Father Fray Luis Gandullo, his entrance upon the religious life,
and his coming to this province
[The events which happened in the case of this father are such as God
rarely manifests, even in the case of those who are nearest to Him;
and I should not dare to bring them to the light if they were not
attested by three notable circumstances. The first is that he never
formed his own judgment about what happened, but submitted the matter
to a learned and spiritual man. The second is, that father Fray Luis
kept such silence about these things that he only revealed them under
the solemn mandate of his superior. The third is the innocence of his
life, and his marvelous virtue. A formal certificate as to these three
circumstances is given at length; it is by Fray Juan de Sancto Thomas,
and is dated at Manila, August 10, 1615. Father Fray Luis Gandullo
was a native of the town of Aracena in the archbishopric of Sevilla,
and was born of a rich and noble family. At the age of fourteen he
made a vow to assume the habit of the Dominican order. This vow he
was unable to carry out for eight years, because of his duties to
his widowed mother and his two sisters. While still a youth, he was
favored with a vision of the Virgin, which was followed soon after
by a vision in which the devil appeared to him. After his two sisters
were settled in life a certain trouble befell him in his own country,
which obliged him to leave it and to go to the Indias. He dwelt for
some time in Nueva España, where he lived with some freedom, the Lord
preparing to drive him, by the very thorns which he should find in this
road, to the religious life. His ancient desires to become a friar of
St. Dominic returned to his mind, and he began to arrange with the
prior of the convent of the city of Puebla to assume the habit. The
prior and the friars of the convent, being asked by him if a secret
business pledge which he had made had any validity, declared that it
had no force in conscience, and would not hold him in a court of law
if the party concerned would tell the truth of the case. He assumed
the habit and waited for fourteen months to be professed. While he
was looking for his profession to take place his creditor entered the
convent, declaring that they were taking away his money by permitting
the novice to enter the profession, since he could earn what he owed
in the secular life. Upon this, the superior commanded Luis to lay
aside the habit; but the Lord punished the creditor by burning a
great deal more of his property than the debt amounted to. Luis,
who knew that the obligation was merely a confidential agreement,
refused to pay it because he did not owe it. He was ordained as priest,
having determined to become a secular clergyman. Under this condition
he prayed God to help him fulfil his vow; and afterward had visions,
among them a dreadful one of the devil in the form of a snake. Being
constantly attended by visions, he determined to carry out his vow,
and one night heard a voice calling to him, "Luis!" He answered,
"Lord!" and the voice went on to say, "Rise, and go to Mexico to
assume the habit." It seemed to him that it was the voice of his dead
brother. His conduct when he came to the convent was such that the
brethren there decided to grant him the habit and the profession
together, since he had already completed his novitiate. When the
founders of this province went through Puebla, father Fray Luis
desired to accompany them, but was unable to carry out his wish at
that time. He received intimations from a holy woman, a penitent
of his, that the Lord favored his desire to come to this province;
and to this intimation were added other supernatural signs. A great
scandal having arisen because of violence shown by the viceroy
to a superior of a certain religious order, [59] father Fray Luis
felt called upon to preach against the viceroy; he was condemned
to exile in the Philippinas, and received the sentence with joy. He
accompanied father Fray Juan Cobo, who was exiled for the same cause,
as is narrated in chapter twenty-four of this history.]
(To be concluded.)
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL DATA
The present volume contains the second instalment of Aduarte's
Historia, begun in Vol. XXX (q.v.); it includes chapters xxxviii to
lxx (pp. 167-384), inclusive, of book i. The concluding installment
will be presented in Vol. XXXII.
NOTES
[1] i.e., "The holy synod commands parish priests and other preachers
to the Indians to instruct them often and earnestly in the doctrine
of this mystery;" and, "To those whom the parish priest shall regard
as sufficiently instructed, and made fit by the correctness of their
lives, he shall not fail to administer the holy eucharist, on the
first Easter following."
[2] Francisco Blancas de San José was a native of Tarazona, and
entered the Dominican order at Alcalá de Henares. He came to Manila
with the mission of 1595, and was sent to Bataán; afterward he
spent several years in the Manila convent, preaching to Indians and
Chinese, as well as Spaniards. He also gave especial attention to
the instruction of the negroes and slaves there, of whom there were
many thousands. He also labored in Cagayán and (1609) in Mindoro
and Balayan. In 1614 he sailed for Spain, but died on the voyage,
before reaching Mexico. (Reseña biográfica, i, pp. 172-177.)
