obligation to

,

pay a certa in amount— usually about MOO for n e w missions ; —

but very often the gov ernment failed to pay over the money .

but they furnished it in labor Th e y would take men who had .

not worked out their road tax ; they would take two o ut of eac h
di st rict and in this diocese there were 40 districts which would
,
.

so
 T/ze Se n a t e Docum en t ’
Roma n zs m
'

.
an a
m ake 8 0 men to work on conven t os and chur c hes which w as
, ,

considered public work The parish priests would provide the .

subsistence of these n ien while working there Very ofte n the .

funds were supplied by the parishion ers themselves and very ,

ofte n the parishioners would go and d o day labor on t h e build

in g . In some parishes there were sometimes many thousands
of dollars collected for the church fund and where churche s
'

were demolished by earthquak es or typhoons in other dis tricts .

the bishop who had charge of these church funds would order
,
,

them to another parish to restore demolished proper ty .

Q On what land were the churches and conventos built ?

.

A Either the government o r the mun icipal authorities in

.
.

case o f the foundation of new parishes would convey t o the ,

church the ground upon which the church and convento were
built and sometimes the ground was bought but very rarely
, , .

In the large majority of cases the government o r the tow n i t

self donated the land .

Q It was usually o n the public square ?

.

A Alongside the pl aza and if it was the provincial seat it

.
, ,

was on o n e side of the plaza o pposite the governme nt h o us e .

Q In whose name was that land ord inarily t ak en ? W as

.

there a deed or was it one of those cases where a deed was n o t

, .

considered necessary .

A Up t o a very few years ago there w as n o such thing an

.

the recording o f title deeds and conse quently no deeds were ,

given Most was held by right o f prescript ion for there bein g
.
,

n o record er s office it was passed from o n e t o a nother b y word

'
’
,

o f mouth .

Q Now in the United Stat es ( for I d o not know how it is

.

in other countries ) the title of the churc h is usually i n the name

,

o f the bishop o r the archbishop Is t h a t followed in these .

islands ?
A That is the custom here also
. .

Q A nd the bishop when he dies mak e s a will in which he

.
, ,

conveys his property to his successor ?

A The same h e re Accordin g to canonical law the bishop
. .

is the representative o f the chur ch

“

Q We want to do justice here an d we want to have the

.
,

property to go to the person to whom i t belongs even though ,

‘

the records m ay not be straight Now don t you think it . ,

’

would be in accordance with canonical law a n d in accord ance ,

with the equity and justice of the case , should the title o f the
churches and conventos now in the government o f the United
State s by transmission from the government o f Spain be trans ,

ferre d by the author i zed representative o f the United States t o

the bishop of the diocese for the use of the Catholic inhabitants
o f the parish ? I assume there are m any places where there is
n o t it l e and there are probably cases where the churches and
,

c onve ntos were built o n public l ands .

A The cases are very few where there is any doubt as t o

.

t h e ownership of the property and I believe the i d ea sug gested ,

.

is a ver y good o n e In the maj o rity of case s t h e title resides in

.
'

the church and can be proven by the very people in the parishes
, ,

because they can show they have had it from time immemorial .

That plan would be very well thought of also b y all of the pa

i s h i on e r s because th ey are all at h o li c s
g
v .
,
 ’
Roma n zr m
'

The Sen a t e D ocumen t an a

Q .
And the bette r Catholics they are the bet t er citiz ens they

will make ?
A Yes sir ; because the te achings o f the church are t o ai
. ,

w ays respect the constituted authority .

Q.
But we hear from p arishioners in various part s of the
island s that they built the churches and therefo r e they should .

be held for their u se Now if it is given to the bishop for their

.

use that satisfies the laws of the church on one side and the
,

statement of the use satis fies their views o n the other ?

A It is a very good idea When these In d ian a or parish
.
.

loners worked upon these church buil d ings they gratuitously ,

o fie r e d to do it for the church ; consequently they divested

themselves of any title .

Q .But they knew it was for their use ?

A Yes sir ; and it will never be taken away from them .

Suppose I should die or go to Spain the chur ches wi ll remain

.
,

here for their use .

Q How much agricultural land how many haciendas were

. , ,

owned by the orders in your diocese ?

A There is but one hacienda which is own ed by the orders
. ,

an d that by the Augustinians in the provi nce o f La Isabela in ,

the valley of the Cagayan In the year 1 878 when Mo r en i as . ,

was governor general here he desired of his o wn motion to e n

-

courage the planting and raising of tobacco and gave to each ,

of the d ifier e n t re ligious orders in the islands a hacienda He .

even wanted to do that with the Franciscans but they said they ,

could not accept it but the governor said you must I do not
,
.

k n ow what became of that A fterwards Primo de Riviera came .

here and he wante d it all back an d they all gave it back except ,

the Aug ustin ians who declin ed to give it up saying it was

. ,

given voluntaril y ; and they never have given it up It is about .

2 8 miles in length and 1 4 mi les in width Very good land but .

,

very few inhabitants not more than 2 0 0 , .

Q Has the order spent a good deal o f money on it ?

.

A It has spent some but not much as there are very few
.
, ,

people there As there are a great many inhabitants in Ilocos

.
.

they spe nt several thousand dollars in taking familie s from Ilo

cos down to this land This is all valley land and among the
.

best in the islands At the point where t his hacienda is located

.

there are 30 leagues of level plain country Those three prov .

in ce s known as the Valley of the Cagayan although the richest ,

and fin est in Luzon only contain about , inhabitants and ,

they can easily support The great river Cagayan is

navigable up to the lo wer p art of the province of Isabela .

Q The tobacco company owns la r gely up there ?

.

A They only own two towns up here— the hacienda of San

.

A n t o n i o an d of Santa Isabela
'

Q Is there a good deal of public land up there ?

.

A Yes sir ; a great deal o f uncultivated and public lands

.
, .

Anybody who wanted to secure land up there had to buy it from

the state They would sell it very cheaply ; they would give
.

thous ands of hectares for hal f a dollar They wante d to e n .

courage the entry o f the land by Ilocanos .

Q Th e Ilocanos ar e a better race than the Tagalogs ?

.

88
 Tbe Sen a t e Docum e n t d Roma n zs m
’

an

A Yes sir ; and much more saving more e conomical

, . ,

more industrious .

Q They don t stop working w hen they have earned a little

.
’
,

as the Tagalog does ?

A The y are all tarred with the s ame tar in that respe ct ;
.

they don t work t o o much but they wo r k m o re th an t h e Taga

’
,

logs They won t die workin g

.
’
.

Q Are they more honest than the T ag alog s] ?

.

A Yes sir generally In C ag ayan a n d 1 10 0 0 3 they are

.
, , .

very submissive Unfortunately the Tagalogs h ave a little .

,

g atherin g of philosophers he r e who are dis s em i n a t ing these

ideas among the people which has caused eve rythi n g to be lost , .

Q We have a saying in A merica that A little k n owledge

.
“

is a dangerous thing ? "

A We were for sixteen months prisoners of the Tagalogs

.

in Cagayan .

Q And you were subjec te d to many great indignities ?

.

A Yes sir ; many A man wh o graduate d i n medicine in

Because I declined to o r
.
, .

1 89 8 from the university was o n e .

dain certain natives because unde r the c an onical law they were ,

not ripe for ordination he kicked me and broke a c ane over my , ,

left arm kept that up for three hours because I wou ld not o r
, ,

dain the priests This man k n ow n as Villa w as military g o v

.
, .

c ruor of Isabela When he assaulted me he was nothing He

. .

came there without any authority an d asked me why I d id not

ordain these native priests I replied that I was prohibite d by
,

the canonical law as they did not come up to the req ui rements, ,

and he said You will ordai n them to morrow because I say

“ -

I replied that I would not even if he killed me a n d becau s e

, ,

so . ,

I did not do it o n the following day he assaulted me very s e

,

v e r e ly .

Q Do you suppose that th at was encouraged by the i n s ur

.

gent general o r colonel who was in charge ?

A The colonel who was in command of the entire valley
.

was present at the time an d said nothing .

Q Who was the colonel ?

.

A D aniel Tirona
. He kicked me in the stomach several .

times but I pr o t e c t e d myself with my arm and it took two

’

, .

months to recover The day following this he took a steamer .

and came down this way and that is the last I have heard from ,

him That was j ust the eve of the outbreak of hostilities i n

.

Manila Feb 3 1 89 9
Q From what you have stated I assume t h at there was no
. .
, ,

. ,

such general own ership by the religious orders in your diocese

of lands and agricultural propertie s as to attrac t the hostility
o f the parishioners o n the ground that the priests occupied the
relation o f landlord t o the people ?
A No . .

Q These estates you have referred to are so far removed

.

and in an uni nhabited country that they would not have any
effect generally on the people .

A All we had there were 2 0 0 me n one priest and a lay

. ,

brother o n the entire hacienda There was no parish

,
. .

Q And that was the only place in the entire diocese wher e
.

th ere was property ?

89
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t an d R oma n zr m
'

A The only one The re ar e in some cases small par c els of

. .

i and which have been donated to the church for saying one mass
a year for the repose of d e p arted souls The proce eds of til l .
.

i n g the ground and cultivating would only be at the most about

$1 0 0 a year .

Q I s there improved property in the city of Viganu in

.
,

A parri and in San Fernando del Union or in Lo ag that is sed

, , ,

for rental purp oses by any of the orders ?

A We o wn nothing except church property which is now
. ,

occupied by the A merican troops The Dominicans have two .

colle ges one in Dagupan for seco ndary instr u ction of male s
,
,

and one i n Lingayen which is a girls school The sis te rs u se d

,
’
.

to go there t o teach the girls At T o g ag ar a there is a large .

girls sc hool n o w occupied by A merican tr oops The teac hing

’
.

in this s chool was conducte d by the Dominican sisters here

from Manil a The bishop bui lt a very good school for gir l s in
.

Vigan now occupied b y American troops and the Epis copal

, ,

palace and the sem inary also is occupied by A merican troops .

If you desire it I have here t h e answers to all the q uestions .

It is badly writte n but I shall be glad to pre se nt it to you

,

.
.

Q Now as to the question of what par t the priests played

'

in the deportation of citizen s of the islands who were sent out

by order of the captai n gene ral ? -

A The guardia civil which was a body known during the

.
,

Spanish rule would o f te n r e p o r t to the civil gover nor that cer

,
’

t ain persons we re a disturbing element in the neighbor hood .

The civil govern or would then report to the governor general -

,

who would ask for a report and the antecedents of t h e party ,

so accused of the parish priests and in view of the report of

, ,

th e civil governor and the parish priest the gover nor genera l -

would act but no one was ever expelled upon the exclusive re
,
“

port o f the parish priest Ve ry oft en the parish priest woul d .

intercede in behalf of some person accused by the guard ia civil

upon groundless charges and would succ eed by appeal ing to the ,

governor general in preventing him from being deporte d and

-

the archbishop here in Manila who was ri g ht on the ground . .

succe eded in preventing a great many men from being unjustly

expelled .

Q Is it a f act that the priests never ini t iate d such action ?

.

A I believe so I k n ow of no si ngle case where parish

. .

priests did initiate such charges I have never been advised of .

one and if there has been a case it is rare

, .

Q You have mentioned the guardia civil

. Will you be .

good enough to te ll me what that was ?

A T h e guardia civil was a b ody at once civi l and m il itary
.
.

They had militar y uniforms e quipment and arms but they , . ,

were under the civil governor I n the entire island of Luzon .

they had no army The army w as i n M indan ao These me n

.
.

performed police duty as well as g arrison duty

Q They were a provincial constabulary ?
.

A Yes sir ; the men in the regular army who had th e best
.
,

record we r e taken t o form this guardia civil .

Q Were they all natives ?

.

A N0 ; all the non co mmissioned o mce r s wer e Spaniards

.
,
an d the others al l natives .

90
 Tae Sen a t e Docum en t Romanzs m
’ '

ana

Q . D id n ot it 6 6613? th at th ey f requen tly abuse d their .

power ?
A Yes air ; the n atives are always pr on e to abuse t heir
.
_ ,

authority If s ome o n e here is not above them they will abuse

.
.

th eir au thority all the time .

Q They sque ez e ?
.

A Yes sir ; they are terrible to th eir bwn people— very

.
,

t y ran ts Th e pres idente s of towns who ar e n at lve s themselves

.

h eld their subordinates in terror They govern by fear here . .

Q They were paid nothin g and were ex pected to get i t out

.
'

o f t h e people ?
A Ye s sir ; t h at i s true The presidente s were not paid
.
, .

any sal ary ; it was an honorary position but they made t heir
,
, -

money o ut of the pe ople The natives are great abusers of au .

th or i t y al ways .

Q I t se ems t o me that the appointment o f an officer who

.

h as a good deal to d o wi t hout providin g a salary is an intima

t ion t hat he is e x pecte d to make his money that way
,

A That is tru e When they do speak sincerely t o the

. .

pries t an d let th em selves o ut th ey admit that they cannot gov

er n th ems e lves Very of ten when we were i n prison they “

”
would say We cannot govern ourselves
. They prefer to .

dominate the others by for ce an d t hey have no compassion . .

Q H ays they not b een g uilty of extreme cruelty to their

.

o wn people durin g the war ?

A Terribly so It can hardly be explained h o w they could
. .

go t o such extremes and for that reason they have g o t t h e mass

,

o f the people unable to move ; they are afraid I hav e been a . .

curate and speak the Tagalog language an d they used to tell me ,

“
We have no respect for a man a t all ; we would j ust as soon
”
k ill a man as a chicken Prior t o 1 8 9 6 homicide s were very
,

rare Those were all for j ealousy for some man tak ing their
.
-

women away from them and the small cri minal record they h ad ,

was admirable .

Q Are t he y a j eal ous race ?

.

A Yes s ir ; the Iloca nos are th e worst They bec ome ab

. ,
.

so lut e ly i ns an e and they are never satis fie d until they k ill th e

,

par t y Even the Ig o r r o tt e s have the death penalty for women

. ,

who are unfaithf ul .

Q Now about th e Igor r o tt e s th ey are a q uiet people ar e

. , ,

th ey not ?
A Som e o f those who had be en Ch ri sti aniz e d h ad a very
.
-

re spectful be aring toward t h e priests and t h e fe w Spaniards

who mi xed among them ; but the I g o r r o t t e s in the mountains
ar e a wild and savage peopl e and they will cut any b od y s head
‘
!
.

o fi t hey fin d I t is a great glory and honor to cut anybody s

’
.

head off I d o not thi nk that of these savage head hunters

.

t here are over a hundred thou s and in Be nguet The only trib .

ut e t he y p aid was two r e ai e s a recognition o f vass alage in , .

B eng uet Lepanto Bontoc an d Abra Some of the m d i d really

. , ,
.

pay 50 cents— those who had become Chr istians but that only ,

s ince 1 89 8 .

s of immoral i ty among the prie

Q Were
.
there case sts of
y our diocese ?
A I have been there ten years as a bisho p There hav e
‘

.
.

91
T/ze Sen a t e D ocumen t an d Roma n istn
o nly been two cases brought to my att ention and I reporte d ,

them for correcti n o They were b o th A

.
ug us t i n ians There .

was als o one case of a D o minican and he was chastised al so , . .

Whenever a case was brought t o t h e notice o f the bishop and ,

it was e s tablished this chasti se ment was administered ; but

,

very often cases were brought out of revenge on the part of the
Indians which were n ot enti tled t o cre dence because they were ,

alway s accompanied by calumnies .

Q Would
.
it have been possible for such things to have cc ~

curred without being brought to y our atte ntion or being dis ,

covere d by the provincial ?

A Some may h ave I do not know
.
As soon as there was
,
.

any rumor of a case it was always i nvestig ated E ve r y y ear .

the bishop not on ly paid a visit to all the parishes but also to
'

all the orders as well as t o the provincial of the order .

Q Did each order have a house in e ac h diocese

.

A They have at parishes only The head hou ses are all .

Q Do you know pretty w e ll now the character of the

.

native priests who have taken the place of the parish priests 7
A I know nearly all of them pe rsonally and I have oft en
. ,

vis ited the different places .

Q I s the standard o f education and character lower with

.

them th an wit h the par ish priests 7

A Very much lower ; no comparison
. They are educated .

in the seminaries They learn quickly but they forget quickly

. , ,

and they have not much cap acity They are from twelve t o .

four teen years in the seminary learning an d they have to pass a

good examination before being se nt out but they are not out ,

l ong before they forget it .

Q Are they gi ven to i mmoral practices

.

A They are very weak very frail T h e immen s e majority

. , .

o f the men in the regular orders ar e pure and good It is just .

the opposite with these ; the immense majority are frail and
weak Even in the case o f white Span iards who might have
. ,

had a weakness with respect to wo men still he had a good h ead ,

and never allowed t h e matter to create a scandal It was never .

kno wn of men but these people did not care

Q D o you th ink that a weakness of that sort on the part
, .

eit her of a Spanish priest or of a native priest would render

him particularly unpopul ar in the region i n which he lived
A Not at all In the immense majority of cases of that
. .

kind th e people have not made any compla int I had t o go and
I did not i nvestigate them ju
.

fin d out about these th ings .

d i c ially but had t o go about it in an irregular way t o fin d o u

.

, t .

the truth There never has been a for mal accusation of l n

.

morality made in my diocese When they wanted to wreak .

revenge on a priest they bring this out an d a thousand other “

charges of all kin d s of hein ous immorality When formal

“

char ges have been m ade by several residen t s of a com m

.

unity ,

and they have signed a pap er they are brought up before th e ,

bishop and when they are r e qu ested to take an oath they say
,

th ey were deceived they d id not w ant to sign the paper

, .

Q So that the suggestion that the hostility against the

.

Spanish priests in their parishes is d ue to immorality you do ,

92
 Tm Sen a t e Documen t
’
Roma n zr m
'

'

an a

cese under the pretex t that by bei n g named ecclesiastical gov

,

cruor the bishop himself bei n g i n sole con finement he could

, ,

secure from the government of Malolos the release of all these

ecclesiastical prisoners A s I could not com municate with
.

other places the au t hority was relegated to this man That is

,
.
,

some authority Armed with this authority h e went to Malolos

.

and claimed to be above the bishop from whom the authority

flowed ; but they would not even liste n to mass by him Since .

then he has been excommunica ted When al l these things

reached the ears of th e archbishop he publicly e x communicated
.

him and when that news r e ached Nue va Segovia and other plac es
the in s ur r e ct o r s said that would not hold water and they pro
tested against i t ; but a gr eate r part of the superior officers of
th e i nsurre ction and a large pa r t of the faithful believed it per
f e c tl y and that his holy orders should be taken away from him
, .

Q. Where is he now i’

A I n Ilocos Norte at the head of a large body o f i ns ur

.
,

gen ts i n the mountain s In the month of April last he went

.

down to Loag a to wn o f , inha bitants He h as no pre st ige .

among the Christians now because he has b e en e x co mmuic at ed ;

some of the clergy fear h i m but they have no regard for h i m ,

wha tever If there were a little more energ y o n the part of the
.

military when they caught some people to chastise them , the

people would b e better satisfied During the latter mo n t h s o f .

our imprisonment and confin ement General Tirona gave us a

great deal more freedom allowed us to walk around and t o
meet our parishioners and all of them without exception would
,

, , ,

say they we r e tired to death of the impositions o f the Kat ip u

nans and the war and they were only waitin g the arrival of the
,

Americans to pursue the i r vo cations in peace .

Q How long were you confined ?

.

A Sixteen months
. .

Q Then you have only r e c e mly been released

.

A The 1 s t o f Jannary I was released by the arrival of

. .

t h e American tro ops Some navy boats went around t o Aparri

.
,
th e commander of the Helena an d troops went up on the other
side from Nueva Ecija through to Isabella and then Tirona ,

said we had better get out of here and finding that he did not ,

have sufficient force to expel the Ameri cans he surrender ed at ,

'

Aparri . I
Q What kind of a man do you think he is
.

A He is a peculiar man ; he has very little stamina to ac t

.

for himself but lets other people do it When T ir o n a s force s

, .
’

arrived at Apar ri which was being defended by the Spani ar ds

,
.

they drew up articles of capitulation and the first thing afte r ,

they left they broke every one of those arti cles Sixty priests .

had gone down there from Ilocos and they proceeded to r o b

them of everything they possessed
Q How many priests in your diocese were assaulted or i ni
.

prisoned ? '

A All of those in the valley of Cagayan were imprisoned

.

and nearly every one of them was assaulted and robbed And .

in Illo co s the same way Whe n the insurrectionary forces ad

.

van ce d I calle d all those from Ill o c o s to come down

t o Vig an
‘

because steamers sometimes called there from Hongkong W .

e

94
T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t m
a n a Roma n zs m
'

w aited there ei ght days when the i n surrectionary forces came

.

down and captured us in a steame r which b e longed to a tobacco

compan y here The crew mutinied and killed the Spanish
.

o fficers and came up there Then they sent that st eamer back .

t o Cavite and 60 0 of the insurrectionary forces got on board

,

and came up .

.
Q I want to get from you the proportion of the Spanish
p riests in your diocese that were imprisoned
.A One hundred and thirty were impri soned Most of them .

were at Aparri .

.
Q H o w many of those priests have since left the island
.A Many o f them have left for Spain by re ason of the
disease contracted dur ing this imprisonment and the hardships
t o which they were subjected Some o f them were horribly .

maltreated Between twenty fiv e and thirty have left

. .

.
Q Were any o f the priests of your diocese killed
A None were killed but one died of wounds received
. ,
.

There is one father here in the convent of Santo Domingo wh o

was beate n eig ht thousand times in a few days It is a wonder .

he has n o t died .

Q Has he regained his streng th

.

A Yes sir ; he is in fairly good condition now They

. ,
.

car ried him on foot forty leagues up the valley o f the Cagayan
an d forty leagues back Prior to that he suffered a great deal
.

with his stomach ; n o w it is a g reat deal better This beating .

with a stick brought all the impurities out of h im .

Q How man y Span ish priests were th ere in your diocese

.

A About 1 6 5
. .

Q Is this rather a small diocese

.

A It is larger than the one in Nueva Caceres but smaller

. ,

than the one in Jar e or Cebu The archbishopric has 00 0.

souls with four bishops The one at Ce bu has about 1 40 0 0 00 ,

and Jaro
.
,

Every y ear t h e bishop made a statement

more in detail th n this ; that is o n e copy was sent to the gov
a
.

cruor gener al an d one t o the archbishop .

Q The archbishop as I understand it is superior t o all

. , ,

other bishops in the islands

A Yes sir ; he is the metropolitan
. .
.

Q But he has a diocese of his own

.

A Yes sir ; he is a bishop for his diocese an d the arch

.
,

bishop over all Some questions come to him on appeal from

.

t h e bishops With respect to the ordin ary jurisdiction within

.

o ur o wn diocese the bishop has the same jurisdiction as

'

the
archbishop over h i s .

Q There are the bishops of Vigan of Nueva Caceres of

. , ,

Cebu an d o f Jaro ; and the bi shop of Cebu is the bishop over

.

Mindanao— or is that missionary 7

A Par tly under the bis hop of Cebu and partly under the
.

bisho p o f Jaro Before 1 8 6 7 it was under Cebu and then when

. . ,

they sent a bishop to Juro they divided it between them .

Q A n d the
.
bishop of Jaro has all of the island of Panay ?
A Yes sir. ,
.

Q Have .
you anything t o do with the o b as pias in r "

Man il a 2
96
 Tfie Sen a t e Documen t d Roma n zs m
'

an

A . on ly those l it t le piece s of land left for sayin g

No s ir ;

mass a bout once a y ear '

Q And you have nothing t o do with the mit e r fund

.

here
A No ; nothing Such proport ion of the miter fund as
. .
.

was nece s sary to aid the church was sent from here t o the
diocese The miter fund is admi n is te red here If there were .

a miter fund in my diocese I would administe r it Here the

.

.
,

miter fund has several houses which are administe red by the
archbisho p but in my diocese there are none
Q There is one question I would like to ask you : To what
.
, ,

do you att ribute the hostilit y such as exists to the parish , ,

priests
A It co mes from what we call t h e impious element For
. .

some years past they have been planting freer ideas in the
Philippine Islands— ideas that are non religious and non Cath o - -

lic and a few h alf e d uc at e d people have e spoused those ideas

, ,

and as they have disseminate d the idea that Catholicism is to be

put to an end here and they have endeavored to s o w the seeds
of discord a mong the six millions Catholic souls i n these islands
,

an d too notwithstanding the great majority of the people liked

, ,

the priests an d would l ike to have them back If y o u take away .

from the islan ds about pe rsons who are sowing these

seeds of discord the remaining ,will be perfectly satis
fie d .
In Manil a this element is most largely represente d .

Q We are charg ed with the duty of raising money by tax

'

ation to estab lish a sy stem of education We real iz e fully that .

this is a Catholic country and if i t ceases to be a Catholic coun ,

'

try it is much more likely in some regions to go i n to idolatry

than t o Protestantism and I am therefore an xious so far as I , ,

may to establish a school syste m that will meet the views of

,

t h e c h ur c h that is that will not be hostile to the views of the

, ,

church but we are restricted by the principle s of o ur govern

, .

ment from the direct presence o f the church in the schools and
I am attemptin g to devis e s ome method to suggest to the c o m
.

mission by which we shall re con c ile the consciences of the

Catholics to the public school and still follow the principles we
have suggested and ther e fore I have thought that if we were
,

to invi t e the Catholic church and other churches if any in the ,

neighborhood to send teachers of their respective religions to

,

the schools half an h our before school and half an hour after
school there to give such religious instruction as the parents of
,

the children may desire whether that sy stem would n o t if con , ,

ducted with fairness and justice perhaps reconcile o ur system ,

of public education to the views of the Catholic church

A The best way to do that would be to teach them t h e
"

cate chism as a Christian doctrine That system might work all

right in another country but I do not think it will work here
.

because among the In di ans if they are called upon to con

,
,

tri bute to the support of a public school system they naturally ,

being Catholics wi ll want Catholic ideas to be communica t ed

,

by the teachers Prov id e d by their mone y and t h ey will say , ,

“
These te achers do not teach an y Christ ian doctrine If we , .

pay for instructio n we want o ur children instructed in t h e

”
Catholic faith Now if the g overnm e n t is g oing to p ay t he
.
,

so
 ’
Roma n zr m
'

T/ze Sen a t e Documen t an a

of Santo T omas beg inning wi th A rchbishop No z ale d a who was

,
,

one of my professors .

And you have the d gree of the university ?

Q : e

A Like all the other lawyers here because there was no

. ,

other college All professional me n received their d egrees from

.

that university becaus e it was the only one

,
.

Q What class of society were the friars drawn from in

.

Spain ?
A I cannot state of my own knowledge but quoting the
. ,

friars themselves and persons who have traveled extensively in

Spain I should say that they came from the lowest orders o f
,

society ; and this i s corroborated by the fact that the majority ,

if not all of them wh en they first come have not the slightest
, ,

conception of social forms or etiquette and it might be said ,

they have the hair of the dog on them .

Q Were there not a good many well educated friars ?

.
-

A The fact is that they are almo s t totally unconscious o f

'

proper s ocial forms They act indecently and use indecent ex . ,

pressions in the presence of ladies in public to such an ex t ent

that I was forced o n one o ccasion to throw out a friar who was
'

not only using indecent language but acting indecently in the ,

presence of my w i fe Educated men there are among them but . ,

nearly all of them lack social polish which corroborate s the ,

fact that they are from the lowest orders .

Q Do the orders alii e r at all in this respect ?

.

A They do differ considerably

. You could draw distino .

tions For instance it may be said that the Augusti nians the
.
, ,

R e c o lle t o s the Dominicans and the Franciscans are the four

, ,

order s that have the least education .

Q I mean as between those four

. .

A Of these f our it seems that the Augustinians have a lit

.

tle more social polis h but the Franciscans are the last link of ,

the chain They are absolutely bereft of any idea even of soci al
.

polish or etiquette The Jesuits for instance have it may be

.
, , ,

said a very fair conception of social forms and it is said they

, ,

are c h osen from the upper families I know several of them .

,

an d I am certain that they come f rom disti nguished famil ies .

The P aulist fathers also have m ore culture and better c o n ce p

, ,

tions of social forms .

Q Have you any knowled ge of the agricultural p roperty

.

b elo n ging to the friars or any order of them from which they , ,

d erive revenu e ? I mean other than general rumor .

A The A ugustinians the Dom

. inicans and the R e co lle t o s , ,

have ag r icultural properties Let us begin with the Domini .

-

cans They have hacien d as in the provin ces of Cavite Bulacan

.
, ,

Laguna Manila and in Cag ayan In the province o f Cavi te

, , .

they have the following h acien d as : Naic an d Santa Cruz de

Malabon The hacienda of Naic includes all the pueblo of Naic
.

an d a part of a nei ghboring pueblo The second embraces the .

town of the s ame name— all of i t — and part o f the pueblo o f

San Francisco and of Salinas In the province of Laguna they .

have t h e follo wing haciendas : Binang which includes Binang , ,

S anta Rosa an d Cabuyao ; the hacienda of Calamba which i n

, ,

e ludes the towns of Calamba and p art of Los Banos Bay In

the province of Manila they h av e the hacienda of San J uan d el
.

98
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t d Roma n zl m
'

an
‘

Mon t e which includes the town

, same name a part of of t he ,

that o f S e n Fe lipe Nari In Malabo n they have the hacien d a of .

Nabotas which inclu d es a part of the town of the same name

, .

In the province of Bulacan they have the Lomboy which ih ,

e lud es a part of the pueblos of Polo and M e ycauayan .

In the province of Cagayan they have the hacienda of Tu

g ue g ar ao .

The Augustinians have in the province of Manila the h a .

c ie n d a o f Man d o l ayo San Pedr o M e cati and G an d alup e which

, , ,

is a very profit able o n e because of the stone quarrie s it has .

Nearly the whole o f the province o f Ca vite is in the han ds

o f t h e friars ; that is the reason that the revolution was con e en
t r at e d there There is the hacienda of San Francisco de Mala
.

n o k nown as T e i j
, er o .

In t h e province o f Malabon they have Malinta which i h ,

c lud e s the pueblos o f Boc an e and Guinto .

In Cagayan they also have a tobacco plantation .

The Re c o l le t o s have in th e province o f Cavite the h ac ie n

das of Salitran which include s part of the pueblo Bacoor and
,

the pueblo o f Imus r e ach in g almo s t to Mo nte Lupa ; of S an

'

Juan which includes part of the pueblo p f Imus ; and of Perez

,

das Marinas .

In Mindoro they h ave a fin e plantation w ith a live stock -

range ; this was stocked with live stock but it has disappeared ,

sin ce the revolution .

I h ad almost forgotte n to mention that the Augustinians

always had in the Visayas and in Cebu the hacienda know n as
Tal isay .

For fear that some of the haciendas may have e s caped my

memory I w ill present to you a tab le setting forth all the h a
,

c ie n d a s t o g e t h e r wi t h the number of hectares the number of

‘
,
,

inhabitants and the yield of products

,
.

Q .
I will be much obliged I have a state ment from the .
“

friars and would like to compare it with t h e one you send

,
.

A It seems that the Dominicans have made a simulate d

.

sale to Andrews .

Q .
Haven t they all
’
done the same thing ?
A As a matt e r o f my own knowledge I can only say as t o
.

the Dominicans I have seen the abstract of title o f the lands

'
'

o f the Dominicans and also the deed

.

Q .
Is it n o t true that the friars have h eld these estates ,

most of them for over one hundred years ?

,

A Some yes
. , .

Q . Or at least over fi fty years ?

1

A Yes ; but although they have held this land under a pos
‘

s e s s o r y title as a matter o f fact in many cases like that of the

,
,

hacienda o f Calamba they did not even have a possessory title , ,

for they held it under the color of furnishing irrigation The .

idea is that originally all the lands in the Philippines belonged

to the crown o f Spain and the friars und er a pretext of f ur , ,

h ishin g
irrigation for those land s first commenced charg ing ,

possessors of the di ffe rent government la n ds a small quo t a

the
for the use of this water that they furnished them Then after .

a n umber of years they commenced applying the money whi ch

was paid for water to the purchase pric e of the land which land ,

99
 ’
Roman zs m
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T/z e Sen a t e Documen t an a

d id not belong to the friars but belonged to the State and the
,
,

friars retained that money and the persons who were in posses,

sion of the lands believed that they were paying f o r the lands .

Q That is the case at Calamba ?

.

A A n d also at Imus Fro m the very incipiency of Spanish

. .

sovereignty in this archipelago under Philip II of Spain every . ,

pueblo was given a certain amount of land in common f o r t h e

bene fit of the vicina ge and now in nearly every instance all of
,

that land is in the hands of the friars The question is h o w . ,

did it get there withou t any record of any sale on the part of
any one of the p ue b l o s f This does not mean to say that they
have acquired all the haciendas in the same way For instance . ,

the hacienda of T e ije r o in Cavite was purchased from its form

er owner by the Augustinians .

Q What is the statute of limitations or of prescription

.

her e ?
A Ten years among those who are present and twenty
.

years among absent persons .

Q Don t you think that that defense could be m ade suc

'
’
.

ce s s f ully by the friars to most of the claims against the land .

I am askin g as a que s t i o mo f law ?

A Strictly speaking in the eye of the civil law I am of
. , ,

the opinion that their lands cannot be taken fr om them f o r ,

they c an rely not only o n prescr iption but also upo n a p o s s e s s o r y ,

title of very long standing .

Q I got that impression from hearing their evidence 1

. . .

have a tabular statement which I have not examined carefully

, ,

and do not expect to examine carefully until I take up all the

papers in the matter for examination in which they give the ,

dates of the deeds conveying the lands to the different order s .

A Besides all of these f ac te their title was sold by the

.
,

royal decree issued in the time of F ab ie before mentioned , ,

when they were allowed to alienate these lands and that nat , ,

ur all y being on e of the rights of a fee simple propr ietor it rec -

,

o gn iz e d that title and therefore I state that in the eyes of the

,

civil law you c an n c t atta ck their title .

Q What do you think the ir land is worth assuming that

.
,

they can go on it wit hout being shot ?

A It is better for the Filipinos to lose the land t han to
.
‘

have them here .

Q What was it wort h in 1 89 6 ?

.

Q Land has gone up a good deal now Of all the religious

.
.

corporations from three m illions up in 1 8 9 6 That is Me x ican

, . .

They claime d they had five millions worth You could p r oceed .

from this basis that every k in o n which is a land measure h ere

, , ,

of ir rigated rice land is worth 1 0 00 pesos ; in other words o n e ,

Mexican dollar for e very square meter o f land ; that is the legal
standard and besides they are the be st lands in the archipelago
'

, .

Q Suppose we could get the land for

. — that is
,

t h e whole of i t could we sell it for that b y selling it o ff i n

—

s mal l parcels to the person s who l ive on it ?

~

A You could get a great deal more than that By selling

.
.

i t i n small parcel s
g ivin g t h e prefe r ence o f buying it t o the
,

men who are already on a n d cultivating it you c an make much ,

more than that out of it Speakin of t h e l andholders in the

‘

g .

1 00 1
 ’
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t Roma n zr m
'

an a

measure it b ut i n the intere s t of b revity I w ill leave out details

,

and proceed If the fria r s state that they are the best landlords
.

h ere — and there are a number of landlords why i s the an imosity

all directed against the friars an d not the other landlords ?
Q I would be glad to go on and ask a good many other
.

questions that your ans wers suggest but I must cut it down ,

w ithin reasonable lim its .

A Yes that is only a skeleton sketch because a man is

. . ,

kn o wn through details .

Q I will ask one other question which I asked the friars

. ,

when they were here and that is whether there was anythin g ,

recogn ized hy t he friars such as o ur tenant rig ht sometimes ,

called in Ireland Ulster tenant right where a man takes a place ,

from year to year and has no title oth er than that of holding
from year to year ; and yet the probab ility that he will be con
tinned is recognized as something of value which may be sold ,

from one man to another or which will go from father t o son , ,

and I could not l e arn from the friars whether any such thing
exi sted or not I got the impression that it did not
. .

A I will answer that by saying that such a syste m does

.

exist but always subject to the discretion of the friars Still

,
.

th e cus t om prevails of not only passing this tenant right from

f ather to son but also conveying it to another person usually
, ,

as a matte r of bargain and sale and the new purchaser gener ,

ally pays more for improvements made by the lessee ; but all o f
this of course is subject to the approval of the original land
, ,

l ord the friar

, .

Q : What political fun ctions were actually exercised by the

friars in the islands under Spanish rule ?
A . Aside from those political functions which the laws
recog n i ze i n th em and which are many and began with the,
—

vise which they put upon the credentials of moral character of

every inhabitant of t h e pueblo and terminate d in the friar be ing ,

a member of the fis hing board which is rather an intermina b le ,

chain— their extra legal functions embraced everyt hin g Be .

ginning with the municipal organization he is supervisor of ,

everything conne cted with the municipality His opinion i s .

asked with respect to the appointment o f municipal o fii ce r s .

When information as to a man s m o ral standin g is requested ’

if the credentials don t bear the v i s e by the friar they are o f ’

no effect He is inspector of the schools a member of all the

.
,

boards— the forestr y board the municipal boards and all other , ,

boards In Manila in the central gover nment the archbishop

.
, ,

an d bishops are members of the board of authorities The four .

provincials are members of the board of the council of admin

i s t r at i on The whole thing is said when I stated that they b e
.

longed to the board of fis h er ie s — and heaven knows what a friar

has got to do with fis h To refer again to the extra leg al d u .

ties self imposed by the friars I may put it in a word by saying

-

that the governor general who does n o t act in conformity wit h

-

the friars is a dead man as evidenced by the case of General ,

Calon D e s puj0 1 of ve ry recent date ; and when I say governor

,

gene ral I include all the authorities beneath him

, .

Q What were the relations between the heads of the Span

.

is h government here and the heads of the church ?

1 02
The Sen a t e D oc umen t
’
Roma n zs m
'

ana

A When we consider the intimate linking of the ch urch

.

and the state which prevailed under the Spanish regime it i s ,

unnece ss ary for me to state that afte r all the friar was the , ,

first authority in the Philippines .

Q What fees were actually colle cted by the parish priest s

for marriages and births ?
A There really existe d a schedule of fees
.
which was pro , ‘

mulg ate d by an archbishop n amed Don Balio Sancho d e Santo

Justa y Rufin a That schedule is still in force and is posted in
.
,

the cathedral now but that sche dule of fe es was never car r ied
,

o ut and every friar charged just what he t h ought best I don t '
, .

make this statement from hearsay but from personal knowledge , ,

because I was a member o f a society whose purpose it was to

bring about marriages between those who were living together
but were unmarried and I have personally witnessed many
,

weddings where the fees were always far beyond the l egal
schedule and in all the long time th at I have been a member of
,

t his society I have never yet found a single case where the
friar has condoned or e xempted the par ty from payment of
fees when he knew that most of the marriages were conducte d
,

under the au s pices o f the society and that the fees were paid .

by the society .

Q Do you think that the fees imposed had any e fie c t on

.

preventing marri ages

A Few were the influences that it h ad considerin g t he cus
. ,

tom among the people here because they would g et the money,

for these fees even if they had to steal it If an y evil results

,
.

were noticeable from these fees they were limited almost ex .

e lusively to Manila but in the provinces , even if they had to ,

ste al it t hey w ould get the money

,
.

Q Now as to the morality of t h e friars have y o u had much

. ,

opportunity t o observe as to this

A Considerable from my earliest y o uth With respect to
. ,
.

their morality in general it was such a common thing to see

,

chi ldren o f fr iars that no one ever pai d any attention to it or

t hought of it and so depraved had the people become in this
,

re gard that the women who were the mistresses of fr iars really
felt great prid e in it and had no compunction in speaking of it .

So general had this thing become that it may be said that even
now the rule is for a fri ar to have a mistress and children and ,

he who is not is the rare exception and if it is desired that I ,

give names I could cite right now o n e hundred children of

“

friars .

Q In Manila o r in the provinces ?

.

A In Manila and in the provin c es Everywhere Many of

.
. .

my sweethearts have been daughte rs of friars .

Q Are the .
friars living in the islands still who have had
t hose children ?
Q Yes ; and
.
I can give their nam e s if necessary an d I can ,

give the names of the children too Beg inning with mysel f , . ,

my mother is the daughte r of a Franciscan friar I do not d ie .

honor myself by saying this because my family begins with ,

myself .

Q I will be
.
much obliged
.
for a l ist ?
A I can give it to y o u right n o w : In Pandac an Isidro
. ,

1 03
 d Roma ms m
’

T/z e Sen a t e D ocu men t an

Mendo a son of the B ishop

z ,
Pe d ro Payo when he was the ,

parish curate of t h e Pueblo o f Samar ; in Imus the Wi fe of ,

C ayeta n o Topazio daughter of a R e c o le c t o friar of Mindoro ;

,

in Zambales Louise Las ac a n o w in Zambales and se veral ,

sisters and brothers were children of Friar B enito Tuto r a

, ,

f iar in Bulacan in Qui gua I can not remem b e r the

Re co lec to r ; n ,

last name th e first n ame is Manuela a godchild of my moth er

,
.
,

is a d augh er of an Augustinian friar named Alvaro ; in Cavi te ,

a ce rtain Patrocinio Ret i es is a daughter of Friar Rivas . a

Domin ican friar ; Colonel A guillar who is on the Spani sh ,

b o ard of liquidati on is the son of Father Ferrer an Au gusti ni an

,
,

monk .

Q How do you know these th ings ?

.

A In some cases through family relations others b e

. ,

caus e they were godchildren of my father and others I became ,

possessed of the facts through being attorney I myse lf have .

acte d as godfather for three chil dr en of friars I am now .

managi ng an estate of that came fr om a friar for his

thre e ch ildren A family lives with me who are all childr en of
'

Dr Gon al es was the son of a friar was he not ?

Q . z . ,

A Yes ; I didn t care t o mention him Referring t o th is

.
’
.

matt e r I must recogni ze that we ought t o be thankful t o the

,

fri ars because t hey have bette red our race

,
.

Th t was not the subject was it of great co n d e m

Q . a , ,

nation by the people

A By no means
. .

’
Q It was a kind of departure from t h e ce l ibacy was n t
. ,

t hat it ?
A It was merely an infraction of the c anonical law
.
.

Q It was not a general lice nti ousn ess o n the par t of the
.

fr iars
A It was a general licentiousness bec ause as I have said
. . , ,

th e exce pt ion as t o the rule among the fri ars was not t o hav e a
mistres s and be th e father of children by her The f ri ar who
was not mixed up with a woman in some way o r other was lik e
.

a snowbird in summer but it must h e confes s ed th at for th e

,

pa st t e n years t hey have improved somewhat in this re ga rd .

Q How do t hey compare with the native clergy in this

.

matte r
A To tell the truth they almost run together although it
.
, ,

must be said also that the latter the n ative priests are not so
bare face d about it They have a certain fear B ut in this r e
, ,

-
. .

gard they were merely followi ng the general rule and the
,

general e xample .

Q That would seem to indicat e that the immorality of the

.

friars is not t h e chief groun d of the hosti lity o f the people

again st them would it not .

A That is not by any means becau s e th e moral sense o f

.
, ,

th e whole peo ple here had been absolutely pe rverted So f r a .

quent were these infr actions of the moral laws o n t h e part o f

the friar s that really no o n e ever care d or to ok any notice of
them ; and this acquiescence on the part o f the people was im
posed upon them for woe be unto him who should ever mur
,

mur anything against the friars and even the young Filipino ,

women h ad t heir s en se s p er r te d because when atte nd ing

ya ,
 ’
Roma n zr nz
'

T/ze S en a t e Documen t .
an a

w hich ; as my friend says are the worst but the re is no ani , ,

mo s i t y ; the Capuchin s against whom there is no an imosity ;

,

the B enedictines against who m there is no animosity ; and the

,

Paull s t fathers also and all of the s e ar e Spaniards and st ill

,
,

there is no animosity against them ; but the an imosity is against

the first named .

.
Q These others were not pari sh priests ?
.
A The latte r named never occupied the parish priests and ,

c onse quently h ad no pr eponderance in the government

.

Q And that re all y expla ins the difference

A Yes sir And so far as the Jesuits are concerned they
.

. .
,

are even re cognized as benefactors of the country and they are ,

al so recognized as those who have given the greatest impulse

'

t o education and that is one of the reasons why these four

,

corporations first n amed are at war with the other cor porations ,

and pr incipally with the Jesuits .

.
Q What do you know of deportation due t o the compla ints

of the friars
.A They have had great deal of intervention in the depor
tatie n an d they were the movin g element always in depor
,

t at io n s when they did not like anybody .

.
Q They occas ionally inte r vened t o prevent deport ation s
A I have known of cases ; for instance the case of the
. ,

bishop of Cebu and t h e Camarines The former bishop inter .

ceded i n behal f of Torres and Llore nte who was one o f the
-

justices of the supreme court .

Q A r e the native priests well educate d

.

A There must be two or more stages con sidered in answer

.

ing that question because of different conditions that have

,

prevailed at different times All the native clergy who have .

donned the ecclesiastical garb since 1 8 7 2 the time of the revo ,

la tion of Cavite leave much to be desir ed In the first plac e

, . ,

because the instruction in the theological seminaries was very

poor indeed There was a movin g cause i n all this ; for i n
.

stance the instruction in the theo logical s e min ar ie s was made

, r

purpose ly d eficient b e cause the archbishops desired t o show the

authorities in Rome that none o f the natives were ever capable
of assuming charge of the curacies in the province s and there ,

fore renderin g it necess ar y for the friars alone to be named .

The reason why only the poorer students of the un iversity h e

came priests was because those who were qu icker mentally and
were brighter every way would not go into the priesthood b e
cause they knew o f the un happy conditions that would prevail
afte rwards .

Q What do you think would be the result of the friars at

.

tempting to go back to their parishes

A I will answer that by stating what a countryman to ld
"

me : He says that all the friars have to do is to go back t o their

parishes and sleep one night and the chances are that they ,

would never awaken I do not mean to say by th is that every

.

pueblo in all the provinces would cut the throats of the r e t um

ing parish priests but even supposing there were but three
, ,

pueblos in each province that we re antagonistic t o the return of

the parish priests they wo uld begin the undertak ing o f inciti ng
,

1 06
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t d Roma n zs n z
'

an

al l the others until they h ad gotte n them in the condition where

they would do the same .

9 Q What do you thin k of the establishment of a public

.

school system al lowin g half an ho ur before or h alf an hour

aft er school for religious instr uction Would that satisfy the
Catholics o f t he island
A So long as the instru ction was only i n the Catholic r e
.

l ig io n of course
, .

Q The instruction would not be b y the public school

. -

teacher The oppo r tunity would be given to everyone ; but as

. ~

there would be none there but priests I suppose the Catholics .

would be the on ly ones t o go The children would only go and

.

receive the instruction that their parents desired .

A I have always entertained the idea that the separation

.

o f church and state in this island is one of the most difficult

undertakings Possibly it is the most arduous problem that

.

there i s h er e and I believe that the establishment of free r e

.
,

lig io us instruction would produce a bad e fiec t o n the people .

Q You do not quite understand the system I mean Under

. .

the Constitution of the United States it is n o t possible for us t o

spend any public money for any religious instruction but the ,

Catholic clergy seem to feel that instruction ought to be ao

c ompanied by re ligious instruction Now then if we give to
. , ,

the Catholic priest the opportunity to go and meet the pupils .

eith er before or after the reg ular c urriculum for half an hour ,

o r an hour as he see fit to give them instruction will that act .

meet the desires of the people for the union of education and
relig ion
A It would be satisfactory to the people provided it were
. ,

o nly the Catholic priests who went there .

Q It would practically amount t o that for no child would

. ,

be compelled to listen t o any rel igious instruction which the ir

p arents did not desire them to liste n to It is wholly with in the
.

control of the parents .

A This question would be very easy of soluti on and would

.

be unde rstood perfectly by an educated people but the people ,

we have here are not reasoning enough to grasp all of that and ,

would th ink that what is a perfectly free fun ction was some
thing compulsory ; and there is another thing that wo uld ar i s e
'

an d that is that in the Catholic clergy themselves there would

be found those who would object t o that because it is free and ,

any member of any r eligion could go there and they would e s ,

t ab l i s h th eir own schools The people are surpris ed that they

.

don t te ach the cate chism in the public schools for it has b e e n
’
,

the custom o f the children to learn to read out of the cate chism ,

and that is what renders this a very di fficult problem and per ,

haps the permitting of free religious instruction in the schools

may redound to the injury o f those schools and this because ,

the people confound what is per fectly free and what is obli
g at o r y .

