The center of all that distant region is the famous city of Manila, which on account of its remarkable characteristics deserves equal rank with the greatest and most celebrated cities of the world. It is located on the island of Luzón, in the angle made by its two aides or points, with a capacious, deep, and strong harbor. It was anciently the settlement of the Luzón islanders; it was occupied by the Spaniards, and the government established there, in the year 1572. On account of its location, renown, and prominence, it was given by a royal decree of June 21, 1574, the honored title of distinguished and ever loyal,14 together with that of capital and chief city among all the cities in those islands. By a decree of November 19, 1595, it was decreed that it could enjoy all the privileges enjoyed by all the cities that are capitals of kingdoms; and by another decree of March 20, 1596, it was granted a special coat-of-arms, which it uses;15 while another decree of May 8, of the same year, allows it jurisdiction for five leguas around. However, it has greater jurisdiction in regard to government and superiority than any other of this monarchy, since the district of the royal Audiencia resident therein, according to the declaration by provinces, of the fifth of May, 1583, and the twenty-sixth of May, 1596, consists of the island of Luzón, with all the Filipinas of the archipelago of China (including the five already mentioned [i.e., the Malucos]), and the mainland of China, discovered or to be discovered hereafter, which is an immense distance. Its inhabited part—although it has suffered great disasters, which will be mentioned later [In the margin: “In number 93.”] and in spite of which it endures—is today very sightly in its buildings and plan, as they are mostly of stone, and as it is surrounded by a wall in the modern manner, with sufficient fortification. But what most ennobles it is the valor and loyalty of its inhabitants, who, notwithstanding their small numbers in proportion to those of the enemies, sustain the city with so much reputation and renown, that it is one of the best military posts in all the Orient, and one in which the royal standards of your Majesty preserve the valor and fame of Spaniards—who are feared and respected by all the kings who rule in those islands and regions—and of all the fleets that plough their seas. All the above makes that city, and the region that it governs in the most remote places of the world meritorious; this crown, therefore, should preserve that city for its dignity, and maintain it as the daughter of its power.
Number 14. Third reason of the importance of the islands: their native and acquired character
The third reason is the character, both native and acquired, of the Filipinas Islands. That of Luzón produces a quantity of gold, of which a quantity has always been found and obtained in its rivers. Rich mines have been discovered, now more considerable than ever. By a decree of August 12, 1578, the [reduction of the] royal fifth to the tenth was conceded to the inhabitants.16 That had some extensions later, from which it is inferred that metals were obtained. There are persistent rumors regarding the Pangasinan hills, which are forty leguas away from Manila, namely, that they are all full of gold-bearing ore. In the year 620,17 Alférez Don Diego de Espina [España—MS.]18 discovered the rich mine of Paraculi in Camarines. It extends for nine leguas, and it is hoped that it will have a considerable output. That has occasioned the command that the privileges of miners in those islands be observed, by a decree of September 22, 1636. They also abound in copper, which is brought from China with so much facility that the best artillery imaginable is cast in Manila, with which they supply their forts, the city of Macan and other cities of India, and it is taken to Nueva España; for the viceroy, the Marqués de Cerralvo, sent the governor, Don Juan Niño de Tabora, twenty-four thousand pesos, in return for which the latter sent him eighteen large pieces to fortify Acapulco. Of not less importance is the quicksilver of the Filipinas, whither the Chinese carry it in great quantities. It can be shipped—as is permitted and ordered by different royal decrees of August 15, 1609, and May 15,19 1631—to supply the deficiency of that metal for working the mines of Nueva España.
Number 15. Commerce of the islands, domestic and foreign; and in what the domestic consists
The greatest treasure of those islands, and that in which their wealth consists, is commerce, which demands a more extended treatment. It is divided into domestic and foreign. Of the latter, which is the rich commerce, we shall treat later. [In the margin: “In the year—sc.: number—20 to 37.”] The domestic, which is slight, consists in the fruits and commodities produced in their lands, which are cultivated by their inhabitants: rice in the husk, and cleaned; cotton, palm wine, salt, wax, palm oil, and fowls; lampotes, tablecloths, Ilocan blankets, and medriñaques. These are the products in which the Indians pay their tributes, and in nothing else—except some who pay them in taes of gold, of eighteen carats, which is that obtained in those islands, and which is worth eight reals. Nutmeg, as good as that of Borneo, is found in them, as is mentioned in a royal decree of October 9, 623, in which it was ordered to bring some to these kingdoms.20 There is abundance of swine and cattle, deer, and carabaos or buffaloes. The coast waters are full of fish, the fields of fruits, the gardens of produce and vegetables. The most useful plant is the palm, from which an infinite number of articles are obtained. There are groves of them, as there are vineyards in España, although they require less labor and care. From the rice they make the ordinary bread, which they call morisqueta. What most shows the wealth of the country is the gold that its natives wear; for scarcely is there an Indian of moderate means, who is not adorned with a chain of this rich metal, of which the women use most.
Number 16. Number and diversity of Indians in the islands
What most assures the provinces of the new world is the greater or less number of the natives. In that the Filipinas are eminent, for there are the indigenous Indians, who are tributarios; but these are not many, as not all of them are pacified. Of those who have been pacified some, the larger encomiendas, have been assigned to the royal crown. There are other foreign Indians whose number is great in Manila and its environs, and where there are Spaniards, to whose service the Indians engage themselves for their day’s wages. These include an infinite number of nations: Chinese, Japanese, Champanes, Malucans, Borneans, Joas [i.e., Javanese], Malays, and even Persians and Arabs. But those who are tributary to the royal crown are:
Number 17. Indians tributary to the royal crown in the Indias
In the provinces of Oton and Panay, twelve chief villages, which have 6,035 tributes.
In the island of Zebu, three which have 2,529 tributes.
In that of Camarines, there are 87 tributes of vagrant Indians and Sangleys (who are Chinese Christians).
In Mindoro and Luban, 1,612 tributes.
In the province of Tayavas, in five villages 1,343 tributes.
In that of Bay, in nine villages, 2,232 tributes.
On the coast of Manila, in twenty-eight villages, 4,250 tributes.
The vagrant Indians of Manila and its environs amount to 781 tributes.
The Japanese foreigners, 218 tributes.
The Christian Sangleys of the village of Baybay, outside the walls of Manila, 580 tributes.
In the province of Pampanga, in six villages, 3,650 tributes.
In the province of Pangasinan, in four villages, 899 tributes.
In the province of Ilocos, in five villages, 2,988 tributes.
In the province of Cagayan, in eight villages, 2,192 tributes.
Consequently, the royal crown has 44,763 tributes, as appears from an official statement made in the year 630. At ten reals per tribute, the amount reaches 53,715 pesos.
Among private persons there are distributed and assigned as encomiendas 48,000 other tributes, which for the 230 citizens of Manila—without reckoning those of the cities of [Santísimo] Nombre de Jesus, [Nueva] Caceres, and [Nueva] Segovia, and the town of Arebalo, who number about 300 more—does