[3] Jacinto de San Jerónimo came to the islands with the mission of
1604. The rest of his life was spent mainly in the missions of Cagayán;
near its end, he went to the new mission of Ituy (now Nueva Vizcaya),
where he died in 1637. (Reseña biográfica, i, p. 327.)
[4] Probably referring to the expedition sent from Mexico early in
1559, to conquer Florida, under command of Tristan de Luna y Arellano;
it included 500 Spanish soldiers and a considerable number of Indian
allies. This attempt proved unsuccessful, and most of the Spaniards
were slain by the warlike Florida Indians.
[5] The sketch of Salazar's life given in Reseña biográfica (i,
pp. 35-49) states that he obtained permission to carry twenty religious
with him to the Philippines, all of whom he procured from the convent
at Salamanca. But twelve of them died (apparently from ship-fever)
before reaching Mexico; and the others were so prostrated by sickness
that they could go no farther.
[6] i.e., "Reprove, entreat, rebuke, in all patience and doctrine."
[7] Cantaro (from Latin, cantharus): the name of a large earthen or
metal receptacle for liquids, hence for the amount contained in it;
also, a measure for wine, varying in different parts of Spain. The
cantaro (or alquiére) of Portugal is equivalent to nearly 2 1/5 or
3 1/3 U. S. gallons in Lisbon and Oporto respectively.
[8] Referring to the cultivation of their rice, usually in fields
more or less under water.
[9] i.e., the fifth Sunday in Lent.
[10] These were Dominicans and Franciscans (Vol. IX, pp. 161,
172). One of the latter was named Gregorio da Cruz; a letter from him
to Dasmariñas may be found in Vol. IX, p. 197. Huerta, however, says
(Estado, pp. 672, 673) that the early Franciscan missions lasted only
from 1583 to 1586, and were not resumed until the year 1700.
[11] See Morga's account of this expedition and its results, in
Vol. XV, pp. 78-89, 130-160, 187-190. Cf. letters sent from Manila
to Camboja, and papers connected with the embassy sent to Dasmariñas,
in Vol. IX, pp. 76-78, 86, 87, 161-180.
[12] The island (and group) of Lubang, southwest of Manila; a
dependency formerly of the province of Cavite, but now of Marinduque.
[13] Pulo Obi--that is, Obi Island; it lies near Cape Camâo (sometimes
called Cambodia), the southernmost point of Cochinchina.
[14] It is difficult to identify this town with exactness, but it is
probably the same as the modern Pnom-penh (Panomping) on the great
river Me-khong (also called Cambodia). The usurper of Langara's throne
was Anacaparan (see Morga's account, in Vol. XV).
[15] That is, the usurper Anacaparan. According to Morga, he resided
at Sistor, which probably was the modern Udong.
[16] Tiuman (Timoan, Timun) Island is off the eastern coast of the
Malay peninsula; it is about ten miles long and five broad, and is
a mass of rock, rising into heights of 2,000 to 3,000 feet.
[17] Pedro de Ledesma, although an old man when he came to the
islands, lived until 1625, after having filled several offices in his
order--mainly at Manila, where he died. He brought seven missionaries
with him (1596).
[18] For meaning of this title, see Vol. XV, p. 88.
[19] See Morga's account of this expedition (Vol. XV,
pp. 160-168). Another relation (unsigned) is presented in a
MS. document conserved in the Archivo general de Indias, with the
pressmark: "Simancas-Secular; Cartas y expedientes del gobernador de
Filipinas; años 1600 á 1628; est. 67, caj. 6, leg. 7."
[20] According to the MS. mentioned in preceding note, this officer
was Pedro de Beaztegui (probably for Verastegui).
[21] Spanish, Avia yo andado todas estas estaçiones: an allusion
to the "stations" which represent, in a Roman Catholic church, the
stages in Christ's sufferings; and to the devotion which consists in
making the circuit of these stations.
[22] See Vol. XV, p. 206.
[23] Apparently meaning here, "the country of the Irrayas," rather
than the name of any distinct district. The Irrayas are in modern
times a heathen tribe, of mixed Malay and Negrito blood, dwelling in
the southern part of Isabela province, Luzón, on the western slopes
of the Palanan range, and on tributary streams far up the Rio Grande
de Cagayán.