Q There
.
are but two courses open — o n e to give o
p p or

t un it y t o have religious instru ction an d the other t o have

,

schools without it at all

A I believe it is preferable to suppress it ent ir ely and t r
.

give the r e ligious i nstr uction in churches .

1 07
Tae Sen a t e Docum en t
’
Rom a n zr m
'

an a

Q .I am g l ad to get your Opinion for it is a very d ifnc ult ,

question .

A It is the most arduous question i n these inte rrogato ries

. ,

and pre se nts th e gravest proble m f or we are treating with a ,

fanatical Catholic people and then besides we are confronted

, , ,

by a gro ssly ignorant people .

Q Tendin g some of them t o fetichism ?

.

A Yes The fact is that the people at large have n ot

. .

grasped the true inspiration of catholicis m it is tinsel dazzling

—

before their eyes Certain things come up and immediate ly the

.

people turn over to fetichism an d idola try There is a sect .

,

called the Colorum— in the provi nces of Batangas Lag una , ,

Mindoro and Tayabas— whi ch has more than a hundred thou

,

sand proselytes which is an adulteration of the third order of

,

St Francis admixed with ancie n t idolatries and th at is the r e al

. ,

cause of t h e tremendous fanaticism that e xists in those four

'

province s It is not confined t o these four it is pretty

.

general .

Q Does it not need the influence of a culti vated clergy ?

.

A That is true if you were treating of a people who could

.

understand y o u What you nee d her e is not great knowledge

.
,

b ut to attract them b y the affection You cannot thrust aside .

or oblite r ate all these notions by any cold reason .

Q No ; but a cultivated high toned clergy that was well

. ,
-

educated co uld not but exercise a good influen ce if they used

, .

common s e n se jn a community like that .

A , That is ve ry t rue ; but i f the people don t take kindly to '

that clerg y the prob lem is still unsolved

, .

Q W hat do you think about introducing American cl er gy

.

here ?
A It depe nds en t ire ly upon how they conduct th ems elves
. .

Q No w as to the e ffect of t h e government either buyin g or

.

e x app r o pr i a t i n g the agricultural property of the friars and sell

ing it out in small p arcels and using the proceed s for a school
.

fund— do you think t hat a practicable idea ?

A That is practicable and the only solu tion to the prob
.
,

lem and that would als o solve the agrarian and social aspect of
,

the re volution .

Q Is not that so far as it relate s t o the friars co nfined t o

. , ,

the provinces of Cavite Batangas Manila and Bulac an ? , , ,

I mean largely ?
A Yes ; where the friars have haciendas ; but still it has
'

spr ead somewhat to other provi nc es where they hold no lan d ,

but it is of little i mportance .

1 08
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t d Roman zr m
'

an

A .
I really had no c h an c e t o j udge
x ce , ex pt of the J esuits ,

because they were my teachers and o f the Augustinians of

, .

which order the friars in my province are and o n e R e co lle t o ,

friar in Montalban provin ce of Manila who very nearly got us

, ,

all into j ail up there in the year 1 886 .

Q Do you know an ything about the property owned by

.

the friars in the Philippines ?

A I can only state that from trustworthy sour ces I have
.

he ard that they own a great deal of landed property and I have ,

myself visited three or four of their estates at Imus Malinta , , ,

and Lolomboy On these estate s I have been even in the manor

.

houses but I do not know the e xt ent of their holdings

,
.

Q They have none in Pampanga ?

.

A They have not even one foot of land in Pampanga

. .

Q What in Pamp an ga did the fri ars do in the way of polit

.

ical contr ol of the town ?

A In the first place they had direct int ervention in what
.

might be called the private life of every indi vidual If t hey .

desired that he live at ease he could live uninterrupte d i n the

,

pursuit of his occupations ; if they did not they coul d make h is ,

life a torment The friars directe d most of their att ention if

.
,

not all of it to those persons i n each pueblo who were of the

,

upper class by reason of their property or education— such as

did not need the friars to aid them in any of their plans The .

friars usual ly watched these people ve r y closely so as to d is co v

er any way at all in which to either get land or money from
them by makin g accusations against them The methods pur .

sued by the friars in t h e pueblos to show their prowess t o the

g ob e m ad or c ill o s was somethin g afte r this fashion : When a new
g o b e r n ad or c ill o was named the friars woul d go t o the provincial
,

governor and say that he ought to impose a fin e on th e gober

n ad or c il lo because he did not keep the roads within h i s j uris

diction i n a proper condition Acting upon this , the provincial

.

governor would impose the fin e and the g o b e r n ad o r c il lo would

,

apply to the parish friar to inte rcede for him with the governor .

This the friar would do asking the prov in cial g overnor t o t e

,

mit the fin e which he would do In this way the friar would

, .

in gratiate himself wi th the g o b er n ad o r c i ll o and also show to,

h i m what a power he had over all the political authorities If .

the friar happened to be at outs with the provincial gover nor .

he would utilize his influence over the g o b e r n ad o r c illo t o the

end that the latte r would show him all the orders that he r e
c e ive d from the provincial governor before he execute d the

same and if any of these orders met his views he would i n

,
,

struct the g o b e r n ad o r c illo to obey them ; if not he would tell ,

him to pay no attention to them If matt ers came t o a crisis

.
,

the friar would advise the g o b e r n ad o r c ill o t o either take t o the

woods or to come to Manila and become a guest of the monas
,

t e r y of his order there and then he would prepare charges

,

against the provincial governor and have it sig ned by all the
principal people in the pueblo A nother method of the friars
.

relate d to the collection of their fees or stipends They formed .

all the lists of the population of their d ifie r e n t districts from

the parish baptismal register and purposely avoided any refer
,

ence to the deat h register ; consequently whoever was baptized ,

no
Tue Sen a t e D oc um en t an d Roma n zlvm
in that place could li v e forever and was returned always as b e ,

ing alive and a resident of that place even though he h ad died ,

o r moved and b e compelled the cabezas barangay who were

, ,

the tax collectors to turn over t o them their stipend based up

,

o n these public returns an d if they failed to turn the stipends

,

over on the ground that no su ch population existed th ey were ,

put in jail through the friars an d bereft of their p o s it io n u The

basis for the pay ment o f the stipend to the curates in former
times was the population and ever y year a list of the po pulation
,

was made up ostensibly by the g o b e r n ad o r c ili o but the only sta ,

t i s t ic s there were in these pueblos were the parish registe rs kept

by the friars and the friars compelled the g o b e r n ad o r c illo s ,
,

therefor e to come t o them and let them vis é the lists that were
,

se n t in to the provincial governor and naturally increased them ,

so as to increase salar y .

Q So to swell the taxes they robbed the cradle and the

.

grave ?
A They augmented the cradle but diminished the grave
The friars had a sy ste mof blackmail by which they held the
. .
.

rod over all the citizens of a pueblo about whose habits and ,

closet skeletons they learned through mak ing little girls of

from fiv e to six and seven years o f age who could barely speak , ,

and wh o were naturally and must have been sinless come to ‘

the co n fessional and relate to th em everything that they knew

o f the private life in their own homes and in places that they
might visit .

Q Did they take an active part in the improvements or

.

whatever was done in the town ?

A It ma y be said that they had full direction and char ge of
.

all the public works in their d ifie r en t j urisdiction s except such ,

as were o f a nature demanding the supervision of a corps o f

“

engineers under the board of public works at Manila who were ,

always Spaniards naturally to direct the public works in the

, ,

pueblos ; they always had to live in the convent with the friars
so as to ge t into their good graces for if they did not the , ,

fr iars would report them as being derelict in their duty or with

misappropriating funds .

Q What can you say about the fees collecte d by the priests
.

for marriages etc ,

.

A I cannot state positively what the fees charg ed are but

. .
,

I can say that they are very heavy and always increasing b e , ,

cause I have to pay the birth marriage and burial fees of all of , ,

my tenants and servants and they are charged o n an ever ,

increasing scale The s ligh e s t improvement made to a church

.

o r convent is used as a pretext for eno r mously increasing these

fees The fees are very burdensome to the landed propr iet or
. ,

for the Filipino unfortunately when he g ets an idea acts on it

, , ,

without caring for the consequences and if he feels like getting ,

married even though he is very poor he will get married and

’

, .
,

have children for all of which his landlord has to pay

,
.

Q What d o you know about the morality or immoral ity o f

.

t h e f r i ar s ?
‘

A T o o much I have nothing to add to what Senor Calde

.
.

r on says save to cite some more names

,
.

Q Have you known a good many young women and young

.

111
T/ze Sen a t e Doc um en t ’
Rom a n zr m
’

ana

men who were the re pu ted d aughters and sons of friars ?

A I have kno wn a great many and n o w have living o n my
.
,

own e s tate six chil dren of a friar .

Q Were all the friars licentious ?

.

A I believe that th ey all are

. .

Q Do you think that was the ground of hostility against

.

the friars ?
A No s ir ; C ae s arism was Everything was dependent
.
, .

upon them an d I may say that even the process of eating was
,

under their supervision Naturally their immorality h ad a

.

slight in fl uence in the case but it became so common that it ,

passed unnoticed .

Q Does the hostility ex ist ag ainst all the orders ?

.

A Onl y agains t the four : The Augustinians in my prov

.

ince the Re c o lle t o s t h e Dominicans it e xisted against the Do

, ,
—

minican a in Pangasinan for I have heard p eople living there

,

speak of it when I visited them and the Franciscans — .

Q Why d id i t exist against the four and not against the

.

Jesuits Pauliat Fathers and Benedictines ?

,

A Because the latter not having any parishes the people

.
,

d id not know whether they were the same or not ; although we

kno w hi storically that the Jesuits are the worst but we have ,

never had any palpable evidence .

Q You have never heard charges of immorality against the

.

Jesuits ?
A No
. .

Q Was this feeling in Pampan g a again s t the friars con

. r

fined to the leading men in each town to four or fiv e o r did it , ,

permeate the lower classes ?

A In former times only the u pper class would express their
.

opinions with respect to the friars but since the friars h ave ,

left their curacies , t h e pent up feeling o f all classes cf society

'

is expressed a n d the murders of priests and the attack s upon

,

priests which h ave recent ly occurred are due ent irely to the ,

lower classes of society and not even connived at or instigated

,

by the upper classes .

Q Charges have been made ag ainst the friars that they

caus ed deportation s of Filipinos D o you know of such in .

stances ?
A Yes sir. In my own province it was seen that the
.
,

large majority of the friars and more especially the now de ,

!

ceased friar Anto n io Brabo had great influence l n the depor t a ,

tion of many influential citizens as also in the incarceration of ,

several of them 1 11 order to subsequently have them released so

“

as to sho w their powe r with the authorities I myself at the .

, ,

instigation of friars have been the victim o f their machinations

, ,

for they wanted me sent to Manila to be criminally prose cuted ;

but thanks to the governor and to my father in law who was a - -

European I escaped , .

Q I t is charged also that they were guilty o f physical

.
-

, ,

cruelty to their own members and others What do you know .

about it ?
A They were crue l not only in their treatme nt of their
.
,

servants by beating them but they also took great delight in,

bein g eyewitnesses to tortures and beatings of men in prisons

112
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'

ana

to the priest t h an to any other member of the community and ,

that t h e pries t occupies no political function whatever ?

A I believe it would solve the whole problem
.
.

Q I understood you t o say that the orders o wn nothing in

.

Pampanga
A None
. .

Q The agrarian question mentioned by Mr Calderon l a

.
.

really a local question affe cting Cavite Batangas Bulacan and

, , , ,

Laguna
A Yes sir ; and in the province of Manila
.
,
.

Q It really pl ays very little part in Pampanga

'

A It may be said that Pampan g a has al ways been happy

. ,

and even in the matter of cu r ates we have had fairly good me n

as a rule .

Q From your general knowledge do you thin k the pur

. ,

chase o f the land would help out the agrarian question

A Yes ; that would solve the problem but the United
.

States ought not to pay more for the lan d s than the price that
private individuals here have h ad to pay and the friars got ,

them at a lower figure $1 f o r a squ are mete r of fir s t class rich

,
-

lan ds with irrigat ion .

Q I suppose people in the islands honest men could be

.
— —

had to appraise these lands at what they ar e really worth

A They ought to be appraised at what they were worth
.

formerly and not what they are worth tod ay .

Q Are they worth more to day

.

A A great deal more

. Under the right o f eminent domain . ,

they ought to be compelled to sell their lands at a fair pr ice

above what they paid for them but not what they are worth ,

n o w.

Q They have sold their lands in a way haven t they

.
, ,
’

A I c an not state O f my own knowledge but it is a very

.
,

current public rumor th at so me of the m have made a fictitiou s

sale so as to get the m in the name of another .

Expressions of thanks .

INT E RV I E W W I T H S E N OR NOZA R I O
C O N ST AN T I N O OF B I GAN P ROV I NCE ,

OF BU LACAN N OW R E S I DI N G ,

I N MAN I LA .

O C O B R 1 9 1 9 00 T E , .

Q How lon g have you lived 1 n the Philippine s

'

A I was born here and I am now fif t eight never having

y
.
, ,
left the island s .

Q Whe re were you born

A I n Bigan but whe n I became a lawyer I came do n
.
,
w to
live i n Manila .

Q 519 ve you been i n the habit O f going back to Bulacan 9

. 1 .

A Constantly All my inte rests a n d l an d s are there

. .
.

114
 Tne Sen a t e D ocumen t a n a Roma n zr m ’ ’

Q How much p rsonal Opportu i t y had y u before 1 8 9 6 to

.
e n o
know the r elations an d the social religious and political atti
, , ,

tude o f the friars toward the people and the people toward the
friars
A I have had many opportunities What the friar s acting .

as pari sh priests have done for many ye ars prior t o 1 89 6 is to

commit fl agrant abuses both in their private an d public li fe .

Q Have you known many fri ars personally

.

A I have known a great many

. .

Q D O yo u know what class of society they were generally

.

drawn f r om in Spain
A I do not know Some of t hemshow they have received
.
.

a fair education but many others show that they only came
,

over here under the cloak of r e ligion to gain a living .

Q Do you know o f any agricultural busine s s o r resi d ence

.
, ,

property owned by any order of the friars from which they

derive revenue
A I know that they o wn city property and also suburban
.

property They have a multitude of country estates In Bula

.
.

can they have at least three or f our perhaps five h aciendas , , .

Q Can y ou tell the di ffe rent orders owning estates in

.

Bulacan
A In the province o f Bulacan is the haciend a o f Pandi
.
,

Lolomboy belonging to the Do mi n icans ; Mal inta D an e p ol and

, , ,

Trece to the Augustinians Those are the shod Aug ustinians

, .
,

as distingu i shed from those who go barefooted The na me of .

the Re c o lle t o r is unshod Augustinians ” .

Q What political functions did the friars discharg e b e

.

fore 1 8 9 6 in the villages in which t h ey w er e parish prie sts ?

'

A The political function s that they exercised were those

.

o f ruling the entire cou ntry every authority and everybody

,

having to be subservient to their caprice .

Q D O you know what were the relations between the heads

o f the Spanish government and the heads O f the church here
.

A Generally speaking the governor general had t o keep on

the good side of the head O f the church her e for h e knew full
.

'
,
'

well that if he should do anything wh i c h was displeasing to the

archbishop that he wo uld last a v e ry shor t time in the Philipp ines .

Q What were the fees actually collected f o r the marriages

.

and births and burials Were they oppre s sive or otherwise

A That depended entirely up on the ca price of the parish
.

friar and the ability to pay o f the person needing his services .

Many times the latter would have to pay four times the o fii ci al
schedule .

Q What was the morality of the friars

.

A There was no morality whatever and the story of the

.
,

immorality would take too long to recount Great immorality .

and corruption . d esire to say here th at speaking thus .

frankly about the habits of the p riests the witnesses would ,

fear that they might be persecuted by the priest if it should

ever get o ut what they were sayin g here ) .

J udge Taft I don t expect to publish it I e xpect to use

.
’
.

it to make a report to the commission .

‘

Q Have you known of the children o f f r iars b eing about in

.

B ul acan
115
 ’
T/ze Sen a t e Doc umen t Roma n zr m
'

an a

A Yes sir About the yea r 1 8 40 an d the y e a r 5 0 e very

.
, .
’

f r iar curate i n the province of Bulacan had his concubine .

Dr Joaquin Gonzales was the son of a curate O f Baliuag and

.
'

he has three sisters here and an other brother all children o f ,

t he same friar We do not look up o n this as a discredit to a

.

man .

The multitude of friars who came here from 1 8 7 6 to 1 89 6

and 1 89 8 were all o f the same kind an d to n ame the number of ,

children that they have would t ake up an immense lot of space .

There was a case for instance o f the governor of the province

, ,

of Bulacan ( and I know whereof I speak for I have practiced ,

law there for many years) wh o was named Canova and h e was ,

a man who was very strict in the performance o f his Ofii c ial
duty an honest and an upright man He endeavored to put a
—

stop to the deportat ions Of the friars and they combined and
.

called upon h im in a bod y and asked him in a threatening man

ner if he desired to remain as g overnor O f that province He .

to ld them to go to hell ; and they said Now if y o u don t want

'

’
, ,

t o stay here you better ask to be tr ansferred to another pro

vin ce because if you don t leave voluntarily you will not r e
,
’

main here three months long er A very short time after that .

he had to leave .

Q Did not the people become so accustomed to the r e

.

l at io us which the friars had with the women that it really paid
very little part in their hostility to the friars assumin g that the ,

hostility did exist

A That contributed somewhat to t he hostility of the people
.
,

an d they carried things in th i s regard with a very hi h hand

g ,

for if they should desire the wife or d aughter of a man and the ,

husband opposed such advances they would endeavor to have ,

the man deported by bringing up false charges o f being a

filibuster or a Mason and afte r succeeding in getting rid Of the
,

husband they would by foul o r fair means accomplish their

, , ,

purposes and I will cite a case that actually happened to us It

, .

was the case of a first cousin Of mine Dona S o p an c e who , ,

marrie d a girl from Baliuag and went to live in Agonoy and ,

there the local friar cur ate who was pursuing his wife got him
the position as registrar Of the church in order to have him
occupied in order that he might continue his advances with the
wife He was fortunate in this undertakin g an d succeeded in
.

getting th e wife away from the husband and afte rwards had the ,

husband deported to Puerto Princesa near Jolo where he was , ,

shot as an insurgent and the friar continued to live with the

,

wid ow and she bore him children The friar s name i s J ose .
’

Martin an Augustinian friar

, .

Q Is he still in the isl ands ?

.

A He was an Old man and he has gon e over to Spain

.
, .

This was in the year 1 89 1 1 89 2 or perhaps 1 89 3 , , .

Q I want to ask y o u whether t h e hostility again st the

.

f r 1 ar s is confined to the ed ucate d and the better element among

the people
A It permeates all classes o f society and princi ally the
.

p ,

lower for they can do nothing The upper class by reason o f

, .
,
their education can stand them o ff better than the lower classe
, s ,
116
Tfie Sen a t e Documen t an d Roma n ian
would contin ue t o be Catholics and would not inquir e into t l
n ationality of their priests .

Q.
What about the moral i ty of the native priests as co n

pared with the friars

A There i s no comparison at al l Even when the nativ
.
.

priest following in the footst e ps o f h is te acher co mmii

, ,
.

abuses and immoralities h e doe s it less open ly o r shameless

?

than the friar One o f the great reasons f o r the objecti ons 1
.

the friar is that the spirit of union an d solidarity which hol c

their religious communities to gether prevents pun ish ment fro;
bein g visite d upon t he unworthy If I were to go to the pr .
<

v in c ial of an order an d lodge charges o f heinous o fie s

n i

again st the curate of my pueblo he would say I will fix that ,

and ete r nity would pass before it was fix ed ; an d in some 0 8 8

1

where outrageous conduct h as been charged agains t the curat

an d public opinion was unan imous in cryin g for c ondign p ut
i s h me n t again s t the cul prit the provin cial has arranged t l,

matter by taking the cul prit away from that to wn an d se n d ix

him to a bette r one This is public and noto r i ous In t h
.
.

very cas e that I spoke o f o f F r iar Jose Mar t in with my fir,

cousin the latter wen t to Archbis hop No z ale d a with lette

,

which had pas sed between the fri ar and his wife The lette .

were written in cipher understood only by the woma n and t]

friar and with locks of h is hair and his photo graph which h a
, ,

been sent t o his wife My cousin wan te d him to d is c ip li

.
'

th is man and to prevent him from encroaching upon hi s h o us

hold A rchbishop No z ale d a said that the c ase was with in i i
.

j urisdiction of the vicar of the provin ce resi din g at Baliua ,

and that was the e n d o f the case Nothin g was ever done I .

the archbishop or the vicar exce pt as I have said before t i , , ,

husband was deporte d to Puerto Prince ssa I desir e t o s : .

that this has ne v er been published It is a skeleto n in a close .

Q What would be the result if th e friars shoul d atte mpt

‘

go back to their parishes

A I can not tell for a cer t ainty but I believe that it w o n
.
,
be fatal .

Q Don t you think that the people in the islands are since
.
'

Catholic s
A Yes s ir ; sincerely Catholi c ; an d if to day there are
’

. -
,

e w other reli gions gaining an entrance to the is lands the f an

f
h e s wholly at the door of the friars .

Q Do the people want educati on

.

A I should say so ; yes s ir

.
They are v ery anxious , .

have it .

Q Would they like e ducation in English

.

A If it w e re possible i n all languages

. The proof , .

thi s fact 1 8 see n in the tremendous atte ndance at the nig

schools whi ch have recently been opened t o give instruction
.

Engli sh A large number of persons wh o would like to att e1

.

are unable to do so because they have t o work hard to gain

,

livelihood for their parents who are unable to work , .

Q Do they have to work night s

.

A Yes ; some of them ; like man v of the small wate

.

car ri ers and shoemakers .

118
 T/z e Sen a t e Docum en t d Roma n zs m
'

an

We inte nd t o give as much opportunity as we can to those

ni ght schools and to enlarge them We have application for .

another n o w an d we are going to e stablish it We are con

,

fronted in startin g an e x ten d ed sy stem of education all through

.

t h e is l ands with this difficulty : Unde r the American system of

government there is a complete separation of church and state
the church conducts its anair e and the people pursue religious ,

worship as they please On the other hand the church has no .

,

influence with the st ate and the state i s not p e r mi te d t o furnish ,

religions instr uction t o the youth o f the country We e n c oun

ter a feeling h e re manife sted through the Jesuits an d per
.

, , ,

haps people generally that they are opposed to a system of e d

, ,

uc at i o n wit hout instruction i n the Catholic religion I n order .

to meet that objection it has been suggest ed that we should ,

have public schools in which no religion is taught by the public

school te acher but we should g ive authority t o have religious
,

instr uction of these people with the c o n sent o f their parents ,

“

half an hour b e fore the schoo l hour and half an hour aft er
wards but not make it obligatory I would like to know your
, .

opinion as to how that would work , and would satisfy the feel
in g among the Catholics that they must unite religious instruo
tion with education ? It is not even necessary to have any r e
l igi o us i nst r uction at all in the public schools because all the ,

people o f the Philippines are deeply religious from a Cath olic

standpoint ; this is deep rooted in th eir hearts an d they dr ink -
,
'
it in with their in o t h e r s milk and they know no instruction in ’
,

i n school They c an get all the instruction they ne ed in matters

.

religious from their own parents or their own homes .

Q Then you think it better n o t to attempt that other ?

.
.

A Entirely for the pe e p le o f the country are naturally r e

. ,

l igio us To show how deep roote d this religion is it has b e

. ,

come a fanaticism .

Q How woul d it work out in t his way Suppose we estab

.

lish good public schools pay te acher s well and have a good , ,

system not like the old and suppose the church were to say or
, , ,
,

the churc h authorities were to say You cannot send your ,

c hildren to these scho o ls becau s e there is no religion taught i n .

th em ” w here would the people stand in an instruction like

,

that ?
A The Filipino people would flock t o where they could ge t
.

instruction irrespective o f what the p riests should wish

,
.

Q Would it n o t affect the standing of the priest s very

.

much and the influence of the priests whoever they are if it , ,

be comes known to the people as it must become known that , ,

the only way the priests can b e paid is by the voluntary contri
"

butions o f the people an d that the priests will exercise no polit

,

ical f uc t i o n s whate ver and if as now ,under General Order No , ,

.

40 and as it probably will be under any ot her law they are de

,
,

nied the right t o hold ofli ce ? Aft er three o r four years wi ll not
that very much change the view o f the people as to the impor
tance o f who the priests are in the town ?
A No sir ; I believe that the priests could still continue t o
. ,

l ive t hrough t h e v o lu n tary contribu t ions of the people C u .

~doubtedly the infl uence they may have wi elded i n a political

natural y disappear ut t hey would have consider
B
way would l ,

11
 T/ze Sen a t e Doc umen t
’
Roma n zr m
‘ '

ana

able r eligious infl uence because when t h e Filipin o is g iven lib

,
.

e r t y o f action and freedom of c onsci en ce and is at libert y t o

choose any re ligion as th e Catholic is th e o ne he knows or
,

car e s to know he would remain a Catho lic ; and if the priest

,

would say : I am bere ft of the support o f an y government .

an d I have to live upon voluntary contr ibut ions t h e majo r ity

"
,

o f t h e people would gl adly provide them w it h money and make

good donations to them .

.
Q You have not gotten what I want Let us assume that .

the friar went back If he were deprived of his political func

.

tions and dependent upo n people for contributions o n which to

live would not his position be very much changed from what
,

it was before ? Not that I mean t hat a friar i s going back but ,

let us assume it In other word s would it not draw his fangs ?

. ,

.A Yo u have t o pro c ee d from the hypothesis that t he great

mass of the people here are ignorant and i f a friar goes back
and goes to work on that ignoran c e he i s possessed of th e dex
,

t e r i ty and cleverness t o make it re dound to his credit and t o

get money and you must r e me mp e r that ignorance is all per v ad
,
-

i n g here In a pueblo there may be 20 men who are educat ed

.
,

and the fr iars working upon that i gnorance would get up slow
ly but ce rtainly a feud between the e ducated and the ig no l
rant.

Q What would be the effect if t h e govern ment were t o

'
.

make a contract with the friars or by condemnation were to buy ,

the property of the friars and sell it out to the te nants in

s mall divisions and use the money for a school fund ?
.A A very favorable result would ensue from that and ,

t h ere would be general conte ntment .

Expressions of thanks .

I NT E R V I EW W I T H MAXI M O V I O LA O F .

SAN M I GU EL DE MA YU MO .

O CT O BER 20 1 9 00 , .

Q Were you born in th e Philippines ?

.

A Yes . .

Q In what part of the isla n ds have you lived ?

.

A Except the ti me I spent in Europe to finish my educa

.

tion ( a little over four years) I have lived nearly the whole time ‘

in the pr ov in ce o f Bulacan .

Q About what is your age ?

'

A I am 43 years old
. .

Q What is your profession ?

.

A I am a physician
. .

Q Yo u studied in Fran ce ?
.

A Principally in Spain alt hough I h ave been in Fran ce

. ,
,
G e rmany and Austr ia .

Q What years Were you in Vienna ?

.

A In the year 1 88 7
.
.

Q Have you practiced your profession i n Bul acan ?

.

A I have practic ed my profession constantl y from the lat

.

ter part of 1 88 7 until 1 89 4 in Bulacan when through per e c eu ,

tions of the friars I was driven to Manila where I re mained ,

1 20
 ’
T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t Roma n zr m
'

ana
‘

authority w ere ele cte d by the people who mh e d id not desire to

hold oni ce he would for subordinate o fli c e r s appeal t b the pro
, , ,

v i n cial governor an d for these governors to the governor gen

,
-

eral and state that if t hese officers who had been electe d were
,

permitted to as sume their o fii ce s that the public orde r would bi

endanger ed because they w ere Mas o n s o r any other GDQCIOUI
, h

argu ment would be advanced so as to make the superior author

ities set at naught the will o f the people and ap po in t wh oeve l ,

might be thoug h t suitable or friendly to the friar ; but o f ten

'

this was not ne cessary as the friar would so wield the election!
,

as to get only those to vote who were his blind followers H r .

performed the duties of lieutenant o f the civil gu ard by de

man ding of every pers on who came to him t o be either man ia
or t o have a child baptized o r for burial their ce dul a wh icl , , ,

he would retain until such a time as the fee s we r e p aid an d ,

then he would report the person whose ce dula he had retained

t o the lieutenant of t h e civil guard as being without a cedula
and he would be j aile d until such time as he should get ano t h el
ce dula .

Q Wha t was the morality of the parish priests ?

.

A There was no morality If I was to rehearse the whole

. .

histo ry it would be in te rminable ; but I shall confine myself t c

concrete cases beginning with the vows o f chastity wh icl
, ,

everyone knows they h ave t o take Up o n this point it wer< .

better to consult t h e chil d ren o f friars in every town when

t here are at least four o r fiv e or more who have cost their moth ,

ers many bitter tears for having brought them into the world 1

not only because o f the dishonor but also because o f the nu ,

.

me r o us deportations brought about by the friars to get rid o i

them T h e vow of poverty is also loudly commented o n by t h e
.

fact that in every town however poor it may be the convent is , ,

the finest building whereas in Europe o r elsewhere the school

,

house is the finest building With regard t o other little .

caprices o f the friars I might say th a t whenever a we alth) ,

‘

r esident of the to wn is in his death throe s the F ilipino co ad -

~
,

jut or of th e fria r is never permitted to go to his bedside an d

confess him the Span ish fr iar always goes and there he paints
,
,

to the penite nt the to rments of hel l an d the consequences of an

evil life thu s adding to the ter rors o f the deathbed He al s o
, .

state s h is soul may be saved by donating either real o r per sonal

property to the church There are hundr eds o f donations o f .
_

this kind which still exist For i nstance in the town o f Bigau .
, ,

the altar i n the ch urch is of silver a donation from the Co m ,

s t an t in e family
; and in San Miguel th e silver altar is a donation
_

from the family of Don Ce f an n o de L eo n the grandfather hav ,

ing donate d money sufficient t o pay for it o n his deathbed ; and ,

if t h e patient dies the family is compel led to have a most ex

pen sive funeral w ith al l the incidental ex penses which go to
,

the church or be threatened with deportation o r imprison ment ;

,

and if the dead person is a pauper and h as naturally not h ing to ,

pay w ith or if he is a servant or a tenant the master or em

,
,

ployer has to pay or he will be deported as happened to m

brother ln law Moises Santiago who was a phar macist an dy
, .

- -

, ,
,
was d eported i n the month o f November 1 89 5 because he did , ,

not pay t h e funeral expenses of the son of the female servant

1 22
 T/ze Sen a t e D ocum en t d Roen a n zr en
’
' '

an

in his house The fat he r o f t h i s ch ild was a l aborer and had

.
,

funds s umc ien t to defray the burial e x penses and the friar w as ,

so informed by my brother in Jaw and the y said they had noth-

ing t o do with that and that he was his mas ter an d would have
,

t o pay o r s ufie r the consequences which he did I myse lf came . .

very near being d epor te d under the following circumstan c es

A woman heavy with child died in the fifth mon t h of gestation .

The friar curate demanded that I should per form the ( ar s ar ian "

operation upon the corp se in order to b aptize t h e i mi a s I de

. .

c li n e d t o perform t h e operation becau s e I had a wound i n my ,

finger and feared blood poisoning He told me it was my duty .

to m y self and t o my conscience to perfor m the operation i n or -

der that he might baptize the f oe t us ; and I told him my con

science did not so impel me and I declined to do it and he said , , ,

”
Take care .Those t wo word s were su fficie n t to send me
hurriedly to Manila where I remained fro m 1 89 5 the year i n
, ,

which this occurred to 1 8 9 9 If the dy in g p er son is a pauper

, . ,

with n o o n e to pay fees the Spanish friar does not go to con

,

fess him b ut sends the Filipino and wh en he dies without

, ,

buri al fees his corpse is often allowed t o r o t and there have ,

been many cases where the sacristans o f the church have been
ordered by the fr iar to hang the co rpse publicly so that the '
,

relatives may be thus co mpelled to see k the fees somewhere

s ufil c i e n t t o bury the corpse .

Q W ha t proportion o f t h e friars do you think violated

.

thei r vows o f celibacy ?

A I d o not know of a s ingle one of all those I have known
‘

in the province of B ulacan who has not viol ated his vow of cel
.

i b ac y . The ver y large m ajority of the mestizos in the interior

are sons o f fri ars
Q D oes a hostility exist among the people agains t the
.

friars ?
A A great deal If you were to ask t h e inhabitants o f t h e
. .

Philippines one by one that question they would all say the
, , .

same — that they hate d the friars ; because t here is scarce ly a

per son livin g here who has not in one way or another suffered , ,

at th eir hands .

W h at is th c h ief ground o f that hostility ?

Q . e
A The despotism and the immorality
.
.

Q .
Had other cases than the immora l ity not existed do y ou ,

think the immorality was sufficient ?

A Yes ; that would be a s uffic ient cause f or the si mple rea
. ,

son that the i mmorality brings as a natural consequence in its

train despotismintimidation and force t o carry o ut their d e
, ,

sires and designs ; f o r all may be reduced to thi s that the F il ,

“
did not h w his head in acquiescen c e h ad it cut o il
i p i n o wh o o

from his shoulders .

In other words this was only a manifestation of t he

Q . ,

power they exercised ove r t h e people That was o n e end .

toward which they used their power ?

A Immorality was the chief e n d
.
.

Q .
What have you to s ay o f the morality o f the native

priests ?
A They blindly
.
obeyed w hateve r the friar says ; the y n ave

neither individual will nor thought .

1 23
T/zefl Sen a t e Documen t an d R omun zcm
Q Are they also loose in their relations with women ?
.

A Many of them also From my o wn personal experience

. , .

I think all the priests and friars are on the same level I have .

never seen one that was pure I don t deny there may be ex .
’

c e p t i o n s but I have not seen them

,
The large m aj ority have .

violated their vows of celibacy and chasti t y For this reason I .

belie ve that Protestantism will have a very good field h ere for ,

o n e reason alone and that is that the Prote stant ministers

,

marry a n d that will eradicate all fear of attacks upon the Fili
,

pino families on their part .

Q What education and preparation for the discharge o f

.

their duties have the native priests ?

A They are sufficiently well educated to discharge their
.

sacred o flil c e s but heretofore they have been overshadowed by

,

the friars and prevented from e xercising their o wn discretion

in the m anagement of the parishes .

Q What do you think about the p o s s ib ili t y o f establishing

'

a system of public educati on without any religious instruction

in it ?
A That would be satisfactory to the people because the
. ,

Catholic religion is very deep rooted here and t h e parents would ,

always bring the children up in that religion no matter wh e t h ,

er i t was taught in the schools or elsewhere The fact i s f t h at .

until t h e y ar r i v e at years of discretion and allow their own

/ ,

consciences to control them the Catholic religion will al ways ,

prevail in these islands .

Q What do you think would be the e fie c t of the buying of

.

th e haciendas o f the religious orders by the government and ,

selling them out in small parcels to the present ten ants ?

A That would give very good results and if the proceeds
.
,

of these funds were ap plied to a fund f o r public schools it ,

would be a matter for which the Filipino people all of them , ,

would be very grateful .

Expressions of thanks .

I NT E R V I E W W I T H DR . T . H PA RO . DE
T A V E RO .

O CT O B E R 2 3 1 9 00 , .

Q How long have you lived in the Philippine Islar d s

.

A I was born in the Philippi n e Islands and left here s ix

.

teen years o f age .

Q A n d when did you return

.
I
'
.

A I was ab s ent twenty years returnin g here in the year

.
, .

Q You are by p r o f e s s io n a phy sician and you were pur

.
,

suing y our s tudies as such abroad

A Yes sir I was pursuing my medical studies in Paris
.
, .

b ut while I was in Paris I did not lo s e a n y of the happenings

, _

of my country , for I have always followed them with a very “

clo s e e y e I have followed them politically socially and hi s

.
, ,

t o r i c ally .

Q Have y o u had a good deal of opportunity personally to

.

know the friars

1 24
 T/ze Sen a te Documen t ’
Roma n zr m
‘

an a

A They did not co nfine their influence to their ecclesiasti

.

cal functions and to un d erstand this it will be nece ssary t o

,

form an idea o f the political make up o f Spain In America -

. ,

the d ifier e n t religions have nothing to do with the state In '

.

Spain the religion and the state are o n e an d the s a me thing

,
.

To give a better idea it would be well t o bring to mind the old

p o n t ifical state where th e Pope was the head of the church and
,

state and that was Spain The King o f Spain in order to avoid
, . .

any d ifli cult ie s with Rome had caused himself to be gi ven the
ri ght of royal patronage whereby the King of Spain bec ame a
,

sort of authority in the church If there ar e s o me states which

.
,

separate church and state t o avoid complications with Rome ,

Sp ain join ed the ch urch and state for the very same purpose .

Q How much politica l power did the friars exerci se in the

.

countr y p ar ls h e s
A I t flows from t h i s e x p lan at i on that the Spaniard could
.
,

ne ver separate himself from the influe nce which the church had
upon him and the result of that was that the friars wielded all
,

the in fluence political and ecclesiastical in the parishe s I do .

not refer now to th e mor al influence of the fr iar be ca u s e the ,

friar cu r ate h ad to put his vi s e or O K on every administr ati ve . .

document that was issued such as census docume nts, etc and
, . ,

personal re commendati ons of every individual within his juris

dicti on who desired t o take a public o fli c e His Opinion was .

sought upon every con ceivable sub ject I say this so as to .

avoi d going into too many details This placing his 0 K o n . . .

all these documents was not in respons e to any instruct ions or

dutie s but just because it suited his sacerdotal pleasure I b e
, .

lieve that is the political influence which it is sought to get at

in the que s tion .

Q Was it generally understoo d that th e friars as a body

.

exercise d much political influence in the ce ntral government

A I should say so
.
For from the time o f their ar rival here
.

they were the only ones who treate d with the Indians They
c
.

were the only interpreters betwee n them and the government .

Moreover it may be said that there was no contin uous ad min i s

,

t r at i v e policy as regards this colony At one time the he ad o f .

the colony would be here and govern in one way and he would ,

be superseded by another who would govern in another way i n -

othe r words there was n o set policy On the Ot h er hand in

, .
,
these monastic corporations the men died but the principles .

and the g overnment went o n forever and therefore they per , ,

force governed the country because t hey follo wed t rad iti onal
,
,

lines without chan ge .

Q T h e i n d iv id ual s m the church hier archy remained a great

‘ ‘

de al lon ger than the individuals in the civil government

.

A For the simple reaso n that they h ave always vaunted the
.

f c t t at they expelled anyone in the civil government that they

pn h
ease i
Q Have you much per sonal knowledge of the morality o r
.

immorality of the friars

A I ought t o draw a distinction for in the American se nse
.

of the word immoralit y it embraces several departures from

the right path while in the Filipino se nse it si mply meant sexual
,

departures from morality Larce ny robbery etc were an .

, , .
,
1 26
T/ze Sen a t e D ocumen t ana
"
Roma n zr m
o t h er kin d o f im mora lity T h e friars had g r eat n otoriety as .

imm o ral men in the Fil i pino sense It was so common that .

h ardly any notice w a s taken o f it: Some of the younger friars

said it was me r ely human weakness but nevertheless with that , ,

pecul i ar Spanish sp i rit they prided themselves upon these facts ,

Q It is not true that they were all immoral ?

.

A Oh b y n o means
. ,
/
.

Q There were some who were very well educated and r e

.

fined and who obey ed their vows were there not ? ,

.A Yes ; and many especially among the Dominicans were , ,

o f that kind .

Q Did the common people n o t accept this thing as a matter

.

o f fact and not regard it as a reason in one way or t h e other

,

for influencing their feelin g against the friars

A Of course. .

Q What was the real ground for the feeling of the people
.

ag ai n s t s h e friars
A I have before said that friars were the sovereigns o f the
.

country They did everythin g so that as t h e country was dis

.
, ,

sati s fied with the condi tions that prevailed with the injustice , ,

persecutions and abuses o f eve r y kind they hated the friar b e

, ,

cause they saw in the friar the responsible head of all airs At .
_

the beginnin g the friar was the protector of the Ind ians and ,

the Indians were governed by t h e friars and accepted un q ue s

t i o n ab ly every o n e o f his acts b u t afterwards when they began ,

t o s uii er the consequences of every kind of abuse on the part of

the friars the y b egan to think where all these hardships and
,

g rievances came from and they discovered that they came from ,

the friars and there was a regular torrent of hatred against

,

them .

Q As representative of the opinion against the Span ish ?

.

A As representatives and the source The fact is if the

. .
,

Philippines had been a country governed with just ice the friars ,

would have e r jo ye d the g lory o f it but as i t has been miserably ,

exploited , they mus t b e ar the responsibility This is very his

‘
-
'

.
.

t o r i c al In Malolos for instance the municipal authorities

. , ,

were expelled b e c aus e t h e y were not favorable to the friars and l

were n o t r e lig i o us , and I have here a letter o f the governor

general i n which he makes that charge and I will add that the ,

man wh o se n t this let ter Ramon Blanco was a free thin ker and . ,
-

a liberal man .

Q D oyou think that the friars were responsible or other

. ,

wise for the deportation o f a good many people

,

A O h yes It i s entirely beyond doubt from the Calamba

.
,
.

case the Binondo feast at this very time o f the year in 1 88 7

,
,

and the expulsion of the municipal auth orities at Malolos .

Q What
. d o y o u think of the native p r ie sts as compared
with the friars
A Th ey are as ignorant as immoral and have all the same
. ,

defe cts and vice s as the friars as they were educated by the ,

friars .

Q Have they less education ?

.

A Perhaps a little l e ss
.
.

Q What d o you th ink would be the resul t generall y if th e

.

friars attempted to go back to their p arishes ?

1 27
 Sen a t e Documen t ’
Roma n zr m
’

T/ze an a

A I have heard many persons say that they would as s as s i

.

nate any friars who ret urned .

Q I have heard it said by people whose opport uni ti es f or

.

obse r vati on on one side of the q uestion would be fairly g ood ,

that this opposition to the friars is due to the native priests and
to a f e w men in each village an d t h at it does not permeate the
'

. .

mass of the peop le To the Katipunans .

A I would like to ask those persons who have expressed

.

this opinion h o w many men they think belonged t o the Kati

,

punans In the Tagalog provin ce s alone there were over 2 00

. ,

00 0 and it must be remembered that these members of Kati

,

punan soc iety not only had resolved to attack the fr iar s b ut ,

also t o go into a revolution in which the y e xposed t heir lives ,

and there were man y other enemies of the friars in t h e pueblos

who were not h old enough to ente r into the K atipunan society ;
so I do not believe the number of the enemies of the friars is
so sm all .

Q You think then it does go through the masses of t h e

.
, ,

people
A I believe so There are exceptions no t ably in th e
. .
,

province s of Pangasinan and Ilocos where the friar s kept the ,

people in absolute ignora nce and they re specte d them like ,

priests whose actions they never dared t o discuss and I bel ieve ,

it is to those provi nce s that the fr iars desire to make an e flo r t

to return .

Q We ar e not permitted t o pay anybody to teach religion

.

as a part o f the public school syste m Now we can either e s .

t abl i s h public schools in which no religion is taught at all o r , [

we can permit the Catholic priest or anyone selected by him t o

come there for a half an hour or an hour as he may see fit once , ,

every day or once every week t o give religious inst r uct ion to
the children of parents who desire i t either before or after , ,

school hours What do you th ink of t hese two syste ms and

'

.
,

which would be the bette r

A The l att er is the better
. To al low them t o come To . ' .

permit any minister to come .

Q That is what I intend but naturally it will be the Cat h o

.
,

lic m iniste r in ninety nine cases out of a hundred

-
.

A It must b e b orne in mind that the people of these islands

.

have been used to having everything explained to them through

proclamations public documents and circulars and the thing
, , ,

that ought to be done in this instance is t o thoroughly explain

the matte r bef or ehand letting them know that th e govern men t
,

is no t to give religious instruction but t hat the people are at ,

perfect libert y t o liste n to relig ious i nstr uction from the priests
t hat they themselves may se lect t o give it .

Q What do you think would be t h e e flec t of the govern

.

ment s conde mning the agricultural property of the friars and

’

s elling it out in small parcels using the proceeds for a school ,

fund
A I believe it would be excellent The Filipinos as a
'

.
.

Wh ole believe it is so excellent a thing that t hey d on t believe ’

it can hardly happen I am now re ferring to the ignorant .

pe ople .

Expr essions o f than ks .

1 28
 T/ze S en a t e D ocum en t an d Rema n ifl n
it in form by the usual questions and an swers— that is briefly , .

A The first state ment contains my o wn p erso nal answers ;

.

t h e second document which I presented to Don Esteros the , ,

sub se cr etary of t h e c ol o n ie s o f Spain is a collection of his

-
'

t or i cal data first proving that the Philippines never belonge d

, ,

to Spain in any way ; and se c ond that the fri ars would never ,

o bey the civil authorities

. and that ecclesiast ically t hey wer e ,

all b r e aki ng their vows It is filled with citati ons in support o f

.

my assertions from historie s written by the friars themselves .

I have drunk from no other source The last document is a

re futati on based upon the work of a Jesuit reviewin g th e as
.

se rtion of an Augustinian friar that the Fili pinos were all bad
and that that the friars were always their friends These doc .

ume n t s all prove that from the t ime of the very fir st governor
gen eral in the Philippines down to the last that th e friars were , ,

always the same .

Q Do you k now definitely what proper ty the fr iars o wn

.

here ? If y ou do not know e xcept generally I Will n o t trouble ,

you to answer for I have other means of getting t hat answer

,
.

A I h ave mention ed some in my manuscript I cannot an

. .

swer except generally .

Q What political functions did the friars actually exercise

.

in the pueblos ?
A All without exception Even those which the governor
gen eral was not able t o exerci se One of the most terrible
. .
,

.
(

arms th at the friars wielded in t h e provinces was the secret ia

ve s t ig at i o n and report upon the private life and conduct of a
person For instance if someone had mad e accusat ion s against
. ,

a re sid ent of a pueblo and l aid them before t h e governor ge n -

eral he would have private instr uctions sent t o th e cur ate of

,

the town to investigate and report upon the private life of that
resident stating that he had been charged with conspiring
,

against t h e Span ish s over eig nty This resident was h av ing h is .

pri vate life inves ti gated without an y notice t o him whatev er .

and in a secret way and the report was always sent secre tly to
.

the governor gener al ; and he might be the i ntimate friend of

-

the governor of the province o r of the g o b e r n ad o r c illo o f t h e ‘

town or of the commander of the civil guard in his town He . .

w ould render reports favorable t o him but notwithstan din g .

this the govern or general would receive the secret report of the
friar and act upon it For instance there have been many cases
.
,

i n pueblos where a lar ge numbe r of the inhabitants have atte nd

ed a feast in honor of the birthday of the governor o f the pr ov
ince and have part aken o f h i s hospitality being intimate friends ,

of his and three or four days later nearly all of them have been
,

arr ested and imprisoned charged with be ing conspirators ,

against the life o f the governor and against the continuance of

\

t h e Span ish so vereignty through secret information rece ived .

from the friar curate, This is the secret of their great political
influence in the country for from t h e governor general down
'

-
,

t o the lowest subordinate of the Sp anish government t hey ,

feared the influence of the friar at home which was ver y great , ,

owin g e i th e r t o social position there or to power of money here

'

and I myself have s een s everal o fli c er s of high rank in the army

and ofli cial s of prominence under the government se nt back
1 30
 T/ze Sen a t e Doc um en t d Roma n zr m
’

an

long before their times o f service had e xpired at the instigation ,

o f the friars For instance the governor general De s p ujo l

. -
, , ,

who was an upright honest and jus t man and who only r e ,
-

mained here fifteen months be c ause he showed his fr iendship

for the Filipino ; and I desire t o add that no man has treate d
me more h arshly than D e s pujo l on the ground that I was a , .

Mason and he was a very ardent Catholic ; but n otwithstanding

his ardent Catholicism he only stayed here fifteen months .

Q What do you k now as t o the morality o f the f r iars ?

.
.

A I have already rel ated in my statement a few cases, and

.

I would prefer to ans wer the q uestion by saying that the details
o f the immorality of the friars are so base and so indecent .

that instead of smirching the friars I would smirch myself by

r elating them .

When I was a boy of seven years o f age on the opposite ,

side o f the street fr om my house t wo ladies lived They were .

F ilipinos and I noticed two little children there and I would

, ,

ask my mother and the servants why it was that they were
prettier than we o r anyb o dy in the town and I was told that the .

friar would know ; and I learned he had as his mistresses two

s isters living under o n e roof and that these children were the ,

children o f either o n e o r both o f them ; and this was d ene pub

li c ly for leaving o ut the qu e stion of his avowed celibacy and
,

chastity he had broken another vow which would not permit

,

anyone to marry a deceased wife s sister and he re this man ’

,

Was living with t wo sisters at the same time .

Q Do y o u think all the friars were like that ? Were there

.

n o t some who obeyed their vows an d were virtuous an d lived

p iou s lives ?
A I have already referred to that in my statement for I
.
,

d esire to be j ust under all circumstances Before replying fur

‘

ther to this question I shou d like to complete the answer to

, l

the last In the q uarters of the town f arth est removed from
.

the centre the family life is purer There may be a few cases
, . .

o f concubinage but there are comparatively very f e w while in

, ,

the centre of the towns the cases of this kind are very n umer
o us as are also robbery and other cr imes
, In a word it can b e .
,

truthfully said that the morality o f the Filipino people becomes

looser and looser as it nears the neighborhood of the convent .

In answer to the second question I may say that there are ,

exceptions but they are unfortunately very few I recall one

, .

instance o f the friar curate o f Apalit in Pampanga who was , ,

named Gamarra and wh o was an upright and thoroughly reli

,

gio n s man He would marry all those who were living in con
.

c ub i n ag e free ; he would bury the poor free and perform many ,

charitable and Christian acts and would stand between the ,

authorities and the un j us t ly accused The fact is that while .

he was the curate there was n o t a single deportation He v is J .

itea the sick he comforted all those who came to him in trouble ;
,

he was in a word a pure Christian minister o f G o d but as he

, . ,

was the o n e shining light amid the darkness o f those who sang
in chorus the airs of immorality he was through their machina ,

tions brou g ht to Manila and placed in charge o f a convent ; but

this was done s o as n o t to in j ure h i s feeling s in any way or
make him believe that there was an yt h in g behind t he removal .

1 31
 Roma n zs m
’
T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t
'

ana

Q There were other ins t ance s ?

.

A In that same pueblo of Apalit which has been very for

. ,

t unat e in this regard there was another fr iar curate of t h e same

,

character but unfortunately I cannot recall his name at this mo

,

ment There was also ano ther in the pueblo of Paombong

. ,

province of Bulacan whose name I also have forgotten for the

,

moment but the fact is that they remained unfortuna te ly in

, , ,

their pueblos but a very short ti me The good fr iar never r e .

mains long in his field of work .

Q Do y ou k n o w much about the native clergy ?

'

A Q uite a go od deal
. .

Q Did each friar have with h im a native as sistant ?

.

A Not all o f them In the large to wns they did In th e

. . .

smaller town s they had none and in some o f th e ver y smalle st

'

, .

to wns they h ad neither friars nor secular clergy There are a .

‘

very few nati ve priests now At one time there were quite a .

number but since the garrot ing of the three native priests in
'

,
-

1 8 72 because they requested t hat native priests be placed over

,

the our ac ie s there has been no ince ntive for natives t o ente r
,

the priesthood because th ey do not wish t o be treated as se r

,

vants and domineered over at a very small salary I remember .

a very wise Filipino who was made a bishop but unfortun ately ,

he became blind before assuming the episcopal chair H is

“

name was Mariam Gracia There have been a number of highly .

educated native priests in days gone by This man whom I .

mentioned by name had been a very deep student an d was a

very pious man He could even after becoming blind come
.
, ,

o ut of his h o us e un at t e n d e d enter his carriage get o ut and go

, ,

to the al tar say mass and return home again He had a ser
, , .

vant in his house who was studying Latin and so wonderful ,

was the memory o f this man that when the servant would say
that he wanted to look in the d ictionary for a word he would ,

te ll him it was on a certain page and on such a line but sin ce ,

1 8 72 the inc e nti ve to become a priest has entirely disappear e d .

This man was th e last Filip ino bishop Before h im t here h ad .

been many .

Q Are not t he present clergy infe rior i n that they have

.
,

not suffici ent education and t hat their morals are not unlike
those of th e friars with whom they associate d ?
A I have also answer ed those questions In the desire t o
. .

be just I h ave state d in my an swer that t h e prese nt Filipino

,

priest saving a very few exceptions has all the defects of th e

, ,

fri ar and none of his good points .

Q I wan t to ask whether the deep seate d hostility to the

. -

friars which many seem to entertain exte nds t o the mass e s of

th e peo ple ?
A While we who claim t o be s omewhat educated di s like
.

th e friar ,and would be unwilling to have h i m sud er what he

h as make us s ufier the masses w h o are unthinking to a certain
, ,

extent and who are but the beasts of burden and have there
fore s ufle r e d in a certain way more than the others are the ,

most uncompromising and the most vengeful ag ainst the

friars .

Q D o you think it would b e s afe for the friars to go back

.

t o their parishes ?
1 32
 mk
'

Tae Sen a t e Docum en t an a

’
Rom a n zr

want t h e friar and being accustomed to hear at al l times in

,
.

classe s and out of classe s at home and away from home moral
,
.

and Christian prece pts and teachings the people have become ,

ab s ol utely accustomed to it They are further accustomed to .

pray at every moment before begin ning recitat ions in every

book and the Filipino children or their fathers wo uld like to
,

have it continued but they don t want the fr iar to have any
.
’

p art in it For this reason and because the Filipino people are
. ,

very conservative we will see in all their homes the e fll gie s of

,

saints either printed or painted and statues o f saints and the

, , ,

rosary being said at all hours an d let not libertas or the friar ,

lay the flattering unction to his soul that the large attendance
at the procession was due to him as he claims but only to that , ,

great conservatism and Catholicism which still exist in these

islands .

However a short time before the c o ming of the Americans

,

to these islands there was a group o f F ilipinos relatively small , ,

who were freethinkers and very much O pposed to Catholicism

,

Their numbers may be growing but not very appreciably up to ,

the present time My idea is that when the fathers of children

.
.

request it , instruction in religion from a Caih o li c s tandpoint

should be given their children in the public schools and that ,

when they are silent on this matter they should rec eive no reli
g io us ins truction whate ver One of the reas ons which has con
.

tributed to the separation and the keeping separate o f the Amer

i c an s an d the Filipinos is a proclamation issued just p r i or to ,

the arrival of the Americans by Ar chbishop No z al e d a in which , ,

he informed t h e faithful that the enemies o f our religion the ,

American heretics were about to appear among us This was

, .

printed in the Ecclesiastical Bulletin o f the archbishopric Let . ,

me insert here before I forget it that when we Filipinos refer

, ,

to the friars we do not mean all the mo n as t ic b o d ie s but only '

,

four of them — the Augustinians the Dominicans the Fran cis , ,

cans and the Re c o l e c t os The Jesuits are not disliked at all by

, .

the Filipinos because it may be said that they brought the first
,

instruction and education to the Filipinos and by the way the , ,

'

,
'

first ones who introduced j ackets of this kind which are c alled , .

Americana and educated t h e youth of the country having grad

, ,

uat e d the best scholars among the people here including Rizal ,

and many others .

Q What would be the result of that controversy that I

.

suggested ?
A Even now in the public schools under the American sys
.

tem a large number o f parents d o not send their chil d ren b e

,

cause religio n is n o t taug h t there ; and by reason of these facts

I have state d above they would have a certain suspicion of the
,

in te ntions of the American government abou t education .

Q If provision were made for religious instruction to be

.

given by any body appointed by the church for half an hour b e

fore and half an h o ur after school ho urs would that satisfy the ,

people ?
A It would n o t b e necess ary to devote half an hour every
.

day to that but following the cu stom under the Spanish rule
, ,

to de vote half an hour every Saturd ay to ecclesiastics I think .

t hat would s ufll ce However I be lieve that if the people at

.
,
“

1 34
 T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t Roma n zr m
’

ana

large were inform ed fir st of what free instruction under A mer

ican insti t ution s is and that no religious instruction is to be
,

paid for by the gove rnment i n any way that good results would ,

flow from it ; but this must be made very cle ar beforehand to

the people
Q What do you think would be the e ffect of buying all the
.

lands of the friars to be sold to the tenants now on the lands

, ,

and to have the procee d s used as a school fund ?

A I think very good results would come of this if the pre
.

caution were taken be fore purchasing to fin d out what belonged

to the f r i ags because the great thing now is to fin d out what
,

they do own .

Expressions of t hanks .

I NT ERVI EW W I T H AM B RO SI A FL OR E S .

O C T O BE R 2 4 1 9 0 0 , .

Q How long have y o u been in the islands

.

A Al l o f my life for I have never left the islands

.
, .

Q In what provinces h av e you lived

.

A I n Manil a Vigan Lepanto Cavite Ceb u Zamboanga

J olo Paraqua Bulacan Pampanga Tarlac Pangasinan Nueva
.
, , , , , ,

, , , , , ,

E c ija .

O You were a general in the insurgent army

B
N Yes ; I was .

O How long were y o u in th at capacity

b
N I was a general from May 1 89 8 ,
, .

O I meant how long were you in the army

(

A I was a general in 1 8 9 8 and I afterwards discharged 8

. , .

c ivil o fii ce civil governor environs of Manila

—
, .

Q What were you doing before the revolution of 1 8 9 6

.

A I was a retired officer in the Spanish army

. .

Q Were you in the provinces you have named before or

.

after 1 8 9 6
A In some before and some afterwards A f te r 1 89 6 I was
. .

in the province s of Cavite Bulacan Pampanga Pang asman , , , ,

and Nueva Ecija '

.

Q Had you an opportunity before 1 8 9 6 to know the friars

.

and their relations to the people

A Although by n atural inclination and conviction I always
.

desired t o eschew close contact with the friars I have through , ,

the di scharge of military and civil duties been brought into ,

rather close contact with them . .

Q Do you know what actual authority o f a political charac

.

t e r they exercised be fore 1 8 96 in their parishes

, A The political functions t hey discharged officially in their
.

parishes were intervention and counsel in the local elections ,

reporting o n the capacity and conduct o f those elected and I , ,

might add i n this regard that this report was looked upon by ,

the superior authorities in Manila with f ar more con fiden c e than

upon the unanimous vote of the people ; con fidential reports r e
garding the private life o f the faithful in their p arishes which ,

were made upon the investigations by the friars without the

knowledge or intervention of civil authorities ; the 0 K i ng of
all documents demanded or issued by the civil authori ties with ,
1 35
T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t
’
R om a n zr m
'

ana

the single excep t ion of notarial docume n t s ; e xtra o fli c i ally they -

meddled in everything they me dd led in eve rythin g without ,

an y responsibilit y whatever t o anyone .

Q Is there a fe eling o f hostility or otherwise among the

.

people against the friars

A A g reat feeling o f hostility
. .

Q Does that affect educated people only o r the mass of the

.

people
A The feeling of animosity is common to all classes o f
.

society Durin g the Spanish rule among the lower classes it

.

w as not so noticeable because they could n o t express their ,

feelings but now it is very noticeable and is common to all

'

classes .

Q I have heard from a person hi gh in authori ty in the

.

church that the feeling against the friars is chiefly due to the
inciting by the native priests and that the body of the people ,

desired their return What is your opinion as to this .

A No sir ; that is not the fact because there are many

.
, ,

native priests who have incurred the ill feeling o f the people by -

reason of favoring the friars This may be caused by a fear o n .

the part of these native priests of the return of the friars but ,

the fact is very patent that there is a great deal of feeling

against them for espousing or apparently espousing the cause
of the friars .

Q Does the feeling against the friars differ in different

.

localities g

A There is a d ifie r e n ce undou btedly but it is due t o the

~

.
,

fact that in some provinces there is fanaticism carried to such

an extent like in Pangasinan for instance where the Domini
, , ,

cans have be e n able to k eep t h e people under the influence of

blind superstition and where they believe that the priest is a
veritable g o d and absolute ly impeccable ; but in the g reat ma
jor it y of the provinces the feeling of hatred against the friars
pe r meates all classes .

Q Do y o u know whether there are in these islands a great

.

many descendants of the friars

A Yes sir
.
, .

Q Is that generally understood

.

A Yes sir
.
. .

Q Do you know the persons and know who their fat hers
.

were
A I know several sons of fr iars but at this moment r e
.
,

member one I can furnish a long list of them but now I thi nk
.
,

o f but one .

Q Do you think the immorali t y was general or not

.

whether or not with a great many exceptions

A Yes there were exceptions but they were very rare
.
, , .

Q What was the g round of the hostility against the friars ?

.

A The reasons for this hostility were many

. In the first .

place the haughty overbearing despotic manner o f the friars

, , , .

Then the question of the haciendas because the condition s o f ,

their tenantry were very terrible Then there was the fact o f .

the fear which beset every man even those who through fear ,

were nearest t o the friars that i f his eyes should light upon his ,

wife or his daughter in an e n vious way that if he did not give

1 36
 ’
Roma n zs m
'

Tne Sen a t e Docum en t an a

some o f the States in the U n i te d S t a t e s ) give to the priests an

opportunity to instruct the children in reli gi on but afte r the .

regular school hours sho uld the parents of the children desire ,

it Do yo u think that would satisfy the people

.

A Yes that would satisfy them ; but I think an h our or an

.
,

half an hour for religious instruction every day is too much I .

think that one day a week would satisfy them I have thought .

a great deal upo n this matt er an d I have come to the con

“

e lusion that it would be wise to devote the morning of Thurs

day which is th e holiday here to religious instruction
, ,
.

Q Of course you understand that the government could

. ,

no t pay the p riest s o r any teacher appointed by them , t o give

,

this religious instruction That would be the work o f the .

Catholic church if it chose to employ a p er s o n for that purpo se

,
.

A I so understand and I bel ieve the Catholic church should

. ,

take that matter i n hand .

Q You und erstand that we are not here to make t hem any
.

thing b ut Cathol ics We w ant them to have the religion that

.

they desire to have .

x

A We already understand that

. As a matter o f fact dur .
,

i n g the late regime religion was taught here — rather I should ,

say was not taught because all that the pupils were taught was
, ,

to pray and to commit to memory the cate chism o f Father

Astete and nothing more There was no opening o f the mind
, .

to tr uths and what the people d esire would be a dedication of

,

certain hours in the week to religious instruction and rel igious

training upon a scientific basis so that those wh o had the ,

capacity could understand it .

Q You have mentioned the fact that the ownership of the

.

haciendas is one ground for the popular feeling against the

friars Was not that confined l argely to t h e provinces o f
Manil a Cavite Laguna de Bay and Bulacan perhaps Batang as
.

, , , ,

also
A That is true but as there are in numer able cases of this
.
,

hatre d th roughout all the islands ; it is a general feelin g and ,

i n these province s where the haciendas ar e situate d it is from

that fact more accentuate d .

Q Yes but I want to know if in those pr ovinces I have

.
,

named the feelin g did not par t ake of an agrarian spirit also
A Yes sir .
, .

Q What would the e ffect be if the government should be

.

a ble to buy the s e lands an d the haciendas of the friars and sell

them out in small par cels to the te nants o n the lands and devote
the proc eeds to establishing a school fund
A I t would be very well received by the people ; but if I
.

may be permitted to make a remark upon the subject of buying

lan ds I believe that in many cases the friars can n o t pr ove any
,

title Whatever to the lands in question thereby renderi ng it un ,

necessary to p urchase them .

Q Of cour se if they have n o title then the people who

.
, ,

really own them might contes t that title with them .

As to the statu te o f limitation In the American legis _

.

l ation as well as Spanish the plea o f prescription c a n be made

, ,

t o prevai l afte r the holding of property for many years ad

t ers ely ; but th e point that suggests itself in this connection is
1 38
 T/ze Sen a t e D ocumen t
‘
‘

an d Roma n zr nz
'

that they have n o t held that land peace fully ; that if there has
been n o contention against the i r title o r against their holding
the land it is because o f the conditions that they create d which
prevented them from asserting their title .

( Expressions o f thanks ) .

I NTE R V IE W W ITH H . PH E LPS W H IT

MA R SH .

N O VE MBE R 3 , 1 9 00 .

Q . Will y o u pleas e state your n ame

A . H Phelps Whitmarsh
. .

Q . And whe re you were born 1’

A . In Canad a — Med oc Canada , .

Q . Are you a citizen of the Unite d State s 7

A . Yes ; my father is an Amer ican .

Q . Your profession is what

A . Writer and journ alist .

Q . What periodicals or journ als have you corr esponded

for
A Mainly t h e Century A tl an tic Month ly and Outlook
.
, , .

Q How long have you been in the Philippines 7

.

A I have been in the Philippine s about thirteen months

Q D uring the thirteen months o f your stay have you
. .

visited a great many different towns

A Yes a great many I have b een all through the part of
. , .

the archip elago occupied by the American tro ops and a good
deal of that not occupied .

Q Have yo u come into contact with the inhabitants 7

.

A I have lived practically with them

. .

Q Have’ you a kn owledge of Spanish s ufli c ien t to converse

.

with them i
A Yes ; I c an t alk with them I learned tha t in Cuba
. . .

Q And your living with th em an d going among them was

.

t o observ e their habits views an d opin ions , , .

A Yes ; for that an d nothin g else

. .

Q I want to ask you t o direct your atte ntion t o their views

.

o f ecclesiastical matters At the ti me you were with t hem wh o

.
,

was conducting the religious functions if any i n the majority , ,

o f cases i
’

A In Luzon generally the rel igious functi ons were con

. , ,

ducte d by t h e Fil ipino pr iests but I think I c an not say in the

majority o f ca se s for in the Visayas Mindanao an d Jolo t here
,

, , ,

were no priests
Q D id you talk with the people o f their’sentiments to ward
.

t h e parish priests under the Spanish r e g imc i

A I did . .

Q’ What did you fin d their fe eling to be with respect t o

.

t hem i
A I think with o n e exception which s t ands out because it
i s an e x ception the people always declare themselves to be n ot
. ,

in favor of having the friar s back

Q D id they state the r easons
.

A They told me lots of st o ries about the friars

. .

1 39
T/z e Sen a t e Docum en t d Roma n zs m
’

an

Q Were they the common people

.

A Yes ; the very common e s t people

. A l l are very bitte r .

except one town o f northern Luzon T h ey are ve r y bitter an d .

'

I have al way s asked them as t o this matter .

Q What grounds did they g ive for their hostility

.

Mainly that the pries t held them under oppressed them , ,

robbed them and that they used their women an d daughters
,

just as they pleased .

Q Did they specify the methods of oppression

.

A I can not re member distinct instances just now

.
.

Q Did you hear o f instances of deportation through the

.

agency of the prie s t

A Yes ; I have heard that n obody was allowed
.
in certain
sections t o go away from the town withou t the permit o f the
fri ars and that the friar often sent him away and they were
,
,

unde r the thumb of the friar .

Q H ow did the friar rob them ?

.

A He robbed them in the vicinity of the railroads by f o r c

.

ing the people to sell t h eir rice to h i m at the prices which the
friar made and not allowing the people to send their own prod
,

uc t t o the market
‘

. .

Q Was there anything said about the fees which were

.

charge d for religious funct ion s ?

A Yes ; I heard a r eat man y complaints about that They
.
g .

were usually made according t o a man s station The friar ’

charged what he pleased and if he s aid a certain sum w

.

,
as
nec
essary that sum had to be p aid or he would not conduct the
,

burials e tc
'

.
,

Q W hat did you hear as to the mo r ali t y o f the priests ?

'

. .

A Nothing that was good w ith few exceptions

.
, .

Q Were you referred to instances where the ille itimate

.

g
sons of the friars were k now n ?
A Yes ; there w as scarcely a town that I did not either see
.

or hear of the children of friars .

Q Did you hear anything as t o the moral ity o f the native

.

priests ?
A Yes. .

Q What as to that ?
.

A As a rule that they were not much better in

.

morality .
regard to

Q Could you not infer therefore that had those acts

.

of
,
, ,

the friars which were subject to critic is m been co n fined to

im
morality it p robably would not have produced such a feeling
,
?
A No ; I don t think it was wholly ’
.

morality
Q The p e o ple w e r e use d to that ?
.

.
l

A T h e peop l e d id not obj ect to it I have had the people

.
.

show me their white children an d be pr oud o f them

Q Be more specific as to the number o f towns
.
.

you have vie wed in northern Luzon and in the you think
number of provinces Visay as The .

A For in stance in Luzon I h ave been in Ilocos Sur B on

.
,
-
'

toc Lepanto Benguet La Union Pangasinan ,

, ,

Bataan Pampanga Bulaca n Cavite Batangas Tarlac Z ambales

, ,
, ,
,

Manila .
, ,
Tay a b a s and , , , ,

1 40
 T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t ’
Roma n zr m
' '

an a

forced upon them ; and if the priests were allowed to go back

under any con d itions they would be able to infl uence the people
,

and the pupils very lar gely and I think it would hinder rather
,

than help the civilization of these people .

Q You thin k the se people are not so subject to the control

.

o f the ministe rs of the Catholic religion that they might be pre

vented from availing themselves of educational opportunities

if they were offered without any religious teaching Could not .

the priests if they chose to e xert such an influence prevent

, ,

their going t o the public schools ?

A If the friars were allowed to go back they undoubtedly
.

would .

Q But when Catholic priests go who were not fria r s but

. ,

who were anxious to support the Catholic religion and to con

'

form to the views of their church which looks with suspicion ,

an d hostility o n nonsectaria n influence how would that be ? ,

A They could use a great deal of in fi ence

. .

Q Suppose we could get the favor 0 the church or avoid

. ,

its hostility were we to give half an hour for religious i n s t r uc

,

tion you still think it would be better to decline ?

,

A I think it would be bette r not to allow them I am nei

. .

ther one thing nor the other personally and am unprejudiced , , .

Q It is only a question of policy ?

.

A I am thinking simply o f the idea of elevating th is people

.

Expressions of thanks .

ME M OR AN DU M OF C O N F E R ENCE W IT H
CE F E R I N O JO VAN ALCAL DE OF BA .

C O L OR P ROV I NCE OF PAMPANGA

.
. .

OC O B R 1 9 1 9 00 T E , .

Af ter referring to the conditions prevailing in the province

of Pampan ga and especially in the pueblo of Bacolor fro m a
, ,

political standpoint several questions were addressed to the

,

alcalde regarding the friar question in th at por tion of the island

o f Luzon .

In reply to these questions Senor Jovan stated that he had ,

known a large number of friars liv in g i n conc ubinage with wo

men and a number of children the fruit of such illicit relations
, .

That the animosity against the friars extended throughout

every strata o f society down to the very lowest and was not
_
,

confined by any means to the educated and higher classes o f

society That so far as his o wn pueblo was concerned a r e
.
, ,

turn o f the friars to the ir parishes would not result in their

occupying t h e jn flue n t i al positions they held under the Spanish
regime for the people were beginning to learn what the sepa
,

ration o f church and state meant and that he as the head of , ,

the pueblo wo ul d r e ce i ve no orders from the friar should he

,

endeavor to assert the authority he held under S panish r ule and ,

if he were to come with cre dentials from the archbishop or ,

even the Pope he would set them at naug ht if they ( the eccle
, ,

s i as t ic al functionaries mentioned ) tr ied to intermeddle in mat

ters i n which they h ad no concern That he himself was an .

1 42
Tue Sen a t e Docum en t an a
’
Roma n zs m
ardent Catholic and followed to the best of his ability the
,

te achings of Jesus Chr ist whom he recognized as the head of ,

the church and from whom he received his inspirations That .

if the friars endeavored to intermeddle in matte rs temporal he ,

would tell his people that under the American Constitution an d

laws no protection was vouchsafed to any religion or sect other
than the protection guaranteed every citizen ; that the friars
must live fro m voluntary contributions entirely and that the ,

faithful were free to attend church or not as their own con ,

science might dictate Tha t the province o f Pampanga had

.

been one of the favored portions of the island i n that the fr iars ,

owned n o property there and consequently did not subject their ,

tenants to the grievous burdens laid upon them elsewhere .

I NT E R VI EW OF B R I G GEN H U GHE S, U . . . .

S . V C O MMAN DI NG HEA DQ U A R T E R S
A T I L O I L O I S LAN D OF P ANAY . .

N OVEMBE R 6 1 9 0 0 , .

Q You are a citizen of the United S t at e S an d general ofii

.
'

cer in the regular ar my ?

A A colonel i n the regular army and a general c hi cer in
.

the Volunteers .

Q How long have you been in the islands ?

.

A I have been in the islands about twenty seven months

.
-
.

Q Yo u served as provost marshal general of Manila did

.
- -

you not ?
A Of Manila yes for nine months when it was first c c
. , , ,

c up ie d from Sept 1 1 8 9 8 until June 1 1 899

,
. , , , .

Q Where was your service after that ?

.

A I commanded in Iloilo originally as a district now as a

. , ,

department and have been there since— for about eight months
, .

Q And that carries you over other islands than Panay ?

.

A It includes now Leyte Bohol Cebu Negros and Panay

. . , , , .

Q You have made it your b us in eas to make yourself famil

.

iar with the condi tions prevailing have you not ? ,

A Yes ; I h ave to know the conditions

.
'
.

Q Have you had occasion to investigate the a t titude of

.

the people towards the friars ?

A I have made it my business to do it looking to what
. ,

course migh t be the most prudent if I were called upon for any
advice i n the matter ; and in travelin g over the different i s i an d s
I have questioned a great many people as to the s ituation and
the feeling o n that subject more especially i n the islands that
, ,

have been brought more nearly und er subjection looking to a ,

settlement Then it has come to me in other ways where the

. ,

presidentes get into trouble with the priests ; th at has come up

in discussion and I have reached a very decided opinion o n the
,

subject .

Q Suppose it was said to you general that the feeling

. , ,

with respect to the friars was confined to the three or four lead
n g men in each town who for political reasons were pr e ju , ,

diced against the friars and who through the instrumental ity , ,

o f the K atipun an society or some other society preven t ed the ,

1 43
T/ze Sen a te Documen t ’
Roma n zr m
'

an a

friars from being received back merely by a conspiracy and , ,

that the mass of the people were anxious t o have the friars r e =

t urn ed . Would you say that was corre ct ?

. A I should say it was absolutely erroneous .

.
Q What do you think is the attitude of the common people
toward the return of the friars to their parishes ?
. A So far as I know they are very strongly opposed to it
,
.

.
Q A n d you would not confine the statement of that feeling
to the men whom I have designate d as the three o r four leading
men in each town ?
. A I know it is not so .

.
Q Were y o u able to arrive at a conclusion satisfactory to
yourself as to the cause o f the feeling against the friars ?
. A I have been able to arrive at a conclusion as to some of
t h e causes .Two of them seem to be cardinal points as I un ,

d e r s t an d the people in the Vis ayas One is that they were very
apt to corrupt the families of their parishioners ; the other
was that they were a very money m aking lot -
.

.
Q W hat political power do you understand from talking
with the people that the friars exercise if any ? I mean actual ,

power .

. A I don t think that they had any except as they could

’
,

bring it to bear through the ir par ishioners— but that among

.

these people was very great .

.
Q Were the friars loyal to Spain or otherwise ? ,

. A I think they were loyal t o themselves .

.
Q And Spain was their i nstrument ?
. A That is i t — Spain was the instrument They worked for .

themselves .

.
Q You have s aid that they cor rupte d t h e families You .

refer to their immorality ?

. A Yes .

.
Q How much evidence have you had as to the immorality
of the friars ?
. A You always have to make wide margins in these things ,

but it was a very general compl aint that they corrupted the
daughters of families It was very general I think so far as
. .
,

I know there are two friars down the re I have found but
, .

two ; there may be others I have been through the d e p ar t

.
f

ments thoroughly Those I made inquiries about especially

.
‘

One is at T ale s ay in Negros a man whose life has been pure

, , ,

and when they drove the others out he simply said he would
not go and he is there now treated with the same respect and
, ,

as free as ever The other is in Culasi He has married a na

. .

tive woman and has led an upright life and is treated and h o n ,

ored as any man would be .

.
Q He violated his vows o f celibacy ?
. A Yes ; but otherwise he has led a p ur e l if e '

.
Q He maintained himself faithful to the woman he mar
ried ?
. A Yes ; and he has a family .

.
Q Who are performin g the religious functions through
the Visayas now ?
.A Native priests as a rule , There has late ly come a bi sh
.

op to Ii o ilo ; a Spaniard .

1 44
 Tue Sen a t e Docum en t ’
Roma n zr m
‘

ana

of Spaniards and Spanish mestizos etc who were rather gl ad , .

,

to see him I thin k After his return they petition ed us t o vacat e

,
.

the c o n v e n t i n order that he might co me but outside of that ,

class of people I don t think he received a welcome from any

’

body The active bishop the native priest did not even call on
. , ,

him He had t o send for h i m The ordinary people would not

. .

take o ff their hats to him when he landed There was no r e .

spect of the n atives shown at all .

Q That was a contrast to the reception of t he bishop of

.

Cebu was it n ot
,

A Entirely The bishop of Cebu was welcomed by the

. .

whole town .

Q Do you k now the bishop

.

A I never met the one at Cebu

. .

Q They regard him with reverence

.

A Yes . He has done good work The one in Iloilo can

. .

not have any influence at all I thin k an y action of his would .

be resisted simply because it came from him if for no other _ ,

cause .

Q Have you been putting into operation schools in your

.

department
A We have schools I think probably in 99 per cent of the
.

towns that we occupied In Iloilo we had quite a struggle to .

get a school They had burned the town and we had no school
.

houses and no place to put them I had a census of the town .

taken as to the school children of school age I found that .

there were about 5 0 0 in taking this census I had it taken by .

,

officers ; so as to fin d out the facts They inquired if the people .

would send their children voluntarily They were usual ly .

asked if English would be taught and when told it would be ,

they stated they would go We had to build a schoolhouse and .

,

when that was finished we opened the school I thin k on the ,

1 s t of Septe mber or the l et of A ugust Of the 5 00 tha t were .

of school age without making it compulsory at all they have

, ,

now 438 in the school .

Q Have you encountered any tr ouble i n your schools be

.

cause you did not give religious in struction

A Not at all . .

Q Any complaints among the priests

.

A We did not hear any and the pe ople have not shown any
.
,

disposition to keep the ir children away on that account not a ,

particle It 1 s purely voluntary I wanted to try to fin d out

. .

n o w many of the 5 0 0 would go and we have 43 8 I asked as to .

the shortage and they said some were large enough to have to
,

work .

Q Has the result been similar in Ce bu

.

A The school results in Cebu have not been satisfactory

.

mainly due to the fact I think— I discussed it with the to wn

,

council to fin d out what the matter was— and the main obstacle
to the better condition of schools there is due to the fact that
'

we o an not get English te achers I have tried and can not get .

them .

Q Have you talked with Atkinson ?

.

A I have not met him I tried at Cebu and Iloilo I wrote

.
.
.

people and finally wrote a letter asking that I be al lowed to

,

1 46
 T/ze Sen a t e Documen t an a
’
Roma n zs m
'

send t wo hundred you n gste r s home to A merica and educate

them and let them come back and go to teaching
Q But o n the whole you think that i n the country we
.

.
, .
,

should encounter little d ifii c ult y i n making popular English

schools with no religion being taught
A No difficulty at all All we have to do is to open the
. .

schools and the children will go To make a Visayan an Eng .

lishman is difficult We will have to have Engl ish teachers

.
.

I had a good man at Iloilo but he got a commission the other ,

day an d I h ad to hunt another One half O f my troubles come .

-

from l ack of being able to communicate to those people .

Expressions of thanks .

I N T E R V I E W W IT H W I LL I AM H B EC K . .

C O L O N E L FOR T Y N I NT H I NFAN T R Y -
.

N OV EMBE R 9 1 9 00 , .

Q Will you please state your name and o fii ce

.

A Col Willi am H Beck Forty ninth Infantry U S V

. . .
,
-
, . . .
,

commanding subdistrict of second district of northern Luzon ,

with h ead quarters at Tuguegarao province of Cagayan , .

Q Does your district include all of the province of

.

Cag ay an
A Very nearly The large r part of it
. . .

Q You have been in the islands how long

.

A Since the 2d of January 1 9 0 0 I have been at Tug ue

.
, .

garao since the 2 0 t h of March 1 9 0 0 — nine months

Q Has it been part O f your duty as commander of the sub
, .

district to observe t h e customs and opinions of the people of all

classes
A Very largely
. .

Q Have you had occasion to consi der the v iews of the

.

c ommon peop le and their feeling toward the priests of the

Catholic church who were Spanish friars and who acted as

p arish priests in these islands before the revolution
A Yes There was an order issued from the o fil c e of the
‘

. .

military governor directing that in formation relative to the

Philippine Islands be furnished So me of the inquiries in the .

blank furnished in accordan ce with the order were relative to

church property In ascertaining to whom the churches and
.

buildings pertainin g to the friars actually belonged I inquired ,

of the presidentes of the eight towns i n my subdistrict and ,

others who gen erally claimed that the buildings were upon
,

proper ty belonging to t h e people an d that the subscription s of ,

the money which the buildin gs cost to erect were taken from
the people in some cases by an ar b it rary tax and in others by
,

voluntary subscriptions but gen e rally in all cases I think in

,
— -

my subdistr ic t — they claimed that the buildings and property

belonged t o t h e people and it is s o regarded in the r eplies in
,

the blan k referred to I might add that I fou n d upon inquir y

.

that almost all the Filipinos in th at subdistrict objected t o the

friars and their methods and that they do not desire them to ,

return saying that they have Filipino priests who suit them
,

better an d are as well e ducate d an d can educate th eir childre n

q uite as well .

1 47
 T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t an a
’
Rom a n ian :
Q . What do you say as to t h e feeling against the fri ars ; is
i t bitter o r not 7
A It is very bitt er
. .

Q Do you th ink it would be safe for the fri ars t o return

.

t o their par ishes which they oc cupied in your province

A That would largely depend upon the attitude of the
.

United States troops there There is no doubt that in some of .

the outlyin g districts of small pueblos they might be in some

danger but i n the larger towns notably Tuguegarao the fact
, , ,

t hat the government of the United States permitte d o r i n dor se d

their r e t urn would largely tend t o t heir safety as also th e fact ,

that prominent citizens the president s the vi ce presidente, ,

-
,

chiefs of bar rios have taken the oath of allegiance .

Q I suppose ther e is co nsiderable d ifii culty in making the

.

peo ple un derstan d the difference between allowing the fri ars t o
go back withou t indorsing their return and actually indorsin g
their return
A It would be extremely difficult for the reason that for
.
,

hundreds o f years they have recognized that the friars have

been under the protection of th eir govern m e nt an d alt houg h ,

they h ave b een assured that have separate d church and stat e it ,

st il l holds i n their minds that that which is prote cted under our
flag is indorsed by us .

Q A e there any friars in your subdistrict

.
1

A They have all d is appe ared The p adres are all F ilipi nos
. . .

The Span ish pr iests have left .

Q You are not prejudiced one way or the other in the

.

matter are you

A I have no prejudice and from the fact that my wife is a
.
,

Romanist I am quite tolerant and have many priests for friends .

Q What would be the efiec t if the church we r e t o send

.

American pr iests to t h e islands not t o tak e the place of the ,

n ative padres but t o work with them and where th ey have

,

none
A I think if the head s of the Phili pp ine church— th at is
.

' ,
t h e p r i e s t s s uch as the ar chbishops of provinces e t c
, could be , .
,

induced t o indorse that plan it would be largely beneficial but ,

the difficulty comes i n from the fact that the present chief
padre of the province is a man who has relat ives who have been
in local positions as presidents of the pueblos the sudden
separation of church an d state as he regards it might induce , ,

him to look u pon it wit h a favored eye but from my knowled ge

.
,
o f him he controls all the province o f the val le
y of the Cagayan ,

including Isabella If the chief here whom I pre sume is the

.
,

archbishop could be induced t o indorse th at plan h e would

,
,

render all assistance He would have taken the oath o f s ileg i

.

ance and to ld me so but he would like the authority o f the

, ,

archbishop I transmitted for him a request asking the per

.

mission o f the archbishop but it was never replied to by the,

archbishop This priest is past seventy years of age now I

.
.

believe he is one of the best of men His name is Gu z m an . .

1 48
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t d R om a n zwn
'

an

necessary in this unhappy c ountry to uphold Catholicism They .

lie with the e fir o n t e r y of always and are an d will be responsi

,
!

ble before God and history for every inj ury the Catholic church .

may suffer .

The artlessness and de ficient culture of a great part of the

inhabitants of this archipelago are circumstances o f which the
friars have taken advantage for as is known they take care to
, , ,

have it always believed that they can hurl excommuni cati ons
-

and comm and the terrible punishments o f heaven with the ,

power to cast the disobedient into the u t termost depths o f hell .

As a general rule charity and love o f the neighbor have

,

disappeared save in the rarest cases an d when t h e name o f

, ,

God is in voked before the multitudes He is represente d not as

the just and merciful God but as the vengeful and e x t e r mi
,

n at ln g giving the believers to understand that unless they sub

,

mit t e d themselves wholly to the will and caprice o f the friar

cur ate their souls after death would n o t enter into heaven
'
.

The social relations wh i ch t h e friars have maintained with

the Filipinos are the most injurious and opposed to culture and ,

the moral and mate rial progress o f the latter Ministers of a .

religion whose Founder proclaimed charity to the l imits o f

sacrifice and equalit y among men have preached the contrary ,

and sustained by their works the inequality and d ifie r e n c e b e

tween races impeding and ridiculing every notion or idea of
,

dignit y conceived by a Filipino They have endeavored to keep

.

the Fil ipinos in ignorance opposin g wherever they could bring

, ,

the ir pressure to bear the teaching of the Spanish language by

,

primary school teachers They have condemned in their preach

-
.

ings and private conversation every desire for culture and civi
l i z at io n antag onizing the best pur poses o f the Madrid Govern
,

ment or of that of these islands as well in the faint and meager

,

reforms in behalf of the progress and education of the Filipinos

as in the economical measures wh ich to a certain extent afle c t
the interests of the corporations although they may redound to ,

the great benefit o f the people ; and having arrogated to them

selves the title o f mentors and directors of this society instead ,

o f teaching the Filipinos c ultured social behavior becoming t o

civilized men they educated and formed them morally with

,

that narrow characte r little frank and distrustful which is

, , ,

noticeable in the ge nerality o f t he p e ople especially in the ,

more ignorant m aking them stubborn and suspicious of inter

,

course and relations with foreigners It can be asserted with .

out exaggeration that the friars have been and are a fatal hin
d r an c e to the advancement moral and material of this count ry
, , ,

from the very fact that they have devoted themselves to keep
ing this society in ignorance as though it live d in the middle
,

ages or in the me d iaaval epoch of remote centuries ; and lastly ,

as priests and curates the majority of them were living ex

.

amples of immorality o f disorder in the towns and o f disc

, ,

b ed i e n ce an d resistance to the constitut ed powers and t h e

authorities , encouraged by the impunity guaranteed in the
anachronistic jur i sdict ion by t h e weakness of the governors
,

an d o fii c i al s vitiated with fetichism and hypocrisy and by the

, ,

irresistible omnipotence o f each monachal corporation pos ,

sessing immense wealth The curate friar s w ere agents an d

.

1 50
 T/ze Sen a t e D oenfn en t Roma n zs m
'

ana

representatives of a po werful theocratic feudalism which h as ,

been ruling this count ry for many centurie s back without any
sign o f responsibility o f a n y kin d through civil an d military
officials appointed b y the Spanish Government w ith the more or ,

less direct intervention of the commi s sary f r iars residing in the

capital of Spain And as the Catholic church in these islands
'

was and still is completely mon opolized and dominated by them ,

and t o that end they secured from the complaisant and sui cidal
'

governments o f Madrid an d from the deceived Roman c uria

that the majority of archbishop s and bishops of this country
should be always friars and in this century or at least during
'

, ,

the past forty ye ars the friar succeeded in monopolizing ab s o

'

lut e ly the mite r to the extent that the priests were wholly ex
cluded from the bishoprics including Peninsular priests despite , , .

the exalted Span ish patriotism which the friars preach From .

all these antecedents it is very easily deduced what were t h e

political relations e xisting between the friars and the Filipinos .

Incrustated an d coexistant with the Spanish sovereignty

was to be found the monachal sovereignty and hence the friar , ,

archbishop and bi s hops intervened in the government of the

countr y in general and in turn the friar curates did the sam
, e
in the administration of the provinces and pueblos since the ,

fir s t named formed an o fficial part of the s uperior junta of an

-
.

t h o r it ie s and the latter o f the provincial and municipal junta

, ,

the friar curates const ituting th emselves into mentors an d l n ~

s p ir e r s o f the local authorities without however contracting , , ,

responsibil ities For all o f which reasons it is patent that the

.

political relations betwe e n the friar s an d t h e Filip i nos had to

ex ist by reason of the s trength omnipotence and predominance , ,

o f the former feudal l o r d s and the obedience and submission , ,

bordering o n slavery o f the latter thanks to the complicity or

, ,

impotence o f the government o fficials .

There were undoubtedly praiseworthy exceptions for

, , ,

amid so much laxity some made themselves known as and there ,

are t o day fri ars honest humble and full of knowled ge and
-
, , ,

vir tue and ar e truly religious ; but the exceptional qualities o f

,

these few men only h r o ugh t out more prominently the anti
f

social and i mp o lit e d e me an o r of the majority as prejudicial to

'

Catholicism .

It was asserted as a positive fact during the late regime

that the discontent and hatred for the friars existed only among
the rich and enlightened Filipinos and the mestizo race and ,

th at the gr eat majority o f the natives o f less culture especially ,

the country people and the great mass o f the settlements with
slight social e d ucation were decidedly favorable t o the friar ;
,

but when the revolution broke o ut in August 1 89 6 the bandage , , ,

growing progressively denser which c o vered t h e eyes of the ,

Spanish governors and statesmen fell and studious and think , ,

ing men of all races were convinced that this representation ,

believed like an article o f faith because it was guaranteed by

the fr i ars the only ones— according to their affiliat e s who k new
,
—

this country was nothing more than a stroke of monkish rhet

,

o r i c and an anti patriotic arti fice t o prop up and sustain the

-

monachal interests and the conventionalism wrought between

t h e deceivers and the deceived for then they all saw that those ,

1 51
 T/ze Sen a t e Documen t an d Roma n zr m
'

who d ischarged guns h an d le d bolos an d managed l ances an d , ,

even cannon were n ot t h e rich the enlightened and the mes

, , ,

t i z illo s as the most rev e re n d apostoli c delegate repeated a f e w

,

days since in the argument in the San Jose College case echo ,

ing the friar w ith wh o m he has identified himself with admira

ble p o mptn e s s in all and for all but rather that mass of poor
. ,

and little enlightened natives in m uch their greater part who

-
,

impress a socialistic character on the revolution e s s e n t i aily ,

political ; the while they showed tenacious eagerness in retain

ing the Spanish friars soldiers and civilians who fell into their , ,

ban d s they took possession of the haciendas of the friars for

,

purp oses of recovery despite the conciliatory and prudent advice

o f the enli ghte ned and of the mestizos .

Nearly all if n ot all of the inhabitants of the island at

, , ,

least of the present generation bear hatred and resentment ,

again st the friars and are prepared against returning to their

,

in famous yoke some for personal injuries received and the

, ,

rest even the in d i fie r e n t and the descendants of the very friars

,
‘

injured in their dignity and manly amour prop fin d themselves ,

mor e or less convinced that it would not be possible to l ive

"

with dignity prudent libe rty and legal guaranty for the h u
, ,

man personality o r hope for progress and prosperity in this

country while the friars go vern or can have influence over
those wh o govern in order to continue their gloomy policy
, ,

against the Filipinos The very few F ilipinos who have shown .

themselves favorable to the friars and who do not apparently ,

feel these moral moods some through religious fanaticism and , ,

others through natural bonds by reason o f the interests which ,

united them or through grati tude in exchange for important

favors or benefits rece ived .

4 I knew and treated with many friars of the several com

.

mun it ie s existing in these islands in the capital as well as in the

provinces .

5 The personnel of the orders as a general rule was com

.
, ,

posed o f men from the common classes of th e peninsula ; those

from t h e rich and cultur ed class were few But durin g their .

convent life and the e xercise of the parochial ministry they

succeeded in improvin g and bette ring their knowledge ; many
acquired social experience an d polish and s ome have become ,

notable in the arts and sciences the Augustinian and Domini ,

can friars distinguishing themselves i n this especially with r e ,

gard t o the cleanliness and pulchritude with which t hey ap ,

pe ar e d in society and the former in the cleanly conditions o f

,

their rooms .

6 The friars had the immense tracts of land they possessed

.

devoted t o agriculture through tenants or on shares util izing ,

them for the raising of rice and sugar cane in order to get -

profits out of the lands and the city real estate in this capital ,

was rente d or lease d In many pueblos o f some o f the prov .

i n c e s of Luzon the friar curates advanced money o n the sugar

,

an d ri ce crops which s t aples they t h e n s o l d to whoever o fie r e d

,
u

the best price There have also been cases where they have
.

loaned money o n articles o f value especially to those who had ,

I
families in the pueb l os The lay friars who managed the
. .
,

g reat monastic plantations received the rental o r t ax of th e .

1 52
T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t d Roma n zr m
'

an

and individuals of o t her race s who want t o tell t h e truth and

be rigidly impartial .

These are the reasons and the true causes for the hate the ,

s us pi c io us and the marked animosity r the Filipinos entertain

,

with the respect to the return of the friars to the pueblos b e ,

cause despite the complete separation o f the church and state

, ,

and of the absolute liberty of conscie nc e as well as the prom ,

i s e s of some friars that in the curacies they may now return to .

direct they will no longer act as they did during the past Span
,

ish regime and the suggestions in the same s ense o f th e mo s t

,

reverend apostolic dele g ate the Fil ipinos o f this generation

, ,

with t heir wounds still r ecent not h avi ng ye t forgott en the ih ,

i q uit i e s and infamies o f which they have bee n the victims if ,

not all many of them ( there still being in thi s land numbers of
,

their cassocked executioners) retain a well founded and most -

jus ti fiab le f e ar th at if the friars return to th e p arishes they

' '

wou ld repeat their former conduct from the very fact tha t they ,

have not changed an d continue to be despots revengeful even

, ,

beyond th e to mb haughty and d omin eering characte ristics

, ,

they have ever had here following the monachal spirit an d

, ,

now more so with the decided support of the apostolic delegate .

. 8 The answer to this question has al read y been given in

'
the responses to the third and fourth of these interrogatories .

The relations between the heads of the Spanish govern ment an d

of the church in this country were ordinar ily cordial and afie c ,

ti o n at e but always interested and hence the friars masters of

, , ,

the situation succeeded in realizing their purposes to the pre

judice mostly of the country and its inhabitants B ut when
,

these relation s changed and became strained o r were ruptured ,

then t h e struggle arose in which the head of the government or

the public o fficial always lost because there was not a monachal
community behind the latter to support them Thus i t is that .

the Filipino seeing the frequent outcome o f such conte sts in

,

whi ch the o mc ial of the in sular government always lost because

of the complacency o f th e M ad rid government and that the t r i ,

umph an t friar was customarily rew arde d with the best cura cy
or with a mitre— as was the case with the friar now bishop
Jose Hevia for always havin g fought with th e civil governor
, ,

of Mani la Senor Cente no when the former was a friar— ended

, ,

by becoming convinced that if the Spanish government was t o

be always firmly bound and continuously linked in matt ers of
government an d administration of this countr y with the monas
tic community the only remedy t o free himself from so grave
,

and chronic an evi l would be se paration an d emancipation from

the mother country since the Spanish government could not
,

free itself— through national i d i o s yn c r as v— o f so damaging a

‘

balla st that is the friar element which came to be the upas

, , ,

tree that parches and dries up ever ything in t his unhappy land .