[24] The Angatatan River, on which is situated the hamlet of Magaldan;
it falls into Lingayén Gulf.
[25] Thus in Aduarte's text, but misprinted for Guadaira. Alcala de
Guadaira is a small town in the diocese of Sevilla.
[26] Prauncar, the son of Langara; he had been replaced on his throne
by the Spanish adventurers. See Morga's account of Joan de Mendoza's
expedition to Camboja, and the death of these two Dominicans, in
Vol. XV, pp. 183-190, 244-247.
[27] According to Morga's account, this friar was a Dominican.
[28] The Dominicans made their first establishment at the City of
Mexico in 1526; nine years later, their houses were organized into
the province of Santiago de Mexico. In 1550, Chiapas and Guatemala
were separated therefrom, and formed into a new province; and in
1592 permission was given to cut out still another, the province of
Oajaca. Alonso de Vayllo was its second provincial (1594-97). See
account of the Dominican order in Nueva España in the sixteenth
century, in Bancroft's Hist. Mexico, ii, pp. 724-733.
[29] i.e., "Christ became, for our sake, obedient even unto death."
[30] Tomás Hernández was sent, soon after his arrival at Manila (1602),
to the Japan mission; but at the end of four years he returned with
broken health, which compelled him to cease his labors. He lingered,
however, until 1642, when he died at Manila.
[31] See list of these missionaries in Reseña biográfica, i,
pp. 307-319. Thirty-one arrived at Manila, besides the two who died
on the way.
[32] One of the year-periods used in Japanese chronology (see
Vol. VIII, p. 263). The Keicho period is 1596-1615.
[33] All these priests became martyrs, except Hernandez; the fate of
the lay brother is unknown.
[34] One of the Koshiki Islands, lying west of Satsuma, and belonging
to that district.
[35] Konishi Yukinaga Tsu-no-Kami, a noted general, was converted in
1584, and took the name of Augustin. In 1592 he commanded the main
army (composed mainly of Christian Japanese) sent by Taikô-sama
for the conquest of Korea. Konishi won renown in that enterprise,
in which he was engaged until Taikô-sama's death (1598) caused the
recall of the Japanese troops from Korea. Opposing Iyeyasu, Konishi
was among the prisoners taken at the battle of Sekigahara (1600),
and was beheaded at Kioto. See Rein's Japan, pp. 284-288, 290, 299.
[36] Owotomo Bungo-no-Kami (called Franciscus by the Jesuits), the
most powerful feudal lord in Kiushiu, was one of the first daimiôs
in Japan to accept Christianity, and was the main support of the
missions in their early years. He died in 1587. The family of this
prince were deprived, under Iyeyasu, of their possessions, which were
divided among the latter's adherents. See Rein's Japan, pp. 273, 519.
[37] This was a soldier named Joan Diaz (Vol. XV, pp. 189,
279). Cf. Morga's account of this Dominican mission (Vol. XV,
pp. 279, 280).
[38] Jerónimo de Belén, a Portuguese by birth, came in the mission
of 1595, from Puebla de los Angeles, Mexico. He ministered at Bataán,
Manila, and Cavite respectively; in 1603 went on the Camboja mission,
and on its failure returned to Manila. He died in 1642, in Pampanga.
[39] Sketches of the lives of all these friars are given in Reseña
biográfica, i, pp. 320-327.
[40] This friar came in 1604; he died at Nasiping, July 16, 1611.
[41] Pedro Muriel came to the islands in 1615, and was sent to the
Cagayán missions, where he seems to have spent most of his remaining
years. He died at Manila, about 1642.
[42] Itaves is a district south of central Cagayán, on the waters
of the Rio Chico de Cagayan (or Bangag River). It has over 15,000
inhabitants, contained in more than a hundred villages; these people
are mainly Calauas, and are heathen Malays. See U. S. Gazetteer of
Philippine Islands, p. 561; also Smithsonian Report, 1899, p. 535.
[43] Juan de Naya spent most of his missionary life in Cagayán. Finally
being ordered to Mexico, he died on the voyage thither, January
27, 1620.