It was a vulgar saying or apothegm wh ich was repeated among

the natives here in the bosom of the family and never given the ,

lie in reality that at the end of the fights that arose betw
, een
the friar s and the Spanish authoriti e s or o fficials the latter dis ,
appeared from the scene and were replaced by others who gen
er ally upheld nei t her the s p irit nor the purposes o f their prede
c e s so r s while the friar rema at his post or goes to ano ther
in
:
,
 T/z e Sen a t e D ocum en t
’
Roma n zr m
'

an a

better o n e with greater po we r to fight and another fr iar who r e

, ,

placed him in the pos t he had left carried o n the sa me syste m

and spirit o f his predecessor and both were al w ays supported ,

by the community For this re ason the Filipino if he

.
,

could not remain neutral in such struggles took the part o f ,

the friar as more profitable to h i s interests and in order to ,

avoid the revenge of the friar and his brethren so long as the ,

governor or o fil c ial wh o was contesting could not defend him

e ffic ac i o us ly and permanently .

The poor and defenceless school teachers of both sexe s -

, ,

planted between the government which requires of them the ,

teaching of Spanish and the friar cu r ates opposed thereto in

, ,

their majority obeyed the latter in order to be free from their

, ,

revenges and persecutions noting the impotence o f the Spanish,

government which was und er the necessity o f declaring thos e

,

who opposed the teaching o f Spanish anti patriotic and all in ,

-
,

vain and fruitless for the friar s were more p o werful

, .

. 9 There is a general sc h e d ule showing the f ee s the parish

priests could charge f o r m ariages burials and baptisms which , ,

schedule was established as is well known by the be st o f the

, ,

metropolitan archbishops ever in Manila the most illustrious ,

Senor Don Basilio Sancho de Santa Justa y R ufin a a secular ,

priest ; but th is printed schedule which it was ordered should ,

be in public view was never see n or kno wn in the majority o f

,

the parishes and in many o f them fees were charged at the os

,

price an d at t h e will o f the parish priests and their agents who ,

exercised considerable influence under t h e shadow of the friar

curate .

The m o re o r less heavy f ees that were charged for the sol
e mn i z at io n of marriages the want of zeal in the parish priests
, ,

and other causes of social moral character as well as ce r e mo .

nies at times unneces s ary were the reasons f e r unwillingness

,

to contract matrimony .

1 0 With re s pect to the morality of the Spanish fr i ars the

. ,

con duct of the m aj orit y l e f t much to be d esired and in each

i ,

town and locali ty t h e manner o f living of the curate friar was

,

publicly known and talke d of ; f o r if there are an y leading an

exemplary life o f constant and cru d e virtue and of ir r e p r o ac h ,

able conduct there were others t o a fair number who were

, , ,

designated by public opinion as living examples o f scandalous

abuses vice and c orruption Gami n g concubinage and orgies
,
. , ,

o r loose diversions in company with persons of the other sex ,

we re well known to parish priests especially in the provinces , ,

and in pueblos somewhat removed from the residences of the

bishops In many pueblos the concubine an d children o f the
.

friars were publicly known and pointed out and the colleges ,

existing in this capital used to be and still are filled with , ,

youths o f both sexes whose features reveal their origin and

birth.

1 1 I believe that the principal cause of the hostil ity of this

.

coun try to the friars was the interference o f the latter in the
administration an d especially in politics by constituting them
,
,
~

selves as police agents denouncers of polit ical offenses and as

,
,

the advisers and impelling force of the government agents an d

o fii c i al s wherefor there were attributed to them the ou t r ge

a s ,
,

1 55
 Roma n zs m
’
T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t
'

ana

deportations ill treatment and c r imes exe cuted against the

,
-
,

persons of those denounced The hostilities against the c o m .

mun i t i e s or corporations whose individ ua l members served as

parish priests was and is very general and almost unanimous
,
,

an animosity which up to this time is n o t noticeable with t e

, ,

spect to the Jesuits h e Paulists and t h e Benedictines not

,
t
, ,

withstandin g the in tolerance o f all of them an d especially of ,

[

the first named an d the knowledge of the Filipino people that

,

they all made common cause with the friars ; and it is true that
they could not place themselves before the latter .

1 2 It has always been the unanimous public sentiment in

.

the archipelago that the greater proportion of the deportations ,

ill treatment and outrages su ffered by some residents parish

-
. ,

i o n e r s of the parish served by friar curates was due to the ,

scheming and man oeuver s of t h e latte r for although it is not ,

possible to prove by trustworthy means or documents that a

cur ate friar was the cause of an outrage or a deportation b e ,

cause the friar was not accustomed to i s sue signed documents

in such undertakings and did not choose the moment when eye
,

witnesses were present t o get the ear o f some government o ffi

c ial or employe Notwithstandin g this public Opinion custom
. ,

ar ily attributed the fact to the friar when there had occurred no
action which could determine the deportation or outrage save ,

the pre judice of the friar or ill feeling existing between him -

and the victim When the friar in order to make himse lf more
.
,

feared in the localities would pride himself upon being the

,

author of the fact or when the friar was the only o n e who got
,

any profit or advantage out of the absence of t he father or the

husband o f the house which the friar usually frequented to
,
'

offer to the fatherless and h us b an d le s s family support and pro

n

tection but without interesting himself e fifl c ie n t ly in the return

,

or liberatio n of the absent one ; and when despite the secret ,

an d reserved record made up by the governor the rumor was

"

extant to the effect that the said govern or or some employ e o f ,

the government had adopted the measures against this or that

,

person on the complaint of the fria r curate No specific cases .

occurring in any given locality are cited i n this ans wer because ,

they are innumerable an d have been k n own for centuries ; but

,

the con fidence is entertained that t h e assertions made in these

answers would be wholly confirme d by any Filipino or reside nt
who would impartially tell the truth .

The detective work of the friar curates an d their false ao

'

c us at io n s and slanders se n t many an d an innumerable nu mber of

the peacefully inclined to the revolutionary ranks because b e

-

t ween the horrible pu n ishme n ts and outrages whic h produced

death slo wly and death in the ope n fie l d many pre ferred the
, ,

lat t er The greater part of the well to do and cultured people

.
- -

of the provinces and many from this capital embraced the cause
o f the rebellion forced thereto by the persecutions and false
,

accusations made by many j ingoistic Spanish patriots and the

friars rather than of their own notion and also because of the
, ,

ou trages ferocious punishments and most severe penalties i m

, ,

posed o n persons th at the people believed to be innocent .

The animosity and prejudice entertained b y the friars

against the cultured and w e althy Filipinos was due to the fact
1 56
T/z e Sen a t e Docum en t d R om a n zs n t
’

an

the contrary would be an a b surd contradiction If t h e Fil ip i n o s .

of to day are more or less civilized and cultured and po s s e ss

- ,

the capacity to advance and rule their own destinies with more
o r less skill th e y can also now o r later aspire to the pri s t
e
, ,
,

hood o f their religion in their o wn country j ust because i t i s ,

not pleasant to them t o have forei gn friars c ontinuing to ex

e r c i s e predominance and tutelage over them under the pretext
of religion in order to continue exploi t ing the faith and beli efs
o f this people .

a Let the semin aries especially that of this capital be opened

, ,

and reorganized and pl ace at t h e h e ad thereof A merican and

,
.

F ilip ino priests or aliens who do not belong to an y monastic

,

corporation and from to d ay the assurance may be had that at

,

the end of four or six years t here will be priests ready to dis
charge their sacerdotal duties and belie the infamous f r i ar ag e
calumny d irecte d again st a whole race If the worthy dele .

gate separatin g himself from the friars should undertake so

, ,

charitable and good a work a s opening and reorganizing the

seminari es and in the first place that of this capital he will
, ,

h ave done h is d uty as a representative of the Pope done a g reat ,

good to the Fili pino church and merited the gratitude of the ,

great people of the United States by havin g contribute d to ,

honoring their liberal and humanitar ian purposes i n this coun

1 5 T he
. return of the friars to their former parishes in ,

view of the resistance t o admitting them on the part of the

great majority of the pueblos of Luzon and Visayas is a con ,

crete political problem as well as religious put before the

, ,

Filip in o countr y an d the government of the Unit e d States .

It is d ifii c ult and venturesome for the friars to return to

their parishes by themselves without the aid of the authorities ,

an d armed forces for in view of the very general and almos

, ,

unanimous sentiment of the Filipinos o n ly brute force can t e ,

turn the friars to their parishes ; and if des pite the abnormal ,

status sti ll unsettled in which the country fin ds itself the

, , ,

pueb los were compelled by the gove r nment to receive friar

curat es it is to be fe ared that such a mea s ure notoriously
, ,

absurd and beyond b e lief th at it will be adopted by a truly

liberal and democratic government would be an other cause f o t ,

d i s t ur o an ce which would retard the return of peace it b eing

, ,

impossible to predict what the p e rsonal fate of the friar

curate s in the midst of pueblos that hate and reject them for
,

seriou and justifiable causes would be

s , .

Mo reover it is not to be expected that the A merican Gov

,

e r n me n t will sacri fice the fund amental and political principles

of the people of the United States and the rights and liberties
of the Fi lipino people in order to f avor foreign friars who
,

afford n o positive benefit to their own country of origin while ,

they prejudice the native clergy .

1 6 A n American archbishop should come at once to these

.

islands so that with a spirit o f impartiality of uprightness of

, , ,

justice and above all of charity , he may govern the Philippine

, , ,

church lib erating her in fact and wholly from the prejudicial
, .

influence o r the friars who are aliens o n t h is soil and afford

, ,

Char itabl e p rotection to the poor and defenseless Filipino

1 58
7 7 u Sen a t e Docum en t an d Roma n zr m
clergy who ar e i n great need of it in a country in Open revo
,

luti o n upset morall y a n d materially

, .

I d o not now endeavor t o excuse faults and mistakes com ‘

mi t t e d by some Filipino priests ; but in order to appreciat e an d

rightly an d impartially judge the politi cal conduct of the same
with respect t o the American government i t is strict ly just to ,

bear in mind that the Filipino priests are natives o f the coun "

try and have more or less the same aspirat ion sound o r mi s
, ,
f

taken as th e generality of i t s inhabitants and are intimat e ly

, ,

bound to t hem by ties of relationship sympathy an d many , ,

other moral or social reasons and it is not at all strange t hat .

some o f t hem should support the cause of the revolutionists .

The strange and surprising fact is th at these should be only

a few very few and that the greater part the large majority
, , ,

o f the Filipino priests have either wholly abstained from

,

politics keeping aloof from the revolutionists o r hav e accepte d

, ,

and unconditionally adhered to American laws and sovereignty ,

at the great p er sonal risk o f those residing in distant pueblos ,

and this despit the to tal and studi ed abandonment in which

e

the archbishop and bishops gathered in this capital left them .

The most illustrious Archbishop No z ale d a who prior t o , ,

th e a r ri val of the American army o n these island s was please d ,

to issue his ce lebrated bellicose pastoral or rather defa matory

-
,

libel published by the periodical press inciting the c le r g y and

, ,

inhabitants o f t h e c ountry ag ainst the Nor t h American s wh o ~

,

accor din g t o the famous allocution would commit s avage ,

deeds violating and desecrat ing temples trampling upon graves

, ,

and insulting pea ceful people etc —did not ad d r ess to the , .

Filipino clergy who took ch arge o f the par i shes any pastoral
letter giving the m advi ce and rules of conduct religious civil , ,

and pol itical and t hey well needed them in the m idst of the
,

great disturbance in which they lived but he enveloped him ,

self i h mutinous and studied sile nce totally ad an d on in g to their ,

fate at least in religious matte rs the Filipino people and clergy

, , ,

s o assaul te d and defame d doubtless with t h e litt le charitable

,

purpose o f it s erring in its actions conducti ng itse lf improper ly , ,

and losing itself completely in the whirlwind of the struggle b e

tween the Americ an s and the Filip inos in order that t h e return ,

o f the friars t o their paris h es might soon become necessary .

A like course was pursued by the bishops o f Ilocos Sur and

Jaro and sad it is to have to say it th ey were imitate d in this
, , ,

by the most reverend aposto lic delegate who could now raise ,

his voice were he actuated oy sincerity sending salutary coun

, ,

s e ls and inciting z eal in the performance o f duty on t h e part o f

the Filipino clergy to the benefit of t h e church and of Catholic
,

spi: it who d oe s n o t belong to an y monastic co rporati on wh o

,
,

shall know h o w to free himself and beco me independent o f t h e

influence o f the fri ars and whose purpose it shall be t o gove rn
,

th e Philippine church pursuant t o Ameri can and Filipino i nte r

ests t o the exclusion o f alien inte rests ; r e establish ecclesiasti
,
-

cal discipli ne and treat the Filipino clergy with impartialit y

,
.

kindness and justi ce ; and it wi ll soon be seen th at it is a clerg y

,

obedient deeply Catholic docile and susceptible of every

, , ,

manner o f improvement in t h e perfor mance o f its ministry, f or

up to this time its members h ave bee n tr eat e d alway s by th eir
1 59
 T/z e Sen a t e Docum en t ’
Rom a n zf m
'

an a

superiors and bishop s as p ar i a h s i n fe r i o r b e ing s an d slave s , ,

.

1 7 It is traditional in th i s a r ch ipelago to associ a t e t h e

.

teaching of r e li g i m with pr imary a n d s e con d ary public i n

struction thes e havi n g been g ov e rned and directed by the cor
,

p or a t i o n clergy and for

,
this reaso n so as not to ra d ic ally break ,

o ff this tradition it will not be too much to p e rmit religio s

,
n in
st ruction i n the s ch o o l s o f the pu pils if not daily t wo o r three
_ , ,

times at least per wee k in the j ud gment o f the parish priest

, ,

who should agree in the premises with the school teacher o r

the head of the institu t ion without prejudice to wh at may be
,

at the proper time determin e d by the assembly o r body o f r e p r e

s en t at i v e s of the country that may be legally established for t h e
judicious dete rmination of the latter in accordance with the will
of the great m ajority o f the Filipinos .

I 8 The problem of the present and t h e future in the q ues

.

tions concerning worship and the Catholic clergy o f immense

majority of t h e inhabitants of the Ph ilippines is for the cle r gy , ,

and especially the parish curates to live and exercise their ,

functions and p arochial m inistry entirely i n dependent of politics

and public administration ; for the m to ad j us t their conduct to
th e doctr ine and rules of the Catholic church and es pecially t o .

those proclaimed by His Holiness Pope Leo X II I representing .

constituted governments and authorities ; to abstain from tak

ing part in political que stions or in the public opinions of the ,

milits a parties in the country and to inte rmingle and live with ,

their neighbors in such a way that if the latter believe in the

n e ce s s it y o f having i n their pueblo ministe rs of their faith and
l

beliefs the latter should at the same time be convinced of the

necessity of maintaining harmon y and good relations within the
limits allowed by the ecclesiastical laws with their p arishioners ,

since the latt er are the ones called upon to provide them with
proper sustenance and since in the system o f absolute separ
,

ation of chur ch and state an d c b mple t e liberty of co n science the

old theocratic predominance which the parish priests arrogated ,

to themselve s b y constituting themselves into the feudal lord s

o f their parishioners can not exist , .

1 9 The socialistic characte r o f the revolution of 1 8 9 6

.
,

ma intained up t o date against the A merican sovereignty is a ,

patent and positive fact for although the rebellion was pro
.
,

mote d morally through the propag anda of the middle class of

c ertai n towns in the center of Luzon where it found decided ,

s upport and has since then up to date relied on arms to mater

i ally sustain the struggle with the age n ts o f authority was ,

amon g the ple beians o r the laboring people that worked and
-

labored in the fields and town s and this socialistic character is ,

due in part to the existence and manner o f being o f many

haciendas belongi ng to the religious communi ties of these
islands for reasons which require speci al study ; hence it was
,

that the first acts of the revolutionists upon the outbreak of the
rebellion to the north as well as to the south of the cente r of
Luzon was to take po ssession of the hacie n das and properties of
the friars would be a highly political mo ve o f economico social ,
'
-

transcendency and of good future results and all the more

, ,

worthy if t h e proceeds of the sale in sm all lots o f the monastic

properties were devote d to the e n couragement of public in
1 60
Ta e Sen a t e Docum en t ana
’
Roma n zlfm
6 . I am not wholly acquainted with any property exploited
by the said orders so as to give informa t ion thereon without
,

fear of falling into error for in my province there is no real ,

estate belonging t o them except two parcels o f cultivated land ,

acquired of recent years by the Jesuits in the pueblo of Balinga

sag of which I will speak in the next answer ; but I deduce
,

from the way in which these parce ls were acquired that the ,

great haciendas possessed in other provinces by other orders

were n o t acquired in the most proper way and were not worked ,

within the spirit of Christi an charity which should be the stan ,

dard of conduct for persons who claimed and claim to be the

standard bearers of Christianity
- .

7 It was the friar curate s who really governed the pueblos ,

not in matte rs connected wi th their m i nistry but in every path ,

o f life without exce pting private life ; f or although there ex

,

i s t e d in each pueblo an administrative auth ority assiste d by a ,

board k nown by the name o f Comun de principales ( council

of the head men of the village ) and o f la te years justice s
.
,
’

court s were create d nevertheless all authorities with very rare

, ,

exceptions were completely under the dominion o f the former

, ,

for they were ab s olutely satisfied that any opposition to the

slighte st desire of the curate would s o oner or late r brin g upon
them serious trouble Frequently the local authority was pun.

i s h e d b y the provincial authority for disobedience to its orders ,

the former prefer ring to break with its chief rather than with
the friar .

Th is supremacy of the friar Was above the family an d the

individual and by abusing it and in the ce rtainty of h i s i mpun
, ,

ity he committed so many and such serious acts which really

,

constitut ed offenses and even crimes that he caused the hatred

, ,

which the F ii ip in o feels for the fri ar I could cit e here many .

cases t o prove my asser t ion b ut my paper would be in t e r min a ,

ble Therefore I believe it s ufii c ie n t to mention two o r three

.

cases whi ch occurred after the insurrection of 1 8 9 6 had broken

out.

T h e curate friar of Lo cul an ordered the cabezas de b aran

gay ( officials who had in charge the collecting o f a head tax
from a g roup of fifty families and some other dut ies— an office ,

which was considered in the phrase olog y o f t h e Spanish ad ,

mi ni str ation as honorable and gratuitous ” and as such and

, , .

owing to the pecuniary responsibility he contracted he was se ,

l ec t e d from among the best known and well to do residents ) t o - - -

furnish gr atuitously a certain number of pi e ce s of lumber f o r

the construction of a parsonage an d church ; and one of them
could not on the d ay designate d deliver the pieces falling to
, ,

his lot as he had had to employ a part of his time in caring for
,

his o wn interests although he had the lum b er already cut and

, ,

even ready to be transporte d to the pueblo This individual .

was punished by having lashes adminis te red to h im in the mid

d ie of the public plaza laid face down o n a bench constructe d
,

ad hoc he being attached thereto by the shoulders and feet by

,

mean s of stocks so that he could not rise or even change posi

,

tion whil e undergoing punishment which was in flicte d on a ,

Sunday at the very moment that the people were coming out of
c h urch afte r hearin g mass .

1 62
 T/ze Sen a t e Doc um en t ana
’
Roma n zr m
The curate of Cat o r man ordered that all the resident s o f the
pueblo should take up the ir residence within the central parts
o f the town in order to have them all as thou h held within his
g
grasp ; ordering that those whose houses should be located out
side the limits by him designated s hould transfer them within
the same and within the time named by him Because a resi .

den t either could not or would not obey the order and had his ,

house in a cocoanut grove belonging to him the curate ordered ,

it to be raised bodily to transfer it to the pueblo bei n g left

, ,

half way, abandoned in a gorge where I believe it c an be seen

, , ,

to th is d ay The house was a frame and not a cane building

.
.

T h e curate of Balingasay who was a Jesuit ( the two men

,

t io n e d previously being R e c o l e t o s ) because a joint owner of a

,

p iece o f land which the friar s order had appropriated because

'
’ '

it was owed a sum o f money by the Spaniard who requested ,

the return o f his property o f the government and h e could not ,

pay the rent o f the parcel o f ground he was working burned ,

his house t h e c ur at e himself applying t h e to r ch and ordering

'

, ,

that all the corn which had been sowed and the coco anut trees , ,

p lanted three or four years before to be cut do wn In shor t

, .
,

e veryth i ng the poor man had on the ground was destroyed .

T hi s same curate compelled a poor widow to sell at a price ,

n amed by him a piece of ground o ut o f which she made a liv 1

,

ing for herself and her little ones threatening her with p unish,

ment in this world and the next in case o f refusal .

. 8 The relations between the provincial heads an d the friars

Wer e generally o f m utual opposition ; but this opposition was
r b y n o m e ans due to the desire o f each to comply with the duties
o f his respective o fli c e but because their interests and purp o ses
,

were antagonistic The authorities were i n different as to kill

.

ing t h e cow so long as they milked h e r as dry as they could for ,

they knew that i n three years at the most ( rarely did they last
that long) they h ad t o give their place to others while it was ,

more advisable for the friars to milk her every day thus suc ,

c e e d i n g in getting the greatest possible quantity of milk .

Neither did go od harmony reign between the superior e u

t h o r i t ie s when the governor general was upright and honorable
-

a n d did not truckle to the exigencies of the friars A proof .

o f this was the worthy General Despujols who a few months ,

after e n tering upon his duties was ignominiously relieved

t hrough the work o f and thanks to the friars .

. 9 Fees were charge d higher than those appearing in the

schedule framed by the Archbishop Santa Justa y Rufin a which ,

was the legal schedule that was known that is to say that was —
,

publis hed although it was said by those intereste d that they

—

were fully authorized I kno w o f one who charged not less

.

than $30 to marry a man who had not performed the duties
o f sacristan which the curates compelled all youths between
,

t h e ages o f fourteen and eighteen t o perform interpreting in ,

their own way an o ld administrative provision which ordered

that the people should furnish eig h t youths for the service o f
the church .

1 0 With regard to the moral conduct of the friars i n w ays

. .

o t her than those mentione d boo k s mig h t be written upon the

,

1 63
 d Roma n zr m
'

T/ze Sen a t e Documen t an

subject Out o f respect f o r tr uth I ou g ht n ever theless to

. , ,

cord that the Jesuits never consented to any such failings o n

the part of an y individuals o f the ir order The author o f t h e .

only case I know o f that h appened in my prov ince was not

only relieved of the charge he held but as is currently report , ,
,

ed he was sent o ut of the archipelago

,
.

i 1 1 The hatred o f the Filipino for the friar recognizes as

“
.

its principal cause the constant te n dency of the latter to humble

us and to accomplish this he has sought by every means within
,

his reach to divorce u s from th e pen insular or Spanish elements ,

to which end he always placed obstacles in the way of t h e Fili

pino learning the official language going to the e xtr eme of ,

harsh ly reprimandin g h is parishioners if t hey greeted him in

Span ish ( say ing : Buenos dias ; buenos noches
I know of o n e who i n order t o compel a school teacher
,
-

graduated from the N o rmal School who came into his pueblo ,
'

with his degre e and appoi n tment to t ake ch arge o f the mu n ic i

p al school of t h e pueblo to leave town made him live in his , ,

h ouse and eat with the servants and clean the floor s thus ac ,

c omplishing his purpose .

The hatred f o r the friar extends t o all who are known as

such without excl uding the J e suits although they call them
, ,

selves the regul ar clergy because all the individuals without , ,

any distinction whatever (at lea st among the seventy more o r

less that I have k nown ) have always wishe d to humiliate the
Filipino to destroy his personality If there is less animosity
, .

display ed against the Jesuits in Manila and other provinces o f

Luzon and Visayas i t is because the i nhabitants of these r e
,
”

gions know them onl y in the athen aeum norm al school and , ,

observatory where opp o rtunists as they are they observe a

, , ,

conduct d i fferent f rom the other orders But in their curacies .

and missions in Mind anao they behave worse than the others ,

and as to their proced ure in making proselyt es among the idola

to s I could relat e curious things
r
, .
‘

1 2 It is very t r ue that t h e friars were the cause of the per

.

s e c ut io n s an d d eportat i on of man y parishion e rs of theirs more

’

or less di s pleased wi th Spain whi ch it will be easy for the ,

commission to prove i n this ve ry capital where man y parties ,

reside who were v i cti m s o f the se persecution s I ought to con .

f ess however th at l n my province I know of but one case of

, ,

d eportation Wh i ch was carried into e ffect because of the report ,

which the Jesuit curate rende red in t he administrative record ,

which was made up t h e Vi ctim bein g a party who exercised the

,

l ocal authorit y and who di s tinguish e d hi mself during his term

of office through 11 0 1: wishing t o subordinate his acts to the will
of the curate .

1 3 and 1 4 I can say nothing specific ally as to the morality

.

of t h e Filipino clergy as I have never resided in a parish gov

,

erned by them an d there being in my prov ince not a single indi

,

vidual of the secular clergy I ought nevertheless to admit .

, ,

that they are not wholly exem p t from the faults o f the friars ,

as the latter assert in a loud voice for they are men and not ,

angels subject always to their dioce s ans w h o are and ever

,
,

we e friars in mod ern times ; an d as s uc h alw ays l o c k e d with

r

suspici on upon the for mer not p assin g over t h e smalles t fault ,
'

1 64
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Roma n zr m
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T/ze Sen a t e Documen t an a

the manner or method of a cquiring t h e same was not in har

mony with the principles of jus t i ce o i which facts I have not —

sufficient data to deny or afii r m them— ir they are not like the
cases which I have cited as occurring in Balingasay the ex ,

propriatio n of such propert y and the subsequent sale in small ,

parcels and the devoting of the proceeds thereof to the crea

,
'

ti on of funds for p ublic ins truction wil l merit the regard of ,

the inhabitants of the regions where such properties are sit

uate a.

Speaking again of the relig ious question I am assured that ,

many pueblos so soon as order is r e e s t ab li s h e d and the cura

;

, g

cies are permanently fille d — not with friars but with secular ,

priests t h e p ue b lo s will immediately endeavor to create reve

—

nues for the maintenance o f worship so long as no obstacles ,

are interposed , not in the administration o f the property but ,

in the way of intervention for the purpose of putting them to

uses other than those originally intended And it is probable .

that the other pueblos who are in a position to imitate the for
mer will do the same and those which c an n o t s o act because o f
,
l

their poverty let them be added to other pueblos this acting

, ,

as a stimulus toward the betterment of the situation I do not .

believe that the reduction of parishes because of fin an c i al d ifli

c ult ie s will be a great obstacle to good spiritual administration ,

above all if the public adminis tration opens new means of com
,

mun i c at io n and improves those now existing

, .

These are my humble opinions upon the points embodied i n

the i nterrogatories expressed with sincerity and frankness
, ,

and without feeling which I lay before the commission ex press

, ,

in g the hope that they may serve in some way for the good of
my country .
J
If in the course of this writing I have recorded any phrase
or word that in the slight est way can wound the most worthy
persons composing the commission I beg that i t will be pleased ,

t o pardon me and consider them as withdrawn as also the inac ,

curacies it suffers for my slight education and want of time

have prevented me from properly correcting them .

I improve this occasion to offer to all and each one o f the

gentlemen composing the American Civil Commission in the
Philippines the most respectful consideration o f their humble
servant .
Jo s n Re s .

Mani la September 29 1 9 0 0
, , .

FR ANC O G O N Z ALE S .

No r m— The follow ing answers to the questions pre pared by

the president of t h e commission were t r ansmitte d i u a le t ter
'

from Dr T H Pardo de Tavera i n which he s ays that the

. . .
,
si gner f the a n swers Senor Francisco Gonz ales is a promi
'

o , ,

nent F i l i p i no ( a Spanish mestizo) over 60 y ears o f age who is ,

,
a ve r y large landed proprietor in N ue va E c ija .

AN SWERS IN NUMERICAL ORDER TO THE I N T ERRO

G A T ORIE S ANNEXE D .

Nos 1 2 3 4 and 5 My lon g stay ( over for t y five y ears)

.
, , , , . -

in the provinces of Bulacan Nueva Ecij a and Pangasinan my

; , ,

1 66
 T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t Roma n zr m
'

ana

continued trip s to t h e p ue b los thereof dealing i n domestic p r o ,

ducts ; the management o f haciendas situated in the t wo last ,

n amed provinces ; and the nece s sity a provincial has to treat

with t h e parish pries t s afforded me the opportunity to p erson
,

ally kno w the m aj ority o f these priests and I can assert that I ,

n ever had an op portunity o f findi n g one belonging to the dis

t in g ui s h e d Spanish c lass All of them belong to the humblest
.

class of their country Dominican s Augustinians and Fran

, , ,

c i s c an s alike ; the three o r ders that occupied paris hes in the

sai d provinces .

6 The Dalayap Dampol an d Lolomboy haciendas situated

.
,

in t h e pueblos of Bulacan Candaba G uin g ua and Biga r e , , , ,

s p e c t f ully , belong t o the Augustinian order I can not specify .

the imp i r t an c e o f the said haciendas In Cabanatuan ( Nueva .

Ecij a) Fr Jose Lafuente Augustinian and friar curate of the

.
,

said pueblo posse sses a sugar cane plantation o f an appr o x i

,
- -

mate value o f with the warehouses grinding ma ,

chinery and refinery , .

7 Replying to this question I c an say that all the loca1

.
,

governments ad ministrations public works and schools had to

, , ,

pass through the fin e sieve o f the parish curate o f each pueblo .

8 By reason of th ese influences of the friars their r e

.
,

l at i o n s with the Spanish authorities were strained .

9 Two things principally acted as a di scouragement to the

.

c o ut r actin g o f matr imony the bad e xample of the curat es—

, ,

and the abuses o f the fees these going to the extent of charg ,

i n g hundreds o f dollars for the mere matr imonial religious ser

vic es There was no fixed rate in this par t icular nor for bap
. ,

tiams and interments .

1 0 Here is sought the narration of some fact and although

. ,

t h e scandalou s immorality o f the parish friar is acurrent thing

in these pueblos I shall relate what I remember about Father
,

Cienfuegos a Dominican friar curate o f the pueblo o f Tayug

, ,

( P an g as e n an ) about the years 1 8 84 and 1 88 5 This friar .

,

addicted to petticoats was accustomed to play monte with

,

his mistre s s and other neighbors in his own convent ; and being
asked o n e d ay by a Spaniard why he permitted gambling in his
house the good father replied between drinks that he needed
, , ,

resources f o r his w ife and that he found this means very ,

pro fitable .

1 1 The principle cause for the hostility against the friar

.

curates in the said provinces has been egotism unbridled license , ,

ill treatment and contempt f o r the Filipino

-

,
.

1 2 As a sample o f what a displeased parish priest is capable

.

o f I shall relate what I witnessed about the year 1 8 6 7 o r 1 8 68 in

,

Rosales ( Neuva Ecija ) o n a feast day after high mass at the

”

very moment in which the people were leaving the church The .

curate o f this pueblo Fr R aimundo G al lard o a Franciscan

, .
'

, ,

with his sleeves rol led up was in front o f the principal entrance
,

to the church belabo ring the shoulders of a man standin g

’

.
,

though stro n g ly tied to a steplad der with a rattan I left that , .

repugnant spectacle which lasted as I s ub s < q ue n t ly learned

, , ,

until the curate no longer had strength t o continue The cause .

for s o brutal a punishment was due to his having dared to col .

l o s t in the said town f o r masses for the famous Virgin Man a uag
1 67
T/ze Sen at e Documen t
’
R oma n zs m
’

ana

(Pan g as e n an ) That unh appy man was the agent of the parisi
.

priest of Man auag .

1 3 and 1 4 T h e F ilipino priest generally possesses the i m

.

morality he learn ed from the friar and the latter s ignorance ,

’

but the p ue blos d o not tak e them as yet and they may be made ,

more e asily to conform to the new conditions should an Ameri

c an archbishop provide what i s in dicated in question No 1 8 and
“

.
,

t h e government carry o ut all that i s propo s e d in que stion No 1 9 . .

The G uar dias d e Honor had their origin in the sanctuary

o f Man aua cofr a
g ( P an gas e n an ) o f which they were formerly ,

t e rs the head thereof A ntonio Val d es steward o f the curate

, , ,

of the said san ctuary having become exc ited in 1 89 8 and at

,

tacked the Sp an i ards i h Bayan b an and other pueblos of the said

p rovince They have be en known t o make counter revolutions
. ,

par ticularly when the Americans advanced toward Pan g as e n an ,

and afterw ards the y d e v o t e d t h e ms e lv e s to pill age and murder

, l

thr oughou t the whole of the central part o f Luzon This as .

sociation i s made up the indig ent populati on o f those towns ,

being an elem e nt most leaning toward anarchy Its politica l .

object is to become d ominan t and later r e e stablis h the friars ,

-

in their curacies al th ough not one of them knows for certain

,

the object he pursues makin g himself the easy instrument of ,

him who offe rs to secure for them all they d e s i s e

FRAN C O G O NZ ALEZ
.

. .

MANILA October 7 1 90 0
, , .

HEA DMEN A N D L EA DI NG R E SI DEN T S .

[Translation ]
In the town hou s e o f Aringay province of L aUn i o n o n the , ,

2 4t h of Oc t obe r 1 9 00 at about 8 A M
, the h e ad men an d lead
,
. .
,

ing residents of this town bein g met toge ther under the presi , , .

dan cy of the local chie f wh o invite d them to expre s s every

thing they kne w re g ard i ng the que stions s e t forth in the ah
h exed i n ter rogatorie s relati n g to the friars transmitte d by ,

Senor Calderon a prominent attorney of the supreme court of

,

justice which was tran s lated an d e xplained by S e n Don Esco

—

l as t i co de Gu cman municipal secretary in the dialect o f the

, ,

people in order that all present might state what they had o h
,

ser ved as to the life an d conduct of the friars who hav e had
charge of this parochial church unani mously expressed th em — ~

s elves as follo ws in viva voce ,

.1 How lon g have you lived in the Philippines

A The majority of those present subscribers hereto are
.
,

t h e old est land o wn e rs and leaders o f this pueblo .

2 In what part of the islands have you lived

.

A Aringay .

How much personal Opportunity had you before 1 8 9 6 to

s b s er ve the relations existing between the friars and the
people
o f their parishes in a r e li g io n s in a social and ih a political
’

, ,

way 7
A The majority are e x c ap t ain s cabezas de barangay
. e

, ,

landown e rs and leading reside nts of the pue blo As to the re

, .

lig i o us relations a" the ac erdo t al and parochial duties were

s , .

1 68
 ’
T/z e Sen a t e Documen t Roma n zr m
'

ana

What fees were actually collected by the par ish priests

f o r marr iages burials and christenings ?
, ,

A The fees the y charged for marriages burials and

. , ,

ch ristenings were adjusted ( to the schedule i ) but when there ,

was singin g th ey charged excessive fees at will The fees were .

established in council held in Manila presided over by the Most ,

Illustrious an d Reverend Senor Don Basilio de Santa y R ufina ,

then archbish op The poor who could not fin d money with

. ,

which to pay the fees lived openly without marrying can oni ,

cally an d therefore many lived in concubinag e

,
.

1 0 What was the morality of the friars as parish pries t s

. ,

A The morality of th e friars generally left fun ch t o be

.

desired ; it was a cau s e for sc an dal among their parishioners

the way in which they bro ke their vows o f chastity and poverty .

This fr ee life of the friars was so not o riou s that nothing was
hidd en from their parishioners who h ad everyt hin g before their ,

eyes on all occasions We shall cite some cases They com

.

palled all the spinsters t o go up into the convent o n Sundays

and feast days and there they exhorted them regardi n g matters
, ,

which were not advisa b le ,and not satis fied with this they ad
'

, ,

vise d them to confess frequen tly and they relied upon th is ,

means to profane the house of God and if they did not secure , ,

their disordered ends they sought means even though it were

, ,

calumny to s ecure the deportation of t h e fathers of families

, ,

and if the women were marr ied their husbands as happened to ,

a former captain Don Miguel R e v o llo and o th er s

, , .

To show how far their astuteness went there still exists in ,

the convent of this pueblo two secret stair ways the door being ,

in the form of a ward robe which when opened formed means of ,

escape — one communicating with the vault and lead ing from
the choir of the church to the sacristy , and t h e other i n the
sleeping room of the curate which led t o a store house which
-

,
-

is now used as the office of the local presidente This was the .

idea of a friar t o carry o ut his impure an d disordered passions .

It can be said that there were two curat es o f this pueblo who
were so cruel and inhuman that even without any reason t hey
ve rbally ill tr eate d whoever h ad the misfortune to have anyt hing
-

to do with them not to say anything of their servants s acr is

, ,

tans and singers without respecting the sanctity of the place

, ,

and of religious functions ; whereof b y reason o f our con , -

science s as good Catholics we can not but prote st under pain ,

of t hreate ning the demoralizati on and corrupti on o f o ur holy

relig ion They abused all kinds o f females with out dis ti nction
.

o f class or age and when some o f them became with child they
,

gave them medicines t o kill the f oetus .

1 1 What do you think is the chief ground for hostility t o

.

the friars as parish priest

A One of the principal causes for the hostility against t h e
.

friars was their despotism and this hostility was directe d ,

against all the religious orders .

1 2 Charges have been made against the friars that many

.

of their number caused the deportation of Filipinos members ,

o f their parishes a n d that in s o me instance they were guilt of
, y
physical cruelty What if anything do you know on these
.
, ,

s ubjects
1 70
 S e n a t e D ocumen t d Rom n n zfi n
'

U ze
'

an

A The parish friars were the only c au s e of the deportat ion

.

o f many F i li pinos w h o i n t h is town were S e uo r s Anacleto Diaz

, ,

former captai n ; Juan Baltas ar also former c a ptain ; F lo r ie n z o ,

Baltasar ex justice o f the peace and mercha n t ; D o n R o ma n

,
-

Florentino Candido R e s ur e c t io n present head men an d A g r ip in o

, , ,

Carbonel proprietor an d many others priests and private indi

, ,

v i d ual s who have been deported and some o f whom were s n e

te a ce a to be shot .

1 3 What is to be said of the morality of the native priests ?

.

A The morality o f the n ative priests i s i n c omp ar ab ly better

.

than that o f the friars although s eme f e w through h uman , ,

weakness have been kn own to break their vow of chastity

, .

1 4 What as to the ir education and preparation to dischar ge

.

clerical duties
A As t o the instruction and preparation of the native
.

priests they hav e a s ufficien cy t o discharge clerical duties

, .

1 5 What do you think would be the result of an attempt of

.

the friar s to return to their parishe s ?

A The result of the e ii o r t o f the friars to retur n to t heir
.

parishe s would be that they would not b e received an d accepted .

i n their parishes an d they would be the objects of countless

,

vengeances etc , .

1 6 What do you think would be the e ii e c t in the islands of

.

the appointment of an A merican archbishop

A The effect would be in d ifie r e n c e
. .

1 7 What do you think of the establishment of sch ools ,

etc .

A T h e F il i pi n o people being eminently Catholic it would

’
. ,

be advisable not to disregard the religious i nstruction of the

Catholic by the ministers o f the church for it is the o ne th at ,

has been tran smitted from generation to generation and if it is ,

som ewhat demoralized it is the fault o f the friars

_
.

1 8 Will not the fact that the parish priests etc

. , .

A Distin ction : If the y are friars it is impossib le for them

. ,

not t o meddle in politics and they will not be conten ted with ,
-

volu ntary contributions but they will impose forced contr i

butions As to other priests I believe it would
,

.
. ,

1 9 What d o you think would be the e ffect of the govern

.

ment expropriating the agricultural property etc , .

A This is left to the prudence and judgment of the proper

.

parties Nevertheless as o ur opinion is asked we may state

. , ,

that for the good o f the inhabitants o f these islands it would

be better f o r the government to pay their value to sell them in ,

small lots within the reach of all and to create funds for edu ,

cation charity and other meritoriou s purposes with the pro

, ,

c ee d s .

And in order that it may become of record we sign these ,

presents in honor of truth in d uplic ate the one t o be transmitted , ,

to Senor Calderon attorney of the supre me court of justice and,

,

the other for the archives of this town hall to which we certify it ,

[ Ninety seven signatu r e s ] -

Before me
Es c o n as r r c o D E G UZ MAN Secretary , .

Senor E s c o las t ic o de Guz ma n y Ta b ora m un icipal secre ,

tar y of this pueblo of Aringay province o f La Union c e r t ifle t h , ,

and witnesseth : 1 1 7
 d Romun zsm
’

T/ze Sen ut e D ocumen t

'

an

That the seals and the signatu r e s of the head men o fii ce r s , ,

a n d residents together with that of the local preside t

n o f this
,

pueblo appearing at the foot of the repor t o r inte rrogatories

,
relating to the friars and are in fact those they customarily ,

attach to documents and other analogous things ; and to make

it a record I certify and witness and sign with the seal of the
, ,

town hall in Aringay on the twenty fourth day o f October of

-
,
-

nineteen hundred .

E s o o u s r r c o D a Go z m
[s u n ]

JO S E T EMPL O .

The undersign e d a nativ e an d resident o f the city o f Li ps , ,

in the pr ov ince o f Batangas a landed proprietor and agr ic ul , .

turist frames for himself and in represe ntation o f the said

,

city answers t o the questions contained in th e following

,

I NT ERR OG AT OBIE S .

1 How long have you lived i n th e Philippines ?

A F ifty thr ee year s as I am a nati ve o f th em
.

-
.
. ,

2 In what parts of the islands have you lived ?

A In this city where I was b o r n in the capi t al o f Manila
.
'

. , , ,

for fift een years as I took in the Un iv ersity o f Santo Tomas

,

the courses of philosophy canonical law and Spanish civil law ; , ,

in the capital of Batangas an d in some o f the pueblos of the

province of Laguna .

3 How much personal opportun ity h ad you before 1 89 6 to

.

observe the relations existing between t he friars and the people

o f their p arishes in a r e lig i o n s in a social and in a political , ,

way ?
A As re gards the religious relations the fri ar curates if
. , , ,

they had a coadjutor o r coad jutors did hardly anything in their ,

parishes except to confess a few penite nts outside o f the Le n

ten season if they were so d is posed ; the administe ring o f t h e
,

ot her sacraments a great p art o f the penite nts and also of th e

, ,

preach in g being performed by the c o ad jut o r s i The pract ical

, ,

acts o f t he friars with respect to relig ion were not responsive

t o their pious calling o f missionaries and t e achers of the nati ves .

They ought rather t o be called the corrupte rs of youth For

, , .

this reason in the administrati on o f the sacraments they e x e r

,
~

c i se d onl y the penitent ial as in these they exper ienced delights ,

and pleasures through their shameless and incredi ble solicita

tions In Lente n ti me which was the p eriod when the country
. ,

folk c ame in to con fess t h e parish friar would give strict or

'

ders t o the scribes o f t h e church to the end that i n the d iatriba

tion or giving out of the certificates to the penitents a mong him
s elf and the co ad jutors they should give him the young n a mar ,

ried country women and servant penitents whom he ob scenely ,

solicited th rough words and m anipul ation s in the confessional .

which they al ways had cornere d an d buried in the darkes t part

o f the church thus settin g at n aught the severe and wise c o n
,
~

s t i t ut i o n s of the popes Paul I V Cl e ment VI II Paul V Greg . .

,
'

.
,

o r y XV Alexander VII . and l as tly Benedict X IV against s o .

, , .
,

li ci t in g confessors Is a proof of this desired as clear as the

.

r ight of midday ? Here are the thousands o f solicite d females ,

1 72
Tne Sen a t e Docum en t ’
Rom a n zr m
'

an a

their parishes but mas ters c ur s ed below the breath a n d ve n er

, ,

ated and dei fied outwardly for the simple reason that they were
the friends an d patrons of the heads o f the prov ince an d even ,

by the g o v e r n o r s ge ner al of the islands because o f their po w

o
,

er f ul in fluence in the court where they had and each corpora ,

.

tion h as a procurator general who maintains their prestige

,
-

safe and their inviolab ility .

They are feared an d hated by the nati ves for their i n t r igu
ing policy of preferrin g slanderous charges before the Spanish
authorities of attempts to rebel against t h e i n tegri ty o f the
Spani s h monarchy on the part of the native s— act s that were no t
ev e n drea med of as was t h e case of the year 1 886 if I am not
, ,

in error when t h e Spanish friar made charge s before the high

,

es t authority in th e islands that the leading and well t o do resi -

dents o f the city were endeavorin g to promo te an uprisin g ,

when i n fact the latter sought n othing more than tranquility

, , ,

as they then had their agr iculture i n a flourishing state above ,

all t h at o f coffee which was the envy o f many neighborin g

, ,

pueblos The charges in a few words were found to be slan

.
, ,

d e r o us and nothing came of them

, .

There were governors of this province who spoke atro

c i o us ly o f the friars On e o f them sa id t o me Yo u Filipinos
.
'
,

have not known h o w to make an insurrection because you have ,

left the friars with life ” .

4 H o w many friars have you known personall y ?

.

A Many ; very many

.
Justi ce m ust be done to all Among
those I have known and h ad r e lat io us with there were some
.
.

who were very good and virtuous th e rec ollection o f whom is ,

always accompanied with praise ; but these good f r iars were in

the proportion of one to a hundre d bad and det estable so th at ,

t h e forme r were th e exce ption an d the latter the general rule

Hence in the answers I make t o the se interrogatories I refer
.

,
,

to the bad fri ars who constitute the general rule It is t o be

, .

note d that u n fortun ately the virtuous fr iars who sought the
_

moral and m a te ri al well being o f their parishioners did not last -

in t h e cur acies .

5 From what class of society were they drawn in Spain ?

.

A To my mind an d according t o t h e admission of some

of
,
,

the m th ey belong to the humbler class

. .

Q D o the d ifferen t orde rs d ifie r at all in thi s respect ?

.

A There must be for th e y say that there are orders that

.
,

coun t among them sons of illustrious cradles .

Wh at agri cultural or business o r residence pro perty in , ,

a n y part o f the islands do you know from which any order

of
n ia r s h a s derived inco me ?
A The order of calce d Augustin ians to which the parish
.

friar of this city belonge d d i d not possess nor does it possess , ,

,
here properties of any kind ; b ut this lack of prope rty the par
,

ish friar k n e w well how to s u ppiy ingeniously conve r ting th e ,

church its el f into an element f o r his speculation— quit e lucra
tive fo r h e h ad a monopoly o n the s ale o f candle s so that n o
—

p ar i s hioner could bring or light a candle in the ch urch which '

did not bear the parochial mark o r s e al the acolyt es rej e cting ,

ail candles n o t h e ar in g t h e said s e al

Moreover the parish .

friar had all the sacristans can i o ned when All Saints Day and ‘
’ '

1 74
 T/ze Sen a t e Documen t an d Roma n m n
the commemoration of the faithful saints arrived to lay hold ,

o f the candles— the o fferi n g of the parishioners— at the doors

o f the church and n o t t o light them ( except some few

, which ,

really were lighted until they were consumed for the consola
tion o f the public ) and to bring them o ut again through the
doors o f the sacristy to resell them t he parish priest vainly e n ,

d e avo r i n g t o justify this diabolical action by the saying that if ,

they were to be lighted they would be missed by the other ,

purchasers .

The image of the Holy Patron Saint Sebastian martyr was , ,

another element o f inexhaustible industry and immense pro fit

to the friar curate Inside th e town and outside or in the bar
.
,

rios it was carried on a platform by a custodian a canting fel

, ,

lo w going from house to house and askin g alms in the name

, ,

o f the image ; alms consisting of money according to the fol ,

lowing invariable t ar ifi : For leaving the image in a house from

the morning till the evening tellin g the rosary o n its arrival ,

and another rosary o n its departure two pesos For staying in , .

a house half an hour telling o n e ro sary half a peso For r e

, , .

maining in a house a whole night to go to bed as they said , , ,

telling the rosary twic e two pesos This p er igr inat io n of the
, .

im age or of the saint as the ge nerality o f the people said was

, ,

continuous having been converted from time imme mo r i al i n t o

,

a modus vivendi o f the friar who had ord ered the custodian to
.
.

turn in every Sunday o f the week a sum not less than 28 pesos .

These domiciliary visits o f the image were considered by

the people as a divine mercy and their giv ing of alms as a vir ,

t ue ; wherefore the poorest houses that did not possess one

cent raised a wind although in a ruinous manner in order to
, , ,

have the satisfaction of shelte rin g the image an d its custodian

during its p er ig r in at io n s th rough the barrios o f this parish I .

shall rela te here a comical adventure which occurred to the

image and the custodian I t came the turn of the saint to visit .

t h e barrio of San Francisco abutting on the jurisdiction o f the ,

pueblo o f Rosario and the image once there a resident o f ah

, ,

other barrio known as Tangob within the limits o f the said

, ,

pueblo o f Rosario and adjoining that where said image was as

, ,

he was especially devoted to it having been a resident of this ,

city invited it and caused it to be conducted to his house

,
.

At this th e lieutenant of the barrio of Tangob zealous of

, ,
'

the integrity o f the rights o f visit of the image of the titular

pat ron of his pueblo (for in this province each parish of friars
had its image o f a male o r female saint f er the purpose in
ques tion each rivalling the other in propagating a flood o f mir
,

acles) so soon as he saw the image which was visiting his bar
,

r io was not tha t o f the virg i n of the rosary but that o f St Se , .

bastian reported the fact to his curate wh o was also a friar

,
, .

This occurred about the year 1 885 or 1 8 86 .

The latter upon learning o f s o unjust and unexpecte d an

,
.

intrusion sent Cuadr illeros to the said barrio o f Tangob with

,
,

orde rs to arrest the image and the custodian The latter being .

apprised or informed o f the danger succeeded in restoring the ,

image t o its o wn barrio that is o f San Francisco thus escap , , ,

ing detection .

This fanaticising practice of the friars in causing the in .

.

1 75
 T/ze Sen a t e Documen t ’
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’

an a

ages of the s aints to be carried around for the pur pose of mak
ing mone y i s e mph at ically an athematized by the Valentine con
,
'

cilium which in its fourth section title three chapte r eight

, , , , ,

orders That under pain of excommun ication neither from

the temples nor even from the monasteries shall be taken from
the altar relics of saints t o a place where they shall be presented
to the people in order to make lucre out of them .
"

7 What political functions were actually exercised by the

.

parish priests in the islands under Spanish rule ?

A Besid es those they were legally called upon to perfor m
. ,

intervening in man y acts of the municipal government such as ,

putti ng their 0 K ” on the reports prepared by the former . . ,

takin g part in the municipal elections they acte d ultravire s , .

committing the gravest abuses and scandals: If the municipal

captains formerly known as g o b e r n ad o r c i ll o s did not follow
, ,

the suggestions good or bad of the friar whatever their pur

, , ,

p ort they had one foot in j ail and the other in their hou se
,
.

If the municipal captain did not get the sympathy o f the friar ,

but rather h is antipathy through ignorance o f how to get ,

along with the latter or for other reasons he was treated with , ,

harshness and frequently fined by the governor and as a slave

, ,

by the commander of the detachment of the civil guard although ,

the latter might be a mere corporal By reason of these vexa .

tions to be appointed municipal capt ain was considered at

, ,

least t o ward the end of the Spanish rule as a calamit y and ruin ,

ous ; and I know many munici pal captains who in order to get ,

rid of the office adroitly caused them to be prosecute d for the

,

simulated offen se of prevarication the punishment for such o f ,

fence being nothing more than disqualification In the matter .

of actions e ither c ivil or criminal if t h e p ar i s h friar interested

, ,
'

himself o n behalf of either of the parties liti gant wheth er he ,

were right or wrong t h e opposing party ran the risk o f losing ,

t h e case because everyone abandoned him

, His lawyer aban .

d o n e d him if he were a Filipino and the district attorney an d ,

even the j udge would declare themselves agai nst him The .

friars enjoyed the greatest influence for they were feared as ,

men having po wer Many governors general have ceased to . -

act in these islands long before completing their legal term o f

office because they have incurred the displeasure o f the friars
, .

The same thing happened to a g reater degree with the heads of

the provinces who incur red the ill feeling o f the parish -

priests .

Everybody in cluding the Peninsula Spaniards dared not

,
,

incur the enmity of the friars unless they desired to see them ,
~

selves some day wounded in their personal di gnity Here is a .

disagreeable case o f this kind : A certain j udge o f the first in

stance o i this district o n e of the most worthy and upright oili ,

c ial s I hav e e ver known against whom it seemed the parish

,

priest harb ored ill w ill was one day in the parish house t hrough ,

o n e of those special circumstances where courtesy overrides

valor together with some gentlemen friends and satellites o f

,
,

the friar It happened that it was the hour for preparing the
.

table for dinner and the friar following the saying tha t , ,

Everyone has a right to his o wn opinion ” called his steward ,

before the assembled guests and said to him in T ag alo : Look ,

1 76
 Tn e Sen a t e D ocumen t ’
Roma n zr m
'

ana

art B— l
, Never have there been s e en within this convent so
many monks together who formerly humble threw aside the , ,

mask of their alleged gentleness and furious defied the power , ,

o f a whole cabi net Satiated with so much diatribe against t h e

.

poor minister and affecting gravity like the fathers of an

,

ecumenical council who were about to treat of a heresy the y

, ,

dete rmined to send an eloquent appeal to the first au thority of

the islands in which declaring themselves the faithful inter
, ,

pr et er s of the sentiments of these puebl os they se t forth tha t ,

implant in g in the country o f the civ il registrati on and ci vil

matr imony would inevi tably produce a serious change in th e
public orders ; wher efor t hey stated the n atives reject t hem as
, ,

dist ur bing and attacking their tradi tional and pious practi ces ,

and ended by praying that the said civil code in so far as it r e

iam d t o civ il registration an d civi l matrimony as above should , ,

be suspended Either as the result o f th is petition o r as t hat

. ,

o f many others which were undoubte dly sent by th e friars of

ot her provinces t o the same superior authority th e ce le brat ed ,

civil registration and civil matrimony were declare d in suspense

b y the government of the motherland I shall not fail to t e .

co rd her e that these pueblos notwithstandi ng the pro test o f the ,

fr iars , did not refuse t h e said implantation which althou gh i t , ,

i n tr oduced a great novelty in their manner of life was e s ,

teemed as a caress from an em inently liberal government .

When a zealous director general of the civil administration -

decreed as a sanitary measure that bodies should not be ex

posed wi th in the churches and that funeral ceremonies in the ,

presence of the body should not be conducted as this wise

measure also attacked t h e treasury of the friars the latter h e
came e xcited like an immense ant hill (guy am
,

an gpul a) t hat is
'

trod upon not desiring to obey t h e said d ecree but ra t her a

,

communication from the archbis hop establishing precisely the

co ntrar y alleging that the latter was their superior Such is
, .

t h é harmony th at existe d between the friars an d their pr elate s

and th e governors of Spain in t he s e islands .

9 What fees were actuall y collected by the par ish pr iest s

.

for marriages burials and christe nings

, ,

A During the Spanish rule t h e parish pr iest o f t his cit y

.

charged : For each marriage six pesos and fifiy ce n ts be sides ,

-

th e prese nts mad e by the wedded couple consisti ng o f chickens ,

and hens ; for burials according t o the following t ar ifl : For

,

each burial with prayers of an ad ult if the latte r were a pure

, , ,

nat ive three pesos fifty cents ; for the burial of a Chinese
.

mestizo thr ee pe sos s e v en t y five cents ; for fir s t class inter

,
-

ment of a child with c o fii n and in a pantheon o r niche t hi rt y

,
,
.

seven pe sos and fif ty cents ; if the deceased were the child of

Chinese mestizos a larger amount was charged ; for a third
, .

class interment of an adult with c o fli n and in a niche fif t y four , ,

-

pesos and thirty cents ; for a second class inte rment o f an adult -
.

with comu and niche ninety pesos and thirty cents ; for a fir s t
,

class interment with co fii n and niche of an adult up to two ,

hundred and twenty pesos was charged It should be note d .

that for interments of Chinese mestizos o f any kind adults and ,

children a larger sum was charged than that designated in eac h

,

scale for natives These fees were arbitrary and very excess ive
. .

1 78 as
“
 Tbs Sen a t e Documen t an a
’
Roma n ism
for the parish priest kept from the public the leg iti mate schedule
o f fees published by the worthy archbishop
o f Manila Senor
Do n De salio S de Santa Justa
,

.
y R ufin a so as not to be g o v ,

erned t hereby as it did not yi eld so much money

,

In order t hat it may be seen how e x cessive were t h e pa

.

r o c h i al fees charged by the friar I state that in the schedules

o f th e said archbishop Santa Justa y R fi
u n a which I have read
, .

, ,
th e charge for a baptism was only a an d l e v alue d at about 6
‘

c .

ce nts ; f o r a marriage 5 pe sos ; f o r the in te rment with prayers

,

Of 8 Child 1 5 peso s ; for each inte rment with prayers o f an

, ,

. , ,

adult double this amount that is 8 pesos ; for each fir s t c las s

, - e

burial ther e was no charge gre ater than 25 pesos if I am not

,

mist aken .

B esides the parish friar of this city when any p erson

, ,

died ( and this was th e most hateful act an d the most worthy of
public animadversio n and of the anathema of all peoples) caused
t o be investigated t hrough his b es t familiar or sacristan the
, ,

amount of the estate o f the decea sed Should the latte r have .

bee n weal thy o r well m d e b e compelled ( an d no tear s o r sobs

a

could stay him) the fa mily thereof to have a funeral of the

highest possible class and never allowing it to be of a lower
,

cla s s — wi t h one prayer for instance , .

Every rich resident wh o should viola t e this Draconian man

”
date wou d be l t h o d
u by the friar as though he were a great
’

filibuster ; that is a gr eat enemy not of his but o f Spain

, , , .

One day a fai rly well to do resident ( as the saying goes) -

”
died and as his deat h occurred in Holy Week and the inte r
, .

ment shoul d h ave been made o f necessity o n Good Friday it ,

was performed with but one prayer since the solemnity of the ,

day would no t pe rmit any other kind of treatment but th e artful ,

friar desiring t o get what he failed to sec ure t hrough provi

,

dential chance compelle d the f amily o f the deceased to give the

,

church 40 pe s os f o r masses a t $1 each notwithstanding the fact ,

t hat the fees chargeable f o r the interment had been paid This
satani c act h as left bitte r tr ace s in my soul as I was on e o f the
.

ber e aved and a relative o f th e dece ased Could a greater ln .

i q uit y have been committed ?

Q How were t hey (the fees) fix ed if you know
. ,

A By the friars themselves at their o wn sweet will

. .

Q What if any was the e fiec t o f such fees u pon marriages ?

.
, ,

A None ; be c ause as thi s s acrament produced pleas ure and

.

t h e honeymoon there are no f ees however high to restrain it

, , , .

1 1 What d o you t hink is the chief ground for hosti lity t o

"
.

t h e fr iars as parish priests

A The abuses ty rannies and countl ess immoraliti es com
. , ,

mi t te d safely s yn th ac iz e d in the facts recorded an d in many

,

others n o doubt worse o f which the deponent has no k nowledge

, ,

as they were committe d elsewhere and must have part aken of ,

another characte r owin g t o a diversity of conditi ons ; and I say

safely ” because in th e Philipp ines no o n e could call the friar
t o account for his acts And if any governor allowed himself
.

at any time t o bridle the friars his rashness cost him dearly he , ,

b eing d ischarged from his office .

Q D oes it (th e hostility ) exist ag ainst all the orders

.

A. Against the Augustinian s c al ced an d un c alc ed ; D omin ,

1 79
 T/ze Sen a t e Documen t d Roma n zr m
'

an
l

loans an d Franciscans I believe it did not exist ag ainst the .

Paulists because their mission being solely to manage the

,

conciliar y seminaries— the nursery of t h e native clergy— they

have no occasion living as they do outside the country to allo w
,
.

t he ir conduct to be known to the pueblo With respect to the .

Jesuit s I do not make bold to assert whether or not such hos

t ilit y e x ists since they have not occupied curacies in this island
,

o f Luzon since their expulsion but only in that of Mindanao ,

although I am in clin e d t o be lieve that the Jesuits enjoy here in

,

Luz on public esteem as good teachers of youth With regar d .

to th e Capuchins th e Car olines will take care to judge them

,
.

Q Why the diffe r ence

.

A It is d ue to th e cir cumstance s alread y set fort h in t h e

.

foregoing answer .

1 2 Ch arge s have been mad e against the friars th at m any

.

o f their number caus e d the deportati on of Filipinos me mbers of ,

th eir parishes and that in some in stance s they were guilty of

,

physi cal cruelty What if anything do you know o n these. , ,

subjects 7
A The deportations of th ousands of Filipinos to t h e d is
.

tant islands in the so uth of the Ar ch ipe lago to the Marianas , ,

and even t o the Spanish colonies i n Africa were in great par t ,

the work o f the friar s An d now to the proof : A few o f the .

residents of Villa finding ourselves one night g athered in the ,

convent between 6 and 7 o clock carrying out against o ur will

,
’
,

th e tiresome custom of occasionally exhibiting ourse lves to the

fr iar t o erase from his feverish imagin ation the evil prac eou
patiou t hat he might perhaps have conceived against us b e ,

lieving us to be fil ib us t e r s Among t h e group was a cultured .

young man a short time before arrived from the Peninsula ,

qualified to be admitted as a licentiate in civil law who had fol ,

lowed his law studies partly in the University of Santo Tomas

and partly in the Universit y of Madrid having passe d many o f ,

th e years of his youth in t h e capital of Sp ai n and in that o f

Valenci a and as the friar did not know him and it being the
, ,

first t ime that he had se en him — and the las t— h e asked him :
A n d who art t hou To which th e youth replied I Fat her ,

am one of Of the brande d inquire d the monk .

No Fat her I am a resident of the bar rio o f Mataasnalupa at

'

"
, , .
”
t h e command of your revere c n e T wo weeks had hardly .

pas s ed when I learne d t o the great sorrow o f my soul ; t hat th e

,

po or young man wh o divided h is t ime between books and ,

chicken raisin g was taken from his house by a c ouple o f muni

,

c ipal guard s by or de r of the parish friar an d taken to th e capital

o f t his provi nce where he was placed in t h e hands of th e gov

,

cruor who not knowing wha t to do with him t ransferred h im

, , ,

to Manila H e afte r suffering incredible miseries inherent t o a

. ,

long voyage eventually landed in one o f the Spanish colonies

,

in Africa where he died wept by the Spanish governor o f th e

, ,

colony because of his learning and fin e traits o f characte r and

th e services he had rendered in the dependencies of the govern
ment as an amanuensis .

1 3 What is t o be said of the morality of the native priest s ?

.

A The few native priests that e x ercised the duties of

.

curate s of souls i t may be stated with certainty had among

, ,
1 80
 T/ze Sen a t e Documen t an a
’
Roma n i r m
Senor a Mariano Garcia doctor o f sacred theology rector o f .

the College of S an J ose honorary audito r o f the rota o f the

,

nunciatur e i n Spain an d the dignity o f choir leader ; D o n

,

Vicente Garcia also a docto r o f th eo logy provi s or o f the

, , ,

bishopric of Nueva Caceres and later penitentiary canon by

competitive examinati o n ; Don Telesfero Trini d ad cho irmaster ;
,

Don S abino Pad ailla treasurer ; Don Simon Ramires Ledo , ,

canon ; Don Pedro Pelaz doctor o f theology canon and c ap it u , ,

lary vi car in a v acant see o f this archbishop ; Don Gregorio

Balleste r os docto r o f theology and i n s acred canons prebend ;
, , ,

Don Faustino Billaf r an c a doctor o f theo logy ; Don Marian o ,

Sevilla also doctor of t heolog y ; Don Man uel Rojas lice ntiate
, ,

of theology an d many others I have forgotten There were

,
.

al so native priests who flouri shed in the un iversi ty c loisters of

the po n t ific al university o f Sant o Tomas of Manila such as th e
impe rishable and unfortunate Senor Don Jose Pur g e s prince
,

and leadin g light of the said cloister doc t or of philosophy and ,

theolog y prebend of the said c at hr e d al church who died on the

, ,

scaffold to g e ther wit h the no less illustrious priests Senor

, ,

Don Jac in t o Zamora curate o f the chapel of th e said cathe dral

.

church and Senor Don M ariano Gomez pari sh curate of the

, ,

puebl o o f Bacoor in Cavite victims these three of th e hatred

of the vengeful friars Fathers Abaya Buendia and others
, , ,

. , ,

difficult to menti on .

1 5 What do you think would be the re sult of an atte mpt of

.

the friars to return to their parish es

A The continuance of this disast rous war assassinations
.
, ,

profaning with them sacred places in view o f the constant ,

ebul lition of m ind of the Filipinos against these habited people ;

and i n man y pueblos if not in all the suspension o f w orship
, ,

and of many highest practices o n t h e part of th e native faithful

and above all apostacy That in the event which I do not
,

.
, , ,

anticipate of th e government of the United Stat e s determining

,

on t h e re turn of the friars t o their curacies it would commit a ,

politi cal err or of incalculable gravity consisting in the divi sion ,

'

of the hold over the persons of the Filipinos , wherein t h e f r i ar

curates who will not cease to be considered as foreig ner s even
, ,

though they be seculariz ed as they have their convents and ,

principal semin aries in Spain would have the sway over the ,

soul whi ch is the most noble part of man — th e s aid govern

—
_

ment remainin g with the body the resul t of this being tha t the ,

country would be governed politically and religiously by t wo

elements of distinct nat ion ality which would give ri s e t o grave ,

di st urbances .

1 6 What do you think would be the e fiec t in the islands of

.

the appointment of an Ameri c an archbishop ?

A The outcome will tell
. .

1 7 What do you think of the establishment o f schools in

.

which opportunity would be given the ministers of any church

t o i nstruct the pupils i n religi on half an hour before the regu
lar hour ?
A The idea seems to me to be good and laudable because
.
,

t h e simultaneous teach ing o f religion and of other scie nce s

1 82
 Tft e Sen a t e D ocumen t Roma n zs m
'

an a

would save time in behalf of the pupil and would result in ,

economy in the public expenses .

Q Would this satisfy the Cat holics o f the islands in t h eir

.

de sire to unite religion with education ?

A Greatly ; for the very simple reason that religion would
.

be taught by competent persons o f recognized ability and the ,

lay professors could devote themselves in tur n to the benefit of

all— to teaching the other branches of lear ning intrusted to
them .

1 8 Will not the f act that parish priests whoever they may
.
,

be wil l have no political functions to perform and no political

i n flue n ce and must depend on the voluntary contributions of
, ,

their parishioners f or their support very much change the rela ,

tion o f the priest to the people ? '

A There is n o d o ub t that it would result in a very great

.

change in those relations and this change to my mind would , , ,

be very salutary for the soul because the measure would accord ,

with what is established in the sacred canons and in ecclesias

t i cal discipline which order that the priests shall not meddle in
,

temporal thin gs in order that they may not be swerved from the
exercise o f their sacred ministry .

1 9 What d o y o u think would be the e ii e c t o f the govern

.

ment expropriating the agricultural property justly belonging to

the friars paying what it is w orth s elling it o ut i n small par
, ,

ce ls and usi ng the proceeds for a school fund ?

,

A The government may decree the expropriation mentioned

.

in the question If it cannot be carried into e ii e c t owing to the

.

thousand difficultie s th at may arise the government may then ,

te mporarily lease the said properties and sublease them in par ,

ce ls to small holders appointing employes and establish ing s pe

,

c i al o fli ce s for the administration of the same

Jo s n TEMPLO
.

Villa of Lipa Sept 2 4 1 9 0 0 ,

.
, .

T H E P R OBLE M or TH E FRI ARS .

(T r an sl at i on
In the newspaper call ed El Progreso of the at h of the pres ,

ent month o f Septe mber I have read that the civil commission ,

on entering o n the discharge of its duties distributed among ,

several prominent Filipinos some interrogatories the questions ,

in which were limited to the pending problem of the religious

o r d ers .

Proceeding upon the hypothesis that the civil commission

desir es to hear every Filipino upon the said questions I proceed ,

t o reply to the 2 9 questions o f the said interrogatories although ,

I have not received directly any copy thereof

1 H o w long have you lived in the Philippines ?
A Since I was born I am 6 5 years o f age
.

.
.
.

2 In what parts of the islands have you lived ?

A In Zambales where I first saw the light Manila Cavite
.

, , ,
. ,

Bulacan Pampanga Pangasinan Tayabas La Laguna Mor ong

, , , , , ,

Ilocos Sur Albay Iloilo Bohol Cebu and the two Camari nes , , ,

in the capital o f which the city Nueva Caceres I have been

, , ,

,
,

established since the year 1 89 3 .

1 83
 ’
Tne Sen a t e Documen t Rom a n zr m
'

an a

3 . much personal Op portunity had you before 1 8 9 6 to

H ow
observe the relation s existing betwee n the friars and the pe 0 pie
o f their parishes in a r e lig io n s in a so cial and in a political , ,

A So v e ry many were the personal opportunities I had t o

.

make the said observations mentioned in the question that it is ,

in every way impossible for me to specify the number of such

opportunities S uffice it to say that from the age o f 1 5 years
( I repeat that I am I have almost daily witnessed acts
.
,

which have made more deep seated in me the conviction that -

the friar o r rather the system which gives as a r e sult the friar
, ,

is incompatible with the liberty and happiness of the people .

4 How many friars have you known pe r sonally ?

A I have known many Domin ica n A ugustinian R e co lle t t o
.

.
, , ,

and Franciscan friars ; perhaps 2 0 0 of them and having been in

rather intimate relations with some of them I can assert that
,

the best of them were tyrants who found much pleasure in ,

saying : The Filipino must be given bread with one hand and
rattan beating s with t h e other ”
In S pain by merely cutting .
,

o f! a thousan d head s Don Carlos would reign and consequently

, ,

the kingdom of peace of order and of justice would prevail

, , .

5 From what class of society were they drawn in Spain ?

Do the d ifl e r e n t orders d ifie r at all in this respect ?
.

A Those I have known belonged t o farmers families and

.
’
,

of them some Spani ards were wont to say They were caught
w ith a lasso on the field of Spain ” In this regard there is no .

difference appreciable to my mind between the different religious

orders ; and although it is to be presumed that among the friars
there may be one or more from a distinguished family I have ,

not had the pleasure of knowing any i n d iv id ual of this class .

6 What agricultural or business or residence proper t y in

.

any part of the islands d o you know from which any order o f
friars has derived income ? Describe it as well as you can ?
A The friars have propertie s devoted to ag riculture in the
.

pueblos of Calamba Binan and S an Pedro Tunasan de la La

, ,

guna ; in Muntinlupa province o f Manila ; in Guadalupe and

,

San Felipe Nery where they also hav e quarries being worked
,
,

by lessees ; in Imus an d other p ueblos of Cavite ; in B ulacan

,
,

and ih Cagayan I n Manila and Cebu they must have business

.

property y ielding an income As regard s business they sell .

,

scapularies in the sanctuary o f S an Sebastian girdles in door ,

way o f San Augustin , rosaries i n th at of Santo Domingo an d
I am
,
o ld habits and roses of Jericho in that of San Francisco
.

unable to describe the suburban and urban propert ies o f the

friars
.

.7 What political functions were actually exercised by the

parish priests in the island s under Span ish rule ?
A The following : Their report was decisive for the i n c ar
.

ceration and deportation of a Filipino without his bein g ap ,

prised o f the reason or permitted to present his defense Their

, .

report also determined the appointment of a public o fli c ial so ,

that no one could be a local authori t y justice o f th e peace o s , ,

beza de carungay etc without their will an d acquiescence

, .
, .

More than this without the 0 K ” of the curate friar the ao

, . .
,

counts o f a g o b er n ad o r c il lo teniente or mun icipal captain were

, ,

1 84
s e Sen a t e Documen t an d Roma n ir m
being the natural result In 1 866 or 1 867 Dona Lucia del Fierro .
,

d ied in the pueblo o f S an Felip e t o wh ich parish the pueblo of ,

Li n d o l belonged The curate who was a Be c o l e t o friar Fray

. ,
,

Mariano Rin con pr esented a bill which at the first gl an ce showed

'

it was most excessive sending word to the family that the de ,

ceas ed would n o t be b uried if the bill were not first p md He

.

was to ld th at he would be paid immed iately but to kindly pr o ,

duce the teriti i n order to see what was chargeable for each ‘

i tem it bein g worthy of note that the bill o nly contai ned the
,

aggregate of the fees and did not set forth the account in d e ,

tail The curate replied that he would present the tariff d uring
. -

th e burial which he again asserte d would not be carried o ut if

,

he did not rece ive the fees beforehand The curate was pai d .

t o his entir e sat isfaction but he did not produce the tariff and ,
,

the subscriber became t h e object of his animosity because he ,

believe d th at as I was a nephew of D ona Lucia the idea of asking

,

him for a detailed account and the production of the tariff had
come from me At that time I wished to ask for Amer ican
na t uralization and I mad e ste ps looking toward it for fear o f
.

being deporte d ; but Father Rincon fell into disgrace among the
friars going it seems to the extent o f fle eing from the con
, , ,

vent o f R ec ol e t o s and this relieved me of his revenge my rela

, ,

ti ves and friends succeeding in causing me to desis t from my

purpo se of changing nationality .

They did not charge fees for baptisms but for the candl es ,

t hey furn is hed o r for the soundi ng of the bells or for t h e play
, ,

i ng of the organ of th e church The fees which impose a bur

,
.

den o u marriages were the cause of the poor not marrying and
l iving in concubinage In order to put an end t o this evil. ,

which reduced the in come of the curate the friars succeeded in ,

sec uring from General Terrero if my memory does n o t deceive ,

me the deportation o f all who were living in concubinage

, .

How many th us li ving departed from Z amb ales never more to ,

return to their co untry through having had to live in an un

healthy and deadly pl ace ! The pretext for this was the moral
i ty the purity of the customs and the cleanin g out from the
, ,

pr ovinces of fili b us t e r s ; but the fact was that the fr iars were
defending their income and to him who wished to marry and ,

did not pay in advance they were wont to say : You either pay
o r go t o deportation for concubinage .

1 0 What was the morality o f the friars as parish priests ?

.

How much Opportunity have you had to observe ? Can you give
me i nst ances ? If so please do so , .

A I have known curate friars who were of exemplary con

.

duct highly virtuous r ei igi o us and good Catholics But I

, , , .

h ave also known many friars so immoral and cynical that t hey ,

were wont to say confidentially when they were intox icat ed

, , ,

that they had a great advantage over those who we re not priests
l
'

i n the conquest of good looking women as they relied on th e -

confessional and through it they bec ame apprised o f facts

,

which made easy the attack assault and taking o f t h e strong

hold In 1 850 when I was 1 5 years o f age Don J ose Sanchez
, ,

.
, ,

Guerre ro alcalde mayor o f Z amb e le s began a war wi t hout

, ,

truce against the friars o f that provi nce and all Of them ex , ,

cept one were carried to Manila not only because they had wo
, ,
1 86
 T/ze Sen a t e Doc umen t ’
Roma n zr m
‘

an a

men and children but also because o f their scandalous life

, ,

without caring a whit whether the whole world were apprised

o f the fact that they h ad what they c all e d t h e i r wife and pro
’

geny Vide in the work o f Canamaque Recuerdos de Filipi

.
,

nas ” an appendix relative to the friars

, .

1 1 What d o y o u think is the chief ground for hostility to

.

the friars as parish pri ests ? Does it exist against all the o r
ders ? W h y the difference ?
’

A The pri ncipal cause for the animosity an d hatred of the

.

friars lies in the abuses committed by them as curates relying ,

o n t h e e x i s t i n g legi slation which elevated them to the category ,

o f petty kings o f the pueblos where only that was done which ,

seemed t o them advisable Fray Sebastian Mayn e r a R e co le t o .

, ,

acting parish curate of the pueblo o f S an Na rcisco in Za mbales ‘

, ,

once said t o a g o b e r n ad o r c illo when I was present This o r , ,

der o f the alcalde mayor wil l be obeyed but will n o t be carried ,

o ut.
"
This statement gave o n e to understand that i mmediately
succe eding the signature o f the alcalde mayor it had to be ,

stated t h at the order would be obeyed ; the go b e r n ad o r c illo

l imiting himself to this fo r mality leaving in a quiet and pas s ive ,

m anner t h e order receive d to become a dead letter Neither the .

Paulist Fathers n o r the Capuchins are disliked in the islands o f

Luzon Visayas and Mindanao ; neither are the Jesuits in the
, ,

two islands first named and in my judg ment this d ifie r e n ce is

,

due with respect t o the Paulists to their hav ing devoted them
, ,

selves solely t o teachin g ; with respect t o the Capuchins to ,

t heir being new t o the country an d never having filled any cur
acy i n the Philippines ; and as regards the J esuits they are liked ,

in Luzon and the Visayas because they limit themselves o n

these islands to te aching like the Paulist Fathers ; but o n Min ,

danao where they had curacies they are as much disliked and
, ,

hated as the individuals o f the other r eligious orders .

1 2 Charges have been made against the friars that many

.

'

o f their number have caused the deportation o f Filipinos mem ,

!

bers o f their parishes and that in some inst ances they were
,

guilty o f physical cruelty What if anything do you know on .

, ,

these subjects ?
A A Filipino prayer written by me long before I had any
notice O f the int e rrogatori es t o which I am replying will an
.
,

swer this question satisfactorily Here is the sa id Filipino .

prayer :
My God and Master ! Have compassion upon us the Fili ,

pinos ; protect us fro m the Dominicans Augustinians Recole , ,

t o s and Franciscans
,
By instig ations o f these f r 1 ar s thousands
.

o f Fili pinos have been to rn from their ho mes some to eat the ,

hard and black bread o r the Pin aua o f deportation and others
, ,

t o shed blood in streams at executions They were c e n d uc t e d .

to the calabooses and there they were suspended from a beam

,

with a pile o f rocks o n their shoulders and several others hang s

'

ing from their feet and their hands Suddenly the cord b y .
.

which they were suspended was loosened and they fell in a heap ,

o n the floor where if they were n o t killed they s ufie r e d d i s lo

, , ,

c ati ons and fractures Later they were lashed on the soles of
.

the feet o n the calves o n the backside o n t he shoulders and

, , , ,

o n th e stomach Their fingers and toes and privates were

.

1 87
 T/t e Sen a t e
J

squeezed and mangled with pincers They were given electric .

shocks They were given to drink vinegar or warm water w ith

.

s alt in e x c ee s ive quantities so that t hey might vomit whate ver .

they h ad eaten and which had not passed through the pylorus
,

into the small intestine Their feet were placed in the sto cks . ,

and they were compelled to lie o n the ground without even a

bad mat the mosquitos chinch bugs fie as an d other insects
, ,
-
,

sucking their blood and the rats at times coming in their mad, , ,

race and biting to render worse their sorry and afii ic t e d situation
'

.
,

They were given nothing to eat or drink except from one after
noon to another the unhappy imprisoned Filipinos thus ex
,

p er ie n c i n g the tortures of hunger an d of thirst And after .

caus ing them to suffer oth er horrible tortures invented by the

inquisition of omi nous memory squalid c areworn attenuated , , , ,

hardly able to stand erect many were taken to the field where , ,

they died by shooti ng for such was the will o f the friars who , ,

every day asked for blood—Filipino blood the blood o f those —

who in this country stood out by reason Of their knowledge ,

their uprightn ess or their wealth Thou knowest my God

that in 1 8 7 2 the Filipino fathers D on Mariano Go mez Don Jose
.
, , ,

Burgos and Don Jacinto Zamora died on the scaffold becau se

they Opposed the friars usurping the curacies Of the priests as
,

,
'

in the end they did usurp them because the friars were almost ,

omnipote nt at that time and there was no human power to ,

arrest their will Neither are we ignorant my God that in

"

.
, ,

1 89 7 there were shot to death on the field of Bagumbayan the

the Filipino priests Don Severino Diaz Don Gabriel Prieto and , ,

Don Ino c encio Herrera because the two fir s t n amed objec te d to -

the curate O f Naga a F r ancisca n friar collecti ng some parochial

,

, ,

fees belonging to the said Father Diaz as curate of the cathedral ,

o f Nueva Caceres Thou also knowest my God and my Lord

'

that notwithstandin g that Dr Don Jose Riz al the unfortunate

.
, ,

.
,

Macario Valentin and innumerable other Filipinos were wholly

,

innocent they also succu mbed On the field of Bagumbayan shot

, ,

t o death . Neither is it u nknown to Thee my God that a multi , ,

tude o f Filipin os have remained marked forever as the result of

blows and cruel treatment they have received among them ,

General Lucban who has a rib sprung and will probably carry
, ,

it through life Inspire Lord the American a uthorities with

.
, ,

th e idea of making an ex amination and excavations in the ,

Monastery of Santa Clara O f Manila for about fifteen years or ,

more ago a nun went upon the roof of the said monastery and
there loudly begged for help — a scandalous fact which many
Man il ai t e s can not but recall Expel Lord expel fro m the .
, ,

Philippines the friars before there is powdered glass i n t h e rice ,

we eat and poison in the water we drink and before Dr Manuel

Jerez Burgos to whom an an n o n ymo us missive was addressed
, .

saying : Lara died to day ; thou shalt die t o morrow shall be

‘

'
-
-

,
’

assassinated T ake Lord take from our sight the habits o f

.
, ,

the friars which recall t o us days of mourning and afii ic t i on

,
,

days O f prisons deportations tortures and executions of beings

, , ,

who are dear to us whose unhappy end still draws tears from
,

o ur eyes and fills our he arts with anguish Do more yet my .

,

Lord and God dissolve annihilate destroy throughout the

, , ,

world the monastic order whose b y laws constitute a woeful -

'

1 88
|
iTue Sen a t e Documen t an a
’
Roma n ir m
17 What do you think of the establishment o f scho ols in
which Opportunity would be given the ministers of any church
.

to in st ruct the pupils i n religion half an hour before the regular

hour Would th is satisfy the Catholics of the islands in their
desire to unite religion with education Q
A As I am one of those who oppose the freedom of con
.

science I fin d the ide a of establishing schools in the manner

,

i ndicate d in the question an excellent one which is also advi e ,

able i n order that there may be equality before the law The .

Catholic is not compelle d to become a Protestant and why ,

should the Prote stant be compelled t o become a Catholic ? Why

should Catholicism alone be taught It is clear that such a
determination would not satisfy the Catholic of the islands b e ,

cause everywhere the Catholic is intransigeant and headstrong ,

and never ce ases preaching that liberali sm is a sin without ,

seeing that he confounds religion with politi cs and that h

thereby declares himself incompatible with liberty and prog ress ,

he fin din g him self in his element where absolutism and the

magister dixit reign To my mind the said schools should be
.

est ablished without regard to the Catholics ; for it is just that

all shoul d enjoy the same benefits Of in struction in their r e
s p e c t i ve religion since all are to contribute to the popular and
,

state burdens .

1 8 Will not the fact that parish priests whoever they may
.
,

be wi ll have no political functions to perform an d no political

, ,

influence and must depe nd on the voluntary contributions Of

,

their pari shioners for their support very much change the t e ,

lation of the priest to the people

A Yes s ir ; but bearing in mind that the friar is deeply
. ,

hate d and that his presence alone s ufli c e s to anger the edu
,

o s ted p eople O f the country if the curate is a friar sooner o r

, ,

late r there will be a disturbance o f public order n o t wi t h s t an d ,

i n g the new conditi ons for a special and important circumstance

,

must not be lost sight of Very rare is the Filipin o family that.

has no cau se for complaint against the friar either becau s e he ,

was influential in the deportation or execution of some indi

vidual thereof o r because it has received some other kind Of
,

seri ous ofl en se .

1 9 What do you think would be the e ffect of the govern

.

ment expropriating the agricultural property justly belonging

to the friars paying what it is worth selling it out in small
, ,

parcels and u , sing the proceeds for a school fund

A The real estate O f the friars was illegally secured as I
expect will be proved at the proper time by those i nte rest ed ;
.
,

but supposing there are ag ric ultural properties j ustly belongin g

to them t h e expropriation to which the question refers would
,

be a special and signal favor done by the A merican govern

ment to the Philippines which would be very grate ful for i t
,

Expel the friars ; sell th e real estate they withhold and I am ,

either seeing visions or a great step toward the peace we all

,

long for will have been taken .

JORG E G m cu mu
. F r a nn o ,
Nue v a On e ne s s , Septe mber 11 , 1 9 00 .

1 90
 T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t R om a n zr m
’ ’

an a

P AMPLONA April 8 1 1 9614

P O LIT I C O MI LIT ARY G v aR N O R
, ,

To r
u n. o

o r T H E VA LLE Y o r r u n CA G A Y AN
-

The un der s ign e d the presiden t e counselors and the ih

, , ,

habitants e n m a sse of the town o f Pamplona province o f ,

Cagayan Luz o n Philippine Islands respectfully and with the

, , , ,

greatest consideration state to y o u that having been in formed

creditably of the design o f the Spanish friars to O btain the t e
,

turn to the m o f the curacies of these towns from which they

were e x pelle d by the recent political revolution against the
Spanish sove reignty an d d o mi n at io n in the s e islands w h ich ,

had for its Ob j e ct t h e s hakin g ( ii of the g e ll in g an d hated yoke

,

Of the friars who we re maintained against the people by the

,

d e s p o t ic S p an i s h Governme nt can n o t re rain from making a

A
f
,

most e arne s t pro t e st and as k ing you to interpose your valuable

influen ce an d a uthority to the e n d that these pretensions be r e
je c te d by the person called up o n to encourage Catholicism in
this ar c h ip e lage and watch over the interests O f the Catholic
faith We also ask that you support the rights o f t h e Philip
. .

pine secular clerg y native to t h e country that they may remain

, ,

in charge o f t he parishes from which the Spani s h ecclesiastics

were expelled and of which th ey have had temporary charge as
the pastors of our souls since the beginnin g of the revolution
against the sove reignty of Spain an d of the friars w h o were
protected by the represent atives of that nation in this archi
pelag o .

For th is w e appe al to justice and equity of your excellency ,

whose life may G od preserve man y years for the welfare of

those y o u govern that the undy i n g splendor of the Catholic
,

faith we profess may be preserved .

CLEME NT F MA PU R A YA and 7 2 others .

, .

[ F ir st i n dorsement ] .

O FFICE Mi u u nv G o v an a o n
‘

SE C O N D D r s r mc r '

NOR H RN L U ON
,
,

D um m n e a r or T E Z ,

i P I May 1 2 1 9 0 0 Ap ar r , . .
, , .

Respectfully forwarded to t h e secretary t o the military

governor in the Philippines Man ila P I , , . .

Two more friars arrived h e re to day en route to Batanes

Islands making s ix in all In a l e tter handed me by one of the
, .

friars from Archbisho p Chapelle for perusal the archbishop ,

says in effect that o nly politicians are opp o sed to t h e friars

, ,

I in vite att ention in this connection to my letter t o you Of

.

recent date stati n g t h at all the people are opposed to their r e

,

turn to this valley From that time to the presen t I have been
.

more firmly con vinced t h an eve r o f the sincerity o f the people

in the matter O f the return to their p arishes and former duties
of the friars .

It would really be well to prevent their return for the pres

ent at least when the whole sentiment of the community is
,

ag ainst the m .

CH AR LE S C Hoo n .
,

Colonel Sixteenth U S Infantry Military G overnor . .

, .

1 92
 Ta e Sen a t e Docum en t ’
R oma n zs m
'

an a

Sr
'

OF RY Q Q OF T H E I Nr r nn
' '
ar ns

MI LI T AR Y Pn r u mn
'
‘

wc v n n uo a i s THE r p
f
i -

MAN IL A P
.

. I , July
O
.
,

To q
'
C MMA N D NG G I EN E RA L ,

Department O f Northern Luzon .

Sm I have the honor by direction o f the militar y gover

: ,

nor to acknowled ge receipt of a communication fro m the c om

,

manding o fli ce r secon d district of your department dated

, , ,

A pril 2 5 l ast informing this o ffice of the arrival at Aparri of

,

four Domin ican friars en r o ut e to the B at anes Islands and t e

, ,

questing that no more friars be permitted to go to the prov

in c e s within said district expres s ing in connection his very
,

grave apprehension that trouble dissension and perhaps revo , ,

la tion would be the result of r e establishing the friars in thei r -

former positions ; also a communication from Pamplona nu ,

me r o us ly signed by citizens of that place protes t in g against ,

t h e return of the friars which communication was forwarded

,

o n May 1 2 by the commanding o fli c e r o f the second district of

your department and in which he renewed his recommends

,

tions o f April 2 5 as to placing a prohibition upon the return of

friars to their former parishes .

Replying to these two communications t h e military gov ,

e r n o r d i rects me to stat e that he is prepared to assure the na

ti ve citizens Of t h e Phil ippine Islands that the followin g pro

vision will be embod i e d i n any form of ci vil government which
may hereafter be established in the ar chipelago
A s under the Constitution O f the United States complete
religious freedom is guaranteed and no minister o f r eligion can ,

b e inte rfered with o r molested in following his calling in a

peaceful an d lawful manner and there must be a complete sepa ,

rati on O f church an d s tate so here the civil government of these

,

islands here after to be established wil l give the same security

to the citiz ens thereof and gu arantee that no form o f re ligion
,

shall be forced by the government upon an y community o r upon

any citizen o f the islands ; that no ministe r of religion in fol
lo v ir i n g his callin g in a peaceful an d l a wf ul manner shall be in ,

t e r f er e d with or molested by the government or any person

;
that no public funds shall be used for the support of religious
organization o r any member thereof ; that no official process
s hall be used to collect contr ibutions from the people for the
s upport of any church priest or religious order
, ; that no min
,

i s te r o f re ligion by virtue of his being a ministe r shall e x e r

,
,

cise any public or governmental o ni c c o r authority and that the ,

s e paration of church and state must be complete and entire .

In pursuance of the policy embodied in the foregoing para

graph i t is apparent that congregations by independent indi
, , ,

vidual action so f ar as any gov e rnmental interference is con

,

cerned may re ject any clerg yman who is not acceptable to the
,

majority of the com municants o f the parish and prevent his ,

ministrations therein by s uch mean s as are suitable to a e com

p li s h the p urpose provided that any action in the premises be
,

not accompanied by application of violence .

You are therefo r authorized and requested to communicate

to all commanding officers the substance of this communica tion ,
1 94
Th e Sen a t e Documen t an d Roma n ian:
to the end that i n formation may be W i d ely dissemina t ed among
the pe op le in such a manner as to reach all concerned .

Ver y respectfully ,

E H CRO W DER . .
,

Li e ut Co l o n e 1 Thirty ninth Infant r y.

~
,
-

U S V Secretary . . .

Sr o . D OMm e o , BAT A NE s I s LAa

JUN E 2 1 1 900
,

T e ofllo Co s li l le jo s replie s to letter of June 1 3 1 9 00 from

.
,

, ,

mil itary governor se cond distr ict department of Norther n Ln

, ,

zon relative t o friars that have recent ly landed on above named

,

islands Is of the opinion that they should be dispensed w ith

.

until barrio representa t ives assemble and take the matter into
consideration Pending institution of a new form of govern
.

ment cannot decide favorable as to their permanen t s tay

, .

[First indorsement ]
H n Q Rs SE CON D Dr s r
N ORT HE RN LUZ ON '
c
'
r , .

A PARRI P I June 2 6 1 9 0 0
.

. .
, ,

Forwarded to the secretary to the military governor i n the

Philippines Man ila P I requesting instructions Eig ht friar s
, , . . .

have passe d t hr ough here for Batanes Islands .

I consider it ve r y undesirable that they should remain

CH AR LE S H O OD ,
.

Colon el Six te enth Infantr y , U ni t e d S t at e s ,

Commanding Second District .

[ Se cond indorse ment ] .

OF F I CE MI LI T ARY G OVE RNOR

MANI LA P I July 1 1 1 9 0 0
.

. .
, . , ,

Re tur ned t o the comma n d ing o fli ce r se cond district De , ,

p ar t men t of Northern Lu z on whose attention

i s invited to,

c opy of letter sent to commanding general Department of ,

Northern Luzon e xplainin g the views entertain ed by the mil i

,

tary governor on the subject matter of t h e wit hi n c ommun i ca

tion .

You are ad vis ed t hat the e ii e c t o f the recen t order est ab

l i s h i n g the D ivision o f the Philippines and its several d epart
’

ments and districts is to supersede th e provisions of orders

under which you were designated military governor of cer
tai n provinces and in all matters in which you have heretofore
,

a cted as s uch military governor you will hereaft r act as com

e

man ding o fllc e r of the se co nd dist rict D epar tment of Northern

’

Luzon
E H CRO W DE R
.

. .
,

Lieut Colone1 Thir ty ninth infantry U S V Secretary

. .
- -
, . . .

(T r an s l a t i on
TAYAB AS April 1 , 1 90 0 .

D E LE G AT E MON s
,

T o H r s RE VER E N OE , Ar o s r omc . SR . P I . .

CHA PELLE
The leading me n and residents of Tayabas respectfull y
state to y our r everence tha t t hey declare themselves t o be apos
tolic Ro man Catholic s , and as such do not hate t h e fri ars as
1 95
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t ana Roma n is m
ecclesiastics ; but be ing fully con vince d o f the in ju r y which
t h ey have done the country an d w h ich they wou ld doubtless
still do were they to be return ed to the curacies not only as ,

regards public order but also as re gards morality and the wel
,

fare of the people they implore your paternal author ity not t o
,

p ermit the parish o f this town to be administered by any friar .

If the charity which we have learned from our holy reli

gio n did not prohi b it us from relating the abuses and crimes
committed by these ministers of the Lord we would do so ,

herein as a matte r of information if for no other purpose ; ,

but we refrain from so doing because aside from such an , , ,

action being contrary to Chris tian charity our reasons for ask ,

ing for the exclusion of the friars from the administ ration of
the parishes are known to all .

We mu s t ad v i s e your reverence that we make this state

ment with Christian sincerity not obeying any partisan spir it , ,

and we have the satisfaction of stating that none of t h e under

signed and none o f the 1 7 0 00 inhabitants more or less o f this
,

town belongs to the Mas onic order

, .

May God guard your reverence many years .

S o n 1 0 ALE MD T and others -

, .

[First in d orsement ]
OFFI CE MI LIT ARY G OVERN OR
.

MA NI LA P I Apr il 1 8 1 9 0 0
,

. .
, , , .

Referred to t h e Rt Rev P L Chapelle archbishop o f New

. . . .
,

Orleans and apostolic delegate for Cuba Porto Rico and the
, , ,

Philippines I know no thing of the facts presented in this

.

petition nor of the ch aracter of the petitioners As it appears

, .

to be respectable in tone I simply present it in accordance with

,

petitioner s request
’
. E S Or r s . .
'

Major G em U S Volunte ers Militar y Governor

-

, . .
, .

NUE VA CA s CE R A s , May
G OVE RN OR GE N E RA L
, 1 9 00 .

TO TH E -

Military Governor of this Province .

The local presid e nte of this city and its municipality and
residents who sign this have the honor to lay before you as t h e ,

representative of the Amer ican government o f this province ,

the sincere and energetic protest against the return of the vicar
and friars to this diocese having in view t h e establishment o f,

ecclesiastical rules in the same and of which they were de ,

p r ive d by t he last revolution a g ai n st Spain and w h o h ad b y ,

their acts r e n d e r e d /t h ei r remaining not only in these towns but ,

throughout the Philippines incompatible with the m aintenance ,

of their moral and mate rial welfare as these religionists had ,

been and continue to be the cause o f the disturbed conditions

o f the country an d which t h e American authorities are labor
,

ing to settle .

They beg that you will please consider the loyalty of the
r e s 1 d e n t s of this p l ace and to communicate with the apostolic
,

delegate sent by Pope Le o XIII to these islands that he may .

,

take such measures as he may deem proper in this question of

such vital interest .

( Eighty two signatures ) -

.
 T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t an a
’
Roma n ian ;
gr aph it is apparent that any congregation by independ ent individ
,

uai action so far as any governmen t al interference is concerned ,

may reject any clergyman who i s not acceptable to a majority

o f th e communicants of the parish and prevent his ministrations ,

therein by such means as ar e suitable to accomplish the purpose ,

provided that any action taken in the premises be not ac c o mpan ,

i e d by application of violence .