[44] Andres de Haro, a native of Toledo, made his profession at
Cuenca in 1613. He came to the Philippines in 1615, and spent more
than forty years in the Cagayán missions. At various times he filled
important offices in Manila, among them, that of commissary of the
Inquisition. He died in that city, September 19, 1670, at the age of
seventy-six years.
[45] Apparently a reference to the Jesuit Alonso Sanchéz, who had gone
in 1586 to Spain (see Vol. VI) as envoy from the various estates of
the Philippine colony.
[46] i.e., "Farewell in the Lord, beloved of my heart; may you fare
well and happily forever."
[47] This was Matsura Shigenobu Hô in, the daimiô of Hirado (Firando)
and Iki. He succeeded his father in 1584, and died in 1614, at the
age of sixty-five. He was an officer in the Korean campaigns under
Konishi, and served during 1592-98. See Satow's note regarding him,
in Voyage of Saris (Hakluyt Society's publications, London, 1900),
p. 79; also his portrait, p. 80.
[48] The same as bagacay or bacacae; see Vol. XVI, p. 55.
[49] Hizen is one of the most notable provinces of Japan, commercially
and historically. Its chief city is Nagasaki, which about 1586 was
wrested from the daimiô of Omura by Taikô-sama, and declared the
property of the central government. The Dutch maintained a factory
there, although under humiliating conditions and restrictions,
from 1639 to 1859. Another notable town in Hizen is Arima, where the
Christians were so cruelly persecuted in 1637. The daimiô of Hizen,
mentioned by Aduarte, was probably Nabeshima, prince of Saga, who
was a favorite with Iyeyasu.
See Rein's Japan, pp. 300, 520-523.
[50] Juan de San Jacinto made his profession in the Dominican convent
at Salamanca, in 1594. He came to Manila in the mission of 1602, and
ministered to the natives in Pangasinan and afterward in Ituy. He
was finally compelled by ill-health to retire to Manila, where he
died in 1626. See Reseña biográfica, i, p. 316.
[51] Pedro de Santo Tomás came to the islands in the mission of 1602,
and labored twenty years in the Cagayán missions--especially among the
Irrayas, whom he pacified after their revolt against the Spaniards. He
died at Lal-ló, June 29, 1622.
[52] The Japanese custom of hara-kiri, or seppuku; see description
Rein's Japan, pp. 328, 329; cf. Griffis's Mikado's Empire, p. 221.
[53] The bonzes are the priests of the Buddhist temples; but they
belong to various sects under the general appellation of Buddhism.
[54] This daimiô was Shimadzu Yoshihisa; he was commissioned to
subjugate the Riu-Kiu Islands, which were then added to the province
of Satsuma.
[55] i.e., Yamaguchi, in Nagato; the latter is the province at the
southwest extremity of Hondo (or Nippon) Island, and lies opposite
Kiushiu Island (in which are Satsuma and Hizen).
[56] Father Organtinus (Sommervogel can find no distinctive Christian
name) was born at Brescia in 1530, and entered the order in 1556. He
set out from Lisbon for India in 1567; and soon went to Japan, where
he spent the rest of his life, dying at Nagasaki in May, 1609.
Murdoch and Yamagata's History of Japan, 1542-1651 (Kobe, 1903), gives
this Jesuit's name as Organtino Gnecchi (or Soldi), and the date of
his arrival in Japan as 1572; and furnishes considerable information
(partly derived from Charlevoix) regarding Gnecchi's labors in Japan.
[57] Takayama (called Justo Ukondono by the Jesuits) the governor of
Akashi, in Harima; at Adzuchi-yama, on Lake Birva, he built a house
and church for the Jesuits, and otherwise favored them. About 1615,
he was, with other Christians, banished to Manila.
Nobunaga became, about the middle of the sixteenth century, the most
powerful feudal lord in Japan. He strove to govern the country in
the name of the Mikado, but aroused the enmity of the other feudal
lords and of the Buddhist priesthood, and was treacherously slain in
1582. See Rein's Japan, pp. 267-273, 306.
[58] Diego Carlos was a native of Guatemala, and made his profession
at Puebla de los Angeles in 1592. Six years later, he came to the
Philippines, and spent the rest of his life in the Cagayan missions,
where he died in 1626.
[59] Probably referring to the act of Villamanrique in sending to
Spain ignominiously (1588) the Franciscan commissary Alonzo Ponce
(Bancroft's Hist. Mexico, ii, pp. 717, 718).