You are therefore authorized and requested to commun i

cate to all com manding officers the substance of this communi
cation t o the end th at information may be widely dissemin ate d
,

among t h e people in such manner as t o reach all concerned .

V ery respectfully ,

E H CR O WD E R . .
,

Lieut Colone1 Thirty ninth Infantry U S V

.
- -

, . . .
,

0 Secretar y .

Copy of the foregoing communication fur n ished all depart

mental commanders .

P I July 1 7 1 9 00 COLAMB A , . .
, , .

Hall Robert brigadier general U S Volunteers com

, ,
-
, . .
,

manding Second District Southern Luzon recommends that , ,

letter o f the 6 th instant from o fli c e U n ited S t ates military gov

c ruor i n matter of reli gious freedom of t h e cit iz en s b e trans ,

la te d i nto Tagalog and given the widest possible circulation

, .

[Fir st in dorsement ] .

HDQRS DE PA RT ME NT S OUT H ER N LUZ ON .

MAN I LA P I July 2 2 1 9 0 0
,

, . .
, , .

F orwarded to the ad jut an t g en e r al Division of the Philip ,

p ines
.

.
J C BA T E S . .
,

Major General U S Volunt eers Commanding -

, . .
, .

[ Second indorse ment ) .

HD QRS DI VIS I O N O F T H E PHI LI PPINE S .

,

Manila P I July 2 6 1 9 00 , .
, .

To military secretary .

[ Third endorsement ]
OF FI CE U S MI LI T AR Y G OVE RNOR IN T HE P H ILI PPI N E S
. .

Manila P I July 3 0 1 9 00 , . .
, , .

Respectfully returned to the commandin g general Dep ar t

ment of S outhern Luzon Whi le it is not deemed e
xpedient to
.

publish the Tagalog translation of the lette r o f July 6 referr e d ,

t o within there is no object on to that letter
, i rec eiving c ir cu
lation amo n g the peo ple Department or district commander .

s
may take appropriate action to that e n d .

By command of Major G e n e r al Mac Ar th ur

E H CROW DER . .
,

Lieute nant Colonel Thirty ninth Infantry U S V

-
-

. . . .

Secretmy
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T E ST I M O NY OF GEN E R AL S MI TL
Judge T aft asks G en . Smith in relatio n to condition of
f orests .

Prof Wor ce ster I have already been talking with t h e

. .

G eneral a little about that in my room and he says it is a matter

This business of burnin g tim
,

o f necessity .
ber to get a patch to
cultivate has in fl icted heavy dam ages and something ought to ,

b e done with a view o f havin g a stop put to these depredations

o f burn in g timber
Judge T aft I suppose it woul d be better from what th e
.

Ge neral said t o me the other day before making changes of tha t

sort to change the governm e nt itse lf which as I understand , .

you they expect will be chan ged when there is a general sys
,
'

t e m of government adopted for the islands .

Gen Smith Th at is thei r id ea is that their government

. .
,

remain in e ffe ct as it is now until some form of government is

ad opted for the entire archipelago I do not think they would .

wish to be place d under the provisional government ad opt ed t o

meet the sit uation exis ting elsewhere Th e y would not wish .

o n t h e i r part t o be placed o n the same

g r ade
‘

Judge Taft In other words you think the better policy

.

.
,
‘

for us to pursue is to j ust treat them as organized separate ly .

‘
for the time u n til we can adopt a general system which shall l n
,

c l ud e all the islands .

Gen Smith Yes ; and purely on the ground of ex pediency ;

. .

and as a reward for their steadfastness .

Gen Wright There have never bee n any hostilities in that

. .

island i’
Gen Smith Yes ; there have been three risings altogether
. .

among the natives one occurring soon after our arrival and
,

after th e provisional government itself h ad raised the flag .

The prov isiona l govern ment o f the natives was formed on the -

eth day o f Novembe r 1 8 9 8 after hav in g overpowered the

, ,

Spanish garris ons an d obtained a capitulation fro m the Sp anish

general wh o w as acting as military governor o f th e island The .

insurge nts were then attacking the Spani sh forces in Iloilo but .

the Spanish forces there had still at their di sposition sufficient

gunboats to have made it inte re sting for the natives o f Negr o s ,

if they had wi s hed t o do so The mi ddle o f Fe b ruary after t h e

.
,

taking of Iloilo by the America ns the people of Negros sent a ,

commiss ion here and afte r the return o f the commission there
,

wa s a rising This rising was inaugurated by people liv ing in

.

Sil ay who h ad c ome from Molo Panay an d who had gone over
, , ,

there t o live About twenty eight o f them went o ut with th eir

.
-

rifles This party was subsequently augmented to about six ty ;

.

t hey remained perfectly quiet until Au gust 1 8 9 9 when they b e , ,

gan operations which continued until about the end of Septem

ber when th ey retired from the island after losing so me thirty
, ,

nine of their men O n the east coast of Neg ros nothing was
.

done by us at first No troop s were sent nor was an1 mission

.

ary work done in that part o f Ne gro s T h e province on the .

east coast known as Oriental Negros was supposed to b e under

, ,

the central government at Bacolod ; but there had been no c o m

mun i c ati On between the two provinces from November 1 89 8 , .

1 99
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Roma n zlr m
and so in the process of ti me the insurgen t s of L uz o n and
,
'
,

Panay were able to get in a certain amount of miss io n ar y wo r k

in O r iental N e gros to our disad vantage I n fac t in A p r il or . .

May 1 89 9 the legislative bod y of Oriental Ne gro s at Duma

, ,

guete was considering the advisability of adoptin g t h e Fil ipino

constitution as projecte d by Aguina ldo Jus t at that ti me the . ,

present secretary of agriculture o f Negros Sr Juan Ar an e t a , . ,

was sent to th e oriental coast for t h e purpose o f bringing about

a better understanding between the two provinces of the isl an d .

He carried with him a dr aft of the constitution whic h the peo ple
of Occidental Negros were then considering at Baco lod and ,

submitted it to t h e le gislatur e of Occidental Negros at Duma

g uete A S the result of A r an e t a s work the deputies of Oriental
’
. ,

Negros declared i n favor of the United States and se nt dele

gates from Dumaguete their capital to what might be called , ,

t h e constitutional convention at Bacolod A ft e r the adj o urn .

ment o f the convention at B acolod the delegate s from the

oriental provin ce returned carrying with them some A merican ,

flags which they propose d to raise in every pue blo in the pro
,

vince ; but when they attempted to raise the fl ag at Bais the

people there said to them You have be e n the stron gest ad
,
“

h e r e n t s of Aguinaldo and among the strongest opponents of the

Americans and we can not understand your change O f hear t ”
, .

A force of about men ( ne arly all bolomen ) immediately

gat hered at Bais and T an p ay and v owed that A merican flags ,

should not float in Oriental Negros w hatever might be done o n ,

the west coast In this contingency Larena former presi

. , ,

dente of the oriental province returned to Bacolod and re po rt ed ,

there the condition of affairs in his bailiwick In consequence .

of the information given by him I sent a battalion to Oriental

Neg ros Lieute nant Colonel D ub o ce First Cal v ary Volunteer s
,
-

, ,

commanding Colonel B uh oce was able to effectuate without

.
,

th e sheddin g of any blood whatsoeve r the complete dispersio n ,

of all insurgent gatherings and fro m that time down to the ,

present there has nev er been any disturban ce whatever in east

ern Negros The third risin g occur red in Valladolid an d was
.
,

the result of work done by the Hongkong junta and emissaries

from Panay and Luzon A landing of insurgent troops from .

Panay was effecte d at G in ig ir an in Negros on Dece mber 6 and , , ,

on January 1 5 the entire force had either surren dered or had

been disperse d .

Judge Taft You have had pretty large forces of ladr ones
.

haven t you in the mountai n s

’
,

Gen S mith There h a e been according to my e stimate

. . v , .

from to of these p e ople ; I mean for the e n tire

island .

Prof Worcester When I was there in 1 89 1 there was said

. .

to be 2 0 0 0 in o n e ban d up i n the mountain s .

Gen Smith That is the s ame p arty ; that is about the

. .

number Some run it up about as high as

. but I think a
conserv ative estimate would fix the number at from 1 5 00 to ,

We inherited from Spain from 1 000 to 2 000 and of , , , ,

course pre sent conditi ons throughout the islan ds h a ve n ot

,

te nded to dimin is h that number

Judge Taft Killed a good many ?
.

200
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t an d Roma n ian
some years the command of the m will have to be under an
,

American ofii ce r .

Judge Taft You think that A merican capt ains would b e

.

enough to give them the cour age and the discipline which i n a
battle is necessary
Gen Smith A cert ain proportion of noncommissioned
. .

o fii ce r s mixe d up with them or better a certain proportion of , ,

American troops would probably give them the necessary

,

stiffening to make an aggressive campai gn Their first impulse .

,

ho wever is to adopt the Fil ipin o method of fighting ; that is to

, ,

fir e and then retire and keep retiring They do not understand

, . ,

nor can t hey ever well be taught except by force of example , ,

the aggressive policy

Judge Taft What Gen Mac Ar t h ur calls the policy o f
.
‘

. .

shock
.

Prof Mose s Do you fin d it advisable to have the com

. .
.

p an ie s as large in the se native troops as i n the American tr0 0 ps ?

Gen Smith A company o f o n e hundred men with one
. .

captain an d three lieutenants I think would be about right -

Gen Wright They ; generally would be white lieute nants

. .
,

at fir st
Gen Smith I would be gin by selecting men who have the
. .

m ilitary spirit and letting them kn ow that promotion could an d

would come to th e m if they proved de s erving Probably the .

promotion or chance of promotion to lieute n ancies would give

them the necessary stimulus to do good wor k .

Prof Worceste r But suppose your captain was kille d or

. .

seriously hurt ; the n atural sequence would be that he would

succeed the capta in .

Gen Smith Ye s but o f course no promo tion of a native

. .
,
'

s hould be mad e to a lieute nan cy until he has perfe ctly d emon

s t r ate d his ability to co mmand .

Judge Ide Wha t kind of service have those native tro o p s

.

been used for

Gen Smith They have be e n us e d in skirmishes and e u
. .

g ag e men t s but nearly al ways with A merican troops

, .

Prof Worcester Have you had trouble with their com

. .

mittin g abuses when the y were o ff on their scouting operations

Gen . Smith Yes sir .
, .

G e n Wright Yo u have got that checked and under control ?

. .

Gen Smith Yes sir ; I have now Originally the idea w as

. .
, .

to let them operate alone for scouting purposes but we found ,

that the y were the worst enemie s of their own people an d that
they committe d the most shocking abu s es They would en te r .

a house and take what provisions they wante d without paying

for them and practically whatever the y required They had no
, .

respe ct for the rights o f citizens so that n o w the order in ,

Negros is that no scouts be sent o ut e xce pt under the command

of an Ame rican o fficer or noncommis s ioned o fli c e r with a cer
tain proportion of American troops generally not less than six , .

J
Judge Ide Who do they skirmi s h with with the lad r ones
. -

Gen S mith With ladr o n es a nd i n surgents There have

. .
.

been in all three engagements with in s urgents With la .

drones the re have been many The he aviest engagement with .

ladro nes took place in July 1 89 9 at Bobong where they num , , ,

202
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an

r e i g h t h u n d re d bolomen and s omething like thir ty rifl es

oe e u .

They we re a t t ac k e d b y fifty A merican troops in the early morn

'

in g. I n that engageme nt it was doubtful for some minut e s

whether the Americ an troops would be successful or be de
str oyed The y were ultimately successf ul and killed o n e hun
.

d red and sixteen of t h e l n e or T ul i s an e element

'

J ud ge Ide How lo n g ago ? .

G e n Smith That was in July ; I thi nk about July 1 3

J ud ge Ide This year 7
. . .
.

G e n Smith No ; 1 89 9
. They were attacked in their village
. .
.

They were t h e people who de str oyed these haciendas Papa .

Scio immediately after o ur occupat ion o f Neg r os commenced

, ,

mission ary work among the employees of var ious hac iendas ,

e xcit in g them t o the idea of destr oying t h e p r operty and r e due

i n g the h aciendas t o their origi nal condition — t hat is t o a state ,

o f nature He didn t wish any more sugar planted neither did ’

. .
,

h e w ish any but pure blooded Filipinos to live i n the island

'

-
.

A s a result of his propaganda the laborers o n haciendas de

s troyed the haciendas first and then went out to join Papa ,

. Scio s B aib ail an e s The for c e at Bobong numbered eight hun

'
.

d red composed o f Baib ail an e s robbe rs and the laborers wh o

, , ,

h ad been seduced into joining them .

Prof Moses They were at t acked by fifty i’

. .

Gen Smith Fifty Amer ic ans At the first onslaught on

. . .

this v illage these people poure d o ut of their houses They were .

taken by surprise but so much did they ou tn umbe r the detach

,
~

ment th at they soon got confidence and came on bravely enough .

Fi f te en American s had gone i nto the town over a narrow foot

bridge spanning a ravine ; but so fiercely were they met that
they began to retreat One o f the c o r por al a was cut and stabbed .

thirty six times and then the detachment starte d to retreat ;

,

but they never g o t across the bridge The present Lieute nant .

Colonel Byrne stoppe d them and forced them back into the to wn
to renew t h e att ack And in the meantime oth er ree nforce
'

ments came across the br idge t o aid The engagement was so .

close that d rilled disciplined men like a first serge ant were
, .

force d to fir e from the hip— there was no time for anythin g

els e One soldier is said to have killed three men in this last
.

charge .

Judge Ide What kind of se rvices have they had to render

the last six or eight mont hs those native police
.

Gen S mith T h ey have bee n d oing almost ex clus ively scout

.

. .

duty in co njun ction with Amer ican troops

‘
.

Judge Taft Are they pretty efficient scouts

,

G e n Smith Yes sir

Jud ge Taf t They chase t h e people int o the mountains ?
.
. . .

Gen Sm ith Yes sir , .

Judge Taft And get information ?

. .

G e n Smith Yes sir ; they get information and pursue

. . ,

ladrones They ar e able to approach them much nearer than

.

our troops who are rec ognized at a long distance .

G e n Wright It is a pretty h ard job to e x te rm ina te these

,

. .

robber bands 7
Gen S mi t h Yes s ir ; ther e are whole village s compose d of
. . ,

b an ded robbers .

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Jud ge T a i t And they always have been there

.

Gen Smith Yes sir

. .
,
.

'

Gen Wright There is only one way to do and that is to

. . ,

move them o ut into some other island .

Gen Smith Well since that subject h as been mentioned I

. .
, ,

might say that that is t h e only solution of the d iffic ulty Once .

a robber always a robber is the rule with these people .

Gen Wright They are simply whole families th at for gen

. .

e r at i o n s have be e n nothing but robbers and they do not k n ow ,

any other mode o f life .

Gen Smith A n d they are frequently led by educated men

. .

who have beco me outlaws .

Jud ge T aft Have you lost any by desertion from your na

.

tive troops ?
Gen Smith No sir ; amon g the native police we have never
. . ,
'

lost a man by d esertion and they have been submitted to very ,

potent temptations and very powe r ful i n fluences .

Judge Taft Have you lost any of your government troops ?

.

Gen Smith N0 ; we have not lost any American troops

. . .

There have been some of them that have disappeared There .

is one who is said to have deserted t o the insurgents but we ,

are not certain whether he has deserted with t h e idea o f going

out and robbing the natives or whether he j oined the in s ur ,

gents we do not know As he deserted several months ago

— .

and we have not he ard from him we have come to the conclu ,

sion that he either deserted with the idea of going to t h e United

States or Hongkong or that the ladrones disposed of him , .

Prof Worcester What are these bad town s of which y ou

. .

speak ?
Gene ral Smith W e ll f o r instance the pueblo of Murcia
.
, , .

Prof Worceste r In w hat part of the island is that ?

. . .

Gen Smith Within 1 5 miles of the coast and east of Bac

. .
,

olod It was originally a town composed of men who had been

.

tr ied for various o ffe nses from petty larceny to murder They , .

settled in that pu e blo ( as far as I can learn from residents at

Bacolod ) where the o fii c ial s and justices of the province of
,

Bacolod protected them If any of them got arr ested for any .

o fie n s e it was seen to th at he either e s caped or

, when tried .
, ,

that he was acquitted S ubsequently Mur c io became a full .

fie d g e d pueblo hav i n g its own administrative offices and o f

, , ,

course the same course was pursued Of course there were

, .

and ar e some good peop le i n Murcia .

Prof W orcester When was that change from a barrio to

. .
,

a pueblo ?
Ge neral Smith During the Spanish occupation I think .
, .

At any rat e prior to the coming of the Americans to the island

, .

Prof Moses You s ay that there are good people in Murcia ?

. .

Gen S mith Yes sir

. .
, .

Prof Moses Do they manifest any sympathy with the

. .

Un ited States o r what is their a ttitude in respect to the people ?

,

G e n Smith The attitude of the people in Negros who have

. .

s ometh ing to lose is favorable to the United State s Of cour se .

,

way down de e p in their hearts is the sympathy o f race for those

who are struggling that is they realize that it is n o t for their
-

best inte rests to stand alone and they realize that they have ,

204
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an

men who u se d to have e x te n s i ve sugar p lanta t io n s ; can they r e

'

tur n and work their pl antations ?

Gen Smith Yes ; e xcept those plantations which are n ear
. .

the mountai n s .

Prof Worcester How about Bago and Dum aguete ?

. .

Gen S mith There i s no trouble on the eastern coast at all

. . .

Prof Worce s ter H o w about Montenegro ?

. .

G e n Smith The M onte negro family was very weal t hy and

. .

h ad money loaned o ut Of course it was a mortal o fie n s e with .

,

some of t hose people to attempt to collec t a dollar and his at ,

te mpt to collect what was due him brought about the assault
which was made on h im But that was before any Americans .

had gone to Oriental Negros '

.

Judge Taft As to the reli gious question You are a mem

. .

ber of the Catholic church ?

Gener al Smith Yes sir .
, .

Judge Taft W h o are administering t h e sacramen ts and

.

performin g religious functions in the island now ?

Gen S mith Native clergy with probably one excepti o n
. .
, .

Judge Taft A r e all the pari s hes full ; have t h ey priest s in

.

every parish ?
Gen Smith No sir ; there is a great lack of priests
. .
, .

Jud ge Taft Can you give any ide a of how many priests are
.

n o w in Negros ?

Gen Smith There are at least [ counting] fiv e They need

. . .

at least forty .

Judge T aft H o w do you think they would rece ive Ameri

.

c an priests there ?

Gen Smith They would be well received ; their method s

. .

are alto g e ther diffe rent from those of the native clerg y ; the na
tive clergy are all arbitrary They have been accustomed to .

contr ol T h ey are educated men and t h e rank and file with

.
,

whom they deal ar e n o t . .

Judge Taft The y are educat ed ? .

G en S mit h Yes sir ; t h ey are

. .
, .

Jud ge Ta f t A n d I suppose they follow in the footsteps of

.

t h e friars who were before them ?

Gen Smith Yes sir ; of course they exercise no civil
. .
,

functions whatever now— that is the natives ; they have noth ,

ing to do with the civil B ut so far as religious matte rs are .

concerned they e xe rcise the same relig ious functions as did the
,

fri ars .

Gen Wright The native clergy as a rule ar e very sympa

. .
, ,

thetic with the revoluti on aren t they ? ,

’

Gen Smith I think I don t trespass when I say almost to a

. .
’

man .

Gen Wright I can understand very readily why they are

. .
.

It would not be human nature if they w ere not .

Judge Taft They are very anxiou s to retain the author ity
.

they have had ?

Gen Wright That is the whole thin g
. .
.

Gen Smith There is not any question but what that is so

. .
.

Judge Taft Do you think it would be safe for the fr iars to

.

go back ?
Gen Smith It might be possible to secure their safety of
. .

,
206
 7 fie Sen a t e Docum en t an d Roma n zr m
course by means of troops I should not like to take the r e
, .

sponsibility of s e n d in g them to any of those towns unannounce d

o r unpro te cte d or without s o me understanding

Judge Taft Do you re ally th ink t here is a popul ar feelin g

, .

against th em ?
Gen Smith There is a popular feelin g against them
. .

Judge Taft D ue t o the fact that t hey have ex ercised what

.

h as been regarded as political power ?

G e n Smith D ue in a large measure according t o my uh
. .
,

d e r s t an d i n g t hat they were practically the civil power

Judge Taft And represen te d Spain ?
, .

G e n Smith Represe n t ed Spain

. . In other words by virtue
o f th e civil power which they have ex ercised they were unable
.
,

t o give that sympathy and that merciful interposition which

would have otherwise fallen to their l o t as priests
Judge Taft They were made responsible for eve rything
.

t h at went o n in th e way of civil oppr ession ?

G e n Smith Yes sir .

Jud ge Taft I have understood by ex amining the ar c h b i sh

. .
,

.
,

o p s and th e bishops o f the church and th e heads of the reli ,

g i o us orders that th e c ap t ain g e n e r al or the governor ge ner al

~ -

, , ,

whatever he was called here was in th e h abit of using the f r i ,

ars f o r obtaining information and it was understood that every ,

charge against a person in a particular town was presented to

,

t h e fri ars and if ultimately the civi l authorities dealt severely

,

wit h t h e person in quest ion it was charge d by t h o p o p ul ar opin

i o n and suspicion to the enmity o f the friar himself .

Gen Smith Oh yes ; that is un q uestionable That was

. .
,
.

t h e origin in a large degree o f the d eep s ea te d and I might al ,

most say undying animosi t y of the people toward them There

,
.

were other things o f course

Judge Taft But that was the chief ?
.
,

Gen S mit h Yes sir ‘

Judge Taft The other thi ngs pro bably would not be men
. . , .

. , ,

t io n e d if this had not existed ?

G e n Smith No sir ; never would be mentioned
. . , And the .

oth er thin gs were certainly not the rule ; they were the ex ce p
t lo n al i nstance which occurring in a religious body o r a reli
,

gi o us confraternity reflecte d on the entire community

.

J udg e Taft And was made the te xt of an att ack upon t h e

,

entire body because of its b eing so much opposed to the me m

,

bers o f the body .

G e n Smith That was used as an additi onal argument

. .
.

They woul d pick o ut an isolated case or they would pick out ,

t hree o r four friar s and abuse s that had been committed by

t hem and represent them as types of the religious community
,

which they belonged Of course there were many t h ings

to . ,

th at should not have occurred

Judge Taft What bishopric was Negros in ?
.

G e n Smith In the bishopric of Jaro I think

.

.
,

J udge T aft At Iloilo ?

. .

Gen Smith Yes

. . .

Prof Worceste r What s or t of a municipal government h as

. .

b een established in Negros ?

Smi th The municipal government that has been es
G en . .

sor
 ’
T/t e Sen a t e Docum en t ana Roma n zir m
t ab li s h e dthere i s a governmen t that is co mposed of the presi
dente of the town a justice of the peace and six consejeros
, ,

from the pueblo with one delegate additional from each barrio
,

in the jurisdiction of the place The pueblo corresponds almost .

to our counties .

Prof Worceste r Did the delegates and consejeros have t h e

. .

same functions in the council ?

Gen S mith Yes sir ; when the council of the pueblo me t
. .
,

for the purpose o f discussin g municipal business Th at i s th e .

,

delegates represented the barrio s in the municipal council ;

otherwise the entire pueblo money would be devote d simply t o
impr o vements of the casco ” ( or body of the pueblo) to t he ,

detri ment of t h e outlying v illage s .

Prof Worceste r W e have had that provision in mind in

. .

forming the municipal law and we ha ve also pro vided t hat each ,

councilor shal l be placed in charge o f a barrio ; where the num

ber of coun cilors is larger that they shall be grouped into d is ,

tr i c t s and he shall be empowered t o appoint a man in each o ne

,

of thos e barrios .

G e n Smith Th at is probably t h e better plan

. . It is very .
‘

difficult t o encoun te r men of sufficient understanding in the bar

rios that are located near the mounta ins .

Prof Worce ste r How is the municipal government work

. .

ing as a matter of fact ? Are they getting s ufii cie n t funds f or

carrying on the affairs of the town comfortably ?
G e n S mi fi Yes sir
. This year the government ha been
.
, .

suppor ted since the sixth day of November down to the p es e n t

’

time and has a surplus in t h e treasury of probably

, and
that with three months of grace which was given for the col
lection of cedulas The g race does not expire until the latt er
.

part of November .

Prof Worceste r They have re s tored the cedula tax ?

. .

G e n Smith There is a cedula t ax of $3 a he a

. .
d and t h e ,

women are exempte d and those un der 1 8 years of age , .

Prof Worcester What age do they hold that a man begin s

. .

to pay it ?
Gen Smith Eighte en years
. . .

Prof Worcester What other tax has been used ? Have

. .

the funds o f the municipality raised there been expended t he re ,

or turned into some gen eral treasury and reimbur sed ?
Gen Smi t h The cedulas are i ss ued by the centr al govern
. .

ment to the presidente of the town to the exte nt of his bond , .

He collects the ce dulas He must account for every ce dula .

which he has received If it is burned o r lost or otherwi se .

, ,

dest royed o r disposed of o r sold n e vertheless he m ust pay f or , ,

it They are all numbe re d an d he must account for every num

.
,

ber either with the money o r the cedula itself Of the money s
, .

that are co llected one thir d is devoted to municipal purposes

,
-

,
and t w0 3t h ir d s of it is sent t o the central government .

Prof Worce ster That money raised for the municipal

. .

tr easury stays in the town ?

Gen S mith Yes ; it is administe red from the to wn
. .

Judge Taft How much do you raise for Negros ?

.

G e n Smith The income up to the present ti me has been

. .
,
,

2 08
 Tn e Sen a t e Doc um en t d R oma n zr m
'

an

to release the producer of a burden which he ought not to bear .

Ju d ge Ide A nd have a land tax to take the place of it

.

Gen Smith Ye s sir

. . , .

Jud ge Ide What is done f o r schools there ; have you any

.

t eachers o f English
Gen S mi t h We have teachers o f English prac tically in
. .

e very station where we have American troops They are soldiers . .

Prof Worcester Are the people anxious t o learn English

. .

Gen S mith They are We have been besieged by various

. . .

s chools for professors o f English They organized there an .

”
i nstitution of what they call the segunda e sn e n an z a a higher ,

e ducation but they have bee n unable to get a professor of E n g

;
l is h y e t
.

Judge Ide W h at is done in the schools about religi ous l n

.

s truct ion
Gen Smith Relig ious instruction doe s not form any part
. .

o f the curriculum .

Judge Taft Do they have religious instruction before or

“

a fter the schools

G e n Smith They have some instruction i n some o f the
. .

p rimary schools in the cate chism .

Judge Taft That i a the priests come

.
,

Gen Smith No the te achers The civil gove r nment prior

. .
, . ,

t o our coming decreed the separation of church and state

, .

Judge I d e That is the law they enacted the mselves

.

Gen Smith Ye s sir ; they h ave decreed t h e separation of

. .
,

c hurch and s t ate .

Judge Ide An d w e h id the public sentiment among the

.

p eople warrant the enti re e l iminati on of any religious instruc tion

f rom t h e schools
Gen Smith That is hard to say and the reason it is hard
. .
,

t o say is that on that subject they preach one doctr ine and then
do exactly the opposite .

Judge Id e Suppose that they had o pp o r t un t i ty for religious

.

instructi o n before the school hour or after the school hour for , ,

t ho s e wh o wished to receive it , how would that do

Gen Smith I think that would be sufficient
. . .

Jud g e Id e I me an from the p riests

_
. .

G e n Smith I think that would be s ufficient

. . .

P rof Worcester What has been your experience wi th their

. .

c entral legi slative body— what sort of work doe s it do as a ,

ma tter o f fact
G e n Smith T he men of the advisory council are n o t men
. .
!

wh o understand the artificial drafting o f laws They und e r .

_

s tand what is for t h e benefit of the country but when it comes

“

t o putting it into words and sente nces they fin d some difficult y ,

in accomplishing their purpose ; not more so however than o ur , ,

o wn legisla t ors I think , .

Jud ge Taft Are they orators

. Do th ey talk much
Gen They do not talk so much but sometimes they talk
.
,

with a good deal of force They get into squabbles among .

themselves .

Jud ge Taft Are they politicians

.

Gen Smith Yes.

.

Judge Taft Are they as much politician s as the Tagal ogs

.

.
 The S en a t e D ocum en t an d Roma n zs m
'

G en Smith I t h ink it is in the entire race— diplomacy and

. .

p olitical manipulation .

Judge Taft You said the other d ay that you tho ught the
.

Visayan had a much more reliable character than the Tagalog .

Gen Smith That is my opinion although I may be doing

. .
,

an injustice t o the Tagalog because I lived here at the time of ,

high tension between the t wo peoples ; we were in actual hos

t il i t ie s and our experien ce with the Tagalo gs had been such as
t o produce strong prejudice My e xperien ce with the Visayans .

has been to the contrary In nineteen months I never had but .

t wo men break their word o f hon o r ; men kept their word even
when they wer e to come back for punishment after being al
lowed t o visit the ir homes .

Judge Taft What kind of courts do you have in Negros

.

Gen Smith We have a court there that is composed of

. .

me n in whom I have the most complete con fidence as t o learn

in g and as to honesty But there is but little j udicial material .
.

In case o f death or disability it would be hard to fill a vacancy

i n the court .

Judg e Taft That is yo u have got al l in that court that can

.
,

be found in the islands What do you think would be the .

effect of appointing Ame r ican j udges

Gen Smith I would approve of a mixture
. . .

Judge Taft That is you would prefer not to have a rul e as

.
,

t o Amer i can judges

Gen Smith Yes sir
. .
, .

Judge Ide How many courts of first instanc e are there i n

.

th e islan d o f Negros
G e n Smith The re are th ree judges th at are assigned to
. .

distr icts the district o f the north of the south and the ori
—
, g
,

ental district The oriental district comprises all of Oriental

.

Negros o r what was formerly the province of Oriental Negros

Jud ge Ide H o w many provinces are there i n the island
, .

Gen Smith T wo original provinces Orien tal Negros and

. .
—

the province of Occidental Negros The last has been divided .

into t wo judicial districts or departments The court sits in .

banc f o r the purp ose o f hearing appeals

Jud ge Ide Are those judges all natives
.

Gen Smith Yes

. . .

Judge Taft What are their names .

Gen Smith Estanislao Yus ay

. . .

Judge Taft Is h e a full blooded Visayan -

Gen Smith I think he is of mixed blood Ve c e n t es Hilado

.

.
. .
,

Vicente Jo c s o n .
Prof Wor c est e r What is Luzuriaga doing down there
.
-
.

now
Gen Smith He is auditor o f the island
. .

Prof Worcester Wha t sort o f an o fii c i al does he make

. .

Gen Smith He is one o f the ablest men in the islan d s

. . .

He i s an able man ; he understands finance .

Jud ge Taft What kind of a department governor woul d he

.

make
G e n Smith According to my idea a s plendid one
. . ,
.

Prof Worceste r Is he showing himself to be an honest

. .

man
21 1
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t Roma m r m
'

ana

Gen Smith In this administration perfectly so

. . . .

Prof Worceste r Has he any back history that is against

. .

h im
Gen Smith I t is said he has
. .
.

Prof Worcester It is pretty h ard to

. .
fin d a man that h as

Gen Sm ith I t hin k that he bore the same relation t o t h e

. .

Spanish c fii c ials as othe r men d id in the islands I jud ge that .

bo t h from what has been charge d again st h i m an d from what I

know myself Under the Sp anish ad ministration as far as
.
,

Negros was concerned to procure right and justice there was ,

only one way of d oin g it and from that habit man y were pro ,

bably led to procuring in justice in the same way .

Jud ge Taf t When kissing comes by favor why . ,

Gen Smith So far as my connection with him is con

. .

cerned he has been scrupulously honest to the dividin g o f a

, ,

cent He has made an e xce llent auditor I do not think that i n

.
.

my own country there could be found an auditor that was more

careful an d more painstakin g in investigating accounts and r e
fusing payment unless i t was absolutely clear from the letter of ,

law that p ayment should be made— that is if they failed to get

, ,

into their laws what they inte n ded that did not cut any figure .

with him He did just e xactly what the law s aid é— nothi ng
.

more nor less .

Jud ge Ide Is he th e auditor for the whole island

.

Gen Smi th Yes sir ; for all insular expe nse

. . ,
.

Prof Worcester Who is your civ il governor

. .

Gen Smith Melecio Severino

. . .

Prof Worcester What sort o f a man is he i’

. .

Gen Smith Melecio Severino an d his whole family b e

. .

longed originally to what is known as the Insurgent Party ; in

fact two of his nephews were concerned in the first rising in
,

Neg ros and they have been anxiously sought for ever sin c e He
,
.

was electe d by the p o pular vote — b y 2 8 vote s plurality .

Judge Taft What did this vote run up to .

G e n Smith Five thousand on less than a week s regi s tration

’
. . .
,

I thin k there were fully or votes on the island ;

th at is wi t h the educational and property qualificat ions S e ver
,
.

i n o dur i n g his te rm of o ffice as governor has acted consistent

, ,

ly. He has been e n e rgetic ; he has worked hard for the people ,

and he has tried to save the poor people from oppression and
abuses whe reve r he could He has visited nearly all the towns . ,

not once but oftener as occasion demanded and I am perfectly

, , ,

satisfied with his administrative capacity .

Judge Id e If there was a reformed legal procedure so that

.

cases could be tried with expeditio n as they are in the United

Stat es would there be an y d ifii cult y in having all the work of
,

t h e courts of first instance done by one judge holding sessions

in t h e diffe rent provinces or localities
Gen Smith A t present there woul d be difficulty and until
. .
,

the lines f communic ation are better it would be impossible

o , ,

even i n the future except at a very large expense to the island , .

Judg e Ide There is difficulty of getting from one locality

.

t o another and the expense would be great 1‘

‘

Gen Smith Yes sir . .

, .

21 2
T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t an a
’
Roma n ian ;
be appointed by the gove rnor consisting h alf of Filipinos and ,

half o f Americans Now suppose you wished to get a Visayan

.
,

representative for the legislative council would you ta h e ,

Luzuriaga
G e n Smith As the best all round man yes
. .
-
, .

Prof Worcester Do y o u kno w personally anythin g a bout

. .

Mapa over at Iloilo ?

,

Gen Smith Yes s ir ; he is not a resident of Negros

. .
,
.

Prof Worcester I kno w he is not a resident b ut I did n o t

. . ,

kn o w but what you might have some kno wledge of h im person

ally .

Gen Smith I have. . .

Prof Worcester What is your impression of him

. .

Gen Smith Next to Arellano I consider him the ablest

. .
,

man in the islands .

Judge Taft He has been a bit doubtful in his allegiance ?

.

Gen Smith He is a man of honor I think There is n o

. . , .

question t h at even to d ay he is simply submitting to the i n ev i t a

b l e and that he still b elieves in independence for his people
, .

But I belie ve him to be honest in h is o pi n i o n s He is a man of .

lofty ideas of lofty senti ments ; of course his education and all
,

that sort of thing would lead him to hope for nay to believe , ,

in the practicability of nationality for the people By his own

, .

e levate d station as an able and learned man he jud ges of the

, ,

capabilities and natural abiliti es of all his coun trymen

Judge Taft Is he a practical man ?
.

Gen Smith He is a practical lawyer How far he may be

. . .

practical in adopting legislation for executive or administ r ative

purposes I cannot say ; but he is a practical lawyer and next to
, ,

Arellano I conside r him the ablest lawyer in the islands

, . .

Judge Taft He w ould be a good man for the supreme court ?

.

Gen Smith Un questi onably

. . .

Judge Taft D id n t the military governor o ffe r him a po si

fl
.
’

tion t h rough A rellano ?

Prof Worcester I don t know
. Arellano told us he h ad
.
’
.

b een in neg otiatio ns with him .

Judge Taft Is h e a man o f wealth ?

.

Gen Smith He was He was a man of independent posi

. . .

tion and I think he is yet

, .

Prof Worcester Do you know t h e record of Melessa since

'

. .

he returned from h is short service on the supreme court up here ?

G en Smith I have never taken much stock in Melessa
. .
.

The o ld gentleman is unquestionably a man of great and very

powe rful influence but I believe he aids the insurgent cause as
, ,

far as it may be safe and that his w h ole heart is with the i n s ur
,

r e c ti on ar y movement I don t think he looks o n it as a lost ’

.

cause .

Judge Taft Tha t is the father ? .

,

General Smith I don t know whether he is the father or

.
’

not I believe he is however

. , .

Prof Worcest er It is the father I know there is a father

. . .

who had propert y .

Gen Smith He is immensely wealthy My j udgment upon

. . .

the Melessas should not be given any great amoun t o f weight ,

be cause I have not been thrown into intimate enough contact

21 4
 T/z e Se n a t e Docum en t '

and R om a ms m
’

with them ; I have learned that it is ve r y unsafe to take rumors ,

statements or apparently credible evidence without actual ex

, ,

p er ie n c e with old man Melessa

Judge Taft How much experience have you had with Mapa ?
.

Gen Smith I have met him now and then socially and had
o pportunities to talk with h i m
. .
, ,

Gen Wright do you speak Spanish ?

.

Gen Smith Enough t o get along I was finally able to

. .
'

d ispense with an interpreter except in matters which req uired

delicacy I was able to get along with them all and understand
.

what they said and they seemed t o understand me

, .

Prof Worce ster Did you have any trouble in finding h o n

. .

est officials ?
Gen Smith It is the weak spot and will be the weak spot
. .
, ,

in all these mun icipal governments When you get a man who .

is ready and able why he won t have much res pect f or honest
, ,
‘

method s At least that was the experience we have had with

.
,

man y presidentes .

Prof Mo s es You spoke a moment ago general of the

. .
, ,

funds o f the island going into the United States Treasury I .

s uppo s ed the in sular treasury got them ; that is the export .

duty ? Is there any other money now going o ut o f the i s lan d i n

t o the insular treasury ?
Gen Smith I meant that the export tax and harbor d ues
. .

did not g o into the treasury o f Negros Island The id e n t ific k .

tion cedula or peseta cedula is t h e only t ax w h ich is collected by

the military po wer in Negros The export tax and harbor dues .

are of course collected at Iloilo

. , .

P r of Moses The identific ation cedula is collected in addi

. .

t ion to the other ?

Gen Smith Yes sir
. .
, .

Prof Moses Then is the old cedula tax modified ?

. ,

Gen Smith Ye s sir

. . .

, .

Prof Worcester Do they raise among themselves any spe

. .

c i al taxes ? Do th ey have anything corresponding w ith the old

road tax ?
G e n S mith No sir ; There is the cedula tax w h ich cor
'

. . , ,

responds to our poll tax and als o the p at e n t s t ax which corre , ,

s p o n d s t o our license tax The r e are no taxes especially col .

le c t e d for road purposes Once collected the money is set . ,

apart for specific purposes by appropriation bills .

Prof Worcester Now these cedula taxes are usually indus

. .

tr ial taxes ?
Gen Smith The p at e n t s tax and some of the pueblo taxes
. .

such as the tax on tuba on fi s h corals etc ) are essentially i n

( , . ,
.

d us t r ial t axes Just before I left a land tax was adopte d in .

Negros but the tax on land was so disproportionate to what it

.

should have been that I returned it to the advisory council

,

without approval and recommending that the tax on land be

,

increased
Judge Taft How much did they impo s e ?
.

General Smith They imposed I think about $2 o n a the n . , ,

san d No it was even less than that I estimated t h at under

. ,
. ,

proposed the whole tax would be about on a

the la w ,

2 15
 T/ze Sen a t e Doc um en t d Rom a n zr m
'

an

to tal valuation of the island of I there f ore r e

turned the bill dis appro ved
Judge Taft It was an ad val ore m tax ?
.

G e n Smith Yes sir

. .
, .

Judge Ide Did y ou cont rol their legislation ?

G e n Smith B y veto
.

. . .

Jud ge Ide I mean otherwi se ; did you prac t ically control it ?

.

G e n Smith No sir .
, .

Prof Worces t er Did you have occasion t o u se the ve to

. .

with a good d eal of frequency ?

Gen Smith I used i t sparin gly at first In cases where I
. .
'

saw there would be no substantial in j ury done to the public I ,

sometimes approved defective laws at the same time pointi ng ,

out the defect When the operation of such law s disclosed the
.

defects as prophesied a certain amount of respect was given

, ,

my forecasts and I was e na bled to us e the veto p ower more

,

vigorously Wher e any i njury was l ikely to ensue to t he pub

.

lic I always used the veto privilege unhesitatingly I think

,
.

p rob ably I vetoed about one thir d of the number of bills pre
-

se nted for appr oval .

Prof Worcester Didn t you fin d that you could to some

. .
’
,

considerable exte nt control them in the way that you have men
,

t i on e d ?
Gen Smith Yes
. . .

0 Judge Ide That is what I meant ; I didn t mean whether

.
’

you us ed a strong hand with them but whether you used it in ,

th at way .

Gen Smith Yes sir ; th ey were very amenable to advice

. .
,

and co unse l exce pt wher e there was so me question that was

,

purely political If there was a diffe rence bet we en the politic al

.

factions they were not disposed to accept any advice which

,

would result to the political ben e fit of an opponent .

Judge Taft They didn t s e e any use of havin g power if

.
’ “

th ey d i d not exercise it ?
‘

Gen Smith That was about the measure of it especially

. .
,

against a po liti cal ad versary .

Judge Ide Suppose some measure w as impor tant and ought

.

t o be adopted did y ou take some means of calling that to their

,

att enti on ?
Gen Smith Generally by messag es Gambling was a pet
. . .

vice and had reached huge proportions ; yet when their atten , .

tion was c all e d t o it in a message gambling was at once pro , .

h ib it e d under a penalty of at least $5 00 fine ; even the sale of

playi ng car ds is forbidden .

Judge Taft How did it work ? .

G e n Smith It has repressed gamblin g They may gamble

'

. .
.

on the sly in pr ivate houses but gambling as a public vice h as

ceased to ex ist They discussed very soberly the question of
,

licensing gambling an d limiting it to certain days but t hey ,

finally came to the conclusion t o prohibit it alto geth er .

Prof Moses In case of t h e e s t ab li s h men t o f a civil gov

. .

e r n me n t should the absolute veto be held by the gover n or ?

,

G e n Smith The absolute veto— that depends upon th e

. .
,

composition o f your leg islative body If you have an ideal le g . !

i s lat i ve body I would n o t be in favor of an absolute ve t o

, .

me
T/ze Sen a t e Documen t an d Roma n ia n
culty . There is a disposition to have t o o many o mc ia l s to ,

spend too much money o n sal aries a n d t o e xpe nd t o o little on ,

the public and f o r the public bene fit A n idea of this c an be .

h ad when I say that one puebl o with an estimated reven u e of ,

$800 0 propo s ed to e x pend only $ 8 0 0 o n the t o wn E ac n pueblo

.
.

i n Negros must send its estimates o f receipts and ex penditures

to B acolod for approv al .

Prof Worcester H o w could i t be made a vailable f o r us

. . ,

the mun icipal records ?

G e n Smi t h Th e estimates are here on file with t h e mi l ita
A great deal of e xpense is entailed on municipal
. .
,

r y governor .

ities by the unnecessary corre s ponde nce indulged in by officials .

They have i nherited the custo m from Spain o f writing o fll c ial

lette rs on any conceivable e xcuse no matter h o w tr ivial t h e c c ,

casion The cost of clerks and special me ssengers to deliver

.

these communication s is not light .

G e n Wright You would be kept busy day and night an

4

. .

s w er i n g letters .

G e n Smith Yes sir ; sometimes the three o fll c ial s of the

. .
,

same to wn would writ e letters to me on the very same subj e ct .

Prof Worce ster How is the feeling between t h e soldiers

. .

and the natives down there ?

Gen Smith Very good i n mo s t all of the districts
. . .

Judge Taft It depends upon your officers ? .

Gen Smith The people are just as sensitive as ch ildren

. .

— I was going to say as sensitive as women — to anythin that

g
o fle n d s Anyone who offends the ir dignity or their se lf love
.
.
-

immediately loses his influence The educated people and the .

people of means understand to a nicety the little amenities that

go to make life pleasant an d a pe rson who does not respe ct ,

them finds himself unappreciate d Even punishment leaves no .

rancor if the conventionalities are ob s erved and th e delinquent

is fairly treate d and impartially heard .

Judge Taft But it must be done in a polite way ?

.

G e n Smith Yes sir

. .
, .

Prof Worceste r I have been very much surprised i n the

.

course of events in the islands east of you because the people ,

there were good decent quiet people originally too from my

.

certain knowledge What has been the explanation of that

, , ,

. .

Have the Tagalogs gotte n in there ? Why is it we have so much

trouble there ?
Gen S mith Yes sir ; I think it may be accounte d for in
. .
,

that way I think the Filipinos are very credul ous and very
.

suspicious T hey are as credulous a n d suspicious as child re n

.
.

Every st o ry has its weight and t h e last tale is best believe d , .

They ar e human barometers and are as susceptible to the r u ,

mor the canard and the proclama as is the weather to the i n

, ,

d uen e s of pressure .

Gen Wright Have you got into your seat at the custom
. .

house yet ? “

G e n Smith Oh ye s
.
The only real complaint th e mer
.
, .

chants have is on account o f the lack of spac e in the go downs .

Judge Taft Well general we are very much obliged t o

.
, ,

you for this picture you have given us for it is of gr e at ass is t ,

an ce
.
We have a muni cipal code but it has b ee n dela ye d b v ,

21 8
 T/z e Sen a t e D ocu m en t an d Roma n zlfm
orders from Washington until they can advise wit h us about
some features and it may be we will want t o call on you again
,

for some suggestions .

Gen Smith Of course it i s i mpossible I will say to the

. .
, ,

commission even though we have good j udge s and they work

,

from eight o clock in the morni ng until sunset ; under the Span
’

i s h procedure it is imp o ssible .

Judge Taft We are g oing t o put in a code something like

.

o ur Ame rican code Are there any la wyers in Negros ?

.

Gen Smith Ther e ar e I think three or four besides the

. .
, ,

judges .

Gen Wright And of respectabi lity ?

. .

G e n Smit h The judges are me n of honesty and abilit y

. .
.

S ome of the atto r neys however were connect ed wit h the Span , ,

ish courts as escribanos o r as escribientes and th e pe ople don t ,

’

s eem to have any great con fidence in them .

Gen W right What is an escribiente ?

. .

G e n Smith Clerk
. The escribano as I understand pe r
. .
, ,
f ormed many functions which are performed by the clerks o f
o ur courts of record as well as some function s which pertain ,

t o our s h er ifl s and constables

Judge Taft I s he a notary ?
.

G e n Smith He was not a notary ; but b y v irtue of h is o f

. .

n e e I believe b e exerc is ed many if not all the powers of a

-

, ,

n otary .
0

Gen Wright They are great people for multiplying ofli ces
. .
.

'
G en Smith They had more offices in Negros i n one pueblo
. .

t han I had for the purpose of the civil and militar y administr a
t ion of the whole island .

Judge Ide Was the business in the courts mainly criminal ?

.

Gen Smith Largely criminal and principally robbe ry

. .
, .

Under the Spanish regime before these revolutions robb e ry

“

, ,

would be about t wo per ce nt of the crimes ; n o w the perce nt .

a g e o f robbery is much great er Of c ourse that result s fr o m .

t h e disturbed con d ition s .

Gen Wright You have got t o bear down pretty heavily on

. .

t hese crimes ; I am inclined to think it ought to be a d ea th ‘

penalty .

Gen Smith They h ad it a death penalty in Negros until we

. .

c ame there ; robbery o r theft ; they made it death for any the ft .

Prof Moses It didn t sto p the busine ss ?

. .
'

Gen Smi th They didn t have much robbe ry until Papa

. .
’

S cio began his p ropaganda .

Judge Taft Sever ity o f pun shment depends upon its r e a

.
’

sonable ch aracte r .

G en Smith And j usti ce

J udge Taft If you favor the deat h penalty at all it is pretty
. . .

. ,

hard to say why it should not be applied to a man who commi ts

murder for the purpose of committing his robbery .

G e n Smith They should do it

. . Robbery usually results in .

badly boloing a man if he is not k ille d o ut r ig h t o

Judge Ide The theory of it merely seems to be that the

.
,

b est method is to kill the man first and rob him afterwards .

Judge Taft Is rape at all common among them

21 9
 Tue Sen a t e Documen t Roma n zr m
'

an a

d en .
Smith No ; very rare . . Rape is a rare crime so , f ar as

I c an see .

G en Wrig ht No nece ssity for i t .

J udge Taft Have any of the soldiers married the Visayan

. .

w omen
Gen Sm ith I think one has
. . .

Gen Wright I suppose they live with them a great many

. . ,

o f them
G e n Smith If so it is done secretly
. The higher clas s of
.
,
.

Filipinos of course won t tolerate i mmoral ity among their

, ,
’

women Immoral women are tabooed They are about as

. .
'

str ict among the higher cl asses as we are .

Prof Moses What is the general sentiment among the

. .

soldiers with respe ct to establishment of relations between

soldiers an d n at iv e wo me n‘

Gen Smith I think from 2 to 5 per c ent would cover ca ses

. . .

o f soldiers who have mistresses Of course that d oes not i a . ,

c lud e the temporary cohabitations With regard to such .

temporary relations I don t think many soldiers are o v e r b ur ,

’

d e n e d by scruple s of conscience .

Judge Taft Well I can t help rememberin g what the

.
,
’

bishop of Jaro s aid about the temptation to which the young

fri ar w a s e xposed when h e went out into a village like that I
"

thin k the te mptations of a soldie r are greate r and the rest rain t
less
,
miles away fr om home and east of S uez , .

Gen Smith There is not any publicity to these things ; it

. .

is all s ub r o s a I h ave heard the talk that this or that soldier

.

nad a mistress but I neve r probed very deeply into the matte r
, .

J udge Taft We re you cal led upon to act at all i n regard t o

.

the social evil ?

Gen S mit h No sir There are no houses of prostitutio n
. .
, .

in Negros .

Judge Taft A n d how about the saloons .

Gen Smith The saloon o n ly exists in Bacolod in C arlotta

. .
, ,

an d some of the l arger towns .

Jud ge Taft What legislation did they pa ss with regard t o

.

t hat Did th ey impose a pretty heavy tax

Gen S mith A high license
. . .

Judge Ide Isn t vino sold .

’

Gen Smi t h Yes ; prin cipally by Chinese ; but the soldiers

. .

do not ind ulge in the native drinks to any extent where there is
a cante en established The natives are a very s o b e r people .

d on t indulge much in any liquor except tuba and that is taken

’
, ,

b y the laborer in moderat e quantities:

J udge Taf t Is that a fermente d liquor
.
.

G e n Smith It i s a fermented liquor

. .
It is taken by t h e .

l abo ring man after his day s work If it is taken moderate ly it ’

.

acts as a mild stimulan t and creates a slight exhilaration .

Fruit or other liquor should not be taken immediately before or

afte r dri nking tuba .

Judge Taft Does it taste like beer .

Gen Smith It is someth ing lik e beer in appearance but

. .
,
t i ckles t h e th roat like champagne only more 5 0 Its odor is not , .

ag reeable .

Prof Worce ster So I have heard ; and I know from e x

. . !

220
 Tne Sen a t e Docu m e n t an d Roma n zlr n z
l i ves exclusively o n extorti on a n d l a d r one w h o
' ‘

p au a g e . l ue
prete nd s to be nothin g else plants a l i t t le r ice and s ome camotes
in the mountains and falls back on that re source when grass is
short and robbing becomes unpro fita b le or d an g erous The i h .

s ur r e c t o robber never works t hat would be infra d ig — .

Judge Ide D o the people resist them at all

.

G e n Smith One armed man could enter a pueblo of

. .

population and rob it .

Gen Wrig ht Don t they have any police force i’

. .
’

Gen Sm i th The pueblo p olice force (not the Unite d

. .

States native police) seldom o ii e r resist ance against a man with

a reputation .

Gen Wright Do they h av e any rural guards there 7

. .

”
Gen Smith Yes Every pueblo
. .
h as .its rondas and its
police ; but they are very retiring in the face of d anger They .

are no earthly use unless they have a percentag e of government

troops with them I won t say th at as a whole because some
.
’
,

pueblos have good police and use them— th e pueblos of Maso

and Ie io for instance
,
.

Judge Ide Do the people have arms there in those town s

. ,

Gen Smith Yes sir

. . , .

Judge Ide To defend themselves with

. .

AN S W E R S T O I N T E RRO GA T OR I E S .

1 . I lived forty ni n e years in the Philippines e xcepting

-
,

eight months which I passed in Hongkong

,
.

2 In the provinces of L a L aguna Manila Bulacan Min

. , , ,

doro and Jolo

. .

3 As a stude n t I was four years in contact wit h fri ar pro

.

f e s s o r s o f t h e U n i ve rsity of Santo Tomas as an agriculturalist ,

for sixte en years in a ce rtain comm un ity which a ppeared t o be

their property and as a neighbor an d parishioner all my life
,

h as b e en one of continual observation .

4 I have known lots of friars but can not state how many
. , .

5 I am i g norant of this never having been in Spain Some

.
, .

who pretend to be better informe d s ay t h at they came from the

lower classes of t h e pe ople If they are t o be judged by thei r .

exterior not all come from the same class of society becau s e
, ,

the Augustinians and Dominican friars are a little neate r than

the R ec o l e t o s an d they in turn are neater than the Francisc ans
, .

6 They derived their income i n the province of Manila

.

from the estat es of Man d al o yo n S an J uan del Monte Guada , ,

loupe and M untinlup a ; in the province of Bulacan from

, ,

Malinta Lolomboy S anta Maria de Pandi Santa I s abel and

, , , ,

from a part of the town s of Guiguinto Q uinigua and B aliwag ; , ,

in the province o f L a L ag una from the es t at es of Binan Santa , ,

Rosa and K alamba ; i n the province of Cavite from Imus San

. , ,

Francisco de M al abon Santa Cr uz de Malabon and Naic ; i n

, ,
-

province o f Morong from J al a J al e and in the province of

, ,

Mindoro from the Man g ar in g estat e All these estates were

, .

essentially agricultural excep ting Man g ar in g which is ded i

, ,

c at e d to the pasture of c attle a n d Jala Jala to the felling of ,

22 2
 '
I /z e Se n a t e Docum en t an a
’
Roma n zr m
trees and hauling o f firewood Besides t h ose mentioned they .
,

posse ss numerous urban lands in Manila and suburbs

’

It is to be presumed that the religious c o rporations o h

t ai n e d their numerous properties i n two w ays nam e ly : The
,

recen t acquisit ions through purchase as the ones o f S an Fran ,

cisco de Malabon and Jala Jala ; and the ones possessed by

,
'

them since immemorial times They obtained some through .

the piety o f the faithful ; other s like Bin an and S anta Rosa , ,

were cede d to the friar college with the condition that the youth
o f these towns or at least the children of the donors should be
, ,

shelte re d there and educated gratuitously Other lands again

, .

were appropriated by them by virtue of havi n g celebrated an

,
”

agreement b etween the friars and the property owners by ,

which the first raised a dike and the latter paid a certain amount
for the water they used a contribution wh ich in time came to
,

be an incumbrance on the property .

It is impossible that the donors of these estates shou l d

have been the sole proprietors of all t h e lands embracing the
boundaries of t h e whole town i n which everyon e has his grain ,

producin g field and it is e qually impossible to suppose or b e

,

lieve that all proprieto rs without exception should have agre ed

to d onate their fields to th em It is more probable that some.

o n e or ones lacking heirs and from mo t ives of piety

, donat ed ,

his o r their fie lds to some o f those corporations which corpo ,

rations thanks t o t h e ignorance of the nei ghboring owners an d

,

the unconditional suppor t o f the government exte nded absorb , ,

i n g with impunity all other s until arriving at the actual state of

,

ad airs .

These estate s although belonging to d ifie r e n t corporations

, ,

h ave with but little difference the same contracts by means of ,

which they subdue the farmers For a piece o f irr igated land .
_

measuring 1 quinon ( about 1 3 0 square y ards) they charged $ 1 50

o r more according to the market price of rice ; for un c ult i
,

v at e d land they charge d $ 1 0 $20 $3 0 and $40 accordi ng to

, , , ,

classification and in many estates $1 for each fo ot of man g o

, ,

and 2 5 cents for each foot o f c an e or bamb o o wood .

For l ands included in the radius of the p opulation and ex

c l us i v e l y intended for building pu rposes they charged from $ 1
to $ 1 0 for every 2 00 s quare yards accord i n g to the building ,

e rected or the pleasure o f the adminis tr a tor All this was .

specified in a four years contract at the te r mination of which

-
,

they were at liberty to transfer it to another .

Re nts : It is d ifii c ult t o asc ertai n the amo unt of ren ts the
‘

friars obtained i rom their estates and as the tenth part of s uch
'

rents had t o be paid t o the government they not only con ,

c e ale d the aggregate amounts but also did everything in their ,

power to reduce same in the books set apart for this pur pose ,

i n ord er to p ay less .

7 The priests in their respective parishes ar e the o fii c i al

inspectors of public instruction and o f public works in the
locality ; they a ssisted at the for mation of the publ ic census ,

which served as a basis for the personal taxes placed their

O K ” o n all reports concerning conduct and deportment and
. ,
,

possessing confidential inform ation decided in the majorit y of ,

cases the nominations o f the local o mci al s in this way often ,

223
 Tae Sen a t e Docum en t ’
Rom a n zr m
‘
'

an a

annulling the popular vote Through thos e same in formations .

many innocents were deported The friars were the self ap .

-

pointed advisers to the local o fii c i als in all matters per taining t o

their office In this way the priest except i n rare cases was
.
, ,

the one to make or unmak e e very thing without assuming any

responsibility which always rest ed with the local officials
, .

8 T h e relations between the head s of the Spanish Gover n

.

ment an d the he ads of the church were those existing between

“

entitles helpin g and protecting each other The Spanish Gov

, .

e r n me n t belie ved the religious corporations to be the principal

su pport of the coloni al governmen t h e re Those cor porations

to strengt hen this belief denounced rebellions whe n such e x
.
,

i s t e d and if not invented some for the purpose ; and for this
, ,

they in their t ur n w ere greatly sustained by the government

, ,

against the just attacks Of the pueblos .

At this point there must have b een a kind of alliance b e

t een the two heads that w as m o r e or less e fii c ac i o us accord , .

ing to the great er o r less credit which the government allowed

the said corporations .

9 A bout 8 7 for marri ages $3 for inte rments and 5 0 e n t s

c
.
, .

for baptisms This last price applied to the poor and the real
.

distresse d The rich were charged accordin g to the e x t r ava

“

gances of t h e church ar rangements ; some in ter ments cost as

much as $50 0 .

There is no d o ub t t h at in the early days of the conquest

'

these new converts to Christianity not only failed to pay these

taxes but moreo ver received small presents in order that they
“

, , ,

might submit to baptism etc but after t h e people had em , .

,

braced this new faith the religious ord e rs commenced also to

collect small sums which we re soon converted into a regular
,
,
fixed charge in proof of whi ch I cite t h e tariff decree d ab o ut
,

the midd le o f the last century by the A rchbishop of Santa Justa

and R ufin a i n order to undoubte dly correct the arbitrarin ess
,

and abuses i n the collection o f the t axes imposed at that time ,

because if this were not true there wo uld h ave been no need f o r
‘
drawing up such t ar ifi It is not known if this tar iff was ex
‘

a .
.

e c ut e d at the time of said archbisho p ; certain it is

t hat in o ur
days it is con sidered a dead letter by t h e friars The procur ing .

of the required fees was more a c ause of delay to the poor than
a means of preve nt ing them to marry .

With the exce ption of a few cas e s the morality of the friars
was not i n accord with their self imposed rules .

1 0 Submitted to a r igorous system o f living

.
th e y felt the ,
h uman frailties and d e sires more violently th an perh aps
we do
This may be the reason their moral level wa s so much lo wer
than the o n e of the r e s p e c t ac le dwellers of the pueblos to W hom ,
they sh ould be an example .

The oppor t uni ty I had to observe the moral s of the fri ars i s
stated i n answer t o quest ion number three .

.
What took p l ace i n the interior of the convents unde
r
cover of the confe s sion al a n d the ce rtain deeds co mmitted
every n o w and t hen an d co mmented upon in whispers by the
people of the neighborh ood and which the o v r e n
administration of justice has te ned to cove ? u fi g
f
adapted to figuring m the chron icle of convent scandals t h e fi fl é f
au i n
the present i n terrogatorie s .

224
 Ta e Sen a t e Document ’
Roma n zr m
'

an a

the Spa n iards all prelate s w e re of that nationali ty although ,

there were some among the F i li pino clergy more dig n ified and
o f grea t er c a pacity than the former o n account o f their virtue ,

and illustration .

S h o uld it be possible to ignore the American Catholics and

consequently their votes in the future presidential election an d ,

under the existing circumstances appoint a Filipino archbishop,

it would have a tendency to soften to some exte nt the existing
strained rela t ions I t would also be a token even t o the insa r
'

. ,

gents o f the s incerity of the Amer ican government s in te ntions

,
’

t o guide t h e F ilipino people in t h e difficult science o f govern

ment c o mmencing with the religion
, .

1 7 R e li g io us liberty o n ce given to the country the Catholic

. ,

clergy would naturally be offe nded but no more than that ,

.

This measure well regulate d and intruste d t o pr udent and

, ,

moreove r tolerant m inisters would g i ve the youth an o ppor

, ,
”
t un i t y to compare the di ff e rent r e l ig \us sects and choose for
themselves the most suitable one .

If religious i n struction s o f whatever kind and atte ntion ,

thereto on the part of the pupils should be made obligatory it , ,

is clear to see that this not only would fail to satisfy the people ,

but would be hat eful to t h e Cat h o l ic s as well as to those of _

,

o ther beliefs Everybod y would be satisfied if at liberty to r e

.

c e iv e instructions o r not in this or another reli g ion .

1 8 The class of priests occupyin g themselves merely with

.

p urely reli gious matters and livin g on the proceeds o f the vol
,

un t ar y contributions of the ir parishioners is precisely the cl ass

t hat s erved the parishes of the country from the middle of 1 8 9 8
until t h e present day If any chan ge has ta ken place between
.

the priests and the people it has favorab ly affected the latter .

1 9 The measures proposed in the last part of th is question

.
,

would prove highly bene ficial to the towns if i n their realiz ation
would not be found an obstacle On account of the extr eme .

poverty of the people the o wners of s mall lots will not be in

,

condition to verify i mmediate payment of the value of their

respective lands and then inste ad of being beneficial to many
, , ,

r t would only be a good occasion for a few rich people wh o , ,

t ak ing advantage of the actual misery would grasp the best , .

l ands prejudici al to those who cleared and improved t hem

, If .

i nstal lment payments o n these lands would be con c eded to the

people and the proceeds of these payments wo uld be dedic ated
,

do the instruction of the youth then not only would these mea ,

sures be of great adv an tage to some pueblos but to all the ,

Philippine Islands . P R Mnn c an o . . .

Manil a P I G o t 3 1 9 0 0
, . .

A NS WE RS T o TH E A T T A C HE D I N T E R
n oo a r o n r n s .

(T r an s l a t i o n
Don Jose C Mijar e s a resident of Bacolod capital of the
.
_
, ,

island of Negros a n agriculturis t and owner of city and s ubur

,

ban pr operties in i ar ms as follows

,

1 I have liv e d an d continue living in the Philippines sixt y

.
,

t hree y ears .

2 26
 T/z e Sen a t e Doc um en t an d Roma n is m
2 . Laguna Tay ab as Iloilo and Negros
In , , , .

3 Since the year 1 85 3 when f o r the firs t time I left Tuya

.
,

pa ( Man ila ) to reside successively in the other provinces above

n amed up to 1 895 The c as es and thin gs of the friar curates
, .

I have s een would cause the very stones to bl ush were they to ,

have the power of blushing for which reason I beg the com ,

mis sion to pardon me fro m giving categorical answer by relat

in g f acts which be c ause o f their na s tin e ss and repugn ancy the
, ,

pen refuses t o d escribe I am glad however to be able to r e

.
, ,

call having known in Tayabas a Franciscan parish priest w h o

rare e xception— was a model friar o f e xempl ary co n duct and ,

aus t ere life whose hand was kissed with respect b y all from
, ,

the gove r nor down to the humblest Spanish employe U n f o r .

t un at e ly for my country I have never again kn own another pos

,

sessin g the qualities o f that blessed friar .

4 So numerous are the friars I have known that I have

lost the count .

5 I h ave never trod the territory of Spain but through

.
,

several S paniards I have lear ned that the friars of the sever al
corporations that have come to the Philippines in grea te r part
have come from the peasant shepherd and rustic class o f , , _

Spain .

6 From my early youth I h ave kn o wn that in the jur i s d ic

ti on of Cavite Laguna and other pr ovinces of Luzon the friars
, , ,

possess vast landholdings the rents o f which called c an o n pro , , ,

d uc e d great sums of money and they al s o secured a good in ,

come f rom the many p arcels of improved real estate they h ad

in Mani l a an d its ad d itions .

7 T h e fria r curates usu r p ing the attributes of t h e local

. ,

authorities not only inte rvened but exe rcised joint action with
the said authorit ies in the three branches ad ministrative j udi , ,

c i al
,
and economical The g o b er n ad or c ill o o r justice o f the
.

peace who should have dared t o disobey t h e curate friar was

certain t o land in j ail within a f e w days if he were not deported ,

t o which end the reverend friars always h ad on hand like a ,

panacea against them the accusation of be in g a filib us t er c r

,

an d a n t i Spanish -
.

_
8 Th e heads of the Spanish government to the detriment
. ,

o f th e ir dignity became servile tools

,
because they kn e w that ,

the friars with the po werful lever of their money treasured

,

up i n the convents o f Manila were above the l aw ; therefore ,

more powerful than the very governor general of the islands - .

9 In some p arish houses I have seen printe d schedul es

published by Archbishop Sanch o de Santa J ns t a y R ufin a I
.

also h ad occasion t o observe that se veral curates have charged

parish fees at will and without fixed stand ard exceeding what ,

w as design ate d in said schedule I do not know whether this .

may have bee n the cari es in some case s for reluctan c e t o con
tract ecclesiastical matrimony alth ough in my jud gment what ,

mostly in fluenced this reluctance is that some reverend friars

had arrog ated to themselves r lg h t s which in feudal times were
( The right asserted by certain
”
called rights of pernada .

feudal lords t o enter the marriage bed before the husband ) .

F ar from my mind is the idea o f injuring or slandering for I ,

227
T/ze Sen at e Documen t Roma n iam -

an d

c an cite specific and con crete facts with the names and d e s c r ip ,

t i ons of the p artie s intere s te d s h ould I be co mpelled thereto ,

.

1 0 Speakin g g ene rally an d w ith rare exceptions their mo

.
, ,

r al i t y was detestable a s I have said above ,

.

1 1 The causes I h ave set forth a b ove an d many others

. , ,

have produce d m the masses of the Filipino pe ople an inten se

hatred for the f o ur religious communitie s the A u g ustinians .
, ,

R e c o le t t o s Domi nicans and Fran ciscans

, ,
.

1 2 In thi s res pect I repea t my foregoing answer

. .

1 3 For many y e ars pa s t the friars have taken posse s sion

of nearly all the curaci e s in the Philippines formerly occupied
by native priests the l at ter being relegated to the position of
, .

c o ad jut o r s and carry i n g o n their shoulders all the weigh t of

,

the e cclesiastical l ab ors and occupation for t h e meagre remun ,

,

e r a t i o n of fif t e en pesos per month which was t h e most they ,

earned In the meanwhile their i mmediate chief ,t h e friar cu

"

rate fille d i n his idle mome nts with corporeal enjoy ments and
’

pleasures and at times s aying to the patient subordinate

, Do
as I say an d not as I do ”
.

1 4 I r e me mb e r a s a young man havin g seen in th e reception

'

room o f the old college or se minary of San Jose Mag e llan e s ,

St i n the walled city of M anila large on po rtraits cf Filipino

. _
,

prelates whose names wh ich I cannot now recall appeared in , ,

t h e l o we r part of the said paintin g s

_
I n those days I person .

ally knew s e v e r ai can o n s of t h e cathed r al chapter of Manila

s om
,

e o f the m showin g t h e tassel of a d o ctor and I ought to

'
'

add that they were all sons of the Philippines From t he fore
‘
.

going t h e c ap ac it y of the Filipino priests who occupy the high

'
'

est ecclesia s t ical posts in the Phil ippines is de monstr ated .

1 5 The i njury which would result to the c ountry thr ough

.

the return of the friars to their parishes is incalculable , even

should they become seculariz ed as the people would only see
t h e e xte rnal diffe rence from the costu me alth ou h a t botto m
,

g ,

they would not cease to b e what they have been are and al
way s w
, ,

ill be friars
1 6 Provided t h e American archbishop were a Ca thol ic he
.
,

.
,
would in my opinion be more acceptable l n case h e did not al
, ,
'

l o w himself to be carried away by t he sugge stions of the friars ,

who unfortunately still proudly promenade th rough the en

, ,

t o n s of Manila .

1 7 I think what is propos ed in thi s quest ion i s an excellent

18 system as I look at it can establish a fir m bond

. T his , ,

of un i on between the people and t h e ministers of t h e chu r ch .

1 9 On this point I can expre s s no s pe cific opinion

.

Jo s s; C MIJARE S . .

Bacolod N o v 1 5 1 9 00 , . , .

ANS W ER S TO T H E I N T ERRO G AT O RI E S .

(T r an s l at i o n
To TH E H O N OR A B LE A M E R ICAN CI VI L COMM SS ON I I

The undersigned a re sident of Nue va Caceres , the capital ,

o f the province of b ot h C amarines ex clerk o f the cou r t of t h e

"

first instance of the t er minat ed government of Spain e x coun

,
"

-
,

22 8
T/z e Sen a t e Docum en t an d Roma n ir m
other pueblos o f the said province of A lbay u n de r the d i r e c ,

tion of hi m who was rector o f that t o wn Fray Carlos Cabido , ,

who by and for himself and without them knowing it ceded ,

the property of the building afte r being fin ished to the Francis

can order o f which proceeding the othe rs used to avail them
,

selves ln like cases ar q uiring the possession of the larges , t

build in g in Guinobatan .

. 7 In the towns of their respective parishes the friars e x er

c i s e d under the Spanish govern ment the political functions of

c oal inspecto rs of public schools maintained wi th funds of ,

th e co mmon wealth In virtue of those att ribute s which were

.
,

consider ed as a part of their par ish duties they subjected to the ,

whim of the ir will the teachers i n primary i nstr uction in their

towns E n tirely upon them depended the ex istence of said
.

te achers because the reports of t h e friars dete rmined the sus

,

p ension d ism issal or d is qual i fication of these teach ers

, ,
.

The friars who in their writings figured as decided cham

,

pions of i n struc t ion of the F ilipino people being parsons they , , ,

t h rou g h i n di r ec t means placed all kinds of obstacles in the way , ,

so th at the inst ruc t ion given to the people should be as limite d

as po s sible and understanding as is natural that the principal
, . ,

means of obtainin g same durin g time of the Spaniards was for

the children not to acq uire a k n o w ledge of the Spanis h lan
guage and they advised and e v en threatened the te achers not
,

to in s tru ct t h e pupils t h erein a n d if in complying with the o r ,

ders of t h e S pa n ish gover n men t t h ey laid aside such p e r fid io us

d isloyal insinu ations they m ad e themselves objects of the ,

fr iars vengeance w h o pur s u e d th em until bringing about the

’
,

s eparation or dismissal of t h e teache r an d h is substitution by ,

anoth er who at leas t to them d id not possess those defects

, , .

To this is owi n g the d eplorable backwardness of th e instr uo “

tion in many of the towns removed some distance from t h e ,

capit als of the provinces .

Besides t hose faculties which in practice allowed the parish

fr iars to dire ct at th eir pleas ure the intellectual movements o f
the Filipino people th ey were vested with others which ought ,

not to have a prea d e n t in an y other country of the world .

One of t h o se t h e most principal one of course and the o n e

which in t ime degene ra t e d into an inexhaustible spring of
, , ,

abuses was the faculty of authorizing with their 0 K ( a

, . .

kin d o f censorship) e ve ry pu b lic act of the municipal ities of

their parishes w ithout w hich indorsements th e documents ce rti
,

t ying to those acts we r e lackin g in leg al value in the eyes o f t h e

Spanish G i v e r n me n t This resulte d i n the fr iars absorbin g .

everythin g in t h e towns ; an d as t h ose acts referred also t o t h e

,

moral p o l it i c al an d re l igio us conduct of the inhabitan ts o f

, ,
'

each pu e blo and as the good n ess and honesty of the cit izen t e
,

d uc e d its elf to h i s bei n g devote d an d submissive to the fri ar ,

any body w ill u n d e rstand the pe r n icious con s e quence s o f such

terrible prepond erance much mor e so since the friars in t h e ,

towns o f th e ir p ar ish d e vo te d themselves more to the cult i

vati on of the t e mporal p o sse s s ion s th an to the s piritual welfare .

In the cour s e of time s uc h a corru pt syste m produced acute

evils in the country Little by litt le the Filipinos understood .

that t o be a somebody in the se veral st at ion s of civil mun i ,

230
 Tne Sen a t e Docum en t an a Roma n zr m
'

c i p a l, political e c o n o mi cal an d j ud icial life in a pueblo ruled by

. ,

a parish friar it was re qui s ite to fawn upon and be subj e ct to

,

him i n everything A n y contrary proceeding would mean to .

court the loss of reputation downfall and even death which , , ,

almost invariably r e sulted Esp e cially i n the ye ar 1 89 6 the se

.

evils were rendere d more evident the year in which the patience ,

o f the Filipinos having come to an end they emitted the first ,

s park s of the revolution which in delivering its blows against , ,

the friars had as an inevitable con se q uence to strik e th e

,
.
, ,

Spanish Government Le t us put it i n this way be cause t h e .

,

religious orders fr om which the parish fr iars came h ad absorbed

t h e Spanish Government .

We infer from all t his that th e alliance of t h e state and the

'

church in the Philippines was nothing else than placing such

favored orders over the state and the country in such a way
that the Span ish G o vernment may without fear of making a ,

mistake be called a theocratic colonial government

, .

Under those conditions all public employees from the high ,

est o fil c ial to the lowest clerk of t h e court of justi ce or town

halls in the pueblos of the islands al though committing all the ,

ab us e s an d i rregular ities possible if friends o f the friars were

~
, , ,

n otwithstanding all that considered as honest wise and with

o ut reproach an d v ice versa i n the Opposite case
, , ,

, .

This question is answered by what I have already said of

the positio n h eld by the religious orders to which the parish
friars belonged Respect ing the governors o f the country and
.
,

in some cases the r e al honest Spanish employees wh o opposed

some o f the said religious orders o r some member thereof they ,

invariably succumbed on account of the amount of influence the

friars e n joyed in the cou n try and near the Spanish Government ,

to whose monarch the bi s hops and chiefs o f religious orders

establis h ed in the Philippines were his councilors and who had ,

o n their s i de the Car l i s t i c newspape rs o f Spain as well as most ,

o f those of other beliefs an d which were subventioned by them ,

f o r this pur po se .

The four heads of the order s of A ugustinians Dominicans , ,

Franciscan s and R e c o lle t o s were a part of the board of gove rn

,

ment together with th e archbishop of Manila

,
.

9 Generall y t hey levied exorbit an t taxes in an arbitrary

.

manner not so much o n marriages and baptisms as on inter

,

ments of the rich persons .

The famil y of the l ate Senor Laurencio Ce a a rich pro pe rty ,

owner o f A ig ain of this province o f Ambos Camarin e s told the

, ,

undersigned that Fray Rafae l Gascon former parish friar of ,

th at town dem an ded the s um o f

,
a nd so o n in many ,

other cases according to p ubl ic o pinion in notorious violation

,
,

of t h e e cclesi astical tar ii published the 1 9 th of November -

, ,

1 8 7 1 by the illustrious an d vi r tuous archbi s hop the n of Manila

D on Basilio Sancho de Sant a Jus ta y R ufin a One of these dis
.
, ,

positions beginning the rules was t hat i n e very parish an au

t h en t ic copy and another pla in one transla t ed into the dialect ,

o f the country will be placed Nevertheless in no friar c ou

,
. ,

vent I ever went to have I se en such a copy Apparently so .

unknown was this ecclesiastical tariff among the friars that

many were not aware of its existence they governing them ,

23 1
 T/ze Sen a t e Doc u m e n t ’
R om a n zr m
'

ana

s elves in this respect by the customs more or less authentic is

such pueblo or dioce se
The under signed 1 s i g norant whe ther the tari ff o f the a rch
.

bishop Senor Don Basilio San ta Justa y R ufian has bee n mod i
, ,

fied or superseded by a late r one .

Regarding the colle c ting of fees the parish friars were ,

generally very exacting an d when t h e parties concerne d could

,

not p ay in cash o n account of the large su ms th e friars ad

'

, ,

mi t te d instead payments o f farms an d cattle and thro ugh such ,

an d similar means they i n time ma naged to acquire the pos :

'

.
_

s essions of those lands now actu ally posse ss ed by the conven t s

,
.

How these fe es were established is we ll said in t h e pre

amble of the circular ac compan y ing the before men tioned t ar i fi -

o f th e archbishop and which 1 s here cop ,

ied m p a rt by the de .

posit or The common enemy has always procured to d is

.

credit th e mi nisters of G od to in fuse into the ir minds t h e ,

spirit of avarice tak in g advantage of spiritual things At the

,
.

same time the d evote d pas tors of t h e ch urc h have al ways pro
cure d ei ther by themse lves or al s o by t h e di ocese or provi ncial , .

and gene ral synods to remove from th e e cclesiastical name the

,

s lighte st shadow of s i mony etc , .

0

Although crit icised by the co un try nobod y dare d to pro te st ,

se riously against t ho s e ex orbitan t fees f o r fear of t h e f r iars

’
,

vengeance and what happened in some cases when those call e d

,
.
,

upon to pay were poor was to postpone indefinitely the c on

,

summation o f their mar r iage until for instance the marr ying , ,

couple had sufficien t money .

1 0 T h e morality of the friars i n the pueblos of the Philip

.

pines was with f e w ex ceptions very scandalous, an d reached

, ,

the in cr d ib le in some pueblos of this province and Albay .

The p arish friar placed i n the position alre ad y described by

t h e undersigned re gardin g his parish converted himself up to a
I
, _

certain poin t into an absol ute lord master of lives and

,
-

p r ope r ty i an d ; i f so wil le d , he made and un made ever ything ac

“

cording to his fancy .

Ma ste r of the will of the peo ple more through fear th an ,

o ut o f love for h im he nominate d town authorities wh o ple ased

,

hi m which nomination resulte d almos t always i n th e greate st ,

,

natter e r of all his par ishioner s and it is plain that all weig hty ,

dete rminations di ct ate d b y th e muni cip al aut horitie s were not .

.

pr oper initi atives but those of his amours Inve s te d wit h this .

power wh o woul d d are t o r e s i s t any of his whims a n d tho se

,

Cases personally witnessed by the undersigned u n fortunate ly

confirm t h e vera city of his assert ions A c ertain Fr ay Damas o .
_

Martinez was a foreign vicar in t h e years 1 870 to 1 8 72 in t h e .

district o f Lagonoy of t his pro vince with residence in that of ,

Goa and he was so despotic and wicked to the people of h is

,

pueblo may God forgive him that when going to the house of
- - -

a married woman he ordere d t he husband to leave the house in

order to b e able to speak alone with his wife an d in this way ,

he managed to seduce m any although h e d id so only to those he ,

k ne w to b e ignorant:
232
 d Roma n zr m
'

T/ze Sen a t e Documen t an

ported to some of the inhospi table Spanish possessions or s hot ,

as traitors t o th e country by sente n ce of a courtmar t ial T h e .

Filipino people knew that all this and the b ad times they ex
pe r i e n ce d in their pueblos under the Span ish rule were owing
to th e friars i ntrigues and false report s and therefore th e
’
,

people attacked them as the ir pr incipal enemy .

Through religious fanaticism the friars obtained from

many a child or childless devotee in t h e name of the Catholic ,

church rich donations of money jewelry and valuable estates

, , , ,

but after rece ivin g same th ey transferred the m to the c on

vents of their orders an d it is probable that in this way the
,

great wealth they po ssess i n the country was accumulate d i n

the course of time .

All the world knows that the friar upon en t e ri ng his r e ,

v

l ig io us order mak es vows o f poverty and can a c q uire nothi n g

, ,

neither for himse lf nor for his family or heir s But once friar .

o f a pueblo he belie ves himself entitled t o acquire a ll kinds of

t reasures a n d dy ing he leaves everything t o his order
,
.

The Filipino people also know that the friars can not be
pr iests or parsons of any pueblo on account of their canonical .

education and if they s ucc eed i n obtaining p arishes in t h e

,

Philippines it was on account of p rivile g e s ceded by the Pope

Paulo III or IV if I re member right in consideration of the
. .
,

want of native personalities that n aturall y existed i n the be .

ginning .

I
Time passed by and the s e cular Filipino cle rgy multiplied
in greate r number than the exis t ing parishes i n the country ,

and there were some clerg ymen as for ex ample the pries t , ,

Pe dro Pelaes and the most unfortunate Father Burgos and

others who permitt ed themselves to affir m and even to main
, ,

tain in th e ir public ations that t h e time had come when the ,

clergy me n should perform the duties of the p arishes in th e

Philippines inste ad of t h e friars whose conce ssions on this
, ,

s ubject ought to be extinct But what would have become of .

Fathe r Pelaes if he woul d not have sunk under the ruins o f the
Manila cathedral during the ear th quake of the year 1 8 6 3 With
out doubt he would have shared the same fate as had the un
fortunate native priests Fathers Jose Burgos Jose Gome z , , ,

Jac in t a Z amir o S e verino Diaz G abriel Prieto and Inoce ncio

, , ,

Herrera the first three as if publ ic and notor ious dying in

, , ,

1 8 72 by the gar rote and the others shot in the field of Bagon
, o

h av e n i n 1 89 6 for a false politi c al reason veritable friar i n ,

t r igue s . But if illegally to maintain themse lve s i n the pos

se ssion o f the ecclesias tical privile ges against the la ws of pro .

gress that the friars commit ted s o many assassinations a mong

,

the Filipino secular clergy it was al s o in order t o prese rve t h e ,

p o litical p r o r o g at ive s which gave them the preponderance in

I
,

the Spanish administration t hat they committed all kinds of ,

abuses an d like assassinations with the death of hundr eds o f ,

children of illus t rious Filipinos for analog ous causes One f . o .

those was the never s uffi ciently l ame nted Doctor Don u o se .

Ri z al a genuine representa t ive of the i n tellectual progress of

,

th e country and its noble aspirations .

Those deeds and others d e rived were the apparent reasons

for the hostility of the Filip inos against the befor e me ntioned -

234
 d Roma n zr n z
'

T/ze Sen a t e D ocum en t an

c orporations ; but there ex ist othe r s ec ret o n e s of a n o t h er

order which con sist in having pr o p ag ate d a mo n g the pop ulous
,

masses by m e ans of writers s ub s id iz e d by the m as for i n

, ,

stance a certain G uio q ui n ap or P ablo F e ce d a S p aniard the . ,

doctrine of the superiority of races appl ied to the F ilipin os as , ,

giving insidiously t o understand th at the people of a n i n ferior

race are not called upon by nature to enj o y the soci al a d v antages
which are e n j o yed by the ones of a superio r race a m o ng whom ,

t hey naturally placed the Span iards derived f r Om this d ifie r ,

e nce the greater or lesser aptitude or ca pacity of t h e Filipino to

exercise determinate social functions which only belonged to

t h e people o f a superior race Thus the native clergy was not .

acknowled ged to have aptitude to fill the o ffice of paris h priests ,

as it was necessary that this should be exe rcised by friars of

t h e superior race and the same w as pre te nded with regar d to
,

other public c ifize s .

Although this doctrine anathematized by science by r e , ,

li g io n and by experience could not make an impression upon

, ,

t h e good sense of the m ost ignorant of the Fil ipi n os n e v e r t h e .

less i t contribute d not a little to the exasperation of the mind

a gain st their authors or i nspirators who by this demonstrate d ,

once more their being real descendants of the famous hidalgo ,

Don Quijote de la Mancha .

The reason why no hostility exis t s ag ainst the ot h er rel i

g ions orders l iving in t h e country as the ones of the Paulists ,

and Jesuits c an i n the opinion of the undersi gned be ascr ibed

, , ,

t o the fact that their individuals did not mix the mselves so os
t ensibly in politics as the before mentioned friars in asmuch as -
,

it is known in the country that they only dedicated the mselves '

t o the instruction the Paulists to make worthy c lergymen who

,

a lready excelled the friars in science and virtue and the Jesuits ,

for having taken greater pains in the instruction of the Filipino

y outh by a plan and a proceeding notably s ub e r io r to the ones
o f the other colleges governed b y Dominicans A ugustin ians , ,

and Francisca n s and although the Jesuits were also in charge

,

o f parishes in the missions of Mindanao i t is not known that -

they did not commit those abuses of which the other parish
friars were accused the public opinion is in favor of the,

f ormer
1 2 J usti fied are the charges made against the friars that
.

. ,

t hey were the cause of the deportation of some Fili pino parish
i o ne r s and in affirming so I reckon with the te stimon y of
, ,

m any who have been deported in the year 1 8 9 6 especially with ,

o n e of the ex t e achers of the children of G uinoba t an ( Albay)

!
- .

Senor Enrique Villareal who assures in a categoric manner ,

that i n said year the Spanish governor of Albay after having ,

him arrested by the civil guard and brought before h im declared .

that the priest o f his to wn Fray Carlos Cabido w a s the one , ,

wh o accused h i m (Villareal) of being a Freem as on an d free

booter and therefore he cannot t rust to the pr o mises o f pro
, ,

t e c t i o n said friar had o ii e r e d h i m Said S e nor Vill areal with . .

many others to the amount of 2 40 F ilipinos w as a c o mpanion

,
.

of the undersign ed i n Fernando P0 in the G ul f of G uinea Af ,

.

rica to which place he was deported with the o t h e rs half o f

t
,
hem perished there through t h e inclemency
,
of t he im
cl ate and
t h e bad and i n s ufifl cie n t nourishment duri n g the p e r i o d of one
_

235
T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t an a Roma n zir m
y ear also some of them fell victims to the cruel t reatment o n
;
the part of the Spanish soldier J o s e Fernande z charged with , ,

the vigilance over the deported .

Though 1 n regard t o the deportation of the undersigned it ,

is not possible to p oint o ut that the principal cau s e of such has

been some one of the many friars of this province it can be as ,

sured without fear of being mistaken that the apprehension

, ,

by t h e S pan i s h authorities of p acific or inn ocent n e ighbors in

the Philippines e ffected in the year 1 8 9 6 s o me to be shot an d
,
.

,
-

others t o be deported w as advised or instigate d by t h e pari sh

,

friars and th e bishop to get her with the Spani s h residents o f

_ ,

th e countr y an d the proof c an be deduced f rom the followi ng

,

deeds
Befor e the said year 1 89 6 a kind of i nquisito rial inve sti _

gati o n was in vogue among the Spanish friars in their parish e s

of who were Freemasons an d those were reco rded by the civil ,

guard in what that body called the Gr een Book because ac , ,

c or ding t o the fr iars Freemason in th at epoch was synonymous

,

wi t h fr eeboote r In all the trials formed by th e military tribu

.

n al s on ac count of the political even t s referred to in th e ye ar

1 8 9 6 theyaccused the co nd emned or indic ted if they were or

, ,
-

were not Fre emason s .

2 The mo n th before the di scovery of the famous revola

.

t io n ar y conspiracy hy the n ote d priest of Tondo Fray Marian o ,

G il t h e Franciscan fria rs of the nearby pue blos o f this capital

,
-

did not cease to celebrate secret reunions which used to be the ,

forerunners of surpassing deeds in the country .

3 Th at a month prior it was already confusedly wh is pered

.

in the towns of t he parish friars that day s of mourning and .

blood were approaching th e Philippines which nobody knew ,

how to explain .

4 That while the undersigned was in o n e of the d epart

. ,

ments o f Bilib ld with a hundred politi ca l prisoners tied with !

chains and oblige d to lie down upon the til ed floo r wit h t h e .

pavement for a bed a friar the narr ator doe s not rem ember
,
—
.

if he was an A ugusti nia n or Domi nican with a military o fii c e r ,

en ter e d o ne afte r noon pass ed thro ugh the hall o f the s ufie r i n g s
-

of so many luck less as we were there in nocent the greate r part

, , ,

and in place of lavishing a few word s of consola tion t o the n u

fortunate s which is a duty o f a minister of the reli gion of the
,

Cr uc ifie d he passe d on casting right and left gla nce s of con

, ,

tempt , sco rn and ill wil l wh ich froz e the blood of th e impr is
-
,
-

o n ed one s in this way making their situations more serious

, .

He was t o all appearance s an e mis sary of the f r i ar s , t o ac quaint

himself if thei r poor victi ms we re treate d as they wished .

5 The ord ers of the paris h fr iars i n t h e Philippines are

.
,

acc or d i ug t o public opinion in Spain l ar g e ;s h ar e h o ld e r s in the

-

.
_ , .

enterprise of t h e trans Atlantic Sp aniards who wished t o retain ,

in their possession the o fii c i al transport ships of mail t roops , ,

and depor ted pr i soners all of which were entitled to passage

at the expense of the commonwealth The undersigned with
,

.
,

several hundred of deported to the Span ish possessions in Af

rica were on se veral voyages embarked o n Sp anish trans Atlan
,
-

tic liners an d t o all o f us it was given to understand t hat the

,

ill tr eatment the deporte d would receive on boar d from o me ara

’

286
 Tfie Sen a t e Docum en t an d K ama n m n

14 With regard to the knowledge and provision of said

.
“

clergymen to discharge clerical duties : Co ming al most all from

the conciliar seminaries gove rne d by the Paulist Fathers dedi ,

c at e d expressly to make priests after h avin g frequente d t h e ,

college s of secondary instruction in this capital an d in the pr e v

in ce s no Filipino unless those addicted to the friars who have
, , ,

al ways placed a great diligence in taking away the prestige has ,

ever doubted the kno wledge and s ufii c ie n c y of the same to duly ‘
,

discharge their clerical duties and resting upon them as was , ,

always a great part o f the religious duties that should have ,

been performed by their mas ters t h e parish friars in their , ,

p arishes it is evid ent th at the greate r part of those co ad jut or s

,

surpassed the former However as the opinion of the under

.
,

signed ih his characte r of Fi lipino mig ht appear par t ial t o th e

i llust rious commission who reads this my poor work and t o
avoid t his inconvenience I make h o ld to call it s overtaxed at
, ,

te nt ion to the work of the r eligious fathe r Don Salvador Pons , ,

who proves with indisputable date and documents the knowl

edge s ufii cie n c y and virtues of the Filipin o clerg y said work
, , ,

is entitled Defense of the Fil ipino clergy .

"

1 5 Thinks that the efforts made by the friars t o re turn to

.

t heir parishes if any are i n the opinion of the undersigned

, , ,

owing to purely political and terrestrial motives because if ,

made out of love for their reli gi ous mission they have a vast ,

field in which they can win laurels that would make them wor
thy o f the glory of heaven without causing harm t o a pueblo
that heartily hates them Such are for instance the missions
.
, ,

of China and other countries o f' i n fid e l s .

Who knows the Philippines a n d really desires their peace .

an d welfare shoul d tremble at the mere ide a that the friars can
.

return to their parishes ; because in this the same reasons

would subsist that obliged the F ilipi n os to take up arms ag ainst
Spain and would retard inde finitel y the high and noble pur poses
,

that animate the magnan imous A merican nation to re establish

the peace and cultivat e the prosperity of this unhappy soil “

God grant that I am mist aken in thinking that those who

.

wish or work for the return of the friars to their parishes have
an interest in placing obstacles in the way of the American
politic .

1 6 Taking i n consi de r ation that one of the bases of

.

American politics in the Phili ppines is the separation of the

church from the sta t e the undersigned is of the opinion that
,
,
while t h e peace is m t d e fin i t ely established in the countr y it is ,
I
not ad vantageous f o r the archbi s h op to be an A merican or a
Spaniard The author of t his humble wor k making himself
. .
,

th e echo o f the thoughts of many of his country men desire s he ,

should be at pre s ent of a n eutral country like S wi tz erlan d ,

should it not be possible to fin d in the Philippines 9 clergyman .

worthy of such high post in the ecclesiastical hierarchy ?

1 7 Referring to the establishment o f schools in which o
p
.

p o r t un i t y would be given t o mini s ters of any church to in s t ruct

the children i n religion half an hour before the ordinary one '

,
the undersigned who as an apostolic Roman Catholic is a par
.
,
tisan of the real liberty jud ges this establishment very o ppor
,

tune always conceding to the fat h ers the liberty of choosing

,

2 38
 Sen a t e Doc umen t d Roma n zr m
'
I /ze
'

an

any ministers of the church to give r e lig io ris instruction to his

children U n d e r t h i s condition he is sure that th e establish
.
o

ment would satisfy the Catholics of these islands .

1 8 I f the parish priests are not friars or not proceeding

.
,

from them it is possible that the relations between the pueblo

,

and the clergymen would not change very much but being
’

friars o r comin g from them the answerer cannot anticipat e

'

, ,

his opin ion owing to the fact that the country has already lost
,
,

c on fidence in said friars though they may return in a different ,

dress .

1 9 The undersigned is of the opinion that the rural prop

.

e r t ie s possessed by the friars o r their convents are not theirs

by ri ght because their acquisitions are of invalid right the

, ,

more so as said friars at being admitte d make a formal and , ,

solemn renunciation of all thei r rights to the world and b e ,

cause it is expressly forbidden to convents and religious com

mun i t i e s by a decree o f the provincial Spanish government in
force to day as law of the 1 s t h of October 1 8 58 to acquire
-
, , ,

an d possess property especially real estate , .

In conclusion the infor mant believes the country would

,

applaud with enthusias m a confiscation of the said properties

and it s return t o t h e go vernment in the name of the Filipino
people better than the expropriation with the high social o h
,

je c t s proposed in the interrogatory ; more yet if a good part of

the funds obtained by the sale in lots o f the lands would be ad
judged i n f avor o f the secular Filipino clergy for the erection ,

L d maintenance of conciliar s emi naries in greater multitude

Man at present in existence fo r the instruction of the secular ,

native clergy .

This is all the information I can give according t o true

knowledge and understanding
F RA N CIS C O ALv a n n z
.

-
.

Nueva Caceres Oct 2 1 9 0 0 , .

,
.

F R A N C I S C O RO DR I G U E Z G O ME Z .

Francisco Rodriguez Gome z first cor poral of marines and , ,

secr etary to notify the atte station of suspension to the Filipinos ,

F r ancisco Alvarez and Tomas Valenciano of which is instruct , .

in g j udge the ensign Don Francisco de Alba Gallardo ,

.

Certify that in page No 3 of said process and i n the r e . ,

port o f the auditor o f Manila first paragraph is the jud g ment ,

which literally copied says

F ir st The provi sional suspension referring to the pro
.

scri bed Don Manuel Pardo Ramon Martin Eduardo Robles . , ,

Francisco Alvarez ; Tomas Valenciano and Antonio Arej ola , ,

regardin g whom n o just cause exists to maintain the accusat i on

in accordance with article No 5 3 8 number 2 o f the code o f . ,

j ustice I l kewise certify that in page N o 5 i s copi ed

. .

military i ,
.

judgment of the capta i n general of Man i la

the provisional -
,

which says : Manila October 2 7 1 8 9 6 In accord Wi th the pre

, , .

vions report supersede provisionally

,
the process referr i ng to

the proscribed Manuel Pardo Ra m on Mart in Eduardo Roble , , ,

Francisco Alvarez Tomas Valenciano ,

an t n t o n i o Arejola , ,

contain ed in the fir st p aragraph o f this decree .

239
 d Roma n zr m
'

Ta e Sen a t e Documen t an

And at the petition of the parties int er e ste d I issue t h e

. ,

pr e sent copy in Santa Isabel de Fernando Po th e i s t h of ,

Dece mber 1 89 7
,

,
a cr s c o R o n r n G mt z
.
.

R AYMUNDO ME LL IZ A A NG U L O .

(T r an s l at io n ) .

The undersig ned American citi z en i n order to tell the tr uth , ,

and for the welfare o f the Uni t ed State s and the Phil ippines ,

has the honor t o answer the questions here to attac hed

,
1 F r om his birth until he attained the a ge of twen t y year s
. ,

when he went to Europe residing h ere again after th e age of ,

twenty seven until the present time fifte en y ears

-
,
.

In almost the entire Phili ppine Archipelag o from Iloco s .

Nor te t o Misamis in Mindanao , .

3 Throug h o fii c i al positions which h e has held since 1 8 8 2

.
,

4 The curates of the Islan d of Negros those o f Misamis

. , ,

Cebu Bulacan Ilocos Norte and Sur about seventy

, , ,
.

5 It is not e as y t o fix de fini te ly the class o f Sp an ish so ciety

‘

t o which they belong because they were not communi cative as

-
.

to the ir origin but judg ing fr o m their manner o f spe aking

, ,

working thinkin g and from their relatives who came t o live

, ,

with th em the majority of them belong to the lower classes in

,

Spain This nevert h eless does not prove anyth ing as to the
. , ,

damage they caused because they all did damage wh ether they , ,

proce e ded from a plebeian or aristo cratic or igi n The d ifier .

ence which is noted between friars properly speaking and the

Paulists and Jesuits with the exception of the Capucins whom
, ,

, ,

the wri te r is not ac quainte d with on ac count of their recent e s

t ab l i s h me n t here consi sts of the fact that the Jesuits and Paul
,

i s t s are much more learn ed and disciplined th an the friars an d ,

naturally these qualities make them much mor e commendable ,

and d o away with the natural fear of their being wrongdoers .

6 He states that as a matte r of fac t he never knew any

.
, .

thing about the rents and properties o f the friars beca use he ,

never cared to know or thi nk anythin g about other people s !

’

business But judging from their actions they appeared to be

.
,

the wealthiest people in the Phili ppin es At this moment h e .

only recalls the esta t es of Santo Nino in Cebu ; o f M ali nta in , ,

Bulacan ; of San Francisco de Mal abo n in Cavite which b e , ,

lon g s t o the Augustinians ; those of Lolomboy and of Sant a

Maria de Pandi i n Bulacan which belongs to the Dominicans
, , ,

and that of Imus in Cavite which belongs to the R e c o le t o s It , .

is t o be supposed that th ey possess other pro pert ies and rece ive
other rents which co uld be asc ertained definit ely by exami na
,

tion of the documents which ought to be in the office s of t h e ad

min i s tr at o r s of the d ifie r e n t convents .

7 He states that the law never conceded them political

.
,

ad min i s t r ati ve o r judicial rights except those of mere ly givi ng

'

, ,

i nformati on as by placing their approval on re ports rendered

,

by chiefs of th e to wns or atte nding local meetings of the gov

er n me n t s of the provinces in ord er to give their Opinion and
,

vote on some economic governmental and administrative , ,

matters but not in cases thereof Provision i s mad e i n the

, .

colonial legi slat ion of Ro driguez San Pe dro and the l aws o f ,

2 40
 Tne Sen a t e Documen t d Roma n zr n z
'

an

work o f the friars because the civil auth orities ordered and
,

execute d them ; b ut sometimes when it suited them s ome , ,

friars stated that they had caused certain deportations In ad .

dit io n t o this the most obtuse intellect well kne w that they
,
-

were the persons who brought about the de po rtations , because

the enemies of the fri ars gene rally under we nt this punishment .

an d it was generally carried out by the authoritie s fr iendly t o .

the latte r By this however we do not mean to i mply that any

. , .

Spanish official at that time friend or not would not do t h e

, . .

friars this barbarous favor because it must be borne in mind ,

t hat both in evil and in good the Spaniards and the f riars we re
as one and always worked together or in this matt er wi th c om ,

p i ete freedo m .

1 3 Those native priest who did not have the fortune t o b e

. _ s

inspired by th e real spir it of Chr ist had to adopt the mor als o f
the friar as I have described them in answer No 1 0 and it i s
,

,
.
_

natural that the pupil should learn from h i s teacher the worse ,

t h e te aching the sooner because as is said evil is eas ily an d

, , ,

quickly lear ned But it can not b e denied that there are virtuous
.

an d learned native priests as the history of the past an d pres

, .

ent te aches us with a knowledge of dogmatic t h e lo g y which

, o
.

afli r ms that God spread s his grace over all the sons of A da m .

Up to the pre sent time no other science as worthy as this h as

stated that the F ilipino priests ar e not descend ants of Adam b e
cause they do not participate in h is gr ace .

i t This question is similar t o the preceding and there fore

.

its ans wer will be a conse quence of the preceding answer .

Grant ing as sufficient t he morality and kno wledge state d there ,

we must admit that the n ative clergy w i ll be as capable in

every s ense of the word for dischar ging t hei r cle rical d uties .

1 5 The result will be that those returni n g to parishe s in

.

h abited by civilized persons will end by be c oming civilized like

t hem and w ill then fit them like a glove bec ause in a land of ,

m orality and civiliz ation the maio r i t y r ules for an entire pueblo ,

is much very much greate r an d s tro nger t h an a friar although

.
, , ,

he shoul d be g reater than Go liath the giant o f Christian t r a ,

d ition But the one that g oe s to a backward pueblo will only

.

be ab le to live at the most ten years at t h e end of which time

‘
, , ,

i f he does not die and God doe s not help him h e will be the
"

victim along with the government of the slight advance to

, ,

c ivilization brought about b y h im as h i s love of self will pre ,

vent his enlightenin g the pueblo and in some m anner as slaves ,

produce tyrants will come ab o ut the same sad spectacle of a

,

second or third edition of t h e present revolution b e cause the ,

prog ress of a pueblo can not be blocked it must necessarily ,

come and the moral and religious infl uence of the prie st has a
, .

large and decisive influence .

If the parish friar who goes to a backward pueblo i s

personally known by the people to be good by great e fforts an d ,
l

by the assistance of divine grace he will be able t o convert h is

pueblo to civilization But at this time it o ccurs to me to ask
.

in my turn : In this century of materialism w here will that

friar be found to be curate of a backwar d pueblo
1 6 It is not the nationality that brings about either good
.

or bad but the morality and wis d om of the individu al who i s

, , .

242
Tne Sen a t e Doc um en t d Roma n zs m
’

an
'
’
afie c t e d by two i n fine n ce s re ward f or his good action s and ,

punishment for t h e bad ; so that lay ing this before the eyes of ,

the American Spanish Filipino or Lapland archbishop and

, , , .

letting him know that his course will soon receive its deserts ,

any of them can be appointed who has s ufii c ien t moral or intel
lectual capacity for the position ‘

1 7 ; That would be proper just and practical because man , . ,

composed o f soul and b od y cannot cut himself o fi from r e

Jg i o n ; but so as not to o ffend their ideas or t o attack real
liberty it is necessary that the ministers be of the same r e
,

li g i o n as the fathers of the children if they are under seven

years o f ag e or tha t the latter may select after passing that age
‘

, ,

when according to moralists and theologians the human being

, ,

assu mes the responsibility f o r his own sins .

1 8 : O f course by this fact the relat ions between the parish

priests and their parishione rs would b e changed to the bene fit .

o f the latter But t h i s is not enough because the parish curate

'

.
,

who sin s has the advantag e over his victim especially among
“

Cath olics through the moral ascendency which the dogmas and
,

canon s give him Therefore it would be n ece ssary to prepare

“

.
,

an o fii c lal code o f puni shable ac ts and t o proceed ag ainst him '

ofi l c i ally without awaiti ng the private action o f the person

'

offended which in man y cases would be prevented by that

,

above mentioned ascendancy

-
.

"
1 9 It is somewhat unsafe t o give an opin ion upon this
.

matter not knowin g exactly if the friars u s ed the fruits of

,

their numerous properties for the true service o f the Lord as .

the evangelists teach us to do in which event it is clear that , .

that object would be bett er than the o n e mentione d i n the ques

tion we are answering and they should n ot be d e pr iv e d o f the ,

property but that they employ in s c ch a gr eat wor k But if

- .

they d o not use t h e rents of their properties i n the service of

,

the Lord certainly they use them wr ongfully because it ap

. ,

pears to me that they use them just a little for the benefit of
man in society which is the object of the question an d there
.
. ,

fore it were well for the govern ment to deprive them of their
,
'

property and use it for the object indicated in the q uestion .

The first upposition must be established by the books of ex

s
.

pense s and th rough the Apostolic delegate fin di n g out where

'

they have spent their r ents an d their m oney and if they have ,

no t b e e n apen nin the service of the Lord it is to be supposed

'
'

that they wou ld not be employed in 1 hat way in the futu r e ; t h e

.

second case that they have not used the property for the benefit
’

o f man in society is self evident an d what is clear does not ,

have t o be investigate d
R AY MUND O MELLIZ A ANG UKO LL D
.

.
.

O B S E R VA T I O NS U P O N T H E H A CI E N DA
OF I MU S .

[T r ‘ s l at i o m]
T hep ueblo of Imus was a b ar r io of Old Cavite prior to this
whose ch pel was erected in the pl ce known as T o cl o n
century a .
a .

s t i l l a ba r rio of the same name within the limits of Imus and

,

243
 Tfie Sen a t e Docum en t an d Roma n ir m
since that time a large amount of l an d h as been cultivate d b y ,

the natives in the places known as Medicion T o c l o n Ala pan , . .

Bucandala Balangon and A nabu and in d iii e r e n t places within

. . ,

th e boun d aries of Imus the land for t h e most part being de .

vote d to the sowing of palay A t that time there was no dam .

o r means of re taining wate r ; but afte r many years had elapsed .

when the b arrio had a s ufii c ie n t numb er of inhabitants an d

s ufii c i e n t means to support a pueblo on the petiti on of t h e ,

natives the Span ish Government declared the pueblo civilly ih

.

dependent o f the town of Old Cavite The spiritual ad min i s . ~

t r at i o n continued pertaining t o the curacy of Old Cavite for

many years the natives const ructe d a provisional church and a
,

court i n the place known as the barrio of Pueblo Viejo ( old

pueblo) where was established the pueblo of Imus The pro
, .

d uction of palay having rap idly e xte n ded it be ing raised up t o ,

the vicinity of T amp us h o w t h e pueblo of Pere z Dasmarinas , ,

still there was no dam Or means of retaining wat e r in the entire

t e rr itory of Imus During this time a P eninsular Spaniard
.
,

whose name and s urn ame I do not re call with his wife named , ,

Dona Aug us t i n e who were said to be punished by the govern

,

ment of Spain arrived from Spain But it was ev ident from

, .

his kindly and am i abl e treatment of t he natives and his manner '

of livin g that he w a s a person of high rank He se lected for .

his re siden c e the site n ear Te mpus n o w known as Perez

“

.
,

Dasmarinas It i s s up posed that he had preferred thi s place on

.

accoun t of its te mpe r ate climate .

He lived a ver y peaceful li fe d un h g the entire period of his

life in this pueblo was very fond of ridin g horseback and so
, .

he bought a lar ge numbe r of hor s es He sowed g ra s s for their .

feed but the re came a time when from t h e month of January it

,

did not rain and there fore caused the grass to die The
, .

Spaniard de cided to register that place if he had any means of

irrigatin g his grass and he found a suitable place where he
. ,

then constructed a dam composed of stone and wood and al .

though this d am is not now in existence there still remain traces .

o f it
. . T here in the months of October and November of the
.

y ear in which the construct ion of the dam was comple ted the ,

time in which the palay was beginning to be formed there was

.

a scarcity o f ra in on accou n t of which t h e farmers of t h e place

,

known as M al a g asan g n o w barrio of Malagas ang appealed t o

.
,

the Span iard and as k e d f o r water to irrigate their crops He

'

.
.

s eeing t h at he had more than enough wat er for his gr ass fur
.
n i s h e d water to the farmers charging $ 1 per cavan of seed .

sown wh i ch th ey irrigated and main tain ed with the wate r from

,

the dam ; a n d in time this water w as not only used by the in

h abl t an t s of Malag as an but al s o by t hose of Bucandala , D ona .

A ug us t in e d ied in t h e y e ar 1 79 5 or 1 79 6 accordin t o estimate s

g ,
,

Friar Francisco de Santiag o bein g first fri ar cur ate of Imus ,

recently ap pointed to whom the Spaniard intrusted the ad

,

ministration o f the d am on leavin g for Spain This father ad .

ministered an d col lected the dues for the use of the water from
the dam for a period of t wo or t h q e ar s without changing the
amount which th ey had formerly paid to the Spaniard This .

practice was continued until Fr Alo n zo Tubera d e la Co n ce p .

cion came to occupy the curacy wh o likewise undertook t h e .

244
T/ze Sen a t e D acun zen t and R om a n is m
collection of the charges for the use of water A fter this pro .

v in c i a l curate had been in charge of the cur acy some months

,

he called all the leaders o f the pueblo together to t reat upon

the moving of the pueblo to the place where it is situated t o
day At the meetin g he state d the idea to t h e m s h o wmg them
.
, _

the convenience of the change and t h e bene fits and advantages

,

to be derived therefrom by the pueblo After t h e leading men .

had been thoroug hly informed on the matter and being i n ac ,

cord with him the gove rnment d id \ not delay in ordering the
change of the site of the pueblo to where it is situate d to day
'
-
.

On his own account t h e friar curate c onvoked the lead ers again
and in formed t hem of the necessity of the entire pueblo con
tributing in a body according t o their resource s to the speedy
construction of a church and parish house .

That is to say that the males over t h e age of 1 2 years

should take their turns in w
,

orkin g a we ek at a time in accord ,

ance with their number and according to the division of the

,

work that should be mad e and the headmen of Barangay were

,

obliged to present the individuals to work each wee k In .

addition to this all those possessing lands were to contr ibute a

,

talacsan of wood for each cavan of seed having to make the ,

payment along with that for the us e of wate r A nyone who .

could not pay with that article would do it in equivalent in cash

“

at the ordinary value which is $ 1 per talacsan besides i n c r e as

, ,

in g the pay for use of water to fiv e cav e ns of palay for every

cavan of seed The head men agreeing to all the propositions
.

of the friar curate they immediately began to bring in and pay

,

the t ala c s an s when they paid for the wate r By this act there .

was immediate ly erected a temporary church and house for the

curate of light mate r ials
, .

It should be noted the talacsan of wood was used in the

manufacture of bri ck and lime necessary for the construction
o f a chur ch an d parish residence of masonry The work on .

the church was commenced in t h a y e ar 1 8 2 0 or 1 8 2 1 a c cording ,

to esti mates but upon the completion of the church and the
,

parish house and after the period of one or two years they
, ,

still contin ue d demanding the payment of the talacsan of wood .

The chiefs demanded of the very same curate himself th at they

be exempted from the pay ment of the talacsan who n o t only ,

did not pay any atte ntion to their complaints but threate ned ,

them with the stocks and other punishments if th ey ceased

bringin g in or paying the t al as c an until the termination o f t he
construction of a private house of the faithful the house now ,

ca lle d the h acienda of San Juan d e Imus And the chiefs hav .

ing noticed the hard nature of the bishop did n o t c o m plain ,

again but continued to pay the ir t al ac s an s But becoming

. .

tired of so many sacrifices the chiefs had a secret me e ting and

, ,

appointed six of them to present a complaint in the court o f

first instance of Cavite against the abuses of the friar curate .

Upon the filing of the complaint and the preparation o f the rec
ord some of the poor chiefs were put in j ail and the others
, ,

who h as been prevented by some reason or other from appear

ing on the day fix ed by the judge were persecuted b y the curate , ,

But although they continue d to hide themselves the o t her ,

chiefs continued with the case assiste d by an influential woman

,

246
 Th e S en a t e Docum en t an a Roma n ia n
of Manila an d it is known that there was a favorable decision
“

o n t n e complaints o f the chiefs by the royal audienc ia o f Ma

nila after some years of litigation The litigants remained ah .

sent from th eir pueblos until th e curat e died and it is s aid that ,

the death o f this curate was oc ca sioned by th e decision o f the ’

r o yal audiencia in favor of the chi e fs as he died suddenly
, ,

foaming at the mouth on the very day on which he was noti ,

fie d o f the decision of the royal audiencia and on this s c c o un t ,

the opinion prevailed that the death was suicide by means of

p e r son .

Upon the death of the curate disappe ared the pay

ment of the talacsan ; from t his time th e proprietor s o f
land ceased to p ay the talacsan o n that account This curate .

allowed the pueblo to see his real influence with the government ,

for as soon as a criminal could reach h im and seek his proteo

tion that was enough to make him free from all responsibility
. .

So he was the close friend of the most cele b rated pardoned

criminals o f the district ; an d when he went to Manila h i s car
r i ag e was drawn by t wo pairs o f horses and he was generally ,

e s corted by these people On his re turn he was e scorted by.

t wo or th ree pairs o f calvary Therefore he was very gr e atl y .

feared by the residents o f the v icinity .

Returning now to the assi st ant at in i s t r at o r named San

'

t iago a lay bro t her who collecte d and administ ered the c harge
, ,
-

f or the wate r he did not make a s in gle change during his c c

c up an c y e x cept t o increase the charge by one cavan of pala
,

y ,

which was done at the will o f t he parish curate Becerra There .

aft erwards came another layman n ame d Matlar Carbonel to

“

take his place Father Becerra st ill being friar curate ; and in
,

time he bui lt the dam o f San Augustin and L encs e n in order to

increase the for ce of the water of the first ab ove men tioned -

d am ; and so they con t inued constr ucting dams down t o that o f

the landi ng place Lastly this lay brother see ms to have car
.
-
.
,

ri ed o n the business as an administrato r appointed by the pro

vi n c ial curate ; therefore he disposed f r e e ly i n all matte rs con
’

ce rning th e use of water In ti me the collection of $1 for each.

house site was commenced an d it is stated that they have the

-
,

ri ght t o co llect as th ey were usin g the water from the dams ;

,

and afterwards they went on t o collect fro m the h o us e s it e s in

the barrios at the rate of two reals each Although th e neigh .

bors were surpris ed by this new tax they did not prote st .

through the fear entertained by the m of suffe ring the same ex

p er i e n c e as was meted out to the leading men w hen they com
p lai ned against the talacsan some of whom i n addition to b e , .

i n g im pov eris hed were plac ed in j ai l and the others concealed

, ,

themse lves for a long tim e This same lay brother was the one .

who invente d the contract documents f or the watering of the

crops with the hou s e site included afte r the ti me of the col
-

lection of th e n e w tax They accepte d the contr acts because

, ,

. .

th ey believed that by this means they would avoid in the futur e

t h e conti n uous increase o f the p ay for the watering of t h e
crops The contr ary r esulted however b e ca use each ad min i s
. , ,

trator demanded an incre ase and a n e w contract t h e m o st ex .

pens ive o f all being the o n e who in t roduced reform s in h i s ad

ministration and the charges asce nding according t o the r e
, ,
.

forms introduced as will be see later

2
.
,
é 1
T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t R oma n zr m
'

an a

On the death of the lay bro t her Matias C arbonel his as s i s t ,

v

ant succeeded him another layman named Joaquin who t e

, ,

formed the documents of contract regar d i n g wate r f o r crops

'
and house sites by abolishing the manuscripts and substituting
,

printed ones He increased the cost of the water one cavan

.
,

so that the five cav e ns fo r each cava n of seed was made six .

Then he measured the meadows and the house sites and afte r ,

this measurement he collected ac cording to the number of bal

itas or quinones in each parcel possessed by the farmers a b ol ,

i s h in g then the custom of collecti ng according to the number

of cave ns of seed there resulting thereby a considerable in
,

crease o f the charge for the use of wate r and house sites The -
.

entire population became alarmed at this b ut after many dali b ,

e r at i o n s they changed thei r ideas t o only prot e sting against the

proceeding of the administrator b ecause they saw that the ia ,

fl ue n c e of the friars was more powerful than theirs with the

-

authorities Because they saw from these rea s ons that any
.

complaint would be useless which could be made against the

friars and the natives were right in their calcul ations because
, ,

Father Becerra still being curat e avoid ed any attempt to com

, ,

plain o n account of the e xperiences of the chiefs when they

,

protested on the talacsan o f wood for the old men had warned ,

the y oung and their successors that they should never have any
trouble with the friars and much more so when they are cu ,

rate s and therefore they paid according t o the demands of

, , ,

the lay administrato r b o t h for the house s ites and the ,

-

me ad ows .

The provincial curate died in the ye ar 1 8 39 or 1 8 40 and ,

was succeeded by friar Manuel Z ub i r e ; but before this time

t here was a substitute whose name I do not recall who man , ,

aged the afiai r s for a short time Neverthele s s the lay admin .
,

i s t r a t or continued the same and Cu r ate Z ub ir e did not give any ,

reason for complaint to the natives d uring the time he was cu ‘

rate Besides h e became friendly with his par i shioners even

.
, ,

having many compadres because he was accustomed to be g o d ,

father at the baptism of th e sons o f leading men which mul ,

t ip l ie d the names of Manuel and Manuela because he gave his ,

own name to god child ren After this curate according to the
-
.
,

s tatement of t h e natives , the ad ministration of the w ater was

entirely separated fr om the parish and t h e l ay brother Joaquin , , ,

freely carried out his tas k after that time as did his successor , .

In the ye ar 1 8 49 F at h er G ui lle r mo Rayo occupied the curacy the ,

same layman flo aq uin be ing administrator and the curate did
, , ,

not intervene in any way in the administration of the water;

During the term of this curate there occurred nothing strange
as regards the administration and collection for the use o f
wate r .

In the year 1 8 64 Father J o se Varela occupied the parish— an

upright priest who carried out his duties with entire justice ,

and was very greatly beloved b y his parishioners who likewise ,

d id n t meddle in matters pertaining to the administration of the

’

water or in the affa irs of the municipal captain ; for h e ofte n

refused to place his 0 K on documents an d accounts of t h e . .

tribunal giving as a reason that he was a curate of souls an d

,
,

th at his intervention in civil mat t ers was not just because th i s ,

218
 T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t
’
Roma n zs m
'

an a

provincial d i d not fin d in the convent b f the Re c o le t o s any doc

umen t to justify the title to the territory of Imus he answ ered ,

that there did not ex is t any In that case what do yo u know .

ab o ut o ur possession of tho se lands ? If your reverence will

have the kind ness to pay attention I will explain it to y ou ” ,

answered Don Bernardino and thereupon he related the history ,

from the time of the Spaniard owner of the d am up to that , ,

time in the manner stated in the preced ing paragraphs Upon

,
.

the provincial s being informed thereof he again aske d

'
How ,

do y o uknow the histo ry which yo u have j us t related ? Don

Bernardino answered that he knew through his father Don ,

Casimiro Abad formerly scribe o f the parish and o f the h ac i e n

,

da at the same t ime who had told it to h i m one day when he

,

was in a good humor In order to satisfy the royal commis

.

sion which Senor E s c as ur a broug ht to Manila , sent by the gov

e r n me n t of Spain to re quire all t h e religious corporations to

p roduce the do cuments of title to our haciendas do you think ,

there is any remed y ? Yes , fa ther ” A n d what is it ? .

“
Father give large amounts an d in g old which can rule this
, , ,

high o fii c i al ” In fact the father prov i ncial ordered this and

. , ,

Don Bernardino is one of the men tha t arranged the matter '

and it is calculated that pe s os w as the amount of the

gift an d Senor E s c as ur a did not delay long in disappearing
,

from Manila .

The history heretofore stat ed was g ive n on various occ a

sions by Don Bernardino A b ad when he was alive a s well as ,

that of the Spaniard wh o was the o wne r of the d a m .

In the year 1 8 7 3 Curate V ar e la d ie d an d F r Andre s G al d e ,

.

ano subst ituted h im in t h e s a me y e ar an d t h administrato r . e

,

Fr Villa was relieved by Fr Gaude ncio Marque z much b e fore

.
, .
‘

the death of the curate Varela Fr Andre s w as a a r e at worker ;

'

. .

he w as the one w h o i n c r e as e d t h e height of the stee ple alte red

'

the interior of the church and did not give any cau s e for com ,

plaint to his parishioners It is also thought that Fr Gauden .

.

cio is the one w h o ordered the construction of t h e countr y

hou s e in S alit r am where the friars generally take the i r vaca
,

tions A fter the construction of t hat house he also collecte d a

percentage in cash for the crops in the mountains s uc h as ,

palay and sug ar cane the time in whi c h the civil guard in aded
'

, v

the entire province of Cavite doing great damage as fait hful , ,

followers of the friars and exe cutors of their acts By t his .

new tax on cr0 ps ra ised in t h e mountains it was confirmed more ,

and more that the collection for the use of wat er was n o t made
in t h at conception but for the land because the places where
, ,

they sow sugar cane and palay are im possible to be watered ;

-

and alth ough the natives d esired to exercise th eir rights it was ,

now too lat e because the civil guard on one side and the i n fin
,

ence of the friar s on the o t her are two axioms which pr event
the public from ex e rcisi n g their real rights Nevertheless a .
,

resident of Pe re z D as marinas formerly captain there protest

, ,
,

ed against the collectio n s of tax o n mountain products befor e

the provincial of t h e Re c o le t o s and the authorities He d id .

not obtain a single favorable decision but o n the contrary was , , ,

robbed of his fields with danger to himself So that every d ay .

25 0
T/ze Sen a t e Docum e n t and Ron zd mr nz
th ey ntinued t o t ighten th e r u ns on the farmers and the d e
co
,

sp oiling takes place nearly every year .

On the completion o f the estimate of Father Andres upon

th e alte ration o f t h e inte rior o f th e church t h e paris h house ,

an d the elevation of the ste eple t h e father provincia l o r t he ,

R e co le t o s took up the expense to be occ as ioned by t h e p r j ect o

e d work t o the end that the funds of t h e hacienda should pay

,

f or t h e e xpense demanded by t h e e s timate the total of which ,

r eached the sum of I n the begin n ing the provincial l n

f erred that the funds o f the hacienda were under the control of
th e father in char ge o f the hacienda and that therefore he ,

c ould not dispose o f them In view of this answer he appealed

.
,

t o the father in charge o f the hacienda who al s o told the cu

r ate that under n o conception could he make any e x penditu r e
,
“

without e xpress authority o f the four de nne t s of the said cor

p or at io n Therefore Father Andres as one of the d e fiue r s
.
, ,

c onvoked his companions t o a meeti ng in the convent of the

r eco le t os in Manila in order t o discuss the matte r
, Upo n the .

c onclusion of t h e meeti n g they u nanimously resolved t o author

i z e t h e ex penditure s olicite d b y Fat her Andres but there we re
,
‘

d ebate s when treating of the mat ter and Father Andr es relie d ,

o n the argumen t that t h e entire hacienda belonged to the pueblo ;

t hat the church and the parish house also b e lon ged to the pu s h
lo and that ther efore the expense o f the chur ch should be borne
,

by property o f the pueblo and so h e was succe ssful in his pur ,

p ose H e also asked o f the archbishop ano t her sum for other
e xpenses w
.

hich was granted ; and two wealthy men of t h e

,

pueblo on their own part in response to the worthy actions of

,

t h e curate paid for the acqu i sition of the chandeliers of the

,

chur ch and the bells and hand bells which are now in the bel
,
-

fr y .

Father Gaudencio the a d ministrator went out of office and

, ,

was succee ded by Father Valentin Apellaniz his assistant bei n g ,

t he lay brother Roman Cabellera . This priest had go od princi .

p les although young ; he t reate d the farmers well and per ,

mit te d claims with the conse nt o f the pro vin cial B ut his as
,

s i s t an t was a miserable person who only possesse d the idea of

c harging for all the tax es
,

If any r e sident asked for the r e

.

d uction for some manga tr e e s which had died through old age
o r other reason s he did not all ow it but compelled him to
, ,

plan t others t o take their pl ace without giving any reducti on

f o r the d ead ones and he al s o did t h e same wi t h cane
. The .

p lundering went o n every year through some caprice of this lay

.

man In the course of time there was a great increase in the

tax e s up on ho use s ites an d the hill lands crops on the moun
.

t ain s and land sown

,
This sa me layman directed the work o n
.

the dam of Pason g castil e as the people recollect the only one , ,

with license from superior authority because in the archives ,

o f the cour t no other licens e is registered for the many dams in

t h e t erri to ry o f I mus and u pon the c ompleti o n of the work he
,

considerably increased the pay for water for the crops of

A lapan .

In the year 1 88 0 Father A ndres Galdeano died and was ,

succee d ed by Fathe r Jose M Ecarte the sa me Father Valentin .

,

A o e llan is being administrator an d his ai de being the layman Ro ,

25 1
 7 7 m S en a t e D oc um e n t d Roma n zr m
'

an

man Cah alie r a The blessed curate die d without beginning t h e

work on the floor o f t h e church because when he s e t o ut t o
.

c o mmence the work he fell sick w as unab le t o recover from t h e

il lness an d e xpire d
,

, Father Valenti n went to the paris h the

.

d ay succeedin g his death and took out of the convent all the
mon e v wh ich was in the chest of Father Andres the s um r e ach ,

in g $3 8 0 00 According to persons close to the curate of that

. ,

sum only belonged to h im $5 000 was for the expense ,

of the tarima an d , funds of the church Father Valentin .

took all t o the hacienda house and it is not known what w as ,

afterwar d s done with t h e money Acc ordin g t o stat ements .

,

Father Le ar te the curat e of S an t a Cruz of Manila learning of

, ,

the death of Father Andres endeavored to occupy the parish of ,

Imus while ot hers say th at they expelled him from Santa Cruz
,

b ec ause th e y did n o t like his method s However no matter . .

why h e took his departure the fact is that he was like wise not
.
,

we ll suite d to Imus for after he had occupied th e curacy on e

,

week he learned that the pu e blo was not congenial to him nor
he to the pueblo .

This ac tive h o s ili ty between the pueblo and t h e curate

lasted for a long time it being terminated by the revolution of,

1 89 6 This friar endeavore d t o retard progress He com

. .

pe lle d school te achers t o educat e the children in Tagalo and if ,

any father of a family sent his children t o Manila to study t hat ,

was enough to make him h is enemy and every reside nt who ,

spoke a lit t le S panish in h is opinion was a filibuster and as

, , ,

t ime went on in his opinion the fili b us t e r s increased because

, , ,

they progressed in the Spanish language In t h e y e ar 1 8 83 the .

custom of kissing the hand of the curate disappeared entir ely ,

and was a fat al blow to h i m From that year he began to r e .

c r ui t fil ib us t e r s believing perhaps that by this me ans he would

, , ,

brin g about th e p eople s re tu r n to their primitive cond i tio n of

’

submission to the fr iars an d not c ontent with this he like wi se . , ,

founded lod ges of Masonry ( sic) slightly known to t h e people , ,

an d as h e d i d not ti re of preaching agai nst Masonry making it

.
,

appear abominabl e as he said because it did n o t rec o g n iz e any

.
,

other God than their own criminal acts ; then the ig n orant
pe op le anxious to know the facts thoroughly found someone
, .

to seek the truth in the capital Manil a in the Orient lodge o f ,

the same It was found to b e e ntirely opposite to what the

.

curat e had stated and that in the heart of Mas onr y r e ign ed
,

pe ace and concord and its doctr in e is to love God before all
,

things and your neighbor as yourse lf te aching and inculcating ,

in the hearts of men equality and brotherhood the doctr ine

which o ur Lord Jesus Christ taught his disc iples By virtue of
,

this Masonic lodges soon appeare d in d ifier e n t parts of the

province o f Cavite H e became t er rified at the shadow of the
.

name Mason as he learned that there were Masons on ever y

corner From that time he could not rest easy ; he sought a
.

me ans of imp eding the march of progress of Masonry and went

out alway s laughed at with al l his civil guard
, . .

Maso nry was sti ll unknown i n this pueblo when the pueblo s
nearest to Manila ce lebrate d the fiesta of General De s p ujo l , an d
o ne of these was Imus All of its head men appeared at .

Mal acan an g with the proper obse quiousness pr e sided over by ,

T/ze Sen a t e Doc um en t Rama n zs m
’

ana

haciendas and curacies of the C J I p O l u l u Il I e h e a d ma n ‘ '

‘
t . u

could not utter a sound because the rea s o n s adva n ced seeme d
,

to him very strange and he be g an t o suspect tha t he was talk

,
.

ing to a saint The priest noticing t h at his interlocutor had

. ,

ceased to spea k arose from his s eat and said th at perhaps his
,

companions would be impatient and t h e t wo b ad e each other , [

good bye very cour te ously the friar conducting him to the last
-
,

step of the stairs and immediately moving o h toward the

Re co l e t o convent ; but he did not last the r e ei ther f o r i t is said ,

that he was elected rector of a colle ge in Mo n te A gudo which ,

place he left for another local ity as bishop We ll did he de

serve this last charge for h e was the true p as tor !
'

When this priest le ft the hacie nda Fathe r Victor whose ,

surname it is said was Ruiz t o ok h is place the same l ay brother, ,

R o man remaining as assistant This latte r priest left the .

management an d dire ction o f thing s on the hacie nda to the dis

cretion of the assistant ; neverthele ss he is a strong d efender
'

of its inte rests as is sho wn by a case which occurred with the

,

local presidente at that time which is as follows : The public ,

treasury of Cavite suspecting th at the h a c iendas o f San Juan

, ,

San Nicolas and Muntin lupa suppresse d t h e truth i n the s worn

, ,

state ments presented in that year as to net pro fits yielded by the
said haciendas — at a time when the governm e nt charged a cer
tain percentage on the land tithe the local chief of I mus —

or d ered an im mediate inquiry to be m ade in order to arrive at

the truth and without raising a hand the said chief in com
,

p li an ce with his duty ente rs upon the said inquiry as follows

He published a notice in and outside of t he town for all the
'

residents w h o paid anything i n mo n e y or i n products to the

hacienda of S an Juan t o present themselves requesting at the .

same time of the fair manager through a courteous communi ,

cation a certified copy of the s chedule or list of those paying

,

tithes for a ce rtain number of years pursuant to the pro ,

visions of the said order for the purpose of comparing the m

,

with the de positions app e ar ing i n t h e record T h e friar man aé .

ger becom ing apprised of the communication and notice pub

l i s h e d for three consecutive nights he a ppeared in the p arish ,

and b e gged t h e parish priest Le ar t e to kindly summon , ,

the local chief The parish priest did thi s ; and Don Bernat
.

dino Par e d in o Paredes for the chief was so named without

, ,

saying a word to him the parish priest goes into his room
, ,

l eaving him alone with the manager who after a moment s , ,

’

wait s poke and said Captain if you don t change your mind
, , ,
’

it will cos t y ou dearly The poor captain w as dumbfounded

.

and somewhat perplexed over th e first remark of the man ager ,

b ut co min g to himself he replied : Father be kind enough t o

'

elucidate and repeat what you have said for in truth I do not ,

understand what you wish to say to me ” Well this said .

“
, ,

the manager have y o u not p ubli s h e d a notice for three nights

calling upon the reside n ts to appear in the court and m
,

ake
depositions about i Yes father pursuant to an order , ,

from the govern ment Well you are very mu c h mistaken

.
,

about your carrying out the order and I repe at to you that it ,

will cost you very dearly if you do not change your mind I .

will despoil you o f your lands and will substitute the badge you
25 4
T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t d Roma n zr m
'

an

c ar ry wi th i ron I f t h e go ve r n m n t h a s placed i t on y our

. e

W est I wil l put it on your an kl e s ” a n d he said a thousand

. ,

ot her t h i ngs t o the poor captain which prudence w ill not allow
t o be repeated ; to m a r r o w morni n g at the first hour I want to ,

hear your answer f ro m yo ur o w n lips and at the house of the

hacienda and he departed imme d iately leaving the captain
,
"
,

alone withou t being able to articula te a word

, .

S oon af terwards the parish priest L e ar t e emerges from , ,

his room and f oun d h i m half stunned and as soon as he saw the ,

p riest come o ut he excused himself and left with h is baton of

o moe dishonore d b y t h e despot manager making h is way t o his
. ,

house and lock in g him self i n his roo m alone preo c cupied with ,

t h e d rama he had jhs t witnessed A b OII t 1 0 o cl o ck at night t h e

’
.

cr e stfalle n captain lef t his room cal ling u pon one o f his agents ,

t o summon at o nce an ex c aptai n in whom he h ad full tr u st .

The agent did so and t h e e r r captain was much astonished at so

,
-

untimely an invi tati on ; nevertheless b e dressed him s elf

quickly an d followed t h e agent f o r he presupposed that a case ,

o f much i mportance must have arisen t o be called upon at such

an hour and when he had re ached the house the local chief
,

came o ut to mee t him an d a f ter an exchange of courtesies con

ducte d h imto his o ffi ce cau si ng h i m to take a se at at his side
.

and afterward s address in g him saying t hat h e had made h o ld

'

to summon him at that hour because he could not himself reach

a de cision upon a case wh i ch had occurred a short time ago ,

and he told him all that had occurred with the manager as is set
forth above and consulting him as to what he should do in t h e
premises The e x captain becoming a pprised of what had o c
,

-
.

ur r e d sighing :
, So you have stood all these insults addressed
t o your authority with y our baton o f o ffice in hand when ,

others would have broke n the skull o f the manager with the
baton itself before su ff e ring such insults to the prejudice o f all .

authorities ; but si nce i t all happened thus may G o d grant you ,

reward in His holy resignation and I now co unsel you not t o ,

-

pass the doors nor the thre s hhold o f the hacienda so as n o t ,

suffer other insults worse perhaps than the l ast an d ver y

. , , ,

e arly t o morrow morning go t o the governor and tell him every

thing th at has occurred t o you with the manager showi ng him ,
.

th e order o f the government and in vi ew of it re q uest him to

“

, .

kindly solve the pr oblem (if the friar manager At b e same ,

.
"

t ime ask him If there will be n o objection t o h is actin g as your

second in a d uel yo u desire t o h ave with the manager because ,

you r honor and your conscience c an not allow an offe nse to pass '

without sati sfacti on and that you will inev itably call out th e
,

manager ” On the followin g mornin g the captain went to

.

Cavite as did al s o the man ager and it was subsequentl y learn e d

,
'

t hat a s e ttlement was reached and the record was pigeonhole d .

This manager a f e w days late r departed for the Visayas as a

curate as rumor has it and he was replaced by Father J uan
, ,

H er r e r a ,whose deeds we have already recorded hereinbefore .

DE G R EE .

In the archbishop s palace of M anila the 2 oth day of Oc

'
,

t ober 1 795 the Most Illustrious an d Most R e verend Senor Don

Friar J uan An tonio de Or d ig o or O ud ig o y Gallego mos t worthy
, ,

255
T/z e Sen a t e D ocum en t an d Roma n is m
metropolitan arch b ishop o f th ese Philippine Islands of th e
Council of H M etc . .

Havin g seen this book on E uropean paper prese nte d by the

Most Rever end Friar Francisco de Santiag o of the sacr ed or der
of un c al c e d Augustinians the curat e recently e lected of t h e ,

pueblo and hacienda o f Imus separate d from Old Cavite petition

ing and paying your excellency to be pleased to order that in
, ,

this book the records of baptisms be kept that take place i n ,

t his pueblo That he ought t o order and did order that it should
.

be done in this book which co nsists o f 1 90 page s ,

.

n uc o n n s .

On the 2 7 t h day o f the month of Augus t 1 80 0 I Friar , , ,

Man uel de San Miguel regularly constitu t ed te mporary curat e ,

o f this chu r ch of Nuestra Senora de Pil ar of the pueblo and .

hacienda of Imus solemnly baptize my child seventeen days of

, .

age etc
,
.

On the i 9 th of the month o f February 1 79 7 I Friar A lonso

'

, , ,

de Jubera de la Concepcion reg ular curate of this pueblo and ,

the hacienda of Imus etc

On the i 9 th of the month of J anuary 1 79 6 I F r iar Fran
.
,

, , ,

cisco de Santiag o curate of this hacienda and puebl o of Nuestr a

,

Senora de Pilar etc , .

On the 2 4t h of May 1 80 6 I Fri ar Mariano de San Mi guel , . , ,

r e g ul a r curate of th e pueblo and hacienda of Imus etc , . 0

On the 5 t h day of August of the year 1 8 1 9 I Fr i ar Manuel , , ,

d e San Miguel regular curate of this church of Nuestra Senora

,

de Pilar of the pueblo and hacienda of Imus etc

, , .

No r a — The subscriber decl ares that he knows the person

who has writt en the presen t resume who is a resident and head ,

man o f the pueblo o f Imus It ought to be added t hat in t h e .

archives there ought to be fac ts upon this matter .

Fau n G G am m o n
MANIL A No vember 1 9 1 900
. .

, , .

In add ition to the fore going the commissioner to whom , ,

was assigned the subject of the fr iars examined when n o sten , ,

o g r ap h e r was present Fr W D Mc Kin n on and Fr Ed w H , . . . . . .

Fitzgerald both of the Roman Catholic c hurch who are army

, ,

chaplains and who have been stationed in various parts of t h e

,

islands an d have mingled a great deal with the natives From

, .

their kn owled ge of Spanish th ey have been able t o gath er a

great deal e f interesting and reliable information They both .

state d without qualifica tion that the friar s we r e exc eedingly

, ,

u npopular with the masses o f the people an d that the feeling

.
,

w as not con fin ed to a few pe rsons o r t o th e native priests .

T hey both thought i t would be a mistake to attempt to send

b ack the friars to their parishes .

A s imi lar conversat ion was had with M aj or W B John . .

s ton of t h e Forty s ixth Infantry and inspector general of one

,
- -

o f the distr icts i n So uther n Luzon who was a Roman Catholic , ,

a n d who has given special atte nti on when stationed in one of .

the pari shes to church matt ers He states without q ual ific a
, .

ti o n that a return of the friars to the parishes would be a great

mistake ; that the enmit y against them is felt deeply among th e
256
 T/ze Sen a t e Docum en t an a Roma n is m
Nine tenths o f the friar par i s h pri e st s le ave pr o g e n y it
-
.
.

their pueblos and in each pueblo th ere e xists a nucleus of fam

,

illes related to the friars of good s ocial po sition and favored ,

by the latter and these are the ones who sig h and ask for the
,

return of their natural protectors The latter in order to eu .

,

dow and maintain them in position have had t o oppress t h e ,

people with a thousand rapacities under pretext of religion ,

cu stom and piety Let the c o mmis s ian go to the pueblo of

, .

Dumangas ; there is Fray Bux illo with 6 children ; in Passi .

,

Fray Brabo with 4 ; i n Potota n Fray A mb r in o s with 8 : in

. , ,
.
,

Duenas Fray Gallo with 1 ; i n Dingle and Jan ice ay Fray

, . , , .

Llorente with 7 ; in Oton Fray Ylo z ( Diego ) with 8 ; Fray

, , .
, .

Joaquin Fernandez with 3 ; in Sara Fray Paulino with 4 ; in ,

-

, . ,

Bug as o n F r ay Manuel At encio with 6 ; in Dao ( Antique)

, , , ,

Fray Bamba with 8 ; in Guagua Fray Brabo ( Antonio ) with

.
, . .
,

3 ; in Lubao Fray Munoz with 2 ; in ‘Bataan Fray Marcilla

, , , .
,

with 1 0 ; in Binondo and Pandacan Archbishop Payo with 4 ; , ,

and so on in the four bodies which serve the parishes As they .

take the vows at the age of 1 6 before they know what mar ,

r i ag e is o r what it is for when they later go out into the world , ,

t hey open their eyes they make up for lost time having money , ,

an d opportunity .

1 1 Their bad life the ir exactions with the poor to meet

.
,

t h e calls of an ostentatious life fashioned after the European ,

and to sustain their spurious families Moreover that ruinous

idea of wishing t o rule in t h e pueblos putting their in fl uence
.
,

.
,

in to play to accomplish it .

This hostility is only against the four corporations which

have administered the curacies ; the others devoted to educa ,

ti on or lately arri ved here are not hated because they have not ,

injured the country in any way .

1 2 Undoubtedly
. And let the commission inform itself of .

those deport ed from Malolos Pampanga Antique Iloilo— the , , ,

Hilarios Tiburcio s Lac s ame n e s Br i t an i co s Abanas Ad r iat i

, , , , ,

cos Manzanillas Ad vin c ulas F r an c e s etc and other families

, , , . .
,

known in the provinces .

1 2 As their life is frugal and simple and the y live i n their

.
,

native climate they lack the great incentives to lust which burns
,

up the European celibates and consequently they are more ,

moral .

1 4 Lege textos : Let the commission read the

. Defensa
del Clero Filipino and the supplemental work th e reto which is
now in the press .

1 5 I predict il l because the wound is recent

. Within , .

t welve years they might return but thoroughl y reformed and ,

,

af ter many fasts so that lust may not dominate them ane w
, .

I predict well if the archbishop does not beco me wed ,

d e d to the friars as Mons Chapelle has a lr e ad y d on e who has

, .
, ,

gone over to them body and soul an d rather than confer the , ,

h on o r s o f intr oducer upon a Filipino clerg y man h e h as con . .

ferred them up on a Spanish layman disg uised as a priest who , ,

up to a short time ago was a shopkeeper If t he archbishop
"

. .

will uphold the inte r ests o f the secular clergy u n o nditional ly c

,
le t him come and he will be well received ; if not he will no t ,

be even though he perform miracles

, .

258
Tfie Sen a t e Doc um en t R oma n zr m
'

ana

17 That is not the o ld traditional form which was s impler

.
,

M fl nm c ie n t It would be suffi c ie nt to put it into force again

.
,

su mt h e Catholic people would be satisfied .

1 8 Worse st ill for the European spends three ti mes a s

.
, ,

much as the frugal native cler g y man and not having a sal ary ,

wi ll take money from God knows where or how being more ih ,

e xorable with the poor than formerly Through Christian econ .

o my they ou g ht not to return to the curacies The sam e thing .

wi ll happen as ih China where many European Cath olic mis

, _ ,

s i o n ar ie s lacking resources go into business secretly

, , .

1 9 Such a solution would have a very good effect since

.
,

h alf a million Filipinos who are now colonists will become pro -

pr ie t o r s .

If the civil commission is acting in good faith let it recur ,

t o those co lo nist pueblos requesting details as to how the cor ,

p ot ations have gone o n increasing their land holdings and it ,

will unearth curious and most scandalous histories .

1 d o n o t go to greater length bec ause I jud g e that the com

mission has al ready formed its plan o f government which it ,

wi ll carry into execution without refere n c e to the infor matio n

l aid before it Such is the Opinion o f the public which is gain
HE RME NE G ILD O J T o n n e s
. . ,

i n g ground . . .

Manila Sept 1 0 , 1 900 , . .

OF FI CE o n TH E Mm r iu w G VE O RN OR
IS LAN D NE G R OS
,

On
BA C O L OD
.

, Nov 22 1 9 0 0
.
,
.

T H ]: SE CRET A RY U S Pm mp r m a Co mm s e N,
MAN I LA P I
. .
l

. .
,

Sm : I am informed by the civil governor of this island that

t here is much opposition in Negros to the return O f the friars ,

an d that there is now being prepared a petition to the commis

s ion asking that the y be not al lo wed to return there He i n .

forms me that it will in all probability be signed b y the Offic ials

o f all the towns as well as b y almost all property holders i n the
,

island .

As this is a matter that is not quite in the scope of my au

t h o r i ty in Negros and as the people seem to be very much i n
,

t e r e s t e d i n the matter I have the honor to request t o be i n

-
,

formed if there is any objection to such a petition being for

warded i n view o f the general understandin g by t h e pe o ple
.

that the commission is desirous of looking into all matters of

i nte rest to the native population .

Very respectfully
C W MIN E R
,

. .
,

Colonel Sixth Infantry Military Governor of Ne g ros ,

.

Writer notifie d that there is no objection whatever to such

a petition being forwarded here a n d th at w h en rece i ved i t W i l l ,

have the full consideration O f the commission .

D ec 1 1 9 00. , .